S 2388 Introduced – Cyber Circuit Rider Program
Back in March Sen Cortez-Masto (D,NV) introduced S 1018, the Cybersecurity for Rural Water Systems Act. The bill would require USDA to establish a rural water and wastewater cybersecurity circuit rider program” similar to the one established in 7 USC 1926(a)(22), but focused on cybersecurity. The bill would authorize $10-million per year through 2028 to support the program.
This bill is essentially the same as S 2388, the Cybersecurity for Rural Water Systems Act, that was introduced by Cortez Masto in July 2023. No action was taken on that bill in the 118th Congress.
Cybersecurity Circuit Rider
This bill would amend §1926(a) by adding a new paragraph (23), Rural Water and Wastewater Cybersecurity Circuit Rider Program. It would require USDA to establish a new Cybersecurity Circuit Rider program. The new program would:
Provide rapid assessments of the current cybersecurity abilities of rural water and wastewater treatment associations,
Develop reasonable protocols to enhance cybersecurity protection,
Provide assistance to address inadequate cyber protection plans, and
Document the state of cyber protection with respect to the water supplies of those associations.
S 1018 would authorize $10-million per year to support the program through 2029.
Other Developments
In October 2024 the National Rural Water Association (NRWA), in collaboration with the White House Office of the National Cyber Director (ONCD) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), announced the Cybersecurity Circuit Rider Program Study. The one-year study began in November 2024.
Moving Forward
Neither Cortez-Masto nor her sole co-sponsor {Sen Rounds (R,ND)} are members of the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee to which this bill was assigned for consideration. This means that it is unlikely that there is sufficient influence to see the bill considered in Committee. Adding $10-million dollars in spending is sure to draw opposition from many Republicans, but there may still be sufficient bipartisan support in the Committee to see the bill approved if it were considered.
As with most bills, there would not be sufficient interest in this legislation to see the Senate leadership tie up the Senate for the time that it would be necessary to consider this bill under regular order. Because of the added spending involved, it would not be possible to pass this bill under the Senate’s unanimous consent process; it would take just a single Senator to object to passage of the bill to kill consideration.
Commentary
The current circuit rider program has about 147 personnel periodically helping small water systems and small wastewater treatment systems. CISA reports about 153,000 water treatment facilities in the US with the vast majority (93 % by one estimate -pg 3) being small systems that would be covered by the circuit rider program. That means that each circuit rider would have to cover about 1,000 systems. They do not get around very often.
The other problem that the bill fails to address is where the USDA is going to find the cybersecurity personnel that would be needed to support the program. According to the NRWA, they intend to provide cybersecurity training for the Water Circuit Riders in all 50 states and Puerto Rico. This would avoid costs associated with adding personnel.