Sponsors (4)
Creates an NTIA Office of Policy Development and Cybersecurity and an Associate Administrator to lead policy, multistakeholder cybersecurity coordination, and support for small and rural providers.
The bill creates a centralized NTIA office to strengthen cybersecurity coordination, support small/rural providers, and make research more available — improving security and innovation but raising costs, possible industry bias, privacy risks, and concerns about concentrated discretionary authority.
Federal policymakers and agencies (including the NTIA) gain a dedicated office to coordinate cybersecurity and communications policy, improving national cybersecurity posture and interagency/regulatory clarity.
Consumers and businesses will likely see stronger network security and greater resilience to cyber incidents, reducing risk of service disruption and data loss.
Small and rural providers get more targeted support and a formal avenue to give feedback, which can improve local access, service reliability, and competition in underserved areas.
NTIA advocacy for unspecified 'market-based' policies could shape rules in ways that advantage large firms and disadvantage smaller competitors or some consumers, depending on implementation.
Broad, discretionary duties for the new office (e.g., tasks the Assistant Secretary deems appropriate) could centralize decision-making and reduce transparency about priorities and use of authority.
Public release of data and research (even with claimed classified protections) risks exposing proprietary information or private data, raising privacy and competitive concerns for companies and researchers.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Official title: Amend the National Telecommunications and Information Administration Organization Act to establish the Office of Policy Development and Cybersecurity, and for other purposes.
Introduced June 12, 2025 by John Wright Hickenlooper · Last progress June 12, 2025
Creates a new Office of Policy Development and Cybersecurity inside the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and establishes an Associate Administrator position to lead it. The office will analyze communications and internet policy, coordinate multistakeholder cybersecurity and privacy efforts, promote collaboration between security researchers and providers, support efforts to prevent future vulnerabilities, and advocate for secure, resilient communications networks and supply chains. The bill redesignates the existing Associate Administrator for Policy Analysis and Development into the new Associate Administrator role on enactment and directs the office to provide public access to non-classified data, advise NTIA leadership, and represent NTIA to the FCC, Congress, and other stakeholders. It emphasizes market-based policy, innovation, and support for small and rural providers.