Senate Committee Narrowly Rejects Creation of Cyber Force Under Army
The Senate Armed Services Committee voted 14-13 against Senator Kirsten Gillibrand’s amendment to create a new Cyber Force military service branch under the Department of the Army, as part of the National Defense Authorization Act. The proposal, supported by a CSIS and FDD report, aimed to address structural challenges in U.S. cyber operations. Instead, the committee mandated an independent review of U.S. Cyber Command’s organization and resources, along with a study on Principal Cyber Advisors. Gillibrand plans to continue advocating for the Cyber Force.
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Senate Committee Rejects Cyber Force Creation Under Army, Advances Cyber Command Review
The Senate Armed Services Committee narrowly rejected an amendment by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) to create a new Cyber Force military service under the Department of the Army, by a vote of 14-13. The amendment, part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) markup, would have established a service similar to the Space Force's relationship with the Air Force. Despite the defeat, Gillibrand's office indicated she will continue advocating for the Cyber Force. The committee's version of the NDAA instead mandates an independent review of whether U.S. Cyber Command (CYBERCOM) is adequately organized and resourced, and a separate study on the roles and resourcing of Principal Cyber Advisors across military departments. The legislative push coincided with a report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), which argued that creating a dedicated Cyber Force would resolve longstanding structural challenges in managing cyber personnel and authorities.
Government Executive - All ContentSenate Committee Rejects Cyber Force Amendment, Orders CYBERCOM Review
The Senate Armed Services Committee narrowly rejected an amendment by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand to create a new Cyber Force under the Army, with a 14-13 vote. The amendment, part of the National Defense Authorization Act markup, would have established a separate cyber-focused military service akin to the Space Force. Despite the defeat, Gillibrand's office indicated she will continue advocating for the Cyber Force. The committee's version of the NDAA instead mandates an independent review of whether U.S. Cyber Command is adequately organized and resourced, and a separate study on the roles and resourcing of Principal Cyber Advisors across military departments. The legislative push coincided with a report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies and the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, which argued that creating a Cyber Force would resolve longstanding structural challenges in the cyber domain. Former House staffer Joshua Stiefel noted that further authority transfers to Cyber Command would erode service chiefs' roles, suggesting a structural breaking point has been reached.
Government Executive - All ContentSenate Committee Rejects Cyber Force Creation Under Army, Advances Cyber Command Review
The Senate Armed Services Committee narrowly rejected an amendment by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) to create a new Cyber Force military service under the Department of the Army, with a vote of 14-13. Four Democrats and 10 Republicans opposed the measure, while nine Democrats and four Republicans supported it. Despite the setback, Gillibrand's office indicated she will continue advocating for the Cyber Force. The committee's version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) instead mandates an independent review of whether U.S. Cyber Command (CYBERCOM) is adequately organized and resourced, and calls for a study on the roles and resourcing of Principal Cyber Advisors across military departments. The push coincided with a report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) arguing that a dedicated Cyber Force would address longstanding structural challenges. Former House Armed Services Committee staffer Joshua Stiefel noted that further authority cannot be given to service chiefs without creating a new service, calling the situation a 'precipice.'
Government Executive - All ContentSenate narrowly rejects creation of Cyber Force service branch under Army
An effort led by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand to create a new Cyber Force military service branch under the Army narrowly failed in the Senate Armed Services Committee by a vote of 14-13. The amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act was opposed by four Democrats and ten Republicans, while nine Democrats and four Republicans supported it. Despite the setback, Gillibrand's office stated she will continue pushing for the Cyber Force's creation. The committee's NDAA version instead mandates an independent review of U.S. Cyber Command's organization and resources, as well as a study on Principal Cyber Advisors across military departments. The push was supported by a new report from the CSIS and FDD Commission on Cyber Force Generation, which argued that creating the service would address structural challenges. Former House staffer Joshua Stiefel noted that CYBERCOM has received significant authority but structural issues remain unresolved, suggesting a breaking point has been reached.
Defense One - All ContentSenate narrowly rejects creation of Cyber Force service branch under Army
An amendment proposed by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand to create a new Cyber Force military service under the Department of the Army narrowly failed in the Senate Armed Services Committee by a vote of 14-13. The amendment, part of the National Defense Authorization Act markup, would have established a cyber-focused service branch similar to how the Space Force and Marine Corps are organized under the Air Force and Navy respectively. Four Democrats and ten Republicans voted against the measure, while nine Democrats and four Republicans supported it. Despite the setback, Gillibrand's office indicated she will continue pushing for the Cyber Force's creation. The committee's version of the NDAA instead mandates an independent review of U.S. Cyber Command's organization and resources, as well as a study on the roles of Principal Cyber Advisors across military departments. The legislative effort was supported by a recent report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies and the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, which argued that a dedicated Cyber Force would address longstanding structural challenges in the cyber warfare domain.
Defense One - All ContentSenate narrowly rejects creation of Cyber Force service branch under Army
An effort led by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand to create a new Cyber Force military service branch under the Army narrowly failed in the Senate Armed Services Committee by a vote of 14-13. The amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act was opposed by four Democrats and ten Republicans, while nine Democrats and four Republicans supported it. Despite the setback, Gillibrand's office stated she will continue pushing for the Cyber Force's creation. The committee's version of the NDAA instead mandates an independent review of U.S. Cyber Command's organization and resources, as well as a study on the roles of Principal Cyber Advisors. The push was supported by a new report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies and the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, which argued that a dedicated Cyber Force would address longstanding structural challenges in the military's handling of cyber operations. Former House staffer Joshua Stiefel noted that the military has reached a point where further authority cannot be given to Cyber Command without taking from service chiefs, making a new service branch necessary.
Defense One - All Content