HR 5000 Adopted in Committee – Cybersecurity Hiring

Yesterday the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee held a markup hearing that considered 12 bills, including HR 5000, the Cybersecurity Hiring Modernization Act. An amendment in the form of a substitute was offered by Rep Comer (R,KY). That alternative language was approved by a vote of 44 to 0. The bill will now be cleared to move to the floor of the House, probably under the suspension of the rules process. Bipartisan support is expected.

The bill would limit the ability of federal agencies to require minimum educational requirements in the hiring of personnel to fill cybersecurity positions in the competitive service. No funding is authorized in this legislation.

The substitute language included a minor change in the proposed language to be added to 5 USC 3308. It added a new subparagraph (C) to the proposed §3308(b)(2), requiring the Office of Personnel Management to post regular updates to the Federal Cyber Workforce Dashboard maintained on the Office’s website.

With the bill being favorably reported by the Committee, it is now cleared for consideration by the full House; technically the Committee Report is supposed to be published first. I would expect the bill to be taken up under the suspension of the rules process; limited debate, no floor amendments, and a super majority required for passage. A similar bill,  HR 4502, the Modernizing the Acquisition of Cybersecurity Experts Act, passed in the 118^th Congress by a vote of 394 to 1.

CSB Releases Another Combustible Dust Safety Video

Yesterday the Chemical Safety Board (CSB) released a safety video outlining the causes and results of the May 2017 combustible dust explosions and fires at Di Didion Milling facility in Cambria, Wisconsin. As we have come to expect from CSB videos, the new video provides a compelling summary of the results of the CSB’s accident investigation and report.

There have been two earlier dust explosion videos from  the CSB. The first was the video about the explosions at Imperial Sugar. The second was a follow up video about the lack of action at OSHA about combustible dust hazards.

Review – Bills Introduced – 2-4-26

Yesterday, with both the House and Senate in Washington, there were 64 bills introduced. One of those bills may receive additional coverage in this blog:

HR 7384 To amend the Toxic Substances Control Act to prohibit the use of hydrogen fluoride (hydrofluoric acid) at petroleum refineries, and for other purposes. Waters, Maxine [Rep.-D-CA-43] 

Space Geek Legislation

I would like to mention one bill under my limited Space Geek coverage in this blog:

HR 7379 To amend title 51, United States Code, to provide the National Aeronautics and Space Administration authority to detect, identify, monitor, and track unmanned aircraft systems, and for other purposes. Stevens, Haley M. [Rep.-D-MI-11]

For more information on these bills, including legislative history for similar bills in the 118^th Congress, as well as a mention in passing of two bills limiting the use of facial recognition, see my article at CFSN Detailed Analysis - https://patrickcoyle.substack.com/p/bills-introduced-2-4-26 - subscription required.

DOT Publishes National Strategy for TDI RFI Notice

 Today, the DOT’s Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology (OST-R) published a request for information (RFI) in the Federal Register (91 FR 5150-5151) on “Request for Information-Research To Support Establishing a National Strategy for Transportation Digital Infrastructure”. This RFI is seeking public and stakeholder input on the research and development activities needed to modernize the nation's transportation system through the application of digital infrastructure at scale.

The RFI is looking for responses to questions in four key topic areas:

• Research, Development and Deployment,

• System Architecture, Interoperability and Standards,

• Artificial Intelligence and Automation, and

• Data Governance, Privacy, and Cybersecurity.

The last topic area includes two specific cybersecurity related questions:

The last topic area includes two specific cybersecurity related questions:

What data governance principles, access controls, and cybersecurity measures are needed to ensure trust, accountability, and privacy?

How should U.S. DOT apply the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) to TDI development and deployment?

In my opinion there should be an additional cybersecurity question added:

“Should DOT seek to establish a TDI related vulnerability disclosure process, or should it actively promote the use of CISA’s vulnerability reporting process.”

OST-R is soliciting public feedback. They request submissions be made in MS Word format and sent via email to DI-Strategy-RFI@dot.gov. Comments should be submitted by March 6^th, 2026

Review – Bills Introduced – 2-3-26

Yesterday, with both the House and Senate in Washington, there were 32 bills introduced. Two of those bills may receive additional coverage in this blog:

HR 7334 To establish a commission on robotics, and for other purposes. Obernolte, Jay [Rep.-R-CA-23]

HR 7338 To amend title 49, United States Code, to codify the Railroad Safety Advisory Committee, and for other purposes. Sykes, Emilia Strong [Rep.-D-OH-13]

 

For more information on these bills, including legislative history for similar bills in the 118^th Congress, as well as a mention in passing of a defense technology hub bill, see my article at CFSN Detailed Analysis - https://patrickcoyle.substack.com/p/bills-introduced-2-3-26 - subscription required.

OMB Approves OPM Civil Service Decline Final Rule

Yesterday the OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) announced that it had approved (with change) the final rule submitted by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) on “Improving Performance, Accountability and Responsiveness in the Civil Service”. The notice of proposed rulemaking for this final rule was published on March 23^rd, 2025.

According to the Spring 2025 Unified Agenda entry for this rulemaking:

“OPM plans to finalize a rulemaking implementing E.O. 14171 [link added]. The proposed rule would create the procedures for moving policy-influencing positions into Schedule Policy/Career, which would increase career employee accountability. Schedule Policy/Career positions will remain career jobs filled on a nonpartisan basis. Yet they will be at-will positions excepted from adverse action procedures or appeals. This will allow agencies to quickly remove employees from critical positions who engage in misconduct, perform poorly, or obstruct the democratic process by intentionally subverting Presidential directives.”

The current civil service program was specifically designed to prevent federal jobs from being part of a political patronage system. While recognizing that above a certain level, management of the federal bureaucracy is political in nature (and thus requiring presidential appointment), most federal jobs require some level of practical expertise and experience to fairly and efficiently operate and oversee federal programs. Those jobs should not be subject to political litmus tests that change with every change in administration.

While I am sure that the folks at the Heritage Foundation have done an admirable job of cloaking their intent to rid the swamp of any liberal employees in language that would appear to be purely focused on efficiency and efficacy, the brief history of this administration makes it clear that ‘performance’ in the 47th Administration means fealty to, and adoration of, the royal executive. That makes this rulemaking suspect at best.

This rulemaking is outside of the typical scope of coverage of this blog, so I will probably not devote any significant coverage to it, but I will certainly mention its publication in the appropriate Short Takes post.

Short Takes – 2-3-26 – Federal Register Edition

Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement and Record of Decision for SpaceX Starship-Super Heavy Vehicle at Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center in Merritt Island, Florida. Federal Register FAA notice of availability. Summary: “In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA) and FAA Order 1050.1F, Environmental Impacts: Policies and Procedures, the FAA is announcing the availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and Record of Decision (ROD) for SpaceX Starship-Super Heavy vehicle at Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Merritt Island, Florida (Final EIS and ROD).”

Notice of Rail Energy Transportation Advisory Committee Meeting. Federal Register STB meeting notice. Summary: “The purpose of this meeting is to facilitate discussions regarding issues including rail service, infrastructure planning and development, and effective coordination among suppliers, rail carriers, and users of energy resources. Potential agenda items for this meeting include a rail performance measures review, industry segment updates by RETAC members, and a roundtable discussion.” Meeting date: March 4^th, 2026.

Pipeline Safety: Request for Special Permit. Federal Register PHMSA special permit notice. Summary: “Due to Arctic-specific environmental and operational challenges associated with installing a fence along the boundary of the Facility, Harvest seeks to waive the requirements of 49 CFR 193.2905 and 193.2907, which require protective enclosures surrounding LNG facilities. The draft conditions were determined preliminarily to ensure that the special permit is consistent with pipeline safety for the Facility in Alaska's North Slope Borough.” Comments due March 5^th, 2026.

EO 14379 - Addressing Addiction Through the Great American Recovery Initiative. Federal Register.

EO 14380 – Addressing Threats to the United States by the Government of Cuba. Federal Register.