H.R. 3101 would require the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to expand efforts to enhance the cybersecurity of U.S. ports. The bill also would clarify that the Coast Guard, the agency within DHS primarily responsible for activities related to maritime security, is authorized to pursue efforts related to cybersecurity. Based on information from DHS, CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 3101 would cost $38 million over the 2018-2022 period, assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts.
Enacting the bill would not affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply. CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 3101 would not increase net direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2028.
H.R. 3101 would impose intergovernmental and private-sector mandates, as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA), on owners and operators of port facilities and vessels. Based on an analysis of information from the Coast Guard about current practices related to cybersecurity among maritime facilities and vessels, CBO estimates that the cost of complying with the mandates for public and private entities would fall below the annual thresholds established in UMRA for intergovernmental and private-sector mandates ($78 million and $156 million in 2017, respectively, adjusted annually for inflation).
