Lieberman Revises Cybersecurity Bill Seeking Senate Compromise

Senator Joe Lieberman introduced a new version of a bill to boost the nation’s cybersecurity, seeking a compromise to gain support for a measure that has stalled over disagreements on government standards.

The proposal would set up voluntary incentives for operators of critical infrastructure such as power grids and chemical plants to improve security against computer attacks. Lieberman’s original bill would have allowed the Department of Homeland Security to create mandatory security standards for infrastructure.

“We are going to try carrots instead of sticks as we begin to improve our cyber defenses,” Lieberman, a Connecticut independent, said in an e-mailed statement. “If that doesn’t work, a future Congress will undoubtedly come back and adopt a more coercive system.”

To contact the reporter on this story: Eric Engleman in Washington at eengleman1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Bob Drummond at bdrummond@bloomberg.net