Adopted

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT NO 1 PROPOSED TO

Senate Bill No. 2654

BY: Committee

     Amend by striking all after the enacting clause and inserting in lieu thereof the following:

SECTION 1.  (1)  There is created within the Mississippi Department of Information Technology Services (ITS), a State Security Operations Center (SSOC).  The SSOC shall operate under the leadership of the Executive Director of ITS and in direct coordination with the Enterprise Security Program established under Section 25-53-201.  The SSOC is intended to serve as the operational arm of statewide cybersecurity, complementing but not supplanting the strategic, regulatory and governance authorities already granted under Section 25-53-201.

     (2)  The SSOC shall provide centralized statewide cybersecurity operations, including:

          (a)  Continuous monitoring, alerting, threat detection and analysis of state cyberinfrastructure, as defined by ITS;

          (b)  Operational incident response and mitigation;

          (c)  Security orchestration, automation and response functions;

          (d)  Technical support to the Enterprise Security Program regarding enforcement of statewide cybersecurity requirements; and

          (e)  Operational execution of certain responsibilities assigned to ITS under Section 25-53-201.

SECTION 2.  The SSOC shall:

          (a)  Develop operational cybersecurity procedures to support policies adopted under Section 25-53-201;

          (b)  Provide centralized monitoring, threat intelligence, vulnerability identification and incident response services to all state agencies subject to Section 25-53-201;

          (c) Coordinate with the Enterprise Security Program to ensure statewide standards and controls are technically implemented and enforced;

          (d)  Notify state agencies of active or emerging cyber threats;

          (e)  Support agencies in the containment, eradication and recovery from cybersecurity incidents; and

          (f)  Provide technical support for statewide penetration testing, security validation and continuous monitoring activities required under Section 25-53-201.

SECTION 3.  (1)  All state agencies subject to Section 25-53-201 shall:

          (a)  Comply with all cybersecurity policies, standards and controls established under Section 25-53-201;

          (b)  Report suspected cybersecurity incidents to both the Enterprise Security Program and the SSOC within timeframes set by ITS;

          (c)  Cooperate with SSOC monitoring, incident response and vulnerability remediation efforts; and

          (d)  Implement corrective actions or risk mitigation measures required by the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) under Section 25-53-201, informed by SSOC operational findings.

     (2)  The reporting requirement under this section is in addition to Section 25-53-201(4).

SECTION 4.  If an agency fails to comply with statewide cybersecurity requirements under Section 25-53-201 or procedures executed by the SSOC under this act, the Executive Director of ITS may:

          (a)  Impose additional oversight, monitoring or cybersecurity audit requirements;

          (b)  Temporarily limit access to ITS-managed systems or services until compliance is restored; or

          (c)  Assess additional fees for increased monitoring, remediation or risk exposure.

SECTION 5.  (1)  The SSOC is authorized to collaborate with:

          (a)  The Mississippi Office of Homeland Security;

          (b)  Federal cybersecurity centers and public-sector threat-intelligence partners; and

          (c)  Any other entity necessary to execute operational cybersecurity responsibilities.

     (2)  Additionally, the SSOC is authorized to collaborate with Mississippi's public universities and community colleges, to develop a Cybersecurity Talent Pipeline Program to support the statewide cybersecurity workforce.

SECTION 6.  On or before January 1 of each year, the SSOC shall submit to the Executive Director of ITS, the Governor, the Lieutenant Governor, the Speaker of the House and the ITS Board a report that includes:

          (a)  Operational performance and activities for the preceding year;

          (b)  A summary of statewide cybersecurity incidents and the SSOC's response actions;

          (c)  Operational challenges and resource needs; and

          (d)  Goals and priorities for the coming year.

SECTION 7.  The Executive Director of ITS may adopt rules, standards and procedures necessary to carry out this act.

SECTION 8.  Nothing in this act shall:

          (a)  Modify or reduce the statewide cybersecurity authorities or responsibilities granted under Section 25-53-201;

          (b)  Limit the authority of the Chief Information Security Officer; or

          (c)  Affect the governance, policy-making or regulatory functions of the Enterprise Security Program.

     SECTION 9.  This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2026, and shall stand repealed on June 29, 2026.

     Further, amend by striking the title in its entirety and inserting in lieu thereof the following:

     AN ACT TO CREATE A STATE SECURITY OPERATIONS CENTER (SSOC) WITHIN THE MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SERVICES; TO PROVIDE SERVICES RENDERED BY THE CENTER; TO PROVIDE THE DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE SSOC; TO OUTLINE THE RESPONSIBILITIES OF AGENCIES; TO GRANT THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE DEPARTMENT CERTAIN ENFORCEMENT POWERS; TO AUTHORIZE THE SSOC TO COLLABORATE WITH CERTAIN PARTIES; TO ESTABLISH AN ANNUAL REPORTING REQUIREMENT; TO AUTHORIZE THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE DEPARTMENT TO ADOPT RULES, STANDARDS AND PROCEDURES NECESSARY TO CARRY OUT THIS ACT; TO CREATE CERTAIN LIMITATIONS; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.