# Understanding the DHS Cybersecurity Training and Apprentice Program Bill

The Department of Homeland Security currently struggles to fill cybersecurity jobs—positions that are critical to protecting the nation's computer systems and infrastructure from hackers and cyberattacks. This bill creates a new training program designed to solve that problem by taking people already working at DHS and training them to become cybersecurity experts, rather than constantly trying to hire experienced people from outside the agency.

Here's how it would work in practice: DHS would identify current employees who show potential and interest in cybersecurity work, then provide them with training through various methods—online courses, classroom instruction, and hands-on experience working alongside experienced cybersecurity professionals. The program would be run by a senior official at DHS who oversees cybersecurity and critical infrastructure protection. This person would track which cybersecurity positions are open across the entire department, figure out what skills people need to fill those jobs, and recruit current employees to participate in the training.

The bill requires DHS to keep detailed records about the program, including monthly reports on job openings and annual reports to Congress about how many people are being trained and how many successfully move into cybersecurity roles. The goal is straightforward: develop a pipeline of skilled cybersecurity workers from within the agency's existing workforce, which should help DHS fill critical positions faster and retain employees who've invested in their own training. For regular citizens, this matters because a better-staffed cybersecurity workforce at DHS means stronger protection of the nation's critical computer systems that many of us depend on daily.

DHS Cybersecurity On-the-Job Training and Employment Apprentice Program Act

Jackson Lee, Sheila

DHS Cybersecurity On-the-Job Training and Employment Apprentice Program Act This bill requires the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to establish a DHS Cybersecurity On-the-Job Training and Employment Apprentice Program to identify and train DHS employees for cybersecurity work. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency within DHS must lead the program. Among other things, the agency must (1) track the status of cybersecurity positions at DHS, (2) develop a program curriculum, and (3) recruit DHS employees for the program.