Congressman Luttrell proposes study on creating separate military cyber force

Congressman Morgan Luttrell (R-TX) recently discussed a cybersecurity amendment he intends to propose during the House Armed Services Committee's Fiscal Year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) mark-up. The amendment seeks to mandate the Department of Defense to commission the National Academy of Sciences for an independent evaluation on the feasibility of establishing a separate, uniformed Cyber Force.

The measure is anticipated to resurface in the House defense bill debate as a bipartisan proposal. It is co-sponsored by Reps. Morgan Luttrell and Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA). This initiative represents the latest effort to present the concept of creating a dedicated cyber service to Pentagon officials. A similar provision was previously introduced by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) in last year's Senate version of the legislation but was removed from the final compromise bill.

Luttrell emphasized the increasing significance of cyberspace and cyber threats globally. "It's no secret that cyberspace, cyber war, cyber threat, cyber risk is growing exponentially, not just nationally, but globally," he stated during an interview at his Capitol Hill office. He further noted that the proposed report language would highlight the necessity for a specialized Cyber Force due to current digital warfighting branches being "siloed" within their respective services.

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