Cybersecurity preparedness: food and agriculture sector and water and wastewater systems sector.

Existing law, the California Emergency Services Act, among other things, creates the Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) , which is responsible for the state's emergency and disaster response services, as specified. Existing law requires Cal OES to establish the California Cybersecurity Integration Center (Cal-CSIC) with the primary mission of reducing the likelihood and severity of cyber incidents that could damage California's economy, its critical infrastructure, or public and private sector computer networks in the state. Existing law requires Cal-CSIC to provide warnings of cyberattacks to government agencies and nongovernmental partners, coordinate information sharing among these entities, assess risks to critical infrastructure information networks, enable cross-sector coordination and sharing of best practices and security measures, and support certain cybersecurity assessments, audits, and accountability programs. Existing law also requires Cal-CSIC to develop a statewide cybersecurity strategy to improve how cyber threats are identified, understood, and shared in order to reduce threats to California government, businesses, and consumers, and to strengthen cyber emergency preparedness and response and expand cybersecurity awareness and public education. This bill would require Cal OES to direct Cal-CSIC to prepare, and Cal OES to submit to the Legislature on or before January 1, 2024, a strategic, multiyear outreach plan to assist the food and agriculture sector and the water and wastewater sector in their efforts to improve cybersecurity and an evaluation of options for providing grants or alternative forms of funding to, and potential voluntary actions that do not require funding and that assist, those sectors in their efforts to improve cybersecurity preparedness. The bill would make related findings and declarations.