On November 15, 2021, President Joe Biden signed into law the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), unleashing over $1 trillion of federal money to strengthen the nation’s infrastructure and fund other key programs and initiatives. In addition to appropriating billions of dollars to improving transportation networks, expanding broadband internet accessibility and promoting clean energy projects, the bill allocates $2 billion to strengthening the nation’s cyber defenses. As we explain below, this is part of a broad whole-of-government approach on cybersecurity—implicating both public and private entities.

The IIJA’s notable cybersecurity appropriations include:

• $1 billion for grants to improve state and local government cybersecurity;
• $250 million to fund the Rural and Municipal Utility Advanced Cybersecurity Grant and Technical Assistance Program—a program designed to support public utilities and other eligible entities;
• $250 million to develop “advanced cybersecurity applications and technologies for the energy sector”;
• $20 million per year for fiscal year 2022, and every year thereafter until 2028, to create a Cyber Response and Recovery Fund to help public and private entities respond to a significant cyber incident;
• $157.5 million for the US Department of Homeland Security’s Science and Technology Directorate (DHS-S&T) to fund “critical infrastructure security and resilience research, development, test, and evaluation”;
• $35 million for the DHS’s...

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