Democrats seek CISA force-structure assessment as headcount hits 2,400
The bill revives a Solarium Commission requirement last run in 2021, this time against the backdrop of a nearly 30% staffing drop since January 2025.
TL;DR
Rep. James Walkinshaw (D-VA) introduced the CISA Force Structure Assessment Act on Sept. 21, co-sponsored by Homeland Security ranking member Bennie Thompson (D-MS) and cyber subcommittee Chairwoman Delia Ramirez (D-IL). The bill requires the CISA Director to report on the workforce and resources needed to carry out the agency's full mission, securing federal systems, supporting critical infrastructure, threat hunting, and engaging international partners. It builds on a similar requirement in the fiscal 2021 NDAA, which the Cyberspace Solarium Commission championed. The legislation arrives as a January data release from CISA showed headcount dropping from 3,387 to 2,389 employees during the first year of the second Trump administration.
The legislation mandates a "force structure assessment" covering personnel levels, training, certifications, and resources across the agency's statutory responsibilities. That includes securing federal information systems, supporting state and local governments, addressing risks from emerging technologies, and protecting critical infrastructure and operational technology systems. CISA would be required to consult with critical infrastructure owners and operators, federal partners, state and local governments, and information-sharing organizations in producing the assessment.
The concept isn't new. The fiscal 2021 NDAA tasked CISA with a similar force-structure evaluation, a provision then-Rep. Jim Langevin (D-RI), a Solarium Commission member, pushed as a priority. Walkinshaw's bill revisits that framework with updated reporting requirements tailored to the current threat landscape.
What's different this time
The context around the bill is a CISA workforce under sustained pressure. Walkinshaw led an August 2026 letter requesting a GAO review of workforce cuts since January 2025. The agency provided Thompson with staffing data covering Jan. 20, 2025 through Dec. 13, 2025, a drop from 3,387 to 2,389 employees. CISA announced a hiring push in June 2026, and Acting Director Nick Andersen said in a Sept. 9 appearance that roughly 250 candidates had tentative job offers. Even if all onboarded, total headcount would remain well below the January 2025 starting figure.
Separately, House Oversight Democrats pressed DHS Secretary Kristi Noem in an October 2025 letter to reverse layoffs and reassignments, and Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) demanded CISA Acting Director Madhu Gottumakkula halt workforce reductions entirely.
Thompson's statement accompanying the bill was direct: "After Trump has spent the past two years targeting and slashing CISA's workforce, we need the agency to assess if it has right personnel in place to fulfill its mission."
The bill doesn't appropriate money. It asks for a report, a candid accounting of whether the agency that's lost nearly a third of its staff since early 2025 can do the job Congress assigned it.
Published ·Deep Fathom