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By Declan McCullagh, 17 May 2005 08:50

NEWS The US House of Representatives is scheduled to begin deliberating a proposal to create an assistant secretary for "cybersecurity".

Over the last few years, a succession of government figures responsible for overseeing national cybersecurity have come and gone.

First there was Richard Clarke, a veteran of the Clinton and first Bush administrations who cashed out with a lucrative book deal. Clarke was effectively succeeded in quick succession by Howard Schmidt, known for testifying in favour of the Communications Decency Act, then Amit Yoran and Robert Liscouski.

Now Congress may try to quell some of the turmoil over at the Department of Homeland Security by creating a more prestigious post. Whoever fills it will be responsible for co-ordinating with other federal agencies, some of which have had spotty records in the past.

The position, long a favourite of congressional security hawks, would require an appointment by the president and confirmation by Congress.

In a recent interview, Chris Cox, a California Republican, said today's cybersecurity post needs a promotion. "That's of course something that we have been pushing hard for in the Homeland Security committee over the last two years, elevating the profile of cyber inside the Department of Homeland Security and inside the federal government."

According to the House bill, the assistant secretary would be charged with creating a "national cybersecurity response system" that would evaluate US critical infrastructure and "aid in the detection and warning of attacks" on it.

Currently the department's chief cybersecurity official is a low-to-mid-level official who is two levels of bureaucracy removed from secretary Michael Chertoff. An assistant secretary would have more access to Chertoff.

The assistant secretary proposal is part of a broader homeland security bill for the 2006 fiscal year. It also requires the department to establish a National Terrorism Exercise Program to "prevent" and "recover from" terrorist acts, including cybersecurity breaches.

Declan McCullagh writes for CNET News.com