DARUSHIMO

 

In addition to giving the Department of Homeland Security new authority over federal computer systems, the proposed legislation calls for the agency to work with energy companies, water suppliers and financial institutions to rank the most serious threats and find ways to counter them. The new law would require each business to have an independent commercial auditor assess its plans, and, in the case of financial firms, report those plans to the Security and Exchange Commission.

A senior homeland security official, who declined to be identified during a telephone news briefing on Thursday under ground rules set by the administration, said the administration had shied away from a stronger regulatory approach because it believed “it did not have all the answers.” 

“Nor do we believe that it’s appropriate for the government to say, ‘Thou shall do X, Y and Z’, ” he said.