The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) in the U.S. faces a potential funding cut of around $495 million this year, which could lead to the layoff of approximately 1,000 employees. This comes from a budget proposal by President Trump’s administration.
The White House stated that Trump is determined to root out what he calls the “weaponized rot” in government. The budget outlines cuts to several agencies, including CISA, which would see the elimination of its disinformation offices. The statement claims these offices conspired against the First Amendment rights of Trump and his supporters.
The First Amendment, established in 1791, protects freedoms of assembly, press, religion, and speech in the U.S. According to the White House, CISA shifted focus from defending critical infrastructure to working with big tech to target free speech. They argue that even CISA itself has fallen victim to cyber attacks. Under Trump’s plan, the agency should concentrate solely on protecting critical infrastructure and federal networks, cutting waste and unnecessary programs.
The budget severely reduces funding for CISA’s operations that protect government networks and critical infrastructure, as well as support for companies and local governments. CISA will also have to scale back divisions that analyze and predict future cyber threats.
Other budget cuts could impact the cyber security mission of the U.S., including reductions to the FBI, which tackles cyber crime, and a unit at the Department of Energy focused on threats to critical infrastructure.
CISA was established during Trump’s first term, although its roots go back to 2007 with the creation of the National Protections and Programs Directorate within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Today, it is recognized as a leading cyber security agency, collaborating with organizations like the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre and counterparts in Canada and Australia. CISA often issues critical advisories on cyber threats, and its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog is a trusted resource globally.
However, CISA has had its challenges, including leadership conflicts. Its founding director, Chris Krebs, was dismissed after the 2020 Presidential Election.
Gabrielle Hempel, a security operations strategist, criticized the proposed cuts. She called it a “strategic deprecation” of America’s cyber defense at a time when threats are expanding. She mentioned that cutting essential programs doesn’t refocus the mission— it undermines it. Teams within CISA foster collaboration, provide threat modeling for critical infrastructure sectors, and build resilience, especially since most targets are in the private sector.
Hempel raised concerns about what “core mission” means in this context. She emphasized that threat visibility, coordination, intelligence sharing, and vulnerability analysis are vital components of a national cyber strategy.
She also noted that cutting election security funding is concerning, especially as various actors look to undermine democratic processes in the U.S.