Arkansas Gov. Hutchinson Named Co-Chair of National Governors Association’s Resource Center for State Cybersecurity
Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards and Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, co-chairs of the National Governors Association’s Resource Center for State Cybersecurity, will preside over the two-day National Summit on State Cybersecurity in Shreveport-Bossier, Louisiana, next month.
The semiannual summit will explore the most pressing topics in states’ efforts to protect themselves against cyber threats; trends in state cybersecurity strategies; how to train the next generation of cybersecurity professionals; safeguarding the electric grid; and statewide disaster planning, among other topics.
Gov. Hutchinson, as co-chair of the NGA’s Resource Center for State Cybersecurity, is taking a leading role in the summit, which provides governors of the 55 states and territories with resources, tools and policy guidance to help craft and implement effective state cybersecurity policies and practices. Gov. Edwards co-chaired the center beginning in 2018.
Formerly an undersecretary in the Department of Homeland Security, Gov. Hutchinson is also the co-chair of the Council of Governors and has spearheaded a significant initiative on coding and STEM in K-12 education.
“On any given day, the guardians of Arkansas’s systems block thousands of attempted attacks from all over the world. The bad guys never rest,” Gov. Hutchinson said. “Good stewardship of our state’s resources includes guarding the gates into our systems and protecting the information. This summit will be an excellent time to sharpen our knowledge.”
Since 2012, the NGA Resource Center for State Cybersecurity has served as the premier partner for governors and state agencies seeking to implement best practices in cybersecurity. In 2015, NGA convened the first nationwide summit on state cybersecurity in San Jose, California.
The association hosted its second national summit in Leesburg, Virginia, in 2017. Building on this past success, Gov. Edwards has invited teams from all of the states, territories and the District of Columbia to Shreveport-Bossier to learn about the latest threats, exchange ideas, and identify actionable steps to implement holistic cybersecurity strategies.
