"With several military bases, two premier national security science labs, New Mexico has the right conditions and the best scientific talent to serve as the new home of the U.S. Air Force Cyberspace Command," said Richardson. "Terrorists and criminal networks are now operating in cyberspace and the Air Force has accepted the challenge to defend our country from this threat. We believe New Mexico is best equipped to host a new Air Force Cyberspace Command and I've formed this task force to make that case to the Department of Defense."
The task force will be chaired by Economic Development Department Secretary Designate Fred Mondragon and will include retired military officers and national security experts, information technology business leaders, members of the New Mexico Military Base Planning Commission, the Secretary of the Economic Development Department and community leaders. The Task force is charged with providing a final report by May 31, 2008.
U.S. Air Force Cyberspace Command Task Force
Chair -- Fred Mondragon, Secretary Designate, Economic Development Department
Ex-Officio -- Lt. Governor Diane Denish
Members
1. Hanson Scott, Brigadier General, USAF (Ret); Director, Economic
Development Department, Office of Military Base Planning
2. Tony Strati, member of the NM Military Base Planning Commission
3. Randy Harris, member of the NM Military Base Planning Commission
4. Brad Hosmer, Retired Lt. General and Chairman, Armed Forces Services
Corporation
5. Terri Cole, Executive Director, Greater Albuquerque Chamber of
Commerce
6. Alex Romero, Albuquerque Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
7. Clint Hubbard, Chief Information Officer, City of Albuquerque
8. Carol Radosevich, Director of Economic Development, PNM
9. Chuck Zang, Senior Vice President, Scientific Applications International
Corporation
10. Jerry McDowell, VP, Defense Systems and Assessments, Sandia National
Laboratory
11. Doug Beason, Associate Director for Threat Reduction, Los Alamos
National Laboratory
12. Tom Bowles, Science Advisor, Office of the Governor
13. Jerry Weinstein, Retired US Air Force Officer
14. Steve Downie, CEO, Ktech Corporation
15. Anthony Contri, President, Rhinocorps Corporation
The task force will also include representatives of the New Mexico Congressional delegation to assure close coordination between state and federal authorities.
In December 2005, the U.S. Air Force formally added the defense of cyberspace into their mission, and it has begun placing a new priority on that new mission. The U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff defines cyber space as "characterized by the use of electronics and the electromagnetic spectrum to store, modify and exchange data via networked systems and associated physical infrastructures."
According to Lt. Col Paul Berg, Air Force cyberspace activities could include defending computer networks, using communication and global positioning system satellites, and conducting Internet financial transactions. According to a McClatchy newspaper report, in fiscal year 2007 the Department of Homeland Security received 37,000 reports of attempted breaches on government and private systems, compared with 24,000 the previous year. Assaults on federal agencies increased 152 percent during that period from 5,143 to 12,986.
