Sen. Mary Elizabeth Coleman, R-Arnold, has introduced a proposal that will eliminate a number of boards and commissions as part of an effort mirroring Elon Musk’s federal Department of Government Efficiency.
Among the list of Missouri boards that would be zapped under Senate Bill 890 is the Missouri Cybersecurity Commission, established in law in 2021 to bring experts together to oversee and advise the state on cybersecurity threats.
Coleman said the task force should be eliminated because neither former Gov. Mike Parson or current Gov. Mike Kehoe appointed any members to the board.
“We do want to get rid of boards that are not working or not meeting,” Coleman said. “The Missouri Cybersecurity Commission never had anyone appointed at all. We can’t find a record of it.”
“It is important that we clean up our books and get rid of things that are not needed anymore,” Coleman said.
The measure advanced out of the Senate Government Efficiency Committee Wednesday and now heads to full Senate for further debate.
It remains unclear why neither Republican governor appointed anyone to the panel, although it was co-sponsored by House Minority Leader Ashley Aune, a Kansas City Democrat who has been critical of both.
A Kehoe spokeswoman did not respond to a request for comment.
Aune on Wednesday said she is disappointed the task force is on the chopping block.
“We know there are folks constantly trying to infiltrate systems across the world,” Aune said. “If we’re not forward looking as a state government, we’re going to fall far behind everyone else.”
The panel is supposed to meet at least quarterly and identify best practices for the state to work against cyber threats.
The commission also is supposed to prepare an annual report to the governor outlining possible vulnerabilities of the state's cybersecurity and online infrastructure.
“It’s troubling to know that this is not a priority,” Aune said.
The push to eliminate the task force follows the Office of Administration's restoration of an employee-only website the state’s 41,000 workers use to access and manage personal information, including payroll records, health savings accounts and deferred compensation accounts.
The site was shut down on Dec. 23 after information technology workers discovered a hack into the system seeking information about employee savings accounts. It was determined that 47 employees were affected.
On Wednesday, a new portal was unveiled that includes changes designed to require multi-factor authentication for increased security.
The attack centered on 47 accounts out of more than 50,000 state workers.
The hack affects state employees, including prison guards, higher education regulators and highway patrol troopers.
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