If CISA"s FY2026 budget proposal cuts $495 million and eliminates around 1,083 positions, which critical infrastructure sectors would be most vulnerable?

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The Trump administration"s FY2026 budget blueprint calls for a $495 million reduction in CISA"s funding—slashing its allocation from $2.38 billion to about $1.88 billion—and would eliminate roughly 1,083 positions, shrinking the agency"s workforce by one-third (, ). As the federal lead on defending essential systems under National Security Memorandum-22, CISA is charged with protecting energy grids and water systems among other sectors (). The stakes are clear: the December 2015 cyberattack on Ukrainian power distribution companies left some 230,000 customers without electricity for up to six hours by exploiting SCADA vulnerabilities (). And in February 2021, the Oldsmar, Florida water treatment plant hack attempt—enabled by exposed remote-access software and shared passwords—nearly injected deadly levels of sodium hydroxide into the public supply (). Without CISA"s analysts, field teams and incident responders, both power and water utilities lose the early-warning, threat-hunting and rapid-response capacity needed to prevent ransomware or nation-state attacks that could disrupt service, endanger lives and inflict billions in economic damage.

If CISA"s FY2026 budget proposal cuts $495 million and eliminates around 1,083 positions, which critical infrastructure sectors would be most vulnerable?

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