# 119-s-5504: A bill to require the Secretary of Defense to establish a pilot program on Department of Defense partnerships with institutions of higher education recognized in the National Centers of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity program for Cyber Research, and for other purposes.

119-s-5504, A bill to require the Secretary of Defense to establish a pilot program on Department of Defense partnerships with institutions of higher education recognized in the National Centers of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity program for Cyber Research, and for other purposes., is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Rosen, Jacky [D-NV] (D-NV); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-08).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5504
- As of: 2026-10-08
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-5504
- Congress: 119
- Title: A bill to require the Secretary of Defense to establish a pilot program on Department of Defense partnerships with institutions of higher education recognized in the National Centers of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity program for Cyber Research, and for other purposes.
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-09-24
- Sponsor: Sen. Rosen, Jacky [D-NV] (D-NV)
- Cosponsors: 1
- Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-10-08

## Summary

**Creates a DOD pilot pairing military cyberspace operations and information aggressor units with NSA‑designated Centers of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity to strengthen the U.S. cyber workforce pipeline.** The pilot would test academic collaboration for research, training, cyber range exercises, and direct student pathways into federal cyber careers. - Students and colleges would join operationally focused research cells that support aggressor operations with open source intelligence, threat analysis, and adversary emulation playbooks. The pilot would assess whether participating coursework prepares students to support military cyber operators. - Military cyber units would gain a tested model for academic partnerships and an assessment of the time and cost to clear students and give them network access to provide operational support. The pilot includes a cost‑benefit framework for pairing students with operational units. - The program would also leverage existing scholarship and fellowship programs such as the Cyber Service Academy and SMART. It would track participating students to measure effects on future employment with the Department of Defense or other federal agencies. The pilot would terminate on September 30, 2031.

## Cosponsors (1)

- Sen. Budd, Ted [R-NC] (R-NC), 2026-09-24T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Recognized college students get cyber pilot: benefit, low. This bill would require the Secretary of Defense to start a pilot program under the Defense Cyber Workforce Framework within one year of enactment. The pilot would pair advanced military cyberspace operations and information aggressor units with colleges the National Security Agency recognizes unde…

## Related bills

- 119-s-3923: Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Reauthorization Act of 2026
- 119-s-5071: Children's Safe Welcome Act of 2026
- 119-s-1541: SHIPS for America Act of 2025
- 119-s-554: United States-Israel Defense Partnership Act of 2025
- 119-s-3990: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026
- 119-s-5025: Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia Act of 2026

## Sources
- [119-s-5504 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/5504)

## Related
- [119-s-3923: Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Reauthorization Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3923)
- [119-s-5071: Children's Safe Welcome Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5071)
- [119-s-1541: SHIPS for America Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1541)
- [119-s-554: United States-Israel Defense Partnership Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-554)
- [119-s-3990: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3990)
- [119-s-5025: Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5025)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5504 (as of 2026-10-08).