Tech Execs Seek Visas for High-Skilled Workers

A look at the week of June 13 in public advocacy for the IT channel:

A bill to keep foreign workers in the U.S. is encountering difficulties finding majority support in the House. The SEC has announced that public companies must disclose any breach that could jeopardize intellectual property or trade secrets. Federal agencies are reporting cost savings and improved technology thanks to federal CIO Vivek Kundra’s IT reform plan.

Tech Execs Seek Visas for High-Skilled Workers — According to Politico, Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), a former immigration professor who represents Silicon Valley, plans to introduce a bill designed to keep foreign-born workers — especially the engineers and scientists needed by technology companies — in the U.S. Her bill has the support of Intel, Oracle and Google, but Lofgren, who is the ranking member on the Immigration Policy and Enforcement Subcommittee, hasn’t been able to get the support of a majority member.

SEC: Firms Must Disclose Relevant Cyber Attacks — Public companies must disclose cyber attacks or risk factors that may be relevant to investors, according to Securities and Exchange Commission chairman Mary Schapiro. The Hill reports that Schapiro responded this week to a letter last month from Senate Commerce chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) and several Senate Democrats asking the SEC to clarify that firms must disclose any network breach that could jeopardize the firm's intellectual property or trade secrets.

Agencies Cite Progress Six Months After IT Reform Mandate — Six months after federal Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra issued his 25-point information technology reform plan, agencies are boasting improvements ranging from moving email and other services to the cloud, to creating an online IT shop. Though Kundra's office had already publicized some updates, such as closing 137 federal data centers by the end of this year, new agency documents fill in many details, including significant cost savings, reports Nextgov.com.