Enhancing Water and Wastewater Systems through Cybersecurity
Governor Kathy Hochul’s comprehensive cybersecurity initiative to strengthen and protect water infrastructure statewide comes with two recent announcements for New York State.
1) Cybersecurity Reporting
On March 11, 2026, the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) published a Notice of Adoption with the New York State Department of State (DOS) to amend 6 NYCRR Part 616, 650, and 750, which add cybersecurity regulations for wastewater treatment facilities. As of March 26, 2026, all SPDES permittees must report cybersecurity incidents to their Regional Water Engineer as soon as possible, but no less than 24 hours from the time the permittee becomes aware of the cybersecurity incident. Additionally, permittees must submit a second written report within 30 days from the time they become aware of the incident. More information can be found through the DEC website.
Wastewater Cybersecurity Resources
Adopted Amendments to 6 NYCRR Parts 616, 650 and 750 – Wastewater Cybersecurity Rules
2) Cybersecurity Funding
The Environmental Facilities Corporation (EFC) announced the availability of The Strengthening Essential Cybersecurity for Utilities and Resiliency Enhancement (SECURE) grant program. This grant can fund assessments and improvements that protect water and wastewater systems from evolving cyber threats.
- Eligible Cybersecurity Assessment activities include:
- Third-party cybersecurity risk assessments and penetration testing
- Network architecture reviews and asset inventories
- Creation of system-specific cybersecurity implementation roadmaps
- Eligible Cybersecurity Upgrades include:
- Procurement and installation of security equipment (firewalls, network segmentation devices, access control systems, etc.)
- Development and implementation of incident response plans and continuity of operations plans
- Deployment of monitoring, alerting, and backup/recovery solutions
For more information: Cybersecurity Hub | Environmental Facilities Corporation
By Ryan Corbett