Citing conversations with federal legislative leaders and observers, Robinson said the program will likely fall victim to budget cuts at the federal Department of Homeland Security and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), which manages the grant program.
LOSING A KEY RESOURCE
Those efforts appear to have been unsuccessful. “It’s unlikely to be reauthorized,” Robinson said.
In one bright spot for state and local IT leaders, however, Robinson said it seems unlikely that the Trump administration will attempt to claw back the final year of funding under the program, which was slated to deliver $100 million this year.
The program, created in 2021 by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, was designed to deliver $1 billion in cybersecurity funding to state governments over four years, with 80 percent of those dollars ultimately flowing to cities, counties and tribal governments. It has become an important resource for whole-of-state cybersecurity approaches, where states collaborate closely with local governments to strengthen cyber protection across jurisdictions.
RELATIONSHIPS IN FLUX
Robinson appeared with Adam Frumkin, CIO of Franklin County, Ohio, and chair of the Public Technology Institute Leadership Council, on a webcast to recap changes impacting state and local government IT operations and service delivery in the first half of 2025.
Frumkin was optimistic that federal cybersecurity funding for states and localities would continue in some form. “I’m hoping something will come out of the cyber grant discussions,” he said. “It may not be the same thing, but something will happen because it’s necessary.”
However, Frumkin acknowledged that relationships between federal, state and local governments are uncertain. “They are very much in flux,” he said. “There’s a push [at the federal level] for more alignment and accountability. There’s a push for states to support localities more intentionally.”
POOR TIMING
Robinson said reductions in federal cyber funding — as well as anticipated cuts in health and human services programs — are hitting states at a time when they have little financial flexibility. Most states have already locked in their budgets for fiscal year 2026, making it harder to cover unanticipated costs. In addition, many states expect slow revenue growth over the next year, making governors reluctant to expand general fund spending, according to the National Association of State Budget Officers.
States may ultimately be able to provide more cyber support to local governments — and shoulder other burdens as the federal government shifts responsibilities for key programs — but not this fast, Robinson said.
“You need to give them a longer runway to get these things into state budgets,” he said. “It’s extremely frustrating to state CIOs and CISOs.”
NEW OPPORTUNITIES?
On the other hand, stagnant budgets, new costs and demands for greater efficiency may give state and local CIOs leverage to consolidate data centers and rationalize applications.
“For CIOs who have wanted to centralize and consolidate — those things require some kind of pressure,” Robinson said. “It’s a great time to dust off consolidation plans and service optimization plans.”
Financial pressure could also drive greater cooperation across state and local governments on procurement. Frumkin said states and localities need to work together to get better pricing on technology solutions.
“We have the same vendors. We need to use our purchasing power,” he said. “Let’s talk about licensing and get down to brass tacks.”
Vendors too often sell to individual departments and agencies — offering inconsistent pricing across those organizations, Frumkin said. “We need to say, ‘No more of that.’ We need to see if we can drive the cost down.”
