Senate Homeland Security Chair Paul announces move to health committee in 120th Congress

“Over the past two years, as Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, I delivered the unprecedented oversight I promised. I challenged entrenched bureaucracies, forced federal officials to answer for their actions, and pulled back the curtain on what Washington tried to keep hidden,” Paul said in a Nov. 11 announcement on his plans.

Paul has taken a special interest during his time as chair in investigating the government’s efforts to address the COVID pandemic. Paul said his tenure as Homeland chair included “bringing Anthony Fauci before my committee under oath, bringing forward an Intelligence Community whistleblower who exposed what the government knew, and making thousands of pages of previously unreleased COVID-related documents public so Americans could read them for themselves.” Paul’s move to the Senate health committee is expected to bring in new GOP leadership that could take a different approach to CISA. Sen.

James Lankford (R-OK) has expressed support for CISA, introducing high-profile bills in 2025 on cybersecurity harmonization and vulnerability disclosure. Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-CT) announced plans on Nov.

4 to become chair of the Senate Homeland Security panel in the 120th Congress. Ranking member Peters is retiring at the end of the legislative session and Hassan is next in line in terms of seniority on the committee to serve as chair. During Paul’s leadership, the committee has taken limited action to address cybersecurity, advancing the nominations of Sean Cairncross for National Cyber Director and Sean Plankey to serve as director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

Plankey withdrew his nomination in April. Paul blocked efforts by Homeland Security ranking member Gary Peters (D-MI) to pass a long-term reauthorization of the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2015 on the Senate floor during the 2025 government shutdown. Paul also floated introducing his own version of the reauthorization, which in exchange would put new restrictions on CISA’s free speech activities.

A draft version of Paul’s bill was circulated in September and drew significant pushback from industry groups. The bill was never formally introduced. Paul said he will bring his oversight approach to the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee as the new ranking member.

“As a physician and the author of dozens of bills on health care, education, and labor, I know the issues before this committee affect nearly every American family, from the cost of health care and how schools serve our children to how people earn a living and save for retirement,” Paul said. Paul continued, “Too many in Washington answer these questions with more government, and the coming Congress will bring a rush toward socialism unlike anything we have seen. Families, not federal bureaucrats, should make the decisions that shape their lives.

I will stand against efforts to put Washington between Americans and their doctors, their children's schools, and their paychecks.” “Kentuckians sent me to Washington to defend their freedom and hold government accountable.