U.S. Representative Nancy Mace (R-SC), one of the eight Republicans who voted to vacate Kevin McCarthy from the Speaker of the House seat yesterday, stood outside the Capitol Building to announce that she and fellow Rep. Katie Porter‘s (D-CA) were able to get their co-sponsored MACE Act passed on the House floor.
MACE is an acronym for Modernizing the Acquisition of Cybersecurity Experts. Mace describes the bill as allowing qualified IT professionals without a four-year degree to qualify for federal cyber jobs.
In the video below, Mace uses billionaire Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates as an example of one who qualifies. “Bill Gates could get a job at a federal agency with his background.” She adds: “He’s a college dropout.” (Gates dropped out of Harvard University in 1975 after two years. He never returned to complete his studies.)
We passed the MACE Act tonight to allow qualified IT professionals without a 4-year degree to qualify for federal cyber jobs. Thank you @RepKatiePorter for partnering on this bill which won overwhelming support 394-1. 🇺🇸
— Rep. Nancy Mace (@RepNancyMace) October 2, 2023
Modernizing the
Acquisition of
Cybersecurity
Experts Act pic.twitter.com/TQ5p1UgGnV
Mace reports that the bill won overwhelming support (394-1) and will now move on to the Senate.
While Mace’s supporters cheer the bipartisan effort behind the MACE Act, others including Dr. Marcia F. Robinson (a certified HR professional) who says: “Legislation really wasn’t necessary to do this. The market is already doing this.”
Robinson perhaps misunderstands what the MACE Act does — it changes legally mandated requirements for federal jobs — but Robinson’s assertion about “the market” is relevant because it reveals how the private sector, which has also been eliminating college requirements for many jobs, often recognizes emerging trends and makes key changes before the government does.
Note: Mace holds two degrees: in 1999 she became the first woman to graduate from The Citadel‘s Corps of Cadets program, and earned a master’s degree in journalism and communications from the University of Georgia. Congresswoman Porter is a graduate of Phillips Academy, Yale University and Harvard Law School.
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