Res. No. 747

Resolution calling on the New York State Legislature to reintroduce and pass, and the Governor to sign, legislation to establish a task force to study quantum computing

By Council Members Williams, Menin, Louis, Riley and Banks

Whereas, Quantum computing is an emergent field of computer science that uses quantum bits instead of binary bits to encode even more data at once, enabling programs to run significantly faster and process far more data than traditional computing systems; and

Whereas, Quantum computing has the potential to revolutionize industries such as finance, healthcare, and environmental modeling, but also poses a significant security risk if it is used to break encryption systems during cyberattacks or used to decrypt stored data obtained through a data breach; and

Whereas, Most current encryption systems rely on only one of a few different mathematical problems to protect data, such as factorization, a task that would take traditional binary computers an infeasibly long time to break but can be solved exponentially faster by quantum computers, making current encryption systems vulnerable to a quantum computing-enabled cyberattack; and  

Whereas, New York City has already regularly been the target of numerous cyberattacks, such as the 2024 cybersecurity incident involving the New York City Automated Personnel System Employee Self-Service (ESS) portal, which resulted in a handful of City employees having their information compromised in the attack, according to Chief Information Security Officer Kelly Moan’s testimony before the New York City Council’s Committee on Technology on June 10, 2024, and the ESS portal being partially offline for over nine days, leaving the City’s roughly 300,000 full time workers with limited access to essential forms; and

Whereas, In preparation for a potential cyberattack utilizing quantum computing, New York City has already begun investing in quantum-proof technology, including a $9.9 million capital project in the 2024 Preliminary Capital Commitment Plan for the Office of Technology and Innovation (OTI) for an upgrade to its mainframe that would also include quantum computing-safe cryptography for enhanced security; and

Whereas, Additional research into cybersecurity related quantum computing use cases would assist New York City in allocating resources to defend against potential quantum computing-enabled cyberattacks in the future; and

Whereas, New York City’s technology sector has grown by 160% over the past 15 years, making it one of the fastest-growing tech sectors in the United States, as reported in the Comptroller’s October 2023 report, “Spotlight: New York City’s Tech Sector”; and

Whereas, There is a demonstrated business interest by the technology sector in quantum computing, as evidenced by the launch of the QUANTM Consortium, which was founded in partnership with the New York City Economic Development Corporation, and aims to establish and retain quantum information science and technology jobs in the New York Metropolitan area; and

Whereas, Additional research into business and other quantum computing use cases would continue to foster the growing technology industry in New York City by encouraging the existing business interest in quantum computing; and

Whereas, S.2734, introduced for the 2023-2024 session by State Senator Leroy Comrie, and the companion bill A.2664, introduced for the 2023-2024 session by Assembly Member Clyde Vanel, propose the establishment of a task force to study quantum computing; and

Whereas, S.2734/A.2664 states that the task force would “make recommendations on how to utilize quantum computing for the purposes of developing computers for civilian, business, trade, environmental, and security purposes, such as cryptanalysis, in this state,” which would include applications relevant to New York City; and

Whereas, The recommendations from this task force would assist New York City in preparing for and defending against potential cybersecurity threats posed by quantum computing, while also identifying ways to better leverage this technology for innovation and economic growth; and

Whereas, The task force’s findings could support New York City’s efforts to remain a growing leader in technological innovation, ensuring the City benefits from advancements in quantum computing across multiple sectors and protects New Yorkers from quantum computing-enabled cyberattacks; now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls on the New York State Legislature to reintroduce and pass, and the Governor to sign, legislation to establish a task force to study quantum computing.

EB

LS #18603

1/15/2024 12:15PM