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House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Texas, reportedly gave his cybersecurity bill – which passed the House in July – an 80 percent chance of becoming law before the end of year and likely during Congress' lame-duck session.

The Hill reported on McCaul's statement, which he delivered Tuesday at a Bloomberg Government event.

McCaul's bill, H.R. 3696, the "National Cybersecurity and Critical Infrastructure Protection Act," would strengthen current mechanisms, such as the Financial Services Sector Coordinating Council and the Financial Services Information Sharing and Analysis Center, to help the financial sector identify threats, respond to cyber incidents and coordinate with government bodies. It also addresses security clearances for those involved in cybersecurity information sharing.

NAFCU supported the measure in a letter sent jointly with other trades in February.

The Hill noted that McCaul was told that Senate discussions on his bill were going well.

NAFCU is continuing to urge lawmakers to address data security by merchants in connection with broader legislation on cybersecurity. NAFCU was the first financial trade association to press for national standards for merchants' data security following the Target breach.