Kate Nichols joined the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) in 2020 as the Agency’s Deputy Chief of Staff and now serves as the acting Regional Director for CISA Region 4, which encompasses the states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennesse. As acting Regional Director, Ms. Nichols leads CISA’s largest region in working with both governmental and non-governmental entities to prepare for and defend against cyber and physical threats to the nation’s critical infrastructure.
Prior to joining CISA, Ms. Nichols served as a Counselor in the DHS Office of the Secretary, advising on enterprise-wide issues and activities including budget formulation and alignment, strategic planning, privacy, and legislative priorities. Additionally, Ms. Nichols previously served as the Chief of Staff to the DHS Deputy Secretary where she provided policy expertise and legal guidance and led key stakeholder engagement initiatives. In 2015, Ms. Nichols was detailed to the U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Homeland Security, where she notably drafted the legislation that led to the statutory reorganization of all DHS chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear activities.
Before joining DHS in 2007, Ms. Nichols served as Associate Counsel for the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, providing policy and legal expertise on legislation and oversight pertaining to DHS grant funding, first responder issues, and science and technology. Ms. Nichols drafted and negotiated numerous pieces of legislation, including Titles I and II of the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007, and participated in the Senate’s bipartisan investigation of the government’s preparedness for and response to Hurricane Katrina. Prior to her work in the Senate, Ms. Nichols served as a law clerk for the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on the Judiciary and the Committee on Ways and Means.
Ms. Nichols earned her J.D. from American University, Washington College of Law, and is an active member of the Florida Bar. She received her B.A. in political science from the University of Florida.
