There is widespread agreement across America that cybersecurity is an urgent national priority and the federal government needs to play a major role. The threat of a cyberattack is real, and its consequences could prove devastating to our economic and national security. Effective action cannot come too soon.

Any solution to cybersecurity must allow the private sector, which owns 85 percent of our nation’s critical infrastructure, the freedom to use all tools at its disposal to protect against cyber intrusions. Business owners understand the need to protect themselves in the cyber domain and are devoting considerable resources to do so. Industry is right to expect that any Senate legislation will complement their current efforts. As much as possible, Washington should facilitate — rather than dictate — cybersecurity.

When the Cybersecurity Act was brought to the floor last week, without either a hearing or a markup, industry understandably mobilized to express alarm. The bill’s proposed framework creates a government-based solution that hampers the private sector’s agility and ingenuity to meet this rapidly evolving threat.

The list of those opposed is telling. It includes the Chamber of Commerce, the American Petroleum Institute, the Internet Security Alliance, the Business Roundtable, IBM, the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association and the National Association of Manufacturers.

They are raising legitimate concerns that the “voluntary” framework offered to industry is overly burdensome and prescriptive. It could quickly turn into a mandatory regulatory scheme. Increased bureaucracy and uncertain liability protections would actually slow the sharing of threat information between business and government. Resources better spent on innovation and deterrence would be diverted to satisfy government notions of compliance.

But instead of listening to the concerns of those who will be most affected by the Cybersecurity Act, it appears that Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is rushing this bill through the Senate—announcing Tuesday his intention to force a cloture vote later that day or Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the number of cyberattacks on federal networks rose 39 percent in 2010, according to the Office of Management and Budget, while the number of incidents on private networks went down.