Homeland Security Committee Introduces Bill to Secure the Nation's Electric Grid

A Bill to Amend the Federal Power Act - Critical Electric Infrastructure
With more than a trillion dollars worth of assets, 200,000 miles of transmission lines, and 800,000 megawatts power serving 300 million people, the electric infrastructure has been become increasingly dependent on computer control systems and are now connected directly or indirectly to open systems networks. Legislators are concerned that our electric power grid will come under cyber attack by foreign nations, or e-social protests as well as exposed to EMP "Magnetic Pulse Events." Legislators and the Department of Homeland Security believe that utilities are only reporting a small percentage of their Critical Infrastructure Assets.

The Bill states that the Secretary of Homeland Security working with other National Security Agencies will identify threats and vulnerabilities that require immediate proactive correction, and that the DHS will perform ongoing threat and vulnerability assessments. FERC may issue orders or rules needed to protect the critical electric infrastructure and may issue an emergency rule without prior notice or review effective for 90 days.