{"id":185920,"date":"2026-02-09T14:36:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-09T19:36:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/2026\/02\/09\/house-panel-advances-5-cybersecurity-bills-targeting-energy-infrastructure-meritalk\/"},"modified":"2026-02-09T18:20:10","modified_gmt":"2026-02-09T23:20:10","slug":"house-panel-advances-5-cybersecurity-bills-targeting-energy-infrastructure-meritalk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/2026\/02\/09\/house-panel-advances-5-cybersecurity-bills-targeting-energy-infrastructure-meritalk\/","title":{"rendered":"House Panel Advances 5 Cybersecurity Bills Targeting Energy Infrastructure \u2013 MeriTalk"},"content":{"rendered":"

House Panel Advances 5 Cybersecurity Bills Targeting Energy Infrastructure \u2013 MeriTalk<\/a><\/p>\n

https:\/\/meritalk.com\/articles\/house-panel-advances-five-cybersecurity-bills-targeting-energy-infrastructure\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Publish Date: 2026-02-09 14:36:00<\/a><\/p>\n

Source Domain: meritalk.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Author: <\/a><\/p>\n

Using an unordered list, summarize the following article with between 4 and 8 key points. Key cybersecurity bills aimed at securing the nation\u2019s energy infrastructure and electric grid are advancing to the full House Energy and Commerce panel after passing out of the House Subcommittee on Energy. \u00a0
\nAll five bills have bipartisan backing and advanced unanimously out of the energy subcommittee by voice vote. They will still need approval from the full committee, a House floor vote, and consideration from the Senate before landing on President Donald Trump\u2019s desk. \u00a0
\nEnergy Emergency Leadership\u00a0Act\u00a0
\nIntroduced by Reps. Laurel Lee, R-Fla., and Greg Landsman, D-Ohio,\u00a0the\u00a0Energy Emergency Leadership\u00a0Act\u00a0would\u00a0add\u00a0\u201cenergy emergency and energy security\u201d to the list of responsibilities the Secretary of Energy assigns to Department of Energy (DOE) assistant secretaries. That work would include infrastructure security and resilience, cybersecurity,\u00a0supply\u00a0issues, and emergency planning, response, and restoration.\u00a0\u00a0
\nThe bill\u2019s text also says DOE should be able to step in with technical assistance when asked by energy-sector entities or state, local, or tribal governments for help protecting against, detecting, and responding to energy security threats and incidents. \u00a0
\n\u201cThis will ensure the Department has the focused and accountable leadership that will strengthen intergovernmental and energy sector collaboration,\u201d Rep. Bob Latta, R-Ohio, who serves as subcommittee chair, said in opening remarks\u00a0during the\u00a0subcommittee\u2019s\u00a0markup.\u00a0\u00a0
\nA version of the Energy Emergency Leadership Act was also introduced in the last Congress.\u00a0\u00a0
\nRural and Municipal Utility Cybersecurity Act\u00a0
\nLed by Reps.\u00a0Mariannette\u00a0Miller-Meeks, R-Iowa, and Jennifer McClellan, D-Va.,\u00a0the\u00a0Rural and Municipal Utility Cybersecurity Act\u00a0would strengthen the Rural and Municipal Utility Advanced Cybersecurity Grant and Technical Assistance Program by authorizing $250 million in funding across fiscal years 2026 \u2013 2030 and encouraging participation in information-sharing programs.\u00a0
\nThe grant and assistance program provides federal funding and technical support to rural electric cooperatives and municipal and small investor-owned utilities so they can deploy advanced cybersecurity technologies and defend and respond to cyber threats. \u00a0
\n\u201cRural and municipal utilities often lack the resources needed to defend against increasingly complex cyber threats. This bipartisan legislation ensures they have the tools,\u00a0training, and support necessary to protect the grid and keep the lights on for millions of Americans,\u201d Miller-Meeks said in a\u00a0statement.\u00a0\u00a0
\nSecuring Community\u00a0Upgrades\u00a0for a Resilient Grid (SECURE Grid) Act\u00a0
\nRep. Doris Matsui, D-Calif., joined Latta in introducing the\u00a0SECURE Grid Act, which would task states with considering threats and vulnerabilities to local grid infrastructure,\u00a0available\u00a0technologies\u00a0to mitigate threats to energy distribution and rising grid demand, and other factors\u00a0when\u00a0submitting\u00a0their state energy security plans (SESP).\u00a0
\nSESPs are\u00a0submitted\u00a0annually to receive funds from the State Energy Program. Those funds are used to implement energy security and resiliency plans, invest in domestic energy resources, pilot projects, and reduce energy waste, according to a\u00a0press release from\u00a0Latta\u2019s office.\u00a0\u00a0
\n\u201cWe must ensure America\u2019s electric grid is secure and resilient for families and businesses across the country,\u201d Latta said in a\u00a0statement. \u201cFrom extreme weather to physical and cyberattacks by adversaries that could disrupt our power supply, protecting the grid is a national priority.\u201d\u00a0
\nMatsui\u00a0added,\u00a0\u201cAmericans depend on reliable, affordable electricity for every aspect of our lives \u2026\u00a0That\u2019s\u00a0why\u00a0I\u2019m\u00a0introducing the SECURE Grid Act to provide State officials with the support and funding they need to\u00a0anticipate\u00a0and respond to\u00a0any and all\u00a0threats to our electric grid.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0
\nLatta and Matsui\u00a0introduced\u00a0another version of the SECURE Grid Act in 2024.\u00a0\u00a0
\nPipeline Cybersecurity Preparedness Act\u00a0
\nThe\u00a0Pipeline Cybersecurity Preparedness Act,\u00a0from Reps. Randy Weber, R-Texas,\u00a0and Debbie Dingell, D-Mich.,\u00a0would charge the DOE with creating a new program to strengthen the physical security and cybersecurity of U.S. pipelines and liquefied natural gas facilities.\u00a0\u00a0
\nThe program aims to improve coordination among federal, state, and energy sector partners by supporting coordinated responses and recovery from physical and cyber incidents. It would also develop voluntary cybersecurity tools and pilot projects, build workforce training curricula, and provide technical tools to help industry assess and boost its security capabilities. \u00a0
\n\u201cThis legislation focuses on the Department of Energy\u2019s vast technical capabilities to develop a program that improves the coordination and technical support needed to ensure\u00a0timely, efficient, and effective work to secure our energy systems and respond to disruptions,\u201d Weber said during the subcommittee markup.\u00a0\u00a0
\nEnergy\u00a0Threat\u00a0Analysis Center\u00a0(ETAC)\u00a0Act of 2026\u00a0
\nThe\u00a0ETAC Act of 2026\u00a0introduced by Reps. Gabe Evans, R-Colo., and Kathy Castor, D-Fla.,\u00a0aims to reauthorize\u00a0the ETAC, which is\u00a0located\u00a0within the DOE\u2019s Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response.\u00a0The ETAC provides operational support for energy sector cybersecurity and resilience.\u00a0
\n\u201cIt\u2019s\u00a0essential that we reauthorize\u00a0ETAC. Chinese Communist Party-backed hacker groups like Volt Typhoon and Salt Typhoon have already embedded themselves in networks within critical infrastructure, and\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0operating\u00a0at times undetected,\u201d Evans said during the subcommittee markup.\u00a0
\n\u201cThe preventative work that ETAC does protects communities and our national security from attacks like these,\u201d he added.\u00a0
\nEvans said in a\u00a0press release\u00a0that the bill would renew a\u00a0public-private partnership\u00a0with the\u00a0DOE, its\u00a0National Lab of the\u00a0Rockies, and\u00a0electric\u00a0utilities\u00a0to run threat assessments\u00a0and\u00a0preventative research to protect critical energy infrastructure. It\u00a0would also\u00a0target\u00a0China-linked cyber threats and aim\u00a0to tighten information-sharing and coordination among government, industry, and law enforcement, with the Rockies lab serving as the central hub.\u00a0
\nCastor, who\u00a0serves as ranking member of the subcommittee, said the proposal \u201cstrengthens the Department of Energy\u2019s emergency response capabilities in the face of cybersecurity threats to our energy system.\u201d\u00a0
\nThe pieces of legislation received support from Industry. Jim Richberg, head of global policy and global field chief information security officer at Fortinet,\u00a0said the bills address small utilities that are often under-resourced but critical in powering much of the United States.\u00a0\u00a0
\n\u201cThe energy sector is arguably the one sector whose failure would cause all others to fail as well, once their backup power was exhausted,\u201d Richberg said in a statement shared with\u00a0MeriTalk. \u201cThe bills aim to build on proven ways of leveraging the expertise of the strong players in this ecosystem \u2013 such as the Department of Energy and the national labs \u2013 along with resources and cyber training to help the most vulnerable part of this interconnected sector.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

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