Letters to Legislators from Align Act

As a resident of the great State of Texas, I’m very worried about the security of our electric grid. I have become aware of this horrific vulnerability through a documentary entitled ‘Grid Down, Power Up’, and I’m deeply concerned about the lack of action from our national and state leadership in this area.

I was horrified to learn from the film that the recent Texas power outage caused by cold weather brought that state less than five minutes away from an extended grid-down event that could have left 29 million Texans without power for months. Even Texas’ relatively short outage killed more than 240 people and resulted in nearly $100 billion in economic losses. Worse yet, the Texas legislature had the opportunity to pass grid security legislation to harden its grid during three successive legislative sessions and chose NOT to do so each time, instead listening to utility industry lobbyists’ claims that it was unnecessary and too costly.

The Grid Down, Power Up film made it clear to me that (1) unfortunately, the blame is not just on Texas’ politicians – the nation has failed as a whole, (2) hardening the grid against known hazards, including electromagnetic pulse (EMP) is NECESSARY, (3) that it is NOT too costly, and (4) that the costs of inaction are potentially catastrophic.

Worse yet, a recent episode of CBS News’ 60 Minutes 1/ revealed that while there have been more than 700 physical attacks against our grid in the last decade, Dr. Liz Sherwood-Randall – President Biden’s Homeland Security Advisor – confirmed that “no one is in charge” of protecting the grid and that the federal government lacks the authority to mandate utilities to correct its vulnerabilities.

Therefore, I urge you (at both the federal and state level) to pursue the following actions:

— Watch this important documentary & review our comprehensive website at www.GridDownPowerUp.com to understand the threats to our critical electric grid as much as possible. [This site includes links to numerous additional websites that feature volumes of government-sponsored and private sector reports on grid security.]

— Demand that the federal agencies tasked in Presidential Executive Order 13865 of March 26, 2019, 2/ (Coordinating National Resilience to Electromagnetic Pulses), and through section 1740 of the National Defense Authorization Act of 2020 3/ execute their associated tasks. [Note that for these agencies to succeed, Congress must adequately fund them and hold frequent hearings on progress or lack thereof. Funding should be drawn from the recently passed $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Bill]

— Pass federal-level legislation mandating that all entities, public or private sector, that are part of the critical electric infrastructure take reasonably prudent actions needed to address cybersecurity, physical security, EMP/GMD protection, and hardening for severe weather events. [Similar to the requirements imposed on the financial sector by the Sarbanes–Oxley Act of 2002, such measures need to be certified periodically and publicly, as well as by state and federal authorities, by the Chief Executive Officer of each such critical electric infrastructure entity. And there must be civil and criminal penalties for false certification or failure to submit these.] [Seek out U.S. Senators Ron Johnson (R-WI) & Edward Markey (D-MA) and U.S. Representatives Doug Lamborn (R-CO) & Yvette Clarke (D-NY) and join the bipartisan Congressional EMP Caucus as part of this effort.]

— As recommended to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) 5/ on September 15, 2021, and the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board (SEAB) on October 28, 2021, create a Special Task Force to determine the potential threat posed by Chinese transformers and other grid control and monitoring systems and components to both the Bulk Electric System (BPS) and the Distribution Grid, and particularly concerning those portions of the grid that support offsite power to nuclear power generation facilities.

— As recommended by the Congressional EMP Commission in April 2008 14/, “Evaluate & implement quick fixes” – including the numerous commercial technologies presently available to provide cost-effective modifications to provide significant protection quickly. [Numerous military contractors and civilian corporations possess the know-how to protect the grid with rigorously tested equipment and techniques.]

Knowing how long this nation’s leaders (at all levels of government) have allowed these vulnerabilities to exist, we have started a movement to demand action. We will be watching and holding our leaders accountable at the ballot box. Expect to hear from our representatives in this effort, and we will expect you to make progress to defend our homeland by ensuring ‘POWER’S UP, not grid down.’