The Critical Infrastructure Protection Act (CIPA), legislation to protect the nation from an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) — a threat experts consider one of the most serious risks to our national security – was passed this past week by the House Committee on Homeland Security.
"The electric grid is fundamental to our modern way of life and is a vital component of nearly every other critical infrastructure in America. Reducing its vulnerability to naturally occurring or weaponized electromagnetic pulse is a matter of national security,” said Rep. Trent Franks (R-Ariz.).
"Most notably, CIPA directs and empowers the Department of Homeland Security to harden and protect our critical infrastructure including power production, generation, and distribution systems. I’m encouraged by this movement and expect my colleagues in the House of Representatives to take this decisive step to protect our nation when CIPA comes to the floor for a vote."
"Experts have warned us about the threat of EMP events to our critical infrastructure. Such an event could severely disrupt all Americans’ way of life. The impact could cause serious damage to the nations’ critical infrastructure making this vitally important to our homeland security defenses,” said committee chairman Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas). “The Critical Infrastructure Protection Act, which passed through my Committee, is a huge step forward in our resiliency and preparedness from an EMP event.”
Rules committee chairman Pete Sessions (R-Texas), added that the “passage of the Critical Infrastructure Protection Act is an important first step towards protecting our nation’s critical infrastructure … I wholeheartedly support this bill so that we can secure our electrical grid, educate the public about this potential threat, and implement effective measures to protect our nation’s critical infrastructure.”
Homeland Security Today reported earlier this month that, an emergency spare transformer program is a key part of the preparation for and rapid recovery from a high-impact, low-frequency (HILF) event which the Department of Homeland Security announced in its long awaited report, Considerations for a Power Transformer Emergency Spare Strategy for the Electric Utility Industry.
For over a decade, Homeland Security Today recently reported, national security and energy experts have warned America’s power grid has grown increasingly vulnerable to natural factors, such as weather-related outages and subversive action. With power outages 285 percent more likely to occur today than in 1984, it is critical that the nation ensure its electric power system is reliable, according to a recent study by Johns Hopkins University (JHU).
Published in the Journal, Risk Analysis, the study, Who’s Making Sure the Power Stays On? said the nation’s electric power distribution systems are so haphazardly regulated for reliability that it’s nearly impossible for customers to know their true risk of losing service in a major storm. The study, which was designed to analyze how reliability is measured, led the researchers to propose new regulatory measures to accurately identify weaknesses within the system.
