§18724 — Title 42 The Public Health and Welfare | U.S. Code

Summary

The Secretary must run programs to make energy systems safer from cyberattacks and physical threats. Electric utility means the term used in section 796 of title 16. E-ISAC means the Electricity Information Sharing and Analysis Center. One program will create advanced cyber tools and technology to find and fix weak spots in the energy sector. It covers risks like dependence on other infrastructure, weather and fuel problems, growing use of inverter-based tech, and unpatched hardware or software. It also focuses on protecting field devices and third-party control systems across generation, transmission, distribution, metering, demand response, storage, and market functions, and will fund pilot projects, worker training, and safer supply-chain design. Congress set aside $250,000,000 for this work for fiscal years 2022 through 2026. The Secretary may also run a program to test and improve emergency response and coordination with other agencies, labs, and industry; share more threat information with the intelligence community; improve monitoring tools for the Department and E-ISAC; grow industry participation in E-ISAC; and give technical help to small electric utilities to raise their cyber readiness. Congress set aside $50,000,000 for this for fiscal years 2022 through 2026. Working with the Secretary of Homeland Security, the Secretary must also run an advanced energy security program for electric, natural gas, and oil networks to keep operations working during natural and human-made threats, including electromagnetic pulse and geomagnetic disturbances. That program can find critical vulnerable parts, do national impact modeling, add physical security to cyber plans, run exercises, research hardening and recovery, and give technical help for standards and risk analysis. It does not create new regulatory requirements. Congress set aside $50,000,000 for this for fiscal years 2022 through 2026.

Title 42, §18724

The Public Health and Welfare — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)In this section:

(1)The term “electric utility” has the meaning given the term in section 796 of title 16.

(2)The term “E-ISAC” means the Electricity Information Sharing and Analysis Center.

(b)(1)The Secretary, in coordination with the Secretary of Homeland Security and in consultation with, as determined appropriate, other Federal agencies, the energy sector, the States, Indian Tribes, Tribal organizations, territories or freely associated states, and other stakeholders, shall develop and carry out a program—

(A)to develop advanced cybersecurity applications and technologies for the energy sector—

(i)to identify and mitigate vulnerabilities, including—

(I)dependencies on other critical infrastructure;

(II)impacts from weather and fuel supply;

(III)increased dependence on inverter-based technologies; and

(IV)vulnerabilities from unpatched hardware and software systems; and

(ii)to advance the security of field devices and third-party control systems, including—

(I)systems for generation, transmission, distribution, end use, and market functions;

(II)specific electric grid elements including advanced metering, demand response, distribution, generation, and electricity storage;

(III)forensic analysis of infected systems;

(IV)secure communications; and

(V)application of in-line edge security solutions;

(B)to leverage electric grid architecture as a means to assess risks to the energy sector, including by implementing an all-hazards approach to communications infrastructure, control systems architecture, and power systems architecture;

(C)to perform pilot demonstration projects with the energy sector to gain experience with new technologies;

(D)to develop workforce development curricula for energy sector-related cybersecurity; and

(E)to develop improved supply chain concepts for secure design of emerging digital components and power electronics.

(2)There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry out this subsection $250,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 2022 through 2026.

(c)(1)The Secretary may develop and carry out a program—

(A)to enhance and periodically test—

(i)the emergency response capabilities of the Department; and

(ii)the coordination of the Department with other agencies, the National Laboratories, and private industry;

(B)to expand cooperation of the Department with the intelligence community for energy sector-related threat collection and analysis;

(C)to enhance the tools of the Department and E-ISAC for monitoring the status of the energy sector;

(D)to expand industry participation in E-ISAC; and

(E)to provide technical assistance to small electric utilities for purposes of assessing and improving cybermaturity levels and addressing gaps identified in the assessment.

(2)There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry out this subsection $50,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 2022 through 2026.

(d)(1)The Secretary, in coordination with the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall develop and carry out an advanced energy security program to secure energy networks, including—

(A)electric networks;

(B)natural gas networks; and

(C)oil exploration, transmission, and delivery networks.

(2)The objective of the program developed under paragraph (1) is to increase the functional preservation of electric grid operations or natural gas and oil operations in the face of natural and human-made threats and hazards, including electric magnetic pulse and geomagnetic disturbances.

(3)In carrying out the program developed under paragraph (1), the Secretary may—

(A)develop capabilities to identify vulnerabilities and critical components that pose major risks to grid security if destroyed or impaired;

(B)provide modeling at the national level to predict impacts from natural or human-made events;

(C)add physical security to the cybersecurity maturity model;

(D)conduct exercises and assessments to identify and mitigate vulnerabilities to the electric grid, including providing mitigation recommendations;

(E)conduct research on hardening solutions for critical components of the electric grid;

(F)conduct research on mitigation and recovery solutions for critical components of the electric grid; and

(G)provide technical assistance to States and other entities for standards and risk analysis.

(4)Nothing in this section authorizes new regulatory requirements.

(5)There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry out this subsection $50,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 2022 through 2026.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Wage Rate RequirementsFor provisions relating to rates of wages to be paid to laborers and mechanics on projects for

Construction

, alteration, or repair work funded under div. D or an amendment by div. D of Pub. L. 117–58, including authority of Secretary of Labor, see section 18851 of this title.

§18724 Enhanced Grid Security

Summary

Title 42, §18724

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Construction

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