Support for Grid Security Legislation

To the Members of the U.S. House of Representatives:

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce supports the bipartisan focus on the protection of America's energy infrastructure amid an increasingly complex physical and cyber threat environment. Our nation's energy infrastructure is critical to supporting our economy and national security. This relationship makes it increasingly important that all appropriate legislative and regulatory tools be deployed to facilitate the coordination and collaboration between government and the stakeholders who own and operate critical electricity infrastructure. A strong partnership is necessary to protect the energy sector from an evolving threat landscape.

Specifically, the Chamber supports several bills scheduled for floor consideration under suspension early this week that individually and collectively are aimed at ensuring the reliability and security of the electric grid. While the protection of our critical energy infrastructure requires constant vigilance, the bills under consideration provide important tools to enhance the capabilities of our public and private sectors to secure reliable and resilient domestic electricity supplies. In particular, we strongly support the following:

· H.R. 7257, the "Securing Community Upgrades for a Resilient Grid (SECURE Grid) Act," which would amend State Energy Security Plans, as such are required by the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, to include the consideration of threats to local distribution systems, in addition to bulk-power systems, while also evaluating supply chain and weather-related threats and vulnerabilities to electric power systems.

· H.R. 7258, the "Energy Emergency Leadership Act," which would elevate energy emergency and energy security among the functions that the Secretary of Energy shall designate to an Assistant Secretary. This proposed bill is substantially similar to legislation that previously passed the House in each of the last three Congresses.

· H.R. 7266, the "Rural and Municipal Utility Cybersecurity Act," which would reauthorize a valuable grant and technical assistance program originating under the IIJA. This program supports the provision of technical and financial assistance to energy sector stakeholders who may not otherwise have the resources necessary to protect and harden their systems against cyber threats, while also increasing these entities' participation in cybersecurity threat information sharing programs.

· H.R. 7305, the "Energy Threat Analysis Center Act of 2026," which would reauthorize the establishment of the Energy Threat Analysis Center at the Department of Energy (DOE) under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA). This reauthorization further clarifies the public/private sector collaboration and information sharing critical to strengthening the collective defense of America's energy infrastructure.

The Chamber urges Members to vote "yes" on H.R. 7257, H.R. 7258, H.R. 7266, and H.R. 7305 to enhance the cyber and physical security of America's critical energy infrastructure.

Sincerely,

Neil Bradley
Executive Vice President, Chief Policy Officer,
and Head of Strategic Advocacy
U.S. Chamber of Commerce