ENERGY THREAT ANALYSIS CENTER ACT OF 2026

On 2026-06-29, Representative Brett Guthrie (R-KY-2) delivered a floor speech titled "ENERGY THREAT ANALYSIS CENTER ACT OF 2026" in the House.

ENERGY THREAT ANALYSIS CENTER ACT OF 2026

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 108 (Monday, June 29, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 108 (Monday, June 29, 2026)] [House] [Pages H4300-H4302] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] ENERGY THREAT ANALYSIS CENTER ACT OF 2026 Mr. GUTHRIE. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 7305) to amend the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to reauthorize the Department of Energy's Energy Sector Operational Support for Cyberresilience Program to provide operational support for energy sector cybersecurity and resilience, as amended. The Clerk read the title of the bill. The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 7305 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Energy Threat Analysis Center Act of 2026''. SEC. 2. ENERGY SECTOR OPERATIONAL SUPPORT FOR CYBERRESILIENCE PROGRAM. Section 40125(c) of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (42 U.S.C. 18724(c)) is amended-- (1) in paragraph (1)-- (A) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) through (E) as subparagraphs (B) through (F), respectively; (B) by inserting before subparagraph (B), as so redesignated, the following: ``(A) to strengthen the collective defense, response, and resilience of the United States energy sector-- ``(i) by enhancing collaboration between the government and the energy sector to analyze threats to the energy sector and to deny, disrupt, and mitigate operational impacts to energy systems-- ``(I) by exchanging information at the classified and unclassified level, collectively analyzing potential and realized threats, and providing recommendations to mitigate these threats that benefit the broader energy sector; and ``(II) by increasing operational collaboration through establishing the technical infrastructure necessary to house, access, and perform advanced analytics and experimentation to enable analysis, discovery, alerts, and collaboration activities of intelligence-driven and intelligence-informed technical data and knowledge, threat information and to share actionable insights and threat mitigation; ``(ii) by advancing the collective understanding of national security risks and vulnerabilities associated with the energy sector that may be exploited by adversaries; and ``(iii) by increasing the energy sector's understanding of threat actor tactics, techniques, procedures, indicators of compromise, capabilities, and activities that present risks to the energy sector;''; (C) in subparagraph (D), as so redesignated, by striking ``sector;'' and inserting ``sector; and''; (D) in subparagraph (E), as so redesignated, by striking ``; and'' and inserting ``.''; and (E) by striking subparagraph (F), as so redesignated; (2) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (7); (3) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following: ``(2) Energy threat analysis center.--The Secretary may carry out any activity of the program developed and carried out under paragraph (1) through an Energy Threat Analysis [[Page H4301]] Center, which may be established at one or more physical locations. ``(3) No right or benefit.-- ``(A) Secretarial authority.--The provision of assistance or information under the program developed and carried out under paragraph (1) to a governmental or private entity shall be at the sole and unreviewable discretion of the Secretary. ``(B) Provision of assistance or information.--The provision of assistance or information under the program developed and carried out under paragraph (1) to a governmental or private entity shall not create a right or benefit, substantive or procedural, for any other governmental or private entity to similar assistance or information. ``(4) Nonapplicability of faca.--The program developed and carried out under paragraph (1) shall not be considered an advisory committee under chapter 10 of title 5, United States Code. ``(5) Exemption from disclosure.--Information shared by or with the Federal Government or a State, Tribal, or local government under the program developed and carried out under paragraph (1) shall be-- ``(A) deemed voluntarily shared information and exempt from disclosure under section 552 of title 5, United States Code, and any State, Tribal, or local provision of law requiring disclosure of information or records; and ``(B) withheld, without discretion, from the public under section 552(b)(3)(B) of title 5, United States Code, and any State, Tribal, or local provision of law requiring disclosure of information or records. ``(6) Transaction authority.-- ``(A) In general.--In addition to any other authority granted to the Secretary under any other provision of law, the Secretary is authorized to enter into and perform contracts, cooperative agreements, grants, and other transactions with public agencies, private organizations, and persons to carry out the program developed and carried out under paragraph (1). ``(B) Minimizing delays.--The Secretary may establish and utilize pre-approved national security contracting mechanisms, model partnership agreements, and expedited review procedures for purposes of entering into transactions under subparagraph (A).''; and (4) in paragraph (7), as so redesignated, by striking ``2022 through 2026'' and inserting ``2027 through 2031''. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Guthrie) and the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Castor) each will control 20 minutes. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Kentucky. General Leave Mr. GUTHRIE. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks on the legislation and to insert extraneous material on H.R. 7305. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Kentucky? There was no objection. Mr. GUTHRIE. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 7305, the Energy Threat Analysis Center Act, sponsored by the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Castor) and the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Evans), my good friends. The bill was reported favorably on a unanimous, bipartisan vote by the Energy and Commerce Committee. The United States has one of the most complex energy systems in the world, and those systems are essential for the health and welfare of the public, our economy, and our security. Our adversaries know this, and they work persistently to identify and exploit vulnerabilities in our critical energy infrastructure, creating a looming threat few Americans may appreciate. We must take action to improve our ability to identify, analyze, and share information about these threats to safeguard our systems and mitigate risks and impacts. The Energy Threat Analysis Center, or ETAC, was established as a DOE pilot program just a few years ago. The program convenes energy sector stakeholders and Federal Government experts to more effectively identify and address the threats to our critical infrastructure, especially those posed by our nation- state adversaries. Identifying and mitigating threats will become even more urgent as technology advances. The ETAC enables grid operators to see threats and our intelligence community and Federal experts to better understand system vulnerabilities, improving threat identification. H.R. 7305 reauthorizes ETAC for 5 years and clarifies authorities to enhance collaboration between grid operators, utilities, and the government, including the intelligence community. This is a critical operational program to strengthen the collective defense, response, and resilience of our energy sector. Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the bill, and I reserve the balance of my time. Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I thank Chairman Guthrie and colleagues on both sides of the aisle for moving forward H.R. 7305, the Energy Threat Analysis Center Act of 2026. I rise in support of my bipartisan bill with Representative Evans of Colorado. Madam Speaker, as you know, across the country our energy infrastructure is under attack from cybersecurity threats, and I think anyone who is tuned into this debate this afternoon understands it is very serious. Cyberattacks can cause significant disruptions to the reliable flow of energy to American homes, businesses, and communities. Protecting our energy infrastructure against these attacks is critical to keeping the lights on, the air conditioning on where I am from, and lowering energy costs for hardworking American families and businesses. {time} 1640 I know that Chairman Guthrie agrees with me on this. The U.S. energy grid is remarkable. It is one of the largest, most interconnected systems in the world. It serves over 330 million people, includes over 7,300 power plants, and spans over 600,000 miles of high-voltage transmission lines. It underpins our economy. If it fails, it cascades into failures in multiple other sectors, like healthcare, water, transportation, and communications. Unfortunately, our energy system and our grid are also very old. About half of U.S. oil and gas pipelines are over 50 years old, and most transmission lines are well over 25 years old. They were not designed with modern technology and security in mind. These dangers are not hypothetical. In 2024, U.S. intelligence agencies reported that China had successfully infiltrated and pre- positioned on U.S. critical infrastructure, including our energy systems. The North American Electric Reliability Corporation estimates that the U.S. grid is gaining about 60 new vulnerable points per day as we use more digital services, deploy new software, and expand distributed energy. Eighty percent of U.S. energy infrastructure is owned by the private sector, so we need to make sure that they are working with the Federal Government and our intelligenc

Referenced legislation: HR7305, HR7305