Critical infrastructure includes defense and food as well as energy

OPINION:

Recently, I hosted a forum on Securing America’s Energy Infrastructure in Omaha, Neb., where I was joined by U.S. Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb.; retired Supervisory FBI Agent and Cybersecurity expert Miguel Clarke; Cybersecurity, and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Region 7 Director Phil Kirk; and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)’s Office of Energy Infrastructure Security (OEIS) Director Joseph McClelland.

Energy and cybersecurity stakeholders from the 2nd Congressional District attended including Omaha Public Power District (OPPD), Tenaska, Metropolitan Utilities District (MUD), the Nebraska Public Service Commission, and the Nebraska Public Power District (NPPD). Over 70 attendees packed the room.

The speakers discussed emerging threats on energy infrastructure and how energy stakeholders can best prepare for these threats. They discussed preventative measures companies can take as well as how to respond once a threat emerges.

Energy is the critical infrastructure sector that enables other critical infrastructure sectors to operate, making it an attractive target to malicious actors. Increasingly sophisticated and prevalent cybersecurity and physical threats against the U.S. energy infrastructure are a call to action. Ensuring the security of energy infrastructure is crucial to U.S. energy reliability and resiliency. This meeting provided a forum to discuss how federal agencies are partnering with the public and private sectors to identify and mitigate risk, establish lines of communication, and develop resiliency policies and programs.

It wasn’t too long ago that the Colonial Pipeline was hacked with ransomware. Within a week, gas stations in the southeastern United States were empty and prices had skyrocketed. This is happening more frequently, and every company needs to harden their cyber operations and have an attack response plan.

Critical infrastructure isn’t limited to what we immediately think of, such as electric grids, water supply systems and roads. We should also look at protecting critical defense facilities and food production.

I’m an original co-sponsor for H.R. 1389, the GRID Act, along with Reps. Jason Crow, D-Colo., and Scott Peters, D-Calif. This bipartisan legislation gives the Department of Energy (DOE) the authority to address the vulnerability of critical defense facilities to electric energy supply disruptions due to cyberattacks, terrorism or severe weather. Specifically, DOE may enter into contracts or cooperative agreements with external providers of electric energy to improve the resilience of defense critical electric infrastructure or reduce such vulnerability.

Military readiness includes energy security, which is also vital to our economy. This issue has long been a critical issue for me, and this legislation will improve the resiliency of our critical defense electrical infrastructure. With growing threats from the Chinese Communist Party and Russia, we need to make energy security a top priority.

In 2022, my bill, H.R. 5658, the DHS Roles and Responsibilities in Cyber Space Act, passed the House after favorable consideration by the Homeland Security Committee. This bill is aimed at helping protect private industry against cyberattacks from other nations such as Russia and China. We gave the Department of Homeland Security the responsibility for protecting our infrastructure and private industry. There was too much ambiguity on who was responsible, and we made the authorities clear. The bill passed with a vote of 313 to 105.

In summer 2021, JBS Foods, the world’s largest meat processor, fell victim to foreign cyber criminals, demonstrating the gaps and vulnerabilities American companies face in combating ransomware attacks. JBS Foods was forced to suspend operations in nine locations on account of the cyberattacks, including one in Nebraska.

A close partnership between the federal government and the private sector is vital to countering cyberattacks from other countries that threaten our national security, economy, and way of life.

In May 2022, AGCO Corp, an agricultural equipment maker experienced a ransomware attack that affected operations at some of its production facilities. Tractor sales had been stalled during the crucial planting season. The ransomware attack came as U.S. agricultural equipment makers were already facing persistent supply chain disruptions and labor strikes that left them unable to meet demand.

We must continue to find ways to further protect our critical infrastructure as threats grow from China, Russia, and Iran. Not only do we need to protect our electrical grids, water supply systems, broadband and other traditional infrastructure, we need to protect our food production and critical defense systems.

• Rep. Don Bacon , R-Neb., represents the 2nd Congressional District of Nebraska and serves on the House Agriculture (HAC) and Armed Services Committees (HASC). He is also the chairman of the HASC Subcommittee on Cyber, Information Technologies, and Innovation (CITI) and Quality of Life Panel.