Blackout! Are We Prepared to Manage the Aftermath of a Cyberattack or Other Failure of the Electrical Grid?: Risks, Vulnerabilities and Consequences of a Prolonged, Widespread Power Outage

This important report has been professionally converted for accurate flowing-text e-book format reproduction. It contains the complete transcript of a major House hearing on the American electric grid. The purpose of the hearing was twofold: 1. To explore the risks, vulnerabilities and consequences of a prolonged, widespread power outage and understand the primary federal roles, authorities and resources available to help communities, particularly at the local level, manage the aftermath of such a disaster: and 2. To assess the efforts and coordination among the participants—-public, private and non-profit—in the electrical power sector, including planning, preparedness and mitigation efforts, response and recovery capabilities, information sharing, and standards setting. The Subcommittee received testimony from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). the Department of Energy (DOE), the Department of Homeland Security's National Protection and Programs Directorate, the Congressional Research Service (CRS). the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC), and representatives from the electrical industry.

This compilation also includes a reproduction of the 2019 Worldwide Threat Assessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community.
There have been numerous congressional hearings on cybersecurity and how to stop the bad guys. What has not been discussed in great detail is what the consequence will be from a massive cyberattack that brings down, for example, a large portion of the electrical grid for an extended period of time. The purpose of this hearing is to answer an important question: With respect to cyberthreats to the electrical power system, what consequences should the Federal Government tell States and local governments to prepare for? In other words, for how many people and for how long should States plan on being without power? The Federal Government does this now for almost every significant hazard that we face. Whether it is a category 5 hurricane hitting Miami or an 8.0 earthquake in Los Angeles, the Federal Government has realistic estimates or scenarios for States and cities to plan. The Federal Government does not have this basic planning scenario for a cyberthreat to the power system, and there is a huge disparity in what different groups think is a potential scenario for which States and local governments should prepare. And the difference would be significant for local governments. if the power is out for a few days, it can be an inconvenience, but if it is out for several weeks, or a month or more, the local government has to potentially plan for increased public safety, water treatment, sheltering, or evacuation, fuel delivery for generators, and many other contingencies.