The U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce has advanced eight bills to the U.S. House of Representatives, including the Pipeline Cybersecurity Preparedness Act and the Energy Threat Analysis Center Act of 2026. The committee unanimously approved the industry-backed measures, which aim to strengthen information sharing and expand cybersecurity programs designed to protect the nation’s energy sector.
“As people, as a Committee, and as a Congress, there are few things that are more essential than our responsibility to protect our nation’s children,” Congressman Brett Guthrie, Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, said in a recent media statement. “We are taking the meaningful steps forward to empower parents and protect children and teens online. We owe it to parents. We owe it to communities. And most importantly, we owe it to the kids who are counting on us to get this right.”
“Empowering parents to better protect their children—especially amid the near-constant barrage of digital threats—remains one of our most solemn and important responsibilities,” according to Congressman Gus Bilirakis. “Today, we took meaningful action to advance that mission by moving forward several key measures, including the Kids Online Safety Act, designed to strengthen safeguards and increase transparency in the online space. I remain steadfast in my commitment to ensuring that children can safely navigate the digital world, while holding technology companies accountable for the platforms they operate. Protecting our kids must always come before protecting corporate profits.”
The Securing Community Upgrades for a Resilient Grid Act (H.R. 7257), introduced by Robert E. Latta and co-sponsored by Doris Matsui, proposes amendments to the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to strengthen the security and resilience of local electric distribution systems in the U.S.
The legislation requires states to address the physical security, cybersecurity, and resilience of local electricity distribution infrastructure within their State Energy Security Plans submitted to the U.S. Department of Energy (DoE). It defines a ‘local distribution system’ as electric utility infrastructure operating at 100 kilovolts or less and directs states to consider a range of threats, including cyber and physical risks and weather-related hazards that could disrupt energy systems.
The bill also expands planning requirements to include consultation with owners and operators of energy infrastructure and relevant equipment suppliers involved in electricity generation, transmission, and distribution. In addition, it calls for state energy security planning to account for supply chain risks and other vulnerabilities affecting local distribution utilities. Overall, the measure aims to ensure that state energy security planning explicitly incorporates risks affecting local power distribution systems, which play a critical role in maintaining grid reliability and resilience.
Introduced by Randy K. Weber and co-sponsored by Debbie Dingell, the Pipeline Cybersecurity Preparedness Act (H.R. 7272) directs the DoE to establish a program focused on strengthening the physical security and cybersecurity of pipelines and liquefied natural gas facilities.
Under the legislation, the Secretary of Energy would develop policies and procedures to improve coordination among federal agencies, state governments, and private-sector stakeholders in the energy sector. The program would support efforts to protect natural gas pipelines, hazardous liquid pipelines, and liquefied natural gas facilities by promoting collaboration through councils or other information-sharing bodies that address infrastructure security and resilience.
The bill also directs the DoE to coordinate federal, state, and industry response and recovery efforts following cyber or physical incidents affecting the energy sector. In addition, it calls for the development of advanced cybersecurity applications and technologies for voluntary use by pipeline and LNG operators, along with pilot demonstration projects to test and evaluate security measures in partnership with industry representatives.
The proposed program would further support workforce development by creating training curricula related to pipeline cybersecurity and physical security. It would also provide technical tools to help operators assess vulnerabilities, prioritize risks, and improve their security capabilities. Overall, the legislation aims to strengthen preparedness across the pipeline sector by improving coordination, technology development, training, and voluntary security practices to better protect critical energy infrastructure from cyber and physical threats.
The committee also marked up the Energy Threat Analysis Center Act of 2026 (H.R. 7305) bipartisan bill introduced by Kathy Castor and Gabe Evans that would amend the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to reauthorize the DoE’s Energy Sector Operational Support for Cyberresilience program and formally establish the Energy Threat Analysis Center.
The legislation is designed to strengthen cybersecurity and operational resilience across the U.S. energy sector by supporting threat analysis and improving coordination among government agencies, national laboratories, and private-sector energy operators. The Energy Threat Analysis Center would analyze cyber and physical threats targeting energy infrastructure and facilitate the exchange of information between industry and government to improve awareness of risks affecting electricity generation, transmission, and other energy systems.
The bill also seeks to enhance collaboration between grid operators, the intelligence community, and the DoE by enabling two-way information sharing and coordinated threat analysis. Through this framework, the program would help identify vulnerabilities, assess national security risks to energy systems, and develop mitigation strategies to reduce potential disruptions to critical infrastructure.
Overall, the measure aims to institutionalize a public-private initiative focused on analyzing threats and strengthening information sharing across the energy sector in order to improve preparedness and response to cyber and physical attacks on critical energy infrastructure.
