Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SCR55 Compare Versions

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1	1	By: Hall, Bettencourt S.C.R. No. 55
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3	3
4	4	SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
5	5	WHEREAS, Our food and water supplies, communications,
6	6	banking, hospitals, law enforcement, and countless critical
7	7	functions depend on the electric grid, and its protection is vital
8	8	to homeland security; and
9	9	WHEREAS, Numerous national publications have reported on the
10	10	great danger to the electric grid from an electromagnetic pulse, or
11	11	EMP; national experts regard a potential attack on our electric
12	12	grid system, whether natural or manmade, as a grave threat to our
13	13	American way of life; and
14	14	WHEREAS, The risk of an EMP attack has been acknowledged
15	15	since the 1960s, and the congressional EMP Commission warned in its
16	16	2004 and 2008 reports that terrorists or state actors using
17	17	relatively unsophisticated missiles armed with nuclear weapons
18	18	could stage such an attack; in 2009, the congressional Commission
19	19	on the Strategic Posture of the United States, led by former
20	20	Secretaries of Defense William Perry and James Schlesinger, urged
21	21	immediate action to protect the electric grid; and
22	22	WHEREAS, Although the federal government has thus far
23	23	neglected to take action, Texas is fortunate to have its own power
24	24	grid; the state is thus capable of hardening its own electric system
25	25	to ensure reliable electricity in a hostile environment for
26	26	residents, businesses, and state and local government, as well as
27	27	for U.S. military bases; and
28	28	WHEREAS, Even if an EMP threat never materializes, protecting
29	29	the grid would provide substantial economic benefits; as the
30	30	federal government closes military bases around the country, Texas
31	31	bases would likely survive closure, due to their enhanced energy
32	32	security; moreover, companies considering relocation or expansion
33	33	would clearly find the assurance of secure power immensely valuable
34	34	and look to the Lone Star State; and
35	35	WHEREAS, The protection of the electric grid is essential to
36	36	the security and continued prosperity of our state and nation, and
37	37	Texas is prepared to do its part to ensure that citizens can rely
38	38	completely on the power system that sustains our society; now,
39	39	therefore, be it
40	40	RESOLVED, That the 85th Legislature of the State of Texas
41	41	hereby request the lieutenant governor and the speaker of the house
42	42	of representatives to create a joint interim committee to study the
43	43	security of the Texas electric grid, including critical
44	44	infrastructure and its vulnerability to electromagnetic pulse,
45	45	geomagnetic disturbance, and cybersecurity threats; and, be it
46	46	further
47	47	RESOLVED, That the committee include members of the Electric
48	48	Reliability Council of Texas and other relevant stakeholder groups;
49	49	and, be it further
50	50	RESOLVED, That the committee coordinate with the Commission
51	51	to Assess the Threat to the United States from Electromagnetic
52	52	Pulse (EMP) Attack, the United States Department of Defense, the
53	53	United States Department of Energy, and the United States
54	54	Department of Homeland Security to apply research and information
55	55	on electromagnetic, geomagnetic, physical, and cyber-attack
56	56	threats; and, be it further
57	57	RESOLVED, That the committee submit a full report, including
58	58	findings and recommendations, to the 86th Texas Legislature in
59	59	January 2019; and, be it further
60	60	RESOLVED, That the committee's proceedings and operations be
61	61	governed by such general rules and policies for interim committees
62	62	as the 85th Texas Legislature may adopt.