Murkowski, Chatterjee tout importance of PUPRA reform, cybersecurity

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Chair Neil Chatterjee addressed state regulators at the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners winter meeting this week, highlighting the need for cybersecurity and reform of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA).

PURPA, enacted in 1978, aimed to promote alternative energy sources and energy efficiency and conservation. Both Murkowski and Chatterjee noted that the energy industry and electric power markets have evolved considerably since the enactment of the act.

“So, we are well overdue for some updates to bring these policies in line with the realities of today,” Chatterjee said. “That’s a concept that many of us would agree on, but of course, the hard questions relate to just how we approach bringing about the needed change.”

These questions, Chatterjee said, include whether regulators should take steps to encourage more flexibility and market-driven pricing, how to improve incentives for resources to locate where consumers most need them and how to address administrative costs associated with PURPA.

Sen. Murkowski told state regulators that she is “confident that we’re going to see some common-sense reforms coming forward …”

“My hope is that the FERC will reach a bipartisan deal to bring PURPA into the 21st century, agreeing that we should not be in the business of forcing utility customers to pay unnecessary costs for the power that they don’t need,” she said.

Sen. Murkowski, who chairs the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, said that restoring a full complement at FERC is another priority, noting a “growing backlog” of decisions at the commission.

FERC has been one commissioner short of a full complement since the death of Commissioner Kevin McIntyre on Jan. 2. The current roster of commissioners includes two Republicans and two Democrats.

Murkowski and Chatterjee also both highlighted the issue of grid security.

“When our energy infrastructure is impacted, the effects are felt throughout our economy and communities,” Chatterjee said. “That’s why, in my view, there’s no more important work for the commission than the work we do on security and reliability-related matters.”

Chatterjee noted that while the commission works with the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) on mandatory cybersecurity standards for the electric industry, the pipeline industry has no such mandatory standards.

FERC does not have the authority to regulate pipeline security. Instead that responsibility falls to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), which currently relies on voluntary standards.

Chatterjee said he recently met with the TSA administrator, who pledged to “take further action to improve TSA’s oversight of pipeline security.” The FERC chair also highlighted an upcoming technical conference on security investments for energy infrastructure to be co-hosted by FERC and the Department of Energy (DOE).

Sen. Murkowski said she expects that the energy committee will be writing new legislation related to cybersecurity to be introduced in the coming months.

The speakers also discussed the growing role of renewable resources, energy storage and other technologies in the energy mix and issues related to integrating them into the grid. Chatterjee emphasized taking a “holistic look” at transmission policies, while Murkowski called for increased innovation, energy efficiency and an “all-of-the-above” approach to clean energy.