January 2022 | Vol. 27 No.1

NEMA Rail Electrification Council Supports CA Central Valley Electrification Plan

On December 21, the NEMA Rail Electrification Council wrote to Assembly Transportation Committee Chair Laura Friedman to express "support and assistance for the California High-Speed Rail Authority's plans for electrification in the Central Valley." The letter draws attention to the project's benefits of moving people around the state, spurring economic growth, and creating a cleaner environment. The letter also points to the REC White Paper The Value of Rail Electrification that addresses the benefits of rail electrification.

— Phil Squair, Vice President of Government Relations, NEMA and Steve Griffith, Senior Industry Director, NEMA

Agencies Start Acting on Cyber Response Due to Congressional Inaction.

The lack of Congressional action in codifying cybersecurity policies prompted certain agencies to initiate regulations through existing authorities. Last year's National Defense Authorization Act, signed in December, failed to include bi-partisan language on incident reporting and other cyber-related policies, including authorizing the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) with subpoena powers to mandate private sector entities to report the details of cyberattacks. As a result, some federal agencies with regulatory oversight of specific economic sectors, including the Transportation Security Administration (aviation, pipelines, and rail) and the Federal Trade Commission (financial services), are implementing their rulemaking to fill this space. This is especially noteworthy given the far-reaching Log4j vulnerability recently discovered and CISA's admission that cyberattacks are expected to increase dramatically as a result. Without a Congressional mandate, government and specific industry sectors will limit cyber incident reporting, leaving an incomplete patchwork of policies that can complicate cybersecurity postures and resiliency. CISA and industry are looking for appropriate legislative vehicles to pass cyber incident reporting language this year.

— Peter Ferrell, Government Relations Manager on Cybersecurity and Data Policy, NEMA

NEMA Comments on Battery Charger Test Procedures

On January 3, NEMA filed comments to the Department of Energy (DOE) rulemaking for test procedures for battery chargers and external power supplies. These comments urge DOE to update standards incorporated by reference and recognize the latest version of IEC 62040-3 (Edition 2) as an equivalent test method for certifications.