II 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4895 

To establish a program to disseminate technical and other assistance to 

small and rural electric cooperatives to support expanding electric transmission capacity and hardening electric transmission and distribution 

infrastructure against cyberattacks and threats from natural hazards, 

with a focus on threats from wildfire, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 31, 2024 

Mr. WYDEN introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To establish a program to disseminate technical and other 

assistance to small and rural electric cooperatives to support expanding electric transmission capacity and hardening electric transmission and distribution infrastructure against cyberattacks and threats from natural hazards, with a focus on threats from wildfire, and for 

other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Grid Resilience Im3 provement through Dedicated Assistance Act’’ or the 

4 ‘‘GRID Assistance Act’’. 

5 SEC. 2. GRID ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 

6 Subtitle A of title I of division D of the Infrastructure 

7 Investment and Jobs Act (42 U.S.C. 18711 et seq.) is 

8 amended by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘SEC. 40114. GRID ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 

10 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

11 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible en12 tity’ means— 

13 ‘‘(A) a State government or the govern14 ment of any political subdivision of a State; 

15 ‘‘(B) a federally recognized Indian Tribe; 

16 ‘‘(C) an institution of higher education; 

17 and 

18 ‘‘(D) a not-for-profit organization. 

19 ‘‘(2) GRID ASSISTANT.—The term ‘Grid Assist20 ant’ means an individual who is trained to provide 

21 and support, on a professional basis, assistance (in22 cluding technical assistance) and informed decision23 making in the planning, financing, and implementa24 tion of electric transmission capacity expansion or 

25 the hardening of electric transmission or distribution 


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1 infrastructure, including with respect to 1 or more 

2 of the following: 

3 ‘‘(A) Applicable Federal funding opportu4 nities and tax incentives. 

5 ‘‘(B) Applicable State, local, and utility6 based incentives, including, as appropriate, co7 ordinating with the State energy office in that 

8 State. 

9 ‘‘(C) Project financing. 

10 ‘‘(D) Grant writing. 

11 ‘‘(E) Community-based capacity building, 

12 including succession planning. 

13 ‘‘(3) PROGRAM.—The term ‘Program’ means 

14 the Grid Assistance Program established under sub15 section (b). 

16 ‘‘(4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’ means 

17 the Secretary, acting through the Director of the 

18 Grid Deployment Office. 

19 ‘‘(5) STATE ENERGY OFFICE.—The term ‘State 

20 energy office’ has the meaning given the term ‘State 

21 energy agency’ in section 391 of the Energy Policy 

22 and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 6371). 

23 ‘‘(b) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall estab24 lish a program, to be known as the ‘Grid Assistance Pro25 gram’, under which the Secretary shall provide grants to 


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1 eligible entities for the hiring, training, and retention by 

2 eligible entities of 1 or more Grid Assistants. 

3 ‘‘(c) GRANTS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to receive a 

5 grant under the Program, an eligible entity shall 

6 submit to the Secretary an application at such time, 

7 in such manner, and containing such information as 

8 the Secretary may require. 

9 ‘‘(2) TERM.—The term of a grant provided 

10 under the Program shall be more than 3, but not 

11 more than 6, years, as the Secretary determines to 

12 be appropriate to achieve the purposes of this sec13 tion. 

14 ‘‘(3) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of 

15 the cost of carrying out activities under the grant 

16 shall be not more than 80 percent. 

17 ‘‘(4) PRIORITY.—In providing grants under the 

18 Program, the Secretary shall give priority to an eli19 gible entity— 

20 ‘‘(A) the application under paragraph (1) 

21 of which is recommended by the director of the 

22 relevant State energy office; or 

23 ‘‘(B) that serves a rural electric coopera24 tive or utility that— 


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1 ‘‘(i) is owned by a subdivision of a 

2 State, such as a municipal electric utility; 

3 and 

4 ‘‘(ii) operates primarily in an area at 

5 high risk of wildfires, as determined using 

6 the wildfire National Risk Index of the 

7 Federal Emergency Management Agency. 

8 ‘‘(d) GRID ASSISTANTS.—A Grid Assistant employed 

9 by an eligible entity using a grant provided under this sec10 tion— 

11 ‘‘(1) shall offer assistance and support de12 scribed in subsection (a)(2) to not fewer than 2 

13 rural electric cooperatives or utilities owned by a 

14 subdivision of a State (such as municipal electric 

15 utilities) served by, or in the vicinity of, the eligible 

16 entity; and 

17 ‘‘(2) may provide technical assistance to the eli18 gible entity in applying for transmission capacity ex19 pansion and transmission and distribution resilience 

20 opportunities under— 

21 ‘‘(A) this Act and the amendments made 

22 by this Act; and 

23 ‘‘(B) Public Law 117–169 (commonly 

24 known as the ‘Inflation Reduction Act of 2022’) 

25 (136 Stat. 1818). 


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1 ‘‘(e) INFORMATION SHARING.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall facili3 tate the sharing among Grid Assistants of informa4 tion relating to best practices. 

5 ‘‘(2) INFORMATION FROM OTHER AGENCIES.— 

6 The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of 

7 Agriculture, the Secretary of Transportation, the 

8 Secretary of the Treasury, the Administrator of the 

9 Environmental Protection Agency, the Chief of En10 gineers, and the heads of such other Federal depart11 ments and agencies as the Secretary determines to 

12 be appropriate, shall make available to Grid Assist13 ants information relating to other Federal incentives 

14 available to eligible entities for transmission capacity 

15 expansion and transmission and distribution resil16 ience projects. 

17 ‘‘(f) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—Not less frequently 

18 than annually, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a 

19 report describing the accomplishments of the Program, in20 cluding with respect to— 

21 ‘‘(1) additional transmission capacity added to 

22 the grid or transmission or distribution infrastruc23 ture hardened using assistance provided pursuant to 

24 the Program; 

25 ‘‘(2) monetary savings to communities; and 


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1 ‘‘(3) reductions in risks relating to— 

2 ‘‘(A) natural hazards, including, at a min3 imum, wildfires; and 

4 ‘‘(B) cyberattacks. 

5 ‘‘(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

6 is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry 

7 out this section $25,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2025 

8 through 2029.’’. 

Æ 


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