Lisa Murkowski

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

I think the flexibility that you have suggested, necessarily, moves into that resiliency that can be developed...

I think getting more clearances, having a more unified system for sharing of information would be very beneficial.

I think, instead, that we need a much more nimble approach to deal with cyber-related threats that are constantly growing and always changing.

So, then, to the rest of you. How do we do a better job of the information sharing?

I think it has been a difficult, time-consuming process, but I would like to commend NERC for the professional and balanced way that it has consistently met its responsibilities.

I have joined with a number of other Ranking Member colleagues to introduce, what we're calling, the Secure IT Act.

I think we are on the right track for that.

I am going to ask a little bit more about information sharing.

It is time for us to take steps to protect ourselves from a very real and emerging threat.

I don't believe that the cyber threat facing the electric grid has gotten any less serious since last year.

I have 3 more questions, and, hopefully, these will be quick.

I might be more sympathetic if you hadn't received $9.4 billion from the lease sales within the NPRA.

It goes to kind of the double standard that Senator Manchin has spoken to.

This hypocrisy outrages Alaskans and should outrage all Americans.

Why the discrepancy--the very wide discrepancy between the two?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I look forward to working with you on that one.

It is literally taking an Act of Congress to get the Department of Interior, to get BLM to step up to its responsibility.

If you've captured the data that is available, I can understand that.

I am very hopeful that as a consequence of what has been shared today we will have an accelerated process to identify the priorities in a way that the State, through the AOGCC, is satisfied, that the BLM recognizes that there is an…

But I don't buy into this, you know, 'Oh, poor us. We've got tough budget problems.'

Only the Federal Government can get away with this.

The fact that you don't have the data doesn't mean that you get to walk away from the responsibility.

For the State of Alaska to consider a well plugged and abandoned, it has to meet our requirements.

The Federal Government is rewriting the management plan for the National Petroleum Reserve.