It's, again, a kind of a fantasy that persists around here that somehow or other things will get better if we do nothing.

I understand that some of my colleagues have concerns about deregulation of the electric industry.

I would hope that the target isn't the ratepayer who is going to be asked to pick up the load because the system was faulty.

I hope so, because the public is a partner here.

The critical loss of power on August 14 brought a large part of the country to a standstill.

I can tell you that the ratepayers will not joyfully write checks and say, OK, well, we have to fix the systems.

If we fail to correct the flaws in these systems and soon, many believe more regions will be brought to their knees.

This event dramatically demonstrated our vulnerabilities in the Nation's electrical grid and the need for mandatory reliability standards.

Blackouts come with a high price tag: Massive public inconvenience, increased danger for citizens who find themselves in the dark.

I would hope that we go further in developing information because it is very hard in this kind of a fairly short burst to get the data that are needed.

Can FERC play a role to address this kind of irresponsible part of behavior on the part of a utility?

I am appreciative that you are calling today's hearing on the blackout.