Lawmakers to question water utilities on cyber threats

By Miranda Willson | 02/02/2026 06:34 AM EST

EPA under both the Trump and Biden administrations has sought to address the risks of cyberattacks against the water sector.

Pumps work inside the Sweeney Water Treatment Plant in Wilmington, North Carolina.

A water treatment plant in Wilmington, North Carolina. The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will hold a hearing this week on water utility cybersecurity concerns. Ben McKeown/AP

A Senate panel will convene Wednesday to hear from a cybersecurity expert and two water utilities about threats facing water infrastructure.

The Environment and Public Works Committee hearing will seek to identify strategies to make the water sector more resilient against cyberattacks, which have become more common in recent years.

The meeting could be an opportunity for bipartisan consensus, as lawmakers generally agree on the need to protect water and wastewater infrastructure against cyberattacks.

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The issue was a priority under the Biden administration and remains so under the Trump administration, which last year established an EPA water office division that focuses on cyberthreats.

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