OE works closely with State and local governments on energy assurance issues. The office develops products and tools to inform and educate State and local officials to support their energy emergency response activities. This is done through forums, web-based training, and table top exercises for federal, State, and local energy officials to exchange and share information. OE also partners with State and local organizations to further assist in these efforts including the National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO), National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC, National Governors Association (NGA), National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), and at the local level Public Technology Institute (PTI).
Through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the Department, for the first time, was able to provide grants to State and local governments for energy assurance planning. Under this program OE awarded grants to States and local governments to enable those governments to develop or refine their energy assurance plans, develop in-house expertise on infrastructure interdependencies and related vulnerabilities, and integrate renewable energy portfolios and new applications, such as cyber security and Smart Grid technology, into their energy assurance planning.