Statement by the President on the Need for Legislation To Prevent or Minimize Electric Power Blackouts.

YESTERDAY, a large and heavily populated area of the United States was crippled by a massive electric power failure.

More than 13 million people across four States--in their homes, in their offices, and on their farms--were without the flow of power which has become so essential to our health, our commerce, and our safety.

America has the world's most advanced power system. But we still do not have safeguards to protect the consumer against paralyzing breakdowns.

This was the dramatic lesson of yesterday's failure.

But if the lesson was dramatic, it might also have been tragic.

Fortunately, the failure took place during daylight hours, on a warm spring day. From all reports, no lives were lost, and no injuries occurred

But blackouts do not respect the season of the year or the hours of the clock. The next failure could just as easily strike in the cold of winter, in the dark of night.

We must take every proper step to avert such a possibility. A nation which is dependent on an uninterrupted flow of electric power cannot tolerate area wide blackouts.

In my 1967 message on protecting the American consumer, I said that legislation was necessary to strengthen the reliability of the power systems of this country. That legislation is highly technical and complex and required careful examination, planning, and drafting to shape it. The Federal Power Commission will submit the legislation to the Congress shortly.

While we cannot guarantee that blackouts will never again occur, we can and should take every step to reduce their likelihood.

I hope--and I urge--that this legislation-so vitally important to every American family--will be promptly considered and speedily enacted.