Keeping pipelines operating safely and bolstering national security are not mutually exclusive goals, but given the US government's budget limitations, they could be.
The oil industry has been working with key government agencies to ensure that critical infrastructures, including pipelines and refineries, are safe from terrorist attacks.
So far, the cooperation between companies and the US government is at a level not seen since World War II.
But in the zeal to protect US energy networks from outside harm, public safety could be jeopardized if policymakers postpone pending regulations.
GAO worries
Last month the nonpartisan General Accounting Office warned Congress that the Department of Transportation's Office of Pipeline Safety still has not met some key recommendations set by the National Transportation Safety Board, some of which are a decade old.
GAO stressed OPS has made good progress. Two important initiatives include a final rule regarding abandoned underwater pipelines and industry reports on risk management demonstration projects.
But GAO said the agency has not acted on 11 of the 22 NTSB recommendations. They include items such as periodic internal pipeline inspections and automatic shut-off valves.
OPS told GAO this summer it anticipated that the last series of rules could be ready by next fall. But now that deadline is cloudy, given the agency's redirection toward national security issues following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
The government has the responsibility to protect vital energy struc tures from national security threats and the public from pipeline safety threats.
It's almost inevitable that attention to the former will force some safety regulation timetables to slip. To stay on track, given the expanded workload, OPS needs more money and staff.
It's uncertain how much Congress will help. The Senate passed pipeline safety legislation earlier this year but the House has yet to act (OGJ Online, Oct. 1, 2001).
Pipeline safety legislation could be attached to another bill in the must-pass category, if lawmakers decide it deserves top priority.
Congressional role
The Senate-passed bill would reauthorize the Pipeline Safety Act through 2003. It would give OPS a stronger enforcement role.
State safety programs would also be beefed up through more federal grants. Local inspectors would be given more authority.
Last year, House Democrats proposed a bill-opposed by industry- that would have mandated federal inspections and disclosure of more information about pipeline accidents.
The House Republican leadership has said it wants a pipeline safety bill passed this session, but has not suggested a timetable.
Both sides are not that far apart on most of the issues, suggesting the House could pass a bill before the current session ends a year from now.
Pipeline safety reform is an issue that Congress easily could dispense this year. Protecting the public from accidents should remain a top mission for the government, apart from its concern about terrorist threats.
