Nick Snow
Washington Correspondent
WASHINGTON, DC, July 20 -- The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee July 19 passed by a voice vote legislation reauthorizing federal oil and gas pipeline safety programs.
HR 5782, which Transportation Committee Chairman Don Young (R-Alas.) and Highways, Transit, and Pipelines Subcommittee Chairman Tom Petri (R-Wis.), introduced on June 27, included other provisions amending its predecessor, which is due to expire on Sept. 30. The changes include:
-- A provision giving the US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) authority to enforce one-call laws in limited instances. The authority is limited to civil penalties and to states that do not have civil penalties in place to enforce damage prevention processes.
-- Guidance for states on elements of an effective underground damage program and incentives for states to adopt and implement a comprehensive program, which meets that guidance.
-- A requirement for PHMSA, within a year of the bill's becoming law, to issue rules establishing a distribution integrity management program (DIMP) for operators to implement. The Transportation Department agency also must make certain the DIMP provides risk and feasibility analysis for excess flow valves where a line to a residence is being installed or replaced.
Industry associations said they were encouraged by the bill's passage through the committee. "We thought it was a positive hearing and there was some good work done during it. We are anxious for the Energy and Commerce Committee to address some of these issues," Terry D. Boss, senior vice-president for regulatory affairs at the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America, told OGJ.
Benjamin S. Cooper, president of the Association of Oil Pipe Lines, said that it builds upon the 2002 pipeline safety act's success. "Reauthorization allows the industry to further strengthen its commitment to safety while assuring Americans receive the products they depend upon to fuel their daily lives," he said.
The American Gas Association particularly approved of HR 5782's language focusing on prevention of excavation damage to pipelines, which AGA said is the largest single cause of interruptions in local gas distribution operations.
"The Young-Petri bill encourages stronger state damage prevention programs through financial incentives and increase penalties for excavators failing to use one-call as well as for operators who mis-mark lines," AGA said in an e-mailed statement following the committee's approval of the bill.
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