**Response Options for Pipeline Operators in Compliance Proceedings**

The requirements of 49 C.F.R. Part 190, Subpart B (§§ 190.201--190.237)
govern response to Notices issued by a Regional Director, Pipeline and
Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA).

Be advised that all material submitted by a respondent in response to an
enforcement action is subject to being made publicly available.  If you
believe that any portion of your responsive material qualifies for
confidential treatment under 5 U.S.C. 552(b), along with the complete
original document you must provide a second copy of the document with
the portions you believe qualify for confidential treatment redacted and
an explanation of why you believe the redacted information qualifies for
confidential treatment under 5 U.S.C. 552(b). 

I.  **[Procedures for Responding to a NOTICE OF PROBABLE
    VIOLATION:]{.underline}**

> Within 30 days of receipt of a Notice of Probable Violation, the
> respondent shall respond to the Regional Director who issued the
> Notice in the following way:

a.  [When the Notice contains a proposed **CIVIL PENALTY\***
    \--]{.underline}

    1.  Pay the proposed civil penalty and advise the Regional Director
        of the payment. This authorizes PHMSA to make findings and to
        close the case with prejudice to the respondent. Payment terms
        are outlined below;

    2.  Submit written explanations, information, or other materials in
        response to the allegations and/or seek elimination or
        mitigation of the proposed civil penalty. Refer to 49 C.F.R. §
        190.225 for assessment considerations, which include the
        respondent's ability to pay and the effect on the respondent's
        ability to stay in business, upon which civil penalties are
        based; or

    3.  Request a hearing as described below to contest the allegations
        and/or proposed assessment of a civil penalty.

b.  [When the Notice contains a proposed **COMPLIANCE ORDER\***
    \--]{.underline}

    1.  Notify the Regional Director that you intend to take the steps
        in the proposed compliance order;

    2.  Submit written explanations, information, or other materials in
        answer to the allegations in the Notice and object to or seek
        clarification of the proposed compliance order items in whole or
        in part; or

    3.  Request a hearing as described below to contest the allegations
        and/or proposed compliance order items;

c.  [When the Notice contains a **WARNING ITEM** \--]{.underline}

> No written response is required. The respondent is warned that if it
> does not take appropriate action to correct these items, enforcement
> action will be taken if a subsequent inspection reveals a violation.
>
> **\*** Failure of the respondent to respond to the Notice within 30
> days of receipt constitutes a waiver of the right to contest the
> allegations in the Notice and authorizes the Associate Administrator
> for Pipeline Safety to find facts as alleged in the Notice without
> further notice to the respondent and to issue a Final Order.

II. **[Procedures for Responding to a NOTICE OF
    AMENDMENT\*\--]{.underline}**

> Within 30 days of receipt of a Notice of Amendment, the respondent
> shall respond to the Regional Director who issued the Notice in the
> following way:

a.  Notify the Regional Director of your plans to address the
    inadequacies identified in the Notice;

b.  Submit written explanations, information, or other materials in
    answer to the allegations in the Notice and/or object to or seek
    clarification of the proposed amendment items in whole or in part;
    or

c.  Request a hearing as described below to contest the allegations in
    the Notice.

> **\*** Failure of the respondent to respond to the Notice within 30
> days of receipt constitutes a waiver of the right to contest the
> allegations in the Notice and authorizes the Associate Administrator
> for Pipeline Safety to find facts as alleged in the Notice without
> further notice to the respondent and to issue a Final Order.

III. **[Procedure for Requesting a Hearing]{.underline}**

> A request for a hearing must be in writing and accompanied by a
> statement of the issues that the respondent intends to raise at the
> hearing. The issues may relate to the allegations, new information, or
> to the proposed compliance order or proposed civil penalty amount.
> Refer to 49 C.F.R. § 190.225 for assessment considerations upon which
> civil penalties are based. A respondent\'s failure to specify an issue
> may result in waiver of the right to raise that issue at the hearing.
> The respondent\'s request must also indicate whether or not respondent
> will be represented by counsel at the hearing. Failure to request a
> hearing in writing within 30 days of receipt of a Notice waives the
> right to a hearing. In addition, if the amount of the proposed civil
> penalty or the proposed corrective action is less than \$10,000, the
> hearing will be held by telephone, unless the respondent submits a
> written request for an in-person hearing. Complete hearing procedures
> can be found at 49 C.F.R. § 190.211.

IV. **[Extensions of Time]{.underline}**\
    An extension of time to prepare an appropriate response to a Notice
    may be granted, at the agency\'s discretion, following submittal of
    a written request to the Regional Director. The request must
    indicate the amount of time needed and the reasons for the
    extension. The request must be submitted within 30 days of receipt
    of the Notice.

V.  **[Freedom of Information Act]{.underline}**\
    Any material prepared by PHMSA, including the violation report, the
    Notice, and any order issued in this case, and any material provided
    to PHMSA by the respondent, may be considered public information and
    subject to disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
    If the information you provide is security sensitive, privileged,
    confidential or may cause your company competitive disadvantages,
    please clearly identify the material and provide justification why
    the documents, or portions of a document, should not be released
    under FOIA. If we receive a request for your material, we will
    notify you if PHMSA, after reviewing the materials and your provided
    justification, determines that withholding the materials does not
    meet any exemption provided under the FOIA. You may appeal the
    agency\'s decision to release material under the FOIA at that time.
    Your appeal will stay the release of those materials until a final
    decision is made.

VI. **[Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act
    Information]{.underline}**\
    The Small Business and Agricultural Regulatory Enforcement Ombudsman
    and 10 Regional Fairness Boards were established to receive comments
    from small businesses about federal agency enforcement actions. The
    Ombudsman will annually evaluate the enforcement activities and rate
    each agency\'s responsiveness to small business. If you wish to
    comment on the enforcement actions of the Pipeline and Hazardous
    Materials Safety Administration, call 1-888-REG-FAIR
    (1-888-734-3247) or go to
    <http://www.sba.gov/ombudsman/dsp_faq.html>.

VII. **PAYMENT INSTRUCTIONS**

***Civil Penalty Payments of Less Than \$10,000***

Payment of a civil penalty of less than \$10,000 proposed or assessed,
under Subpart B of Part 190 of the Pipeline Safety Regulations can be
made by certified check, money order or wire transfer. Payment by
certified check or money order (containing the CPF Number for this case)
should be made payable to the \"Department of Transportation\" and
should be sent to:

> Federal Aviation Administration\
> Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center\
> Financial Operations Division (AMZ-341) P.O. Box 25082\
> Oklahoma City, OK 73125-4915

Wire transfer payments of less than \$10,000 may be made through the
Federal Reserve Communications System (Fedwire) to the account of the
U.S. Treasury. Detailed instructions are provided below. Questions
concerning wire transfer should be directed to the Financial Operations
Division at (405) 954-8893, or at the above address.

***Civil Penalty Payments of \$10,000 or more***

Payment of a civil penalty of \$10,000 or more proposed or assessed
under Subpart B of Part 190 of the Pipeline Safety Regulations
[must]{.underline} be made wire transfer (49 C.F.R. § 89.21 (b)(3)),
through the Federal Reserve Communications System (Fedwire) to the
account of the U.S. Treasury. Detailed instructions are provided below.
Questions concerning wire transfers should be directed to the Financial
Operations Division at (405) 954-8893, or at the above address.

**INSTRUCTIONS FOR ELECTRONIC FUND TRANSFERS**

  ----------------------------------- -----------------------------------
  [(1) RECEIVER ABA NO.]{.underline}\ \(2\) [TYPE/SUB-TYPE]{.underline}\
  021030004                           (Provided by sending bank)

  \(3\) [SENDING BANK ABA             \(4\) [SENDING BANK REF
  NO.]{.underline}\                   NO.]{.underline}\
  (Provided by sending bank)          (Provided by sending bank)

  \(5\) [AMOUNT]{.underline}          \(6\) [SENDING BANK
                                      NAME]{.underline}\
                                      (Provided by sending bank)

  \(7\) [RECEIVER NAME]{.underline}\  \(8\) [PRODUCT CODE]{.underline}\
  TREAS NYC                           (Normally CTR, or as provided by
                                      sending bank)

  \(9\) [BENEFICIAL (BNF) = AGENCY    \(10\) [REASONS FOR
  LOCATION CODE]{.underline}\         PAYMENT]{.underline}\
  BNF = /ALC-69-14-0001               Example: PHMSA - CPF \# / Ticket
                                      Number/Pipeline Assessment number
  ----------------------------------- -----------------------------------

**INSTRUCTIONS:** You, as sender of the wire transfer, must provide the
sending bank with the information for blocks (1), (5), (7), (9), and
(10). The information provided in Blocks (1), (7), and (9) are constant
and remain the same for all wire transfers to the Pipeline and Hazardous
Materials Safety Administration, Department of Transportation.

**[Block #1]{.underline}** - RECEIVER ABA NO. - \"021030004\". Ensure
the sending bank enters this 9-digit identification number; it
represents the routing symbol for the U.S. Treasury at the Federal
Reserve Bank in New York.

**[Block #5]{.underline}** - AMOUNT - You as the sender provide the
amount of the transfer. Please be sure the transfer amount is punctuated
with commas and a decimal point. **[EXAMPLE: \$10,000.00]{.underline}**

**[Block #7]{.underline}** - RECEIVER NAME - \"TREAS NYC\". Ensure the
sending bank enters this abbreviation. It must be used for all wire
transfers to the Treasury Department.

**[Block #9]{.underline}** - BENEFICIAL - AGENCY LOCATION CODE -
\"**BNF=/ALC-69-14-0001**\". Ensure the sending bank enters this
information. This is the Agency Location Code for the Pipeline and
Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, Department of Transportation.

**[Block #10]{.underline} -** REASON FOR PAYMENT **- "AC-payment for
PHMSA Case \# /** To ensure your wire transfer is credited properly,
enter the case number/ticket number or Pipeline Assessment number, and
country."

**[NOTE:]{.underline}** A wire transfer must comply with the format and
instructions or the Department cannot accept the wire transfer. You as
the sender can assist this process by notifying the Financial Operations
Division (405) 954-8893 at the time you send the wire transfer.

May 2007