Pipeline Improvement and Preventing Spills Act of 2015

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Pipeline 
Improvement and Preventing Spills Act of 2015''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
                   TITLE I--INFORMATION TRANSPARENCY

Sec. 101. References to title 49, United States Code.
Sec. 102. Notice to property owners and residents.
Sec. 103. Facility operation information standards.
Sec. 104. Availability of industry standards and procedures adopted in 
                            regulations by reference.
Sec. 105. Considerations for identification of high-consequence areas.
                  TITLE II--PIPELINE SPILL PREVENTION

Sec. 201. Assessment of oil spill impacts and response in the Great 
                            Lakes.
Sec. 202. Great Lakes Basin water crossing study and alternatives 
                            assessment.
Sec. 203. Prohibition on transport of crude oil on Great Lakes.
Sec. 204. Definition of worst case discharge.

                   TITLE I--INFORMATION TRANSPARENCY

SEC. 101. REFERENCES TO TITLE 49, UNITED STATES CODE.

    Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in this Act an 
amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an amendment to, or a 
repeal of, a section or other provision, the reference shall be 
considered to be made to a section or other provision of title 49, 
United States Code.

SEC. 102. NOTICE TO PROPERTY OWNERS AND RESIDENTS.

    Section 60102(c)(4) is amended by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(C) Notice to property owners and residents.--
                            ``(i) In general.--Not later than 1 year 
                        after the date of enactment of this 
                        subparagraph, the Secretary shall prescribe 
                        minimum standards to require the owner or 
                        operator of a pipeline facility to notify all 
                        owners and residents of property located within 
                        2,000 feet of a transmission line of the 
                        facility of--
                                    ``(I) the proximity of the property 
                                to the transmission line; and
                                    ``(II) in the case of a 
                                transmission line located on private 
                                residential property, the specific 
                                location of the line on the property.
                            ``(ii) Required information.--The notice 
                        under clause (i) shall include, at a minimum--
                                    ``(I) a method for electronic 
                                access to the information described in 
                                clause (i) through the Geospatial 
                                Platform or such other Federal data 
                                archive as the Secretary considers 
                                appropriate;
                                    ``(II) information on how to obtain 
                                a map of the pipeline system through 
                                the National Pipeline Mapping System; 
                                and
                                    ``(III) such other information as 
                                the Secretary considers appropriate.
                            ``(iii) Deadlines.--The notice under clause 
                        (i) shall be provided not later than 2 years 
                        after the date of enactment of this 
                        subparagraph and at least once every 3 years 
                        thereafter.''.

SEC. 103. FACILITY OPERATION INFORMATION STANDARDS.

    Section 60102(d) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (2), by redesignating subparagraphs (A) 
        and (B) as clauses (i) and (ii), respectively, and indenting 
        appropriately;
            (2) in paragraph (3), by redesignating subparagraphs (A) 
        and (B) as clauses (i) and (ii), respectively, and indenting 
        appropriately;
            (3) in paragraph (5), by redesignating subparagraphs (A) 
        through (C) as clauses (i) through (iii), respectively, and 
        indenting appropriately;
            (4) by designating paragraphs (1) through (6) as 
        subparagraphs (A) through (F), respectively, and indenting 
        appropriately; and
            (5) by striking ``The Secretary'' and all that follows 
        through ``shall include--'' and inserting the following:
            ``(1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), not later than 
        1 year after the date of enactment of the Pipeline Improvement 
        and Preventing Spills Act of 2015, the Secretary shall 
        prescribe minimum standards under this section requiring an 
        operator of a pipeline facility subject to this chapter--
                    ``(A) to maintain information related to operating 
                the facility as required by the standards prescribed 
                under this chapter; and
                    ``(B) to provide that information, including any 
                updates and changes, to the Secretary, State regulatory 
                officials, State and local emergency responders, and 
                such other entities as the Secretary considers 
                appropriate.
            ``(2) Local emergency responders.--In the case of a local 
        emergency responder, the Secretary shall provide the 
        information described in subparagraphs (A), (B), (E), and (F) 
        of paragraph (4) only to the extent applicable to the local 
        district.
            ``(3) Maintenance.--The Secretary shall keep on file the 
        information submitted to the Secretary under paragraphs (1) and 
        (2).
            ``(4) Information.--The information shall include--''.

SEC. 104. AVAILABILITY OF INDUSTRY STANDARDS AND PROCEDURES ADOPTED IN 
              REGULATIONS BY REFERENCE.

    Section 60102 is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(q) Availability of Industry Standards and Procedures Adopted in 
Regulations by Reference.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall ensure that industry 
        standards and procedures adopted by reference as part of the 
        Federal pipeline safety regulatory program under this chapter 
        are easily available to the public free of charge.
            ``(2) Application.--This subsection shall apply to 
        regulations issued before, on, or after the date of enactment 
        of this subsection.''.

SEC. 105. CONSIDERATIONS FOR IDENTIFICATION OF HIGH-CONSEQUENCE AREAS.

    Section 60109 is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(g) Considerations for Identification of High-Consequence 
Areas.--In identifying high-consequence areas under this chapter, the 
Secretary shall consider--
            ``(1) the age of the pipe;
            ``(2) whether the pipe at issue can be inspected using the 
        most modern instrumented internal inspection devices;
            ``(3) whether the pipe at issue crosses open waters of the 
        Great Lakes; and
            ``(4) the type of commodity (including the type and grade 
        of petroleum product) being transported through the pipe.''.

                  TITLE II--PIPELINE SPILL PREVENTION

SEC. 201. ASSESSMENT OF OIL SPILL IMPACTS AND RESPONSE IN THE GREAT 
              LAKES.

    (a) Assessment.--
            (1) In general.--The Interagency Coordinating Committee on 
        Oil Pollution Research, in consultation with the Secretary of 
        the department in which the Coast Guard is operating, the 
        Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, and the 
        heads of other relevant agencies, shall--
                    (A) identify measures to respond to spills or leaks 
                of oil in the Great Lakes; and
                    (B) conduct an assessment of the effectiveness of 
                such measures in preventing significant or substantial 
                harm to the public health or welfare, including fish, 
                shellfish, wildlife, public and private property, 
                shorelines, and beaches of the Great Lakes system.
            (2) Elements.--The assessment required under paragraph (1) 
        shall include--
                    (A) new scientific research on the impacts of a 
                spill or leak of oil or a hazardous substance in fresh 
                water under a wide range of meteorological and 
                hydrological conditions, including an evaluation of the 
                impacts of different types of petroleum, including 
                synthetic oil from tar sands;
                    (B) an evaluation of oil spill or leak prevention 
                and response plans (including techniques to address 
                submerged oil recovery and recovery in ice-choked 
                waters) in order to identify vulnerabilities and 
                existing threats to the Great Lakes system; and
                    (C) recommendations to foster improvements to 
                safety technologies, spill response planning, clean-up 
                techniques, and environmental protection systems.
    (b) Report to Congress.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Interagency Coordinating Committee on Oil 
Pollution Research shall submit to Congress a report on the results of 
the assessment required under subsection (a).

SEC. 202. GREAT LAKES BASIN WATER CROSSING STUDY AND ALTERNATIVES 
              ASSESSMENT.

    (a) Survey Required.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation, working with 
pipeline facility owners, operators, and State governments, shall 
conduct a comprehensive water crossing survey of all intrastate and 
interstate hazardous liquid pipeline facilities that cross waterways in 
the Great Lakes Basin in the waters of the United States (as defined in 
the final rule of the Corps of Engineers and the Environmental 
Protection Agency entitled ``Clean Water Rule: Definition of `Waters of 
the United States''' (80 Fed. Reg. 37054; June 29, 2015)).
    (b) Elements.--The survey required under subsection (a) shall--
            (1) produce a comprehensive map of all hazardous pipeline 
        waterway crossings in the Great Lakes Basin, including lakes, 
        rivers, and streams;
            (2) evaluate the condition and structural integrity of 
        pipelines at each crossing, considering factors that include 
        pipeline thickness, diameter, weld integrity, internal and 
        external corrosion, age, pressure, control and shut-off valves, 
        burial depths, water depths, currents, and ice cover;
            (3) identify risks of leak and rupture resulting from 
        pipeline integrity failures, or any other vulnerability at the 
        pipeline water crossings;
            (4) identify gaps in data and information that exist in the 
        pipeline network in the Great Lakes Basin, and request 
        information related to pipeline integrity or risks from owners 
        and operators with facilities that cross lakes, rivers, and 
        streams; and
            (5) produce recommendations to prevent future leaks, 
        ruptures, and failures that could result in damage to waterways 
        and natural resources in the Great Lakes Basin.
    (c) National Research Council Study.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall 
        enter into a joint agreement with the National Research Council 
        of the National Academies of Sciences to conduct a study in 
        connection with the survey under this section.
            (2) Elements.--The study conducted under this subsection 
        shall include--
                    (A) a study covering the elements described under 
                paragraphs (4) and (5) of subsection (b);
                    (B) consideration of ways in which review of 
                facility response plans as required by the Oil 
                Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.) and 
                approval of permits under section 404 of the Federal 
                Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1344) in 
                accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act 
                of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) of future and existing 
                pipelines that cross waterways in the Great Lakes Basin 
                would help prevent spills in the Great Lakes; and
                    (C) a risk assessment analysis for alternative 
                transportation options to the hazardous liquid pipeline 
                facility that crosses from the Upper Peninsula of 
                Michigan to the Lower Peninsula of Michigan through the 
                Straits of Mackinac, including--
                            (i) no action (status quo);
                            (ii) rerouting;
                            (iii) decommissioning and abandoning;
                            (iv) replacing;
                            (v) modifying operations (such as limiting 
                        pipeline product transport to only natural gas 
                        liquids); and
                            (vi) other transportation means.

SEC. 203. PROHIBITION ON TRANSPORT OF CRUDE OIL ON GREAT LAKES.

    Section 108 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 
1258) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsection (e) as subsection (f); and
            (2) by inserting after subsection (d) the following:
    ``(e) Prohibition on Transport of Crude Oil on Great Lakes.--
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, effective beginning on the 
date of enactment of the Pipeline Improvement and Preventing Spills Act 
of 2015, crude oil (as that term is defined in section 2101 of title 
46, United States Code) and crude oil derived from oil sands may not be 
transported on the Great Lakes by vessel (as that term is defined in 
section 3 of title 1, United States Code).''.

SEC. 204. DEFINITION OF WORST CASE DISCHARGE.

    Section 311(a)(24)(B) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act 
(33 U.S.C. 1321(a)(24)(B)) is amended by inserting before the semicolon 
at the end the following: ``, including conditions in which waters that 
may receive a discharge are covered in whole or in part by ice''.

Summary: Pipeline Improvement and Preventing Spills Act of 2015 This bill directs the Department of Transportation (DOT) to prescribe minimum standards to require the owner or operator of a pipeline facility to notify all owners and residents of property located within 2,000 feet of a transmission line of: the property's proximity to the line, and the line's specific location if it is on private residential property. DOT shall ensure that industry standards and procedures adopted as part of the federal pipeline safety regulatory program are easily available to the public free of charge. In identifying high-consequence areas, DOT shall consider specified features of a pipe, including its age, whether it can be inspected using the most modern instrumented internal inspection devices, whether it crosses open waters of the Great Lakes, and the type of commodity it transports. The Interagency Coordinating Committee on Oil Pollution Research shall: identify measures to respond to spills or leaks of oil in the Great Lakes. And assess their effectiveness in preventing significant or substantial harm to the public health or welfare. DOT shall: conduct a comprehensive water crossing survey of all intrastate and interstate hazardous liquid pipeline facilities that cross US waterways in the Great Lakes Basin. And enter into a joint agreement with the National Research Council of the National Academies of Sciences to identify gaps in data and information in the Basin pipeline network, and make recommendations to prevent future leaks, ruptures, and failures that could result in damage to Basin waterways and natural resources. The Federal Water Pollution Control Act is amended to: prohibit vessel transportation of crude oil and crude oil derived from oil sands on the Great Lakes, and include in the meaning of quot, worst-case discharge,quot. In the case of an offshore or onshore facility, the largest foreseeable discharge in adverse weather conditions in which waters that may receive a discharge are covered by ice.