```

[House Report 111-473]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

111th Congress                                            Rept. 111-473
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session                                                      Part 1

======================================================================

 
 IN SUPPORT AND RECOGNITION OF NATIONAL SAFE DIGGING MONTH, APRIL, 2010

                                _______
                                

                  May 4, 2010.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

Mr. Oberstar, from the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                      [To accompany H. Res. 1278]

  The Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, to whom 
was referred the resolution (H. Res. 1278) in support and 
recognition of National Safe Digging Month, April, 2010, having 
considered the same, report favorably thereon with amendments 
and recommend that the resolution be agreed to.
  The amendments are as follows:
  Strike all after the resolving clause and insert the 
following:

That the House of Representatives supports the goals and ideals of 
National Safe Digging Month, and encourages all homeowners and 
excavators throughout the country to call 811 before conducting any 
digging or excavation activities.

  Amend the preamble to read as follows:

Whereas each year there are over 200,000 incidences of unintentional damage 
to underground utility infrastructure (including pipelines, electrical, 
telecommunications, water, and sewer lines), many as a result of an 
individual who fails to have underground utilities lines located before 
digging;

Whereas there are 2,534,000 miles of pipelines, of which 2,036,800 are for 
distribution of natural gas, 323,600 for transmission of natural gas, and 
173,500 for hazardous materials including oil;

Whereas some utility lines are buried only a few inches underground, making 
them easy to strike even during shallow digging projects;

Whereas failure to locate underground utility lines before digging may have 
unintended consequences such as service interruption, environmental damage, 
property damage, personal injury, and even death;

Whereas State one-call notification programs allow homeowners and 
excavators to have underground utilities located and marked before 
conducting digging or excavation activities;

Whereas Congress first established minimum standards for State one-call 
notification programs and authorized appropriations for Federal grants to 
improve State one-call notification programs in the Transportation Equity 
Act for the 21st Century in 1998;

Whereas Congress required a 3-digit, nationwide toll-free number be 
established to be used by State one-call systems in the Pipeline Safety 
Improvement Act of 2002;

Whereas in 2005, ``811'' was designated as the nationwide one-call number 
for homeowners and excavators to call before conducting digging or 
excavation activities;

Whereas in the Pipeline Inspection, Protection, Enforcement, and Safety Act 
of 2006 Congress authorized the Secretary of Transportation to issue civil 
penalties to any owner or operator of a pipeline facility who fails to 
respond to a request to mark an underground pipeline facility, any 
individual who fails to use a State's one-call system prior to digging or 
excavation activities, or any individual who disregards location 
information or markings while digging or excavating;

Whereas the one-call system has helped reduce the number of digging damages 
caused by failure to locate underground utilities prior to digging from 57 
percent in 2004 to 37.5 percent in 2009;

Whereas the 1,400 members of the Common Ground Alliance, who are dedicated 
to ensuring public safety, environmental protection, and the integrity of 
services by promoting effective damage prevention practices, promote the 
national ``Call Before You Dig'' campaign to increase public awareness 
about the importance of calling 811 to identify the exact location of 
underground utility lines;

Whereas the Common Ground Alliance has designated April as National Safe 
Digging month in order to increase awareness of safe digging practices 
across the country and to celebrate the anniversary of the designation of 
811 as the national ``Call Before You Dig'' number; and

Whereas April is the beginning of the peak of excavation projects around 
the Nation: Now, therefore, be it

                       PURPOSE OF THE LEGISLATION

    H. Res. 1278, as amended, recognizes April 2010 as National 
Safe Digging Month, and encourages all homeowners and 
excavators to call 811 before conducting any digging or 
excavation activities.

                  BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    H. Res. 1278, as amended, supports and recognizes April 
2010 as National Safe Digging Month, and encourages all 
homeowners and excavators to call 811 before conducting any 
digging or excavation activities.
    The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration 
(PHMSA), many States, and pipeline damage prevention 
stakeholders from across the country are supporting April as 
National Safe Digging Month to celebrate the three-year 
anniversary of 811, the national call-before-you-dig number.
    Throughout April, PHMSA encouraged all homeowners and 
excavators to call 811 before they dig to prevent fatalities, 
injuries, environmental damage, and loss of critical 
infrastructure and services. According to PHMSA, excavation 
damage continues to be a leading cause of serious pipeline 
incidents. More than 256,000 underground utility lines are 
damaged during excavation each year in the United States; 37.5 
percent of which are the result of not calling before digging.
    In the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA 
21) (P.L. 105-178), Congress established minimum standards for 
State one-call notification programs and authorized the 
Secretary to issue grants to States to improve one-call 
notification programs. TEA 21 also required the Secretary of 
Transportation to initiate a study of the best practices 
employed by one-call notification systems in operation in the 
States. PHMSA awarded $6 million in 2001 and 2003 to States to 
fund a wide range of education efforts, communications system 
improvements, and enforcement of State requirements for damage 
prevention.
    In the Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-
355), Congress directed the Secretary of Transportation, in 
conjunction with the Federal Communications Commission, 
facility operators, excavators, and one-call notification 
system operators, to establish a three-digit nationwide toll-
free telephone number for homeowners and excavators to call 
before digging. The law also encouraged States, operators of 
one-call notification programs, excavators, and underground 
facility operators to adopt and implement the best practices 
contained in the report required by TEA 21. Further, the law 
authorized States to enforce the one-call notification program, 
and established criminal penalties for knowing and willfully 
engaging in excavation activities without first using the one-
call notification system or ignoring location information or 
markings and subsequently damaging the pipeline and causing 
harm to persons or property.
    In 2005, the Secretary of Transportation and the Federal 
Communications Commission designated ``811'' as the nationwide 
one-call telephone number for homeowners and excavators to call 
before conducting digging or excavation activities. By dialing 
811, excavators can reach a one-call center where, at no cost 
to the excavator, companies that may operate underground 
utilities in the area they plan to dig will be notified. Those 
companies are required to dispatch crews to determine and mark 
the exact location of their utilities so that homeowners and 
excavators can avoid hitting them when digging.
    In the Pipeline Inspection, Protection, Enforcement, and 
Safety Act of 2006 (PIPES Act) (P.L. 109-468), Congress 
established civil penalties for enforcement of ``call-before-
you-dig'' laws. The Secretary of Transportation has the 
authority to issue civil penalties to any owner or operator of 
a pipeline facility who fails to respond to a request to mark 
an underground pipeline facility. The Secretary also has the 
authority to issue civil penalties to any homeowner or 
excavator who fails to use a State's one-call system prior to 
digging or excavation activities or any individual who 
disregards location information or markings while digging or 
excavating.
    The PIPES Act also authorized PHMSA to award grants to fund 
improvements in State damage prevention programs as long as the 
State authority participates in the oversight of pipeline 
transportation pursuant to an annual certification or agreement 
with PHMSA and is designated by the State's governor as the 
eligible recipient of the grant funding. The purpose of the 
grants is to establish comprehensive state programs designed to 
prevent damage to underground pipelines in States that do not 
have such programs in place and to improve damage prevention 
programs in States that do.
    The one-call notification system has helped reduce the 
number of excavation damages caused by failure to locate 
underground utilities prior to digging from 57 percent in 2004 
to 37.5 percent in 2009.
    This resolution recognizes April 2010 as National Safe 
Digging Month, and encourages all homeowners and contractors to 
call 811 before conducting any digging or excavation 
activities.

                       SUMMARY OF THE LEGISLATION

    H. Res. 1278, as amended, supports and recognizes April 
2010 as National Safe Digging Month. Further, the resolution 
encourages all homeowners and excavators to call 811 before 
conducting any digging or excavation activities to prevent any 
fatalities, injuries, environmental damage, and loss of 
critical infrastructure and services that could occur as a 
result of damage to an underground utility, such as a pipeline.

            LEGISLATIVE HISTORY AND COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION

    On April 20, 2010, Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, 
and Hazardous Materials Ranking Member Bill Shuster introduced 
H. Res. 1278. This resolution has not been introduced in a 
previous Congress.
    On April 29, 2010, the Committee on Transportation and 
Infrastructure met in open session to consider H. Res. 1278. 
The Committee adopted an amendment in the nature of a 
substitute to the resolution by voice vote. The Committee on 
Transportation and Infrastructure ordered the resolution, H. 
Res. 1278, as amended, reported favorably to the House by voice 
vote with a quorum present.

                              RECORD VOTES

    Clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives requires each committee report to include the 
total number of votes cast for and against on each record vote 
on a motion to report and on any amendment offered to the 
measure or matter, and the names of those members voting for 
and against. There were no recorded votes taken in connection 
with consideration of H. Res. 1278, or ordering the resolution, 
as amended, reported. A motion to order H. Res. 1278, as 
amended, reported favorably to the House was agreed to by voice 
vote with a quorum present.

                      COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS

    With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(1) of rule 
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the 
Committee's oversight findings and recommendations are 
reflected in this report.

                          COST OF LEGISLATION

    With respect to clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, H. Res. 1278, as amended, is a 
resolution of the House of Representatives, and therefore does 
not have the force of law. As such, there is no cost associated 
with this resolution for fiscal year 2010, or any fiscal year 
thereafter.

                    COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII

    1. With respect to the requirement of clause 3(c)(2) of 
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, and 
section 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the 
Committee advises that the resolution contains no measure that 
authorizes funding, so no comparison of the total estimated 
funding level for the relevant programs to the appropriate 
level under current law is required.
    2. With respect to the requirement of clause 3(c)(4) of 
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the 
Committee advises that the resolution contains no measure that 
authorizes funding, so no statement of general performance and 
objectives for any measure that authorizes funding is required.
    3. With respect to the requirement of clause 3(c)(3) of 
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and 
section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the 
Committee advises that the resolution contains no measure that 
authorizes funding, so no cost estimate nor comparison for any 
measure that authorizes funding is required.

                     COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XXI

    Pursuant to clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the House 
of Representatives, the Committee is required to include a list 
of congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited 
tariff benefits, as defined in clause 9(e), 9(f), and 9(g) of 
rule XXI of the Rules of the House of Representatives. H. Res. 
1278, as amended, does not contain any earmarks, limited tax 
benefits, or limited tariff benefits under clause 9(e), 9(f), 
or 9(g) of rule XXI.

                   CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY STATEMENT

    Pursuant to clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, H. Res. 1278, as amended, is a 
resolution of the House of Representatives, and therefore does 
not have the force of law. As such, clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII 
does not apply.

                       FEDERAL MANDATES STATEMENT

    H. Res. 1278, as amended, contains no Federal mandates.

                        PREEMPTION CLARIFICATION

    Section 423 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 
requires the report of any Committee on a bill or joint 
resolution to include a statement on the extent to which the 
bill or joint resolution is intended to preempt state, local, 
or tribal law. The Committee states that H. Res. 1278, as 
amended, does not preempt any state, local, or tribal law.

                      ADVISORY COMMITTEE STATEMENT

    No advisory committees within the meaning of section 5(b) 
of the Federal Advisory Committee Act are created by this 
legislation.

                APPLICABILITY TO THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

    The Committee finds that the resolution does not relate to 
the terms and conditions of employment or access to public 
services or accommodations within the meaning of section 
102(b)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act (P.L. 104-1).

         CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED

    H. Res. 1278, as amended, makes no changes in existing law.

                                  

```