I

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 4616

To amend the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act of 1968 and the Hazardous

Liquid Pipeline Safety Act of 1979 to improve natural gas and hazardous

liquid pipeline safety, in response to the natural gas pipeline accident

in Edison, New Jersey, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JUNE 21, 1994

Mr. PALLONE introduced the following bill; which was referred jointly to the

Committees on Energy and Commerce and Public Works and Transportation

A BILL

To amend the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act of 1968

and the Hazardous Liquid Pipeline Safety Act of 1979

to improve natural gas and hazardous liquid pipeline

safety, in response to the natural gas pipeline accident

in Edison, New Jersey, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Natural Gas Pipeline

5 Safety Improvement Act of 1994’’.
2

•HR 4616 IH

1 SEC. 2. RECOVERY BY SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION

2 OF COSTS OF INVESTIGATION OF CERTAIN

3 PIPELINE ACCIDENTS.

4 (a) NATURAL GAS PIPELINE ACCIDENTS.—Section

5 14 of the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act of 1968 (49

6 U.S.C. App. 1681) is amended by adding at the end the

7 following:

8 ‘‘(g)(1)(A) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), the

9 Secretary may recover from any person who engages in

10 the transportation of gas, or who owns or operates pipeline

11 facilities, the costs incurred by the Secretary—

12 ‘‘(i) in investigating an accident with respect to

13 such transportation or facilities; and

14 ‘‘(ii) in overseeing the response of the person to

15 the accident.

16 ‘‘(B) For the purposes of this paragraph, the costs

17 incurred by the Secretary in an investigation of an acci18 dent may include the cost of hiring additional personnel

19 (including personnel to support monitoring activities by

20 the Office of Pipeline Safety), the cost of tests or studies,

21 and travel and administrative costs associated with the in22 vestigation.

23 ‘‘(2) The Secretary may not recover costs under this

24 subsection with respect to an accident unless the acci25 dent—

26 ‘‘(A) results in death or personal injury; or
3

•HR 4616 IH

1 ‘‘(B) results in property damage (including the

2 cost of any lost natural gas) and environmental

3 damage (including the cost of any environmental re4 mediation) in an amount in excess of $250,000.

5 ‘‘(3) The amount that the Secretary may recover

6 under this subsection with respect to an accident may not

7 exceed $500,000.

8 ‘‘(4)(A) Amounts recovered by the Secretary under

9 this subsection shall be available to the Secretary for pur10 poses of the payment of the costs of investigating and

11 overseeing responses to accidents under this subsection.

12 Such funds shall be available to the Secretary for such

13 purposes without fiscal year limitation.

14 ‘‘(B) Such amounts shall be used to supplement and

15 not to supplant other funds made available to the Sec16 retary for such purposes.’’.

17 (b) HAZARDOUS LIQUID PIPELINE ACCIDENTS.—

18 Section 211 of the Hazardous Liquid Pipeline Safety Act

19 of 1979 (title II of Public Law 96–129; 49 U.S.C. App.

20 2010) is amended by adding at the end the following:

21 ‘‘(g)(1)(A) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), the

22 Secretary may recover from any person who engages in

23 the transportation of hazardous liquids, or who owns or

24 operates pipeline facilities, the costs incurred by the Sec25 retary—
4

•HR 4616 IH

1 ‘‘(i) in investigating an accident with respect to

2 such transportation or facilities; and

3 ‘‘(ii) in overseeing the response of the person to

4 the accident.

5 ‘‘(B) For the purposes of this paragraph, the costs

6 incurred by the Secretary in an investigation of an acci7 dent may include the cost of hiring additional personnel

8 (including personnel to support monitoring activities by

9 the Office of Pipeline Safety), the cost of tests or studies,

10 and travel and administrative costs associated with the in11 vestigation.

12 ‘‘(2) The Secretary may not recover costs under this

13 subsection with respect to an accident unless the acci14 dent—

15 ‘‘(A) results in death or personal injury; or

16 ‘‘(B) results in property damage (including the

17 cost of any lost hazardous liquid) and environmental

18 damage (including the cost of any environmental re19 mediation) in an amount in excess of $250,000.

20 ‘‘(3) The amount that the Secretary may recover

21 under this subsection with respect to an accident may not

22 exceed $500,000.

23 ‘‘(4)(A) Amounts recovered by the Secretary under

24 this subsection shall be available to the Secretary for pur25 poses of the payment of the costs of investigating and
5

•HR 4616 IH

1 overseeing responses to accidents under this subsection.

2 Such funds shall be available to the Secretary for such

3 purposes without fiscal year limitation.

4 ‘‘(B) Such amounts shall be used to supplement and

5 not to supplant other funds made available to the Sec6 retary for such purposes.’’.

7 SEC. 3. GRANTS TO STATES AND ONE-CALL NOTIFICATION

8 SYSTEMS TO PROMOTE USE OF SUCH SYS9 TEMS.

10 (a) GRANTS TO STATES.—Subsection (c) of section

11 20 of the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act of 1968 (49

12 U.S.C. App. 1687) is amended by adding at the end the

13 following: ‘‘The Secretary may make a grant to a State

14 for development and establishment of a one-call notifica15 tion system only if the State ensures that the cost of estab16 lishing and operating the system are shared equitably by

17 persons owning or operating underground facilities.’’.

18 (b) GRANTS TO SYSTEMS.—Such subsection is fur19 ther amended—

20 (1) by striking ‘‘GRANTS TO STATES.—’’ and

21 inserting ‘‘GRANTS TO STATES AND SYSTEMS.—

22 (1)’’; and

23 (2) by adding at the end the following:
6

•HR 4616 IH

1 ‘‘(2)(A) The Secretary may also make grants to one2 call notification systems for activities relating to the pro3 motion of the utilization of such systems.

4 ‘‘(B) The Secretary shall ensure that the Federal

5 share of the cost of the activities referred to in subpara6 graph (A) under any grant made under this paragraph

7 does not exceed 50 percent of the cost of such activities.’’.

8 (c) SANCTIONS.—Subsection (b)(9) of such section is

9 amended by inserting ‘‘, or that would provide for effective

10 civil or criminal penalty sanctions or equitable relief ap11 propriate to the nature of the offense’’ after ‘‘12 of this

12 Act’’.

13 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Subsection (f) of

14 such section is amended by striking out ‘‘subsection (c)’’

15 and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘subsection (c)(1)’’.

16 SEC. 4. PREVENTION OF DAMAGE TO PIPELINE FACILITIES.

17 (a) NATURAL GAS PIPELINE FACILITIES.—Section

18 14(a) of the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act of 1968 (49

19 U.S.C. App. 1681(a)) is amended by inserting after ‘‘and

20 training activities’’ the following: ‘‘and promotional activi21 ties relating to prevention of damage to pipeline facilities’’.

22 (b) HAZARDOUS LIQUID PIPELINE FACILITIES.—

23 Section 211(a) of the Hazardous Liquid Pipeline Safety

24 Act of 1979 (title II of Public Law 96–129; 49 U.S.C.

25 App. 2010(a)) is amended by inserting after ‘‘and training
7

•HR 4616 IH

1 activities’’ the following: ‘‘and promotional activities relat2 ing to prevention of damage to pipeline facilities’’.

3 SEC. 5. ELECTRONIC DATA ON PIPELINE FACILITIES FOR

4 RISK ASSESSMENT AND SAFETY PLANNING.

5 (a) AUTHORITY TO DEVELOP.—The Secretary of

6 Transportation may develop an electronic data base con7 taining uniform information on the nature, extent, and ge8 ographic location of pipeline facilities. The purpose of the

9 data base shall be to provide information on such facilities

10 to the Secretary, owners of pipeline facilities, as persons

11 engaged in transporting gas or hazardous liquids through

12 pipeline facilities, and for secured use by State agencies

13 concerned with land use planning, environmental regula14 tion, and pipeline regulatory oversight, in order to facili15 tate risk assessment and safety planning with respect to

16 such facilities.

17 (b) CONTRACT AND GRANT AUTHORITY.—(1) Sub18 ject to paragraph (2), the Secretary may develop the data

19 base described under subsection (a) by entering into con20 tracts or cooperative agreements with any entity that the

21 Secretary determines appropriate for that purpose and by

22 making grants to States or institutions of higher edu23 cation for that purpose.

24 (2) The Secretary shall ensure that the Federal share

25 of the cost of any activities carried out under a grant or
8

•HR 4616 IH

1 cooperative agreement made under this subsection does

2 not exceed 50 percent of the cost of such activities.

3 (c) USE OF GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEM

4 TECHNOLOGY.—In developing the data base described in

5 subsection (a), the Secretary shall, to the maximum extent

6 practicable, develop a data base that—

7 (1) utilizes Geographic Information System

8 technology or any similar technology providing data

9 of an equivalent quality and usefulness; and

10 (2) permits ready incorporation of data and in11 formation from a variety of sources.

12 (d) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the

13 term ‘‘pipeline facility’’ has the meaning given such term

14 in section 20(e) of the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act

15 of 1968 (49 U.S.C. App. 1687(e)).

16 SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

17 (a) NATURAL GAS PIPELINE SAFETY ACT OF

18 1968.—(1) Section 17(a) of the Natural Gas Pipeline

19 Safety Act of 1968 (49 U.S.C. App. 1684(a)) is amend20 ed—

21 (A) in paragraph (12), by striking ‘‘and’’;

22 (B) by striking paragraph (13); and

23 (C) by adding after paragraph (12) the follow24 ing new paragraphs:
9

•HR 4616 IH

1 ‘‘(13) $20,000,000 for the fiscal year ending

2 September 30, 1995;

3 ‘‘(14) $30,000,000 for the fiscal year ending

4 September 30, 1996; and

5 ‘‘(15) $35,000,000 for the fiscal year ending

6 September 30, 1997.’’.

7 (2) Section 17(c) of the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety

8 Act of 1968 (49 U.S.C. App. 1684(c)) is amended by

9 striking ‘‘and $10,000,000 for the fiscal year ending Sep10 tember 30, 1995’’ and inserting in lieu thereof

11 ‘‘$16,500,000 for the fiscal year ending September 30,

12 1995, $19,000,000 for the fiscal year ending September

13 30, 1996, and $21,500,000 for the fiscal year ending Sep14 tember 30, 1997’’.

15 (b) HAZARDOUS LIQUID PIPELINE SAFETY ACT OF

16 1979.—Section 214(a) of the Hazardous Liquid Pipeline

17 Safety Act of 1979 (49 U.S.C. App. 2013(a)) is amend18 ed—

19 (1) in paragraph (12), by striking ‘‘and’’;

20 (2) by striking paragraph (13); and

21 (3) by adding after paragraph (12) the follow22 ing new paragraphs:

23 ‘‘(13) $7,000,000 for the fiscal year ending

24 September 30, 1995;
10

•HR 4616 IH

1 ‘‘(14) $10,000,000 for the fiscal year ending

2 September 30, 1996; and

3 ‘‘(15) $11,000,000 for the fiscal year ending

4 September 30, 1997.’’.

5 SEC. 7. SITING OF INTERSTATE TRANSMISSION FACILITIES.

6 (a) SITING GUIDELINES.—Within 2 years after the

7 date of enactment of this Act, the Federal Energy Regu8 latory Commission shall review its practices and guidelines

9 for siting natural gas interstate transmission facilities in

10 urban areas to determine whether changes are needed in

11 the areas of—

12 (1) selecting routes for pipelines; and

13 (2) determining the appropriate width of rights14 of-way.

15 (b) EDUCATIONAL INFORMATION FOR LOCAL JURIS16 DICTIONS.—(1)(A) Within 2 years after the date of enact17 ment of this Act, the Secretary, in consultation with the

18 Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, shall make edu19 cational information available, regarding natural gas

20 interstate transmission facilities permits and rights-of-way

21 and issues with respect to development in the vicinity of

22 such interstate transmission facilities, for distribution to

23 appropriate agencies of local governments with jurisdiction

24 over the lands through which natural gas interstate trans25 mission facilities pass.
11

•HR 4616 IH

1 (B) For purposes of this section, the term ‘‘interstate

2 transmission facilities’’ has the meaning given such term

3 in section 2(8) of the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act of

4 1968 (49 U.S.C. App. 1671(8)).

5 (2)(A) Within 2 years after the date of enactment

6 of this Act, the Secretary shall make educational informa7 tion available, regarding hazardous liquid interstate pipe8 line facilities rights-of-way and issues with respect to de9 velopment in the vicinity of such interstate pipeline facili10 ties, for distribution to appropriate agencies of local gov11 ernments with jurisdiction over the lands through which

12 hazardous liquid interstate pipeline facilities pass.

13 (B) For purposes of this paragraph, the term ‘‘inter14 state pipeline facilities’’ has the meaning given such term

15 in section 202(5) of the Hazardous Liquid Pipeline Safety

16 Act of 1979 (49 U.S.C. App. 2001(5)).

17 (3) There are authorized to be appropriated to the

18 Secretary of Energy for carrying out this subsection,

19 $2,000,000, to remain available until expended.

20 SEC. 8. DUMPING WITHIN PIPELINE RIGHTS-OF-WAY.

21 (a) NATURAL GAS PIPELINE SAFETY ACT OF

22 1968.—

23 (1) AMENDMENT.—The Natural Gas Pipeline

24 Safety Act of 1968 (49 U.S.C. App. 1671 et seq.)
12

•HR 4616 IH

1 is amended by adding at the end the following new

2 section:

3 ‘‘SEC. 22. DUMPING WITHIN PIPELINE RIGHTS-OF-WAY.

4 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITION.—No person shall excavate within

5 the right-of-way of a natural gas interstate transmission

6 facility, or any other limited area in the vicinity of such

7 interstate transmission facility established by the Sec8 retary, and dispose solid waste therein.

9 ‘‘(b) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the

10 term ‘solid waste’ has the meaning given such term in sec11 tion 1004(27) of the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C.

12 6903(27)).’’.

13 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section

14 11(a)(1) and (c)(1) of the Natural Gas Pipeline

15 Safety Act of 1968 (49 U.S.C. App. 1679a(a)(1)

16 and (c)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘or section

17 20(h)’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘, section 20(h),

18 or section 22(a)’’.

19 (b) HAZARDOUS LIQUID PIPELINE SAFETY ACT OF

20 1979.—

21 (1) AMENDMENT.—The Hazardous Liquid

22 Pipeline Safety Act of 1979 (49 U.S.C. App. 2001

23 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the follow24 ing new section:
13

•HR 4616 IH

1 ‘‘SEC. 221. DUMPING WITHIN PIPELINE RIGHTS-OF-WAY.

2 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITION.—No person shall excavate within

3 the right-of-way of a hazardous liquid interstate pipeline

4 facility, or any other limited area in the vicinity of such

5 interstate pipeline facility established by the Secretary,

6 and dispose solid waste therein.

7 ‘‘(b) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the

8 term ‘solid waste’ has the meaning given such term in sec9 tion 1004(27) of the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C.

10 6903(27)).’’.

11 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section

12 208(a)(1) and (c)(1) of the Hazardous Liquid Pipe13 line Safety Act of 1979 (49 U.S.C. App. 2007(a)(1)

14 and (c)(1)) is amended by inserting ‘‘or section

15 221(a)’’ after ‘‘section 207(a)’’.

16 SEC. 9. PERIODIC INSPECTION BY INSTRUMENTED INTER17 NAL INSPECTION DEVICES.

18 (a) NATURAL GAS PIPELINE SAFETY ACT OF

19 1968.—Section 3(g)(2) of the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety

20 Act of 1968 (49 U.S.C. App. 1672(g)(2)) is amended—

21 (1) by striking ‘‘Not later than 3 years after

22 the date of the enactment of this paragraph’’ and in23 serting in lieu thereof ‘‘Not later than 1 year after

24 the date of the enactment of the Natural Gas Pipe25 line Safety Improvement Act of 1994’’; and
14

•HR 4616 IH

1 (2) in the first sentence, by inserting ‘‘and shall

2 prescribe a schedule or schedules for such inspec3 tions’’ after ‘‘operator of the pipeline’’.

4 (b) HAZARDOUS LIQUID PIPELINE SAFETY ACT OF

5 1979.—Section 203(k)(2) of the Hazardous Liquid Pipe6 line Safety Act of 1979 (49 U.S.C. App. 2002(k)(2)) is

7 amended—

8 (1) by striking ‘‘Not later than 3 years after

9 the date of the enactment of this paragraph’’ and in10 serting in lieu thereof ‘‘Not later than 1 year after

11 the date of the enactment of the Natural Gas Pipe12 line Safety Improvement Act of 1994’’; and

13 (2) in the first sentence, by inserting ‘‘and shall

14 prescribe a schedule or schedules for such inspec15 tions’’ after ‘‘operator of the pipeline’’.

16 SEC. 10. PROMOTING PUBLIC AWARENESS FOR NEIGHBORS

17 OF PIPELINES.

18 (a) NATURAL GAS PIPELINE SAFETY ACT OF

19 1968.—Section 18 of the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act

20 of 1968 (49 U.S.C. App. 1685) is amended by adding at

21 the end the following new subsections:

22 ‘‘(c) PROMOTING PUBLIC AWARENESS FOR NEIGH23 BORS OF PIPELINES.—Not later than 1 year after the date

24 of enactment of this subsection, and annually thereafter,

25 the owner or operator of each interstate transmission facil-
15

•HR 4616 IH

1 ity shall notify all residents within 1000 yards, or such

2 other distance as the Secretary determines appropriate, of

3 such interstate transmission facility of—

4 ‘‘(1) the general location of the interstate trans5 mission facility;

6 ‘‘(2) a request for reporting of any instances of

7 excavation or dumping on or near the interstate

8 transmission facility;

9 ‘‘(3) a phone number to use to make such re10 ports; and

11 ‘‘(4) appropriate procedures for such residents

12 to follow in response to accidents concerning inter13 state transmission facilities.

14 ‘‘(d) PUBLIC EDUCATION.—The Secretary shall de15 velop, in conjunction with appropriate representatives of

16 the natural gas pipeline industry, public service announce17 ments to be broadcast or published to educate the public

18 about pipeline safety.’’.

19 (b) HAZARDOUS LIQUID PIPELINE SAFETY ACT OF

20 1979.—Section 212 of the Hazardous Liquid Pipeline

21 Safety Act of 1979 (49 U.S.C. App. 2011) is amended

22 by adding at the end the following new subsections:

23 ‘‘(e) PROMOTING PUBLIC AWARENESS FOR NEIGH24 BORS OF PIPELINES.—Not later than 1 year after the date

25 of enactment of this subsection, and annually thereafter,
16

•HR 4616 IH

1 the owner or operator of each interstate pipeline facility

2 shall notify all residents within 1000 yards, or such other

3 distance as the Secretary determines appropriate, of such

4 interstate pipeline facility of—

5 ‘‘(1) the general location of the interstate pipe6 line facility;

7 ‘‘(2) a request for reporting of any instances of

8 excavation or dumping on or near the interstate

9 pipeline facility;

10 ‘‘(3) a phone number to use to make such re11 ports; and

12 ‘‘(4) appropriate procedures for such residents

13 to follow in response to accidents concerning inter14 state pipeline facilities.

15 ‘‘(f) PUBLIC EDUCATION.—The Secretary shall de16 velop, in conjunction with appropriate representatives of

17 the hazardous liquid pipeline industry, public service an18 nouncements to be broadcast or published to educate the

19 public about pipeline safety.’’.

20 SEC. 11. REMOTELY OR AUTOMATICALLY CONTROLLED

21 VALVES.

22 Section 3 of the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act of

23 1968 (49 U.S.C. App. 1672) is amended by adding at the

24 end the following new subsection:
17

•HR 4616 IH

1 ‘‘(l) REMOTELY OR AUTOMATICALLY CONTROLLED

2 VALVES.—Not later than 18 months after the date of en3 actment of this subsection, the Secretary shall issue regu4 lations requiring the installation and use, wherever tech5 nically and economically feasible, of remotely or automati6 cally controlled valves that are reliable and capable of

7 shutting off the flow of gas in the event of an accident,

8 including accidents in which there is a loss of the primary

9 power source. In developing proposed regulations, the Sec10 retary shall consult with, and give special consideration

11 to recommendations of, appropriate groups from the gas

12 pipeline industry, such as the Gas Research Institute.’’.

13 SEC. 12. BASELINE INFORMATION.

14 (a) NATURAL GAS PIPELINE SAFETY ACT OF

15 1968.—Section 3(g) of the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety

16 Act of 1968 (49 U.S.C. App. 1672(g)) is amended by add17 ing at the end the following new paragraph:

18 ‘‘(3) BASELINE INFORMATION.—Before trans19 porting natural gas through a pipeline which, be20 cause of its design, construction, or replacement, is

21 required by regulations issued under paragraph (1)

22 to accommodate the passage of instrumented inter23 nal inspection devices, the owner or operator of such

24 pipeline shall, using such a device, obtain baseline
18

•HR 4616 IH

1 information with respect to the safety of the pipe2 line.’’.

3 (b) HAZARDOUS LIQUID PIPELINE SAFETY ACT OF

4 1979.—Section 203(k) of the Hazardous Liquid Pipeline

5 Safety Act of 1979 (49 U.S.C. App. 2002(k)) is amended

6 by adding at the end the following new paragraph:

7 ‘‘(3) BASELINE INFORMATION.—Before trans8 porting hazardous liquids through a pipeline which,

9 because of its design, construction, or replacement,

10 is required by regulations issued under paragraph

11 (1) to accommodate the passage of instrumented in12 ternal inspection devices, the owner or operator of

13 such pipeline shall, using such a device, obtain base14 line information with respect to the safety of the

15 pipeline.’’.

Æ

HR 4616 IH——2

HR 4616 IH——3