II 

Calendar No. 427 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2299 

[Report No. 116–217] 

To amend title 49, United States Code, to enhance the safety and reliability 

of pipeline transportation, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 25, 2019 

Mrs. FISCHER (for herself and Ms. DUCKWORTH) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, 

Science, and Transportation 

FEBRUARY 13, 2020 

Reported by Mr. WICKER, with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To amend title 49, United States Code, to enhance the 

safety and reliability of pipeline transportation, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘PIPES Act of 2019’’. 


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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

TITLE I—IMPROVING PIPELINE SAFETY AND INFRASTRUCTURE 

Sec. 101. Authorization of appropriations. 

Sec. 102. Pipeline workforce development. 

Sec. 103. Underground natural gas storage user fees. 

Sec. 104. Cost recovery and fees for facility reviews. 

Sec. 105. Advancement of new pipeline safety technologies and approaches. 

Sec. 106. Pipeline safety testing enhancement study. 

Sec. 107. Regulatory updates. 

Sec. 108. Self-disclosure of violations. 

Sec. 109. Due process protections in enforcement proceedings. 

Sec. 110. Pipeline operating status. 

Sec. 111. Liquefied natural gas facility project reviews. 

Sec. 112. Updates to standards for liquefied natural gas facilities. 

Sec. 113. National Center of Excellence for Liquefied Natural Gas Safety and 

Training. 

TITLE II—LEONEL RONDON PIPELINE SAFETY ACT 

Sec. 201. Short title. 

Sec. 202. Distribution integrity management plans. 

Sec. 203. Emergency response plans. 

Sec. 204. Operations and maintenance manuals. 

Sec. 205. Pipeline safety management systems. 

Sec. 206. Pipeline safety practices. 

3 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

4 In this Act: 

5 (1) ADMINISTRATION.—The term ‘‘Administra6 tion’’ means the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials 

7 Safety Administration. 

8 (2) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis9 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Administra10 tion. 

11 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

12 the Secretary of Transportation. 


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1 TITLE I—IMPROVING PIPELINE 

2 SAFETY AND INFRASTRUCTURE 

3 SEC. 101. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

4 (a) GAS AND HAZARDOUS LIQUID.—Section 60125 

5 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by striking 

6 subsection (a) and inserting the following: 

7 ‘‘(a) GAS AND HAZARDOUS LIQUID.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—From fees collected under 

9 section 60301, there are authorized to be appro10 priated to the Secretary to carry out section 12 of 

11 the Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2002 (49 

12 U.S.C. 60101 note; Public Law 107–355) and the 

13 provisions of this chapter relating to gas and haz14 ardous liquid— 

15 ‘‘(A) $147,000,000 for fiscal year 2020, of 

16 which— 

17 ‘‘(i) $9,000,000 shall be used to carry 

18 out section 12 of the Pipeline Safety Im19 provement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 

20 note; Public Law 107–355); and 

21 ‘‘(ii) $60,000,000 shall be used for 

22 making grants; 

23 ‘‘(B) $151,000,000 for fiscal year 2021, of 

24 which— 


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1 ‘‘(i) $9,000,000 shall be used to carry 

2 out section 12 of the Pipeline Safety Im3 provement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 

4 note; Public Law 107–355); and 

5 ‘‘(ii) $63,000,000 shall be used for 

6 making grants; 

7 ‘‘(C) $155,000,000 for fiscal year 2022, of 

8 which— 

9 ‘‘(i) $9,000,000 shall be used to carry 

10 out section 12 of the Pipeline Safety Im11 provement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 

12 note; Public Law 107–355); and 

13 ‘‘(ii) $66,000,000 shall be used for 

14 making grants; and 

15 ‘‘(D) $159,000,000 for fiscal year 2023, of 

16 which— 

17 ‘‘(i) $9,000,000 shall be used to carry 

18 out section 12 of the Pipeline Safety Im19 provement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 

20 note; Public Law 107–355); and 

21 ‘‘(ii) $69,000,000 shall be used for 

22 making grants. 

23 ‘‘(2) TRUST FUND AMOUNTS.—In addition to 

24 the amounts authorized to be appropriated under 

25 paragraph (1), there are authorized to be approVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:51 Feb 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2299.RS S2299

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1 priated from the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund es2 tablished by section 9509(a) of the Internal Revenue 

3 Code of 1986 to carry out section 12 of the Pipeline 

4 Safety Improvement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 

5 note; Public Law 107–355) and the provisions of 

6 this chapter relating to hazardous liquid— 

7 ‘‘(A) $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2020, of 

8 which— 

9 ‘‘(i) $3,000,000 shall be used to carry 

10 out section 12 of the Pipeline Safety Im11 provement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 

12 note; Public Law 107–355); and 

13 ‘‘(ii) $10,000,000 shall be used for 

14 making grants; 

15 ‘‘(B) $26,000,000 for fiscal year 2021, of 

16 which— 

17 ‘‘(i) $3,000,000 shall be used to carry 

18 out section 12 of the Pipeline Safety Im19 provement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 

20 note; Public Law 107–355); and 

21 ‘‘(ii) $11,000,000 shall be used for 

22 making grants; 

23 ‘‘(C) $27,000,000 for fiscal year 2022, of 

24 which— 


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1 ‘‘(i) $3,000,000 shall be used to carry 

2 out section 12 of the Pipeline Safety Im3 provement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 

4 note; Public Law 107–355); and 

5 ‘‘(ii) $12,000,000 shall be used for 

6 making grants; and 

7 ‘‘(D) $28,000,000 for fiscal year 2023, of 

8 which— 

9 ‘‘(i) $3,000,000 shall be used to carry 

10 out section 12 of the Pipeline Safety Im11 provement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 

12 note; Public Law 107–355); and 

13 ‘‘(ii) $13,000,000 shall be used for 

14 making grants. 

15 ‘‘(3) UNDERGROUND NATURAL GAS STORAGE

16 FACILITY SAFETY ACCOUNT.—From fees collected 

17 under section 60302, there is authorized to be ap18 propriated to the Secretary to carry out section 

19 60141 $8,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2020 

20 through 2023.’’. 

21 (b) OPERATIONAL EXPENSES.—Section 2(b) of the 

22 PIPES Act of 2016 (Public Law 114–183; 130 Stat. 515) 

23 is amended by striking paragraphs (1) through (4) and 

24 inserting the following: 

25 ‘‘(1) $24,000,000 for fiscal year 2020. 


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1 ‘‘(2) $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2021. 

2 ‘‘(3) $26,000,000 for fiscal year 2022. 

3 ‘‘(4) $27,000,000 for fiscal year 2023.’’. 

4 (c) ONE-CALL NOTIFICATION PROGRAMS.—Section 

5 6107 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by strik6 ing ‘‘$1,058,000 for each of fiscal years 2016 through 

7 2019’’ and inserting ‘‘$1,058,000 for each of fiscal years 

8 2020 through 2023’’. 

9 (d) PIPELINE SAFETY INFORMATION GRANTS TO

10 COMMUNITIES.—Section 60130 of title 49, United States 

11 Code, is amended by striking subsection (c) and inserting 

12 the following: 

13 ‘‘(c) FUNDING.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Out of amounts made 

15 available under section 2(b) of the PIPES Act of 

16 2016, the Secretary shall use $1,500,000 for each of 

17 fiscal years 2020 through 2023 to carry out this sec18 tion. 

19 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—Any amounts used to carry 

20 out this section shall not be derived from user fees 

21 collected under section 60301.’’. 

22 (e) DAMAGE PREVENTION PROGRAMS.—Section 

23 60134(i) of title 49, United States Code, is amended in 

24 the first sentence by striking ‘‘fiscal years 2012 through 

25 2015’’ and inserting ‘‘fiscal years 2020 through 2023’’. 


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1 (f) PIPELINE INTEGRITY PROGRAM.—Section 12(f) 

2 of the Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2002 (49 

3 U.S.C. 60101 note; Public Law 107–355) is amended by 

4 striking ‘‘2016 through 2019’’ and inserting ‘‘2020 

5 through 2023’’. 

6 SEC. 102. PIPELINE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT. 

7 (a) INSPECTOR TRAINING.—Not later than 1 year 

8 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator 

9 shall— 

10 (1) review the inspector training programs pro11 vided at the Inspector Training and Qualifications 

12 Division of the Administration in Oklahoma City, 

13 Oklahoma; and 

14 (2) determine whether any of the programs re15 ferred to in paragraph (1), or any portions of the 

16 programs, could be provided online through tele17 training or another type of distance learning. 

18 (b) REPORT.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

20 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

21 shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, 

22 Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the 

23 Committees on Transportation and Infrastructure, 

24 Energy and Commerce, and Science, Space, and 

25 Technology of the House of Representatives and 


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1 make publicly available on a website of the Depart2 ment of Transportation a report containing a com3 prehensive workforce plan for the Administration. 

4 (2) CONTENTS.—The report under paragraph 

5 (1) shall include— 

6 (A) a description of the current staffing at 

7 the Administration; 

8 (B) an identification of the staff needed to 

9 achieve the mission of the Administration over 

10 the next 10 years following the date of the re11 port; 

12 (C) an evaluation of whether the inspector 

13 training programs referred to in subsection 

14 (a)(1) provide appropriate exposure to pipeline 

15 operations and current pipeline safety tech16 nology; 

17 (D) a summary of any gaps between the 

18 current workforce of the Administration and 

19 the future human capital needs of the Adminis20 tration; and 

21 (E) a description of how the Administra22 tion— 

23 (i) uses the retention incentives de24 fined by the Office of Personnel Manage25 ment; and 


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1 (ii) plans to use those retention incen2 tives as part of the comprehensive work3 force plan of the Administration. 

4 SEC. 103. UNDERGROUND NATURAL GAS STORAGE USER 

5 FEES. 

6 Section 60302(c) of title 49, United States Code, is 

7 amended— 

8 (1) in paragraph (2)— 

9 (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

10 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

11 (B) in subparagraph (B)— 

12 (i) by striking ‘‘the amount of the 

13 fee’’; and 

14 (ii) by striking the period at the end 

15 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

16 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(C) may only be used to the extent pro18 vided in advance in an appropriations Act.’’; 

19 (2) by striking paragraph (3); and 

20 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(d) LIMITATION.—The amount of a fee imposed 

22 under subsection (a) shall be sufficient to pay the costs 

23 of activities referred to in subsection (c), subject to the 

24 limitation that the total amount of fees collected for a fis25 cal year under subsection (b) may not be more than 105 


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1 percent of the total amount of the appropriations made 

2 for the fiscal year for activities to be financed by the 

3 fees.’’. 

4 SEC. 104. COST RECOVERY AND FEES FOR FACILITY RE5 VIEWS. 

6 (a) FEES FOR COMPLIANCE REVIEWS OF LIQUEFIED

7 NATURAL GAS FACILITIES.—Chapter 603 of title 49, 

8 United States Code, is amended by inserting after section 

9 60302 the following: 

10 ‘‘§ 60303. Fees for compliance reviews of liquefied 

11 natural gas facilities 

12 ‘‘(a) IMPOSITION OF FEE.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transpor14 tation (referred to in this section as the ‘Secretary’) 

15 shall impose on a person who files with the Federal 

16 Energy Regulatory Commission an application for a 

17 liquefied natural gas facility that has design and 

18 construction costs totaling not less than 

19 $2,500,000,000 a fee for the necessary expenses of 

20 a review, if any, that the Secretary conducts, in con21 nection with that application, to determine compli22 ance with subpart B of part 193 of title 49, Code 

23 of Federal Regulations (or successor regulations). 

24 ‘‘(2) RELATION TO OTHER REVIEW.—The Sec25 retary may not impose fees under paragraph (1) and 


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1 section 60117(o) or 60301(b) for the same compli2 ance review described in paragraph (1). 

3 ‘‘(b) MEANS OF COLLECTION.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall pre5 scribe procedures to collect fees under this section. 

6 ‘‘(2) USE OF GOVERNMENT ENTITIES.—The 

7 Secretary may— 

8 ‘‘(A) use a department, agency, or instru9 mentality of the Federal Government or of a 

10 State or local government to collect fees under 

11 this section; and 

12 ‘‘(B) reimburse that department, agency, 

13 or instrumentality a reasonable amount for the 

14 services provided. 

15 ‘‘(c) ACCOUNT.—There is established an account, to 

16 be known as the ‘Liquefied Natural Gas Siting Account’, 

17 in the Pipeline Safety Fund established in the Treasury 

18 of the United States under section 60301.’’. 

19 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

20 for chapter 603 of title 49, United States Code, is amend21 ed by inserting after the item relating to section 60302 

22 the following: 

‘‘60303. Fees for compliance reviews of liquefied natural gas facilities.’’. 


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1 SEC. 105. ADVANCEMENT OF NEW PIPELINE SAFETY TECH2 NOLOGIES AND APPROACHES. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 601 of title 49, United 

4 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol5 lowing: 

6 ‘‘§ 60142. Pipeline safety enhancement programs 

7 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may establish and 

8 carry out limited safety-enhancing testing programs dur9 ing the period of fiscal years 2020 through 2026 to evalu10 ate innovative technologies and operational practices test11 ing the safe operation of— 

12 ‘‘(1) a natural gas pipeline facility; or 

13 ‘‘(2) a hazardous liquid pipeline facility. 

14 ‘‘(b) LIMITATIONS.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Such testing programs may 

16 not exceed— 

17 ‘‘(A) 5 percent of the total miles of haz18 ardous liquid pipelines in the United States; 

19 and 

20 ‘‘(B) 5 percent of the total miles of natural 

21 gas pipelines in the United States. 

22 ‘‘(2) HIGH POPULATION AREAS.—Any program 

23 established under subsection (a) shall not be located 

24 in a high population area (as defined in section 

25 195.450 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations). 


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1 ‘‘(c) DURATION.—The term of a testing program es2 tablished under subsection (a) shall be not more than a 

3 period of 4 years beginning on the date of approval of the 

4 program. 

5 ‘‘(d) SAFETY STANDARDS.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall re7 quire, as a condition of approval of a testing pro8 gram under subsection (a), that the safety measures 

9 in the testing program are designed to achieve a 

10 level of safety that is greater than, or equivalent to, 

11 the level of safety required by this chapter. 

12 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATION.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may 

14 issue an order under subparagraph (A) of sec15 tion 60118(c)(1) to accomplish the purpose of 

16 a testing program for a term not to exceed the 

17 time period described in subsection (c) if the 

18 condition described in paragraph (1) is met, as 

19 determined by the Secretary. 

20 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION.—An order under sub21 paragraph (A) shall pertain only to those regu22 lations that would otherwise prevent the use of 

23 the safety technology to be tested under the 

24 testing program. 


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1 ‘‘(e) CONSIDERATIONS.—In establishing a testing 

2 program under subsection (a), the Secretary shall con3 sider— 

4 ‘‘(1) whether the owners or operators partici5 pating in the program have a safety management 

6 system in place; 

7 ‘‘(2) whether the proposed safety technology 

8 has been tested through a research and development 

9 program carried out by— 

10 ‘‘(A) the Secretary; 

11 ‘‘(B) collaborative research development 

12 organizations; or 

13 ‘‘(C) other institutions; and 

14 ‘‘(3) whether the pipeline segments tested by 

15 the program are outside of a high population area 

16 (as defined in section 195.450 of title 49, Code of 

17 Federal Regulations). 

18 ‘‘(f) DATA AND FINDINGS.—As a participant in a 

19 testing program established under subsection (a), an oper20 ator shall submit to the Secretary detailed findings and 

21 a summary of data collected as a result of participation 

22 in the testing program. 

23 ‘‘(g) AUTHORITY TO REVOKE PARTICIPATION.—The 

24 Secretary shall immediately revoke participation in a test25 ing program under subsection (a) if— 


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1 ‘‘(1) the participant fails to comply with the 

2 terms and conditions of the testing program; or 

3 ‘‘(2) in the determination of the Secretary, con4 tinued participation in the testing program by the 

5 participant would be unsafe or would not be con6 sistent with the goals and objectives of this chapter. 

7 ‘‘(h) AUTHORITY TO TERMINATE PROGRAM.—The 

8 Secretary shall immediately terminate a testing program 

9 under subsection (a) if continuation of the testing pro10 gram would not be consistent with the goals and objectives 

11 of this chapter. 

12 ‘‘(i) STATE RIGHTS.— 

13 ‘‘(1) EXEMPTION.—Except as provided in para14 graph (2), if a State submits to the Secretary notice 

15 that the State requests an exemption from any test16 ing program considered for establishment under this 

17 section, the State shall be exempt. 

18 ‘‘(2) LIMITATIONS.— 

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

20 not grant a requested exemption under para21 graph (1) after a testing program is estab22 lished. 

23 ‘‘(B) LATE NOTICE.—The Secretary shall 

24 not grant a requested exemption under para25 graph (1) if the notice submitted under that 


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1 paragraph is submitted to the Secretary more 

2 than 10 days after the date on which the Sec3 retary issues an order providing an effective 

4 date for the testing program. 

5 ‘‘(3) EFFECT.—If a State has not submitted a 

6 notice requesting an exemption under paragraph (1), 

7 the State shall not enforce any law (including regu8 lations) that is inconsistent with a testing program 

9 in effect in the State under this section. 

10 ‘‘(j) PROGRAM REVIEW PROCESS AND PUBLIC NO11 TICE.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall publish 

13 in the Federal Register a notice of each testing pro14 gram under subsection (a), including the order to be 

15 considered, and provide an opportunity for public 

16 comment for not less than 60 days. 

17 ‘‘(2) RESPONSE FROM SECRETARY.—Not later 

18 than the date on which the Secretary issues an order 

19 providing an effective date of a testing program no20 ticed under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall re21 spond to each comment submitted under that para22 graph. 

23 ‘‘(k) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—At the conclusion of 

24 each testing program, the Secretary shall make publicly 


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1 available on the website of the Department of Transpor2 tation a report containing— 

3 ‘‘(1) the findings and conclusions of the Sec4 retary with respect to the testing program; and 

5 ‘‘(2) any recommendations of the Secretary 

6 with respect to the testing program, including any 

7 recommendations for amendments to laws (including 

8 regulations) and the establishment of standards, 

9 that— 

10 ‘‘(A) would enhance the safe operation of 

11 interstate gas or hazardous liquid pipeline fa12 cilities; and 

13 ‘‘(B) are technically, operationally, and 

14 economically feasible. 

15 ‘‘(l) STANDARDS.—If a report under subsection (k) 

16 indicates that it is practicable to establish technically, 

17 operationally, and economically feasible standards for the 

18 use of a safety-enhancing technology and any cor19 responding operational practices tested by the testing pro20 gram described in the report, the Secretary, as soon as 

21 practicable after submission of the report, may promulgate 

22 regulations consistent with chapter 5 of title 5 (commonly 

23 known as the ‘Administrative Procedures Act’) that— 


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1 ‘‘(1) allow operators of interstate gas or haz2 ardous liquid pipeline facilities to use the relevant 

3 technology or practice to the extent practicable; and 

4 ‘‘(2) establish technically, operationally, and 

5 economically feasible standards for the capability 

6 and deployment of the technology or practice.’’. 

7 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

8 for chapter 601 of title 49, United States Code, is amend9 ed by inserting after the item relating to section 60141 

10 the following: 

‘‘60142. Pipeline safety enhancement programs.’’. 

11 SEC. 106. PIPELINE SAFETY TESTING ENHANCEMENT 

12 STUDY. 

13 Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment 

14 of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee 

15 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 

16 and the Committees on Transportation and Infrastruc17 ture, Energy and Commerce, and Science, Space, and 

18 Technology of the House of Representatives a report relat19 ing to— 

20 (1) the research and development capabilities of 

21 the Administration, in accordance with section 12 of 

22 the Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2002 (49 

23 U.S.C. 60101 note; Public Law 107–355); 

24 (2)(A) the development of additional testing 

25 and research capabilities through the establishment 


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1 of an independent pipeline safety testing facility 

2 under the Department of Transportation; 

3 (B) whether an independent pipeline safety 

4 testing facility would be critical to the work of the 

5 Administration; and 

6 (C) the costs and benefits of developing an 

7 independent pipeline safety testing facility under the 

8 Department of Transportation; and 

9 (3) the ability of the Administration to use the 

10 testing facilities of other Federal agencies or feder11 ally funded research and development centers. 

12 SEC. 107. REGULATORY UPDATES. 

13 (a) DEFINITION OF OUTSTANDING MANDATE.—In 

14 this section, the term ‘‘outstanding mandate’’ means— 

15 (1) a final rule required to be issued under the 

16 Pipeline Safety, Regulatory Certainty, and Job Cre17 ation Act of 2011 (Public Law 112–90; 125 Stat. 

18 1904) that has not been published in the Federal 

19 Register; 

20 (2) a final rule required to be issued under the 

21 Protecting our Infrastructure of Pipelines and En22 hancing Safety Act of 2016 (Public Law 114–183; 

23 130 Stat. 514) that has not been published in the 

24 Federal Register; and 


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1 (3) any other final rule regarding gas or haz2 ardous liquid pipeline facilities required to be issued 

3 under this Act or an Act enacted prior to the date 

4 of enactment of this Act that has not been published 

5 in the Federal Register. 

6 (b) REQUIREMENTS.— 

7 (1) PERIODIC UPDATES.—Not later than 30 

8 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and 

9 every 30 days thereafter until a final rule referred 

10 to in paragraphs (1) through (3) of subsection (a) 

11 is published in the Federal Register, the Secretary 

12 shall publish on a publicly available website of the 

13 Department of Transportation an update regarding 

14 the status of each outstanding mandate in accord15 ance with subsection (c). 

16 (2) NOTIFICATION OF CONGRESS.—On publica17 tion of a final rule in the Federal Register for an 

18 outstanding mandate, the Secretary shall submit to 

19 the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Trans20 portation of the Senate and the Committees on 

21 Transportation and Infrastructure and Energy and 

22 Commerce of the House of Representatives a notifi23 cation in accordance with subsection (c). 


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1 (c) CONTENTS.—An update published or a notifica2 tion submitted under paragraph (1) or (2) of subsection 

3 (b) shall contain, as applicable— 

4 (1) with respect to information relating to the 

5 Administration— 

6 (A) a description of the work plan for each 

7 outstanding mandate; 

8 (B) an updated rulemaking timeline for 

9 each outstanding mandate; 

10 (C) the staff allocations with respect to 

11 each outstanding mandate; 

12 (D) any resource constraints affecting the 

13 rulemaking process for each outstanding man14 date; 

15 (E) any other details associated with the 

16 development of each outstanding mandate that 

17 affect the progress of the rulemaking process 

18 with respect to that outstanding mandate; and 

19 (F) a description of all rulemakings re20 garding gas or hazardous liquid pipeline facili21 ties published in the Federal Register that are 

22 not identified under subsection (b)(2); and 

23 (2) with respect to information relating to the 

24 Office of the Secretary— 


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1 (A) the date that the outstanding mandate 

2 was submitted to the Office of the Secretary for 

3 review; 

4 (B) the reason that the outstanding man5 date is under review beyond 45 days; 

6 (C) the staff allocations within the Office 

7 of the Secretary with respect to each out8 standing mandate; 

9 (D) any resource constraints affecting re10 view of the outstanding mandate; 

11 (E) an estimated timeline of when review 

12 of the outstanding mandate will be complete, as 

13 of the date of the update; 

14 (F) if applicable, the date that the out15 standing mandate was returned to the Adminis16 tration for revision and the anticipated date for 

17 resubmission to the Office of the Secretary; 

18 (G) the date that the outstanding mandate 

19 was submitted to the Office of Management and 

20 Budget for review; and 

21 (H) a statement of whether the out22 standing mandate remains under review by the 

23 Office of Management and Budget. 


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1 SEC. 108. SELF-DISCLOSURE OF VIOLATIONS. 

2 Section 60122(b)(1) of title 49, United States Code, 

3 is amended— 

4 (1) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

5 the end; and 

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

7 ‘‘(D) self-disclosure and correction of viola8 tions, or actions to correct a violation, prior to 

9 discovery by the Pipeline and Hazardous Mate10 rials Safety Administration; and’’. 

11 SEC. 109. DUE PROCESS PROTECTIONS IN ENFORCEMENT 

12 PROCEEDINGS. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 60117 of title 49, United 

14 States Code, is amended— 

15 (1) by redesignating subsections (b) through (o) 

16 as subsections (c) through (p), respectively; and 

17 (2) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol18 lowing: 

19 ‘‘(b) ENFORCEMENT AND REGULATORY PROCE20 DURES.— 

21 ‘‘(1) REQUEST FOR FORMAL HEARING.—On re22 quest of a respondent in an enforcement or regu23 latory proceeding under this chapter, a hearing shall 

24 be held in accordance with section 554 of title 5. 

25 ‘‘(2) ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE.—A hearing 

26 under paragraph (1) shall be conducted by an adVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:51 Feb 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2299.RS S2299

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1 ministrative law judge appointed under section 3105 

2 of title 5. 

3 ‘‘(3) OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.— 

4 ‘‘(A) HEARINGS.—A hearing under para5 graph (1) shall be— 

6 ‘‘(i) noticed to the public— 

7 ‘‘(I) on the website of the Pipe8 line and Hazardous Materials Safety 

9 Administration; and 

10 ‘‘(II) in the Federal Register; 

11 and 

12 ‘‘(ii) open to the public. 

13 ‘‘(B) AGREEMENTS, ORDERS, AND JUDG14 MENTS.—A consent agreement, consent order, 

15 order, or judgment resulting from a hearing 

16 under paragraph (1) shall be made available to 

17 the public on the website of the Pipeline and 

18 Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. 

19 ‘‘(4) PROCEDURES.—In implementing enforce20 ment and regulatory procedures under this chapter, 

21 the Secretary shall— 

22 ‘‘(A) allow the use of a consent agreement 

23 and consent order to resolve any matter of fact 

24 or law asserted; 


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1 ‘‘(B) allow the respondent and the agency 

2 to convene 1 or more meetings— 

3 ‘‘(i) for settlement or simplification of 

4 the issues; or 

5 ‘‘(ii) to aid in the disposition of issues; 

6 ‘‘(C) require that the case file in an en7 forcement proceeding include all agency records 

8 pertinent to the matters of fact and law as9 serted; 

10 ‘‘(D) require that a recommended decision 

11 be made available to the respondent when 

12 issued; 

13 ‘‘(E) allow a respondent to reply to any 

14 post-hearing submission; 

15 ‘‘(F) allow a respondent to request— 

16 ‘‘(i) that a hearing be held, and a rec17 ommended decision and order issued, on 

18 an expedited basis; or 

19 ‘‘(ii) that a hearing not commence for 

20 a period of not less than 90 days; 

21 ‘‘(G) require that the agency have the bur22 den of proof, presentation, and persuasion in 

23 any enforcement matter; 


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1 ‘‘(H) require that any recommended deci2 sion and order contain findings of fact and con3 clusions of law; 

4 ‘‘(I) require the Associate Administrator of 

5 the Office of Pipeline Safety to file a post-hear6 ing recommendation not later than 30 days 

7 after the deadline for any post-hearing submis8 sion of a respondent; 

9 ‘‘(J) require an order on a petition for re10 consideration to be issued not later than 120 

11 days after the date on which the petition is 

12 filed; and 

13 ‘‘(K) allow a respondent to request that an 

14 issue of controversy or uncertainty be addressed 

15 through a declaratory order in accordance with 

16 section 554(e) of title 5, which order shall be 

17 issued not later than 120 days after the date on 

18 which a request is made. 

19 ‘‘(5) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—Nothing in this sub20 section alters the procedures applicable to an emer21 gency order under subsection (p).’’. 

22 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

23 (1) Section 60105(b)(6) of title 49, United 

24 States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘section 60108 


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1 (a) and (b)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsections (a) and (c) 

2 of section 60108’’. 

3 (2) Section 60106(a)(2) of title 49, United 

4 States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘section 60108 

5 (a) and (b)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsections (a) and (c) 

6 of section 60108’’. 

7 (3) Section 60118(a)(2) of title 49, United 

8 States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘section 60108 

9 (a) and (b)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsections (a) and (c) 

10 of section 60108’’. 

11 SEC. 110. PIPELINE OPERATING STATUS. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 601 of title 49, United 

13 States Code (as amended by section 105(a)), is amended 

14 by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘§ 60143. Idled pipelines 

16 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION OF IDLED.—In this section, the 

17 term ‘idled’, with respect to a pipeline, means that the 

18 pipeline— 

19 ‘‘(1)(A) has ceased normal operations; and 

20 ‘‘(B) will not resume service for a period of not 

21 less than 180 days; 

22 ‘‘(2) has been isolated from all sources of haz23 ardous liquid, natural gas, or other gas; and 


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1 ‘‘(3)(A) has been purged of combustibles and 

2 hazardous materials and maintains a blanket of 

3 inert, nonflammable gas at low pressure; or 

4 ‘‘(B) has not been purged as described in sub5 paragraph (A), but the volume of gas is so small 

6 that there is no potential hazard. 

7 ‘‘(b) RULEMAKING.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years 

9 after the date of enactment of the PIPES Act of 

10 2019, the Secretary shall promulgate regulations 

11 prescribing the applicability of the pipeline safety re12 quirements to idled natural or other gas trans13 mission and hazardous liquid pipelines. 

14 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.— 

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The applicability of 

16 the regulations under paragraph (1) shall be 

17 based on the risk that idled natural or other 

18 gas transmission and hazardous liquid pipelines 

19 pose to the public, property, and the environ20 ment, and shall include requirements to resume 

21 operation. 

22 ‘‘(B) INSPECTION.—The Secretary or an 

23 appropriate State agency shall inspect each 

24 idled pipeline and verify that the pipeline has 


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1 been purged of combustibles and hazardous ma2 terials. 

3 ‘‘(C) REQUIREMENTS FOR REINSPEC4 TION.—The Secretary shall determine the re5 quirements for periodic reinspection of idled 

6 natural or other gas transmission and haz7 ardous liquid pipelines.’’. 

8 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

9 for chapter 601 of title 49, United States Code (as amend10 ed by section 105(b)), is amended by inserting after the 

11 item relating to section 60142 the following: 

‘‘60143. Idled pipelines.’’. 

12 SEC. 111. LIQUEFIED NATURAL GAS FACILITY PROJECT RE13 VIEWS. 

14 Section 60103(a) of title 49, United States Code, is 

15 amended— 

16 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (1) through 

17 (7) as subparagraphs (A) through (G), respectively, 

18 and indenting appropriately; 

19 (2) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘The Sec20 retary of Transportation’’ and inserting the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transpor23 tation’’; 

24 (3) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘In pre25 scribing a standard’’ and inserting the following: 


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1 ‘‘(2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In prescribing a 

2 standard under paragraph (1)’’; and 

3 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(3) USE OF LOCATION STANDARDS.—If a Fed5 eral or State authority with jurisdiction over lique6 fied natural gas pipeline facility permits or approvals 

7 is using the location standards prescribed under 

8 paragraph (1) for purposes of making a decision 

9 with respect to the location of a new liquefied nat10 ural gas pipeline facility and submits to the Sec11 retary of Transportation a request to provide a de12 termination of whether the new liquefied natural gas 

13 pipeline facility would meet the location standards, 

14 the Secretary may provide such a determination to 

15 the requesting Federal or State authority. 

16 ‘‘(4) EFFECT.—Nothing in this subsection or 

17 subsection (b)— 

18 ‘‘(A) affects— 

19 ‘‘(i) section 3 of the Natural Gas Act 

20 (15 U.S.C. 717b); 

21 ‘‘(ii) the authority of the Federal En22 ergy Regulatory Commission to carry out 

23 that section; or 

24 ‘‘(iii) any other similar authority of 

25 any other Federal or State agency; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) requires the Secretary of Transpor2 tation to formally approve any project proposal 

3 or otherwise perform any siting functions.’’. 

4 SEC. 112. UPDATES TO STANDARDS FOR LIQUEFIED NAT5 URAL GAS FACILITIES. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 3 years after the 

7 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall— 

8 (1) review the minimum operating and mainte9 nance standards prescribed under section 60103(d) 

10 of title 49, United States Code; and 

11 (2) based on the review under paragraph (1), 

12 update the standards described in that paragraph 

13 applicable to large-scale liquefied natural gas facili14 ties (other than peak shaving facilities) to provide 

15 for a risk-based regulatory approach for such facili16 ties, consistent with this section. 

17 (b) SCOPE.—In updating the minimum operating and 

18 maintenance standards under subsection (a)(2), the Sec19 retary shall ensure that all regulations, guidance, and in20 ternal documents are developed and applied in a manner 

21 consistent with this section. 

22 (c) REQUIREMENTS.—The updates to the operating 

23 and maintenance standards required under subsection 

24 (a)(2) shall, at a minimum, require operators— 


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1 (1) to develop and maintain written safety in2 formation identifying hazards associated with— 

3 (A) the processes of liquefied natural gas 

4 conversion, storage, and transport; 

5 (B) equipment used in the processes; and 

6 (C) technology used in the processes; 

7 (2) to conduct a hazard assessment, including 

8 the identification of potential sources of accidental 

9 releases; 

10 (3)(A) to consult with employees and represent11 atives of employees on the development and conduct 

12 of hazard assessments under paragraph (2); and 

13 (B) to provide employees access to the records 

14 of the hazard assessments and any other records re15 quired under the updated standards; 

16 (4) to establish a system to respond to the find17 ings of a hazard assessment conducted under para18 graph (2) that addresses prevention, mitigation, and 

19 emergency responses; 

20 (5) to review, when a design change occurs, a 

21 hazard assessment conducted under paragraph (2) 

22 and the response system established under para23 graph (4); 


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1 (6) to develop and implement written operating 

2 procedures for the processes of liquefied natural gas 

3 conversion, storage, and transport; 

4 (7)(A) to provide written safety and operating 

5 information to employees; and 

6 (B) to train employees in operating procedures 

7 with an emphasis on addressing hazards and using 

8 safe practices; 

9 (8) to ensure contractors and contract employ10 ees are provided appropriate information and train11 ing; 

12 (9) to train and educate employees and contrac13 tors in emergency response; 

14 (10) to establish a quality assurance program 

15 to ensure that equipment, maintenance materials, 

16 and spare parts relating to the operations and main17 tenance of liquefied natural gas facilities are fab18 ricated and installed consistent with design specifica19 tions; 

20 (11) to establish maintenance systems for crit21 ical process-related equipment, including written 

22 procedures, employee training, appropriate inspec23 tions, and testing of that equipment to ensure ongo24 ing mechanical integrity; 


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1 (12) to conduct pre-start-up safety reviews of 

2 all newly installed or modified equipment; 

3 (13) to establish and implement written proce4 dures to manage change to processes of liquefied 

5 natural gas conversion, storage, and transport, tech6 nology, equipment, and facilities; and 

7 (14)(A) to investigate each incident that results 

8 in, or could have resulted in— 

9 (i) loss of life; 

10 (ii) destruction of private property; or 

11 (iii) a major accident; and 

12 (B) to have operating personnel— 

13 (i) review any findings of an investigation 

14 under subparagraph (A); and 

15 (ii) if appropriate, take responsive meas16 ures. 

17 SEC. 113. NATIONAL CENTER OF EXCELLENCE FOR LIQUE18 FIED NATURAL GAS SAFETY AND TRAINING. 

19 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

20 (1) CENTER.—The term ‘‘Center’’ means the 

21 National Center of Excellence for Liquefied Natural 

22 Gas Safety and Training established under sub23 section (b). 

24 (2) LNG.—The term ‘‘LNG’’ means liquefied 

25 natural gas. 


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1 (3) LNG SECTOR STAKEHOLDER.—The term 

2 ‘‘LNG sector stakeholder’’ means a representative 

3 of— 

4 (A) LNG facilities that represent the broad 

5 array of LNG facilities operating in the United 

6 States; 

7 (B) States, Indian Tribes, and units of 

8 local government; 

9 (C) postsecondary education; 

10 (D) labor organizations; 

11 (E) safety organizations; or 

12 (F) Federal regulatory agencies of jurisdic13 tion, which may include— 

14 (i) the Administration; 

15 (ii) the Federal Energy Regulatory 

16 Commission; 

17 (iii) the Department of Energy; 

18 (iv) the Occupational Safety and 

19 Health Administration; 

20 (v) the Coast Guard; and 

21 (vi) the Maritime Administration. 

22 (b) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 2 years after 

23 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary, in con24 sultation with LNG sector stakeholders, shall establish a 


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1 center, to be known as the ‘‘National Center of Excellence 

2 for Liquefied Natural Gas Safety and Training’’. 

3 (c) FUNCTIONS.—The Center shall, for activities reg4 ulated under section 60103 of title 49, United States 

5 Code— 

6 (1) promote, facilitate, and conduct— 

7 (A) education; 

8 (B) training; and 

9 (C) technological advancements; 

10 (2) be a repository of information on best prac11 tices relating to, and expertise on, LNG operations; 

12 (3) foster collaboration among stakeholders; 

13 and 

14 (4) provide a curriculum for training that incor15 porates— 

16 (A) the incorporation of risk-based prin17 ciples into the operation, management, and reg18 ulatory oversight of LNG facilities; 

19 (B) reliance on subject matter expertise 

20 within the LNG industry; 

21 (C) transfer of knowledge and expertise be22 tween the LNG industry and regulatory agen23 cies; and 

24 (D) leverage of training and workshops 

25 that occur at operational facilities. 


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1 (d) LOCATION.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Center shall be located 

3 in close proximity to critical LNG transportation in4 frastructure on, and connecting to, the Gulf of Mex5 ico, as determined by the Secretary. 

6 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In siting the location of 

7 the Center, the Secretary shall take into account the 

8 strategic value of locating resources in close prox9 imity to LNG facilities. 

10 (e) JOINT OPERATION WITH EDUCATIONAL INSTITU11 TION.—The Secretary may enter into an agreement with 

12 an appropriate official of an institution of higher edu13 cation— 

14 (1) to provide for joint operation of the Center; 

15 and 

16 (2) to provide necessary administrative services 

17 for the Center. 

18 TITLE II—LEONEL RONDON 

19 PIPELINE SAFETY ACT 

20 SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE. 

21 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Leonel Rondon Pipe22 line Safety Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 202. DISTRIBUTION INTEGRITY MANAGEMENT PLANS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 60109(e) of title 49, 

3 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 

4 following: 

5 ‘‘(7) DISTRIBUTION INTEGRITY MANAGEMENT

6 PLANS.— 

7 ‘‘(A) EVALUATION OF RISK.—Not later 

8 than 2 years after the date of enactment of this 

9 paragraph, the Secretary shall promulgate regu10 lations to ensure that each distribution integrity 

11 management plan developed by an operator of 

12 a distribution system includes an evaluation 

13 of— 

14 ‘‘(i) the risks resulting from the pres15 ence of cast iron pipes and mains in the 

16 distribution system; and 

17 ‘‘(ii) the risks that could lead to or re18 sult from the operation of a low-pressure 

19 distribution system at a pressure that 

20 makes the operation of any connected and 

21 properly adjusted low-pressure gas burning 

22 equipment unsafe (as described in section 

23 192.623 of title 49, Code of Federal Regu24 lations (or a successor regulation)). 

25 ‘‘(B) CONSIDERATION.—In the evaluations 

26 required in a plan under subparagraph (A), the 


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1 regulations promulgated by the Secretary shall 

2 ensure that the distribution integrity manage3 ment plan evaluates for future potential threats 

4 in a manner that considers factors other than 

5 past observed abnormal operations (within the 

6 meaning of section 192.605 of title 49, Code of 

7 Federal Regulations (or a successor regula8 tion)), in ranking risks and identifying meas9 ures to mitigate those risks under that subpara10 graph, so that operators avoid using a risk rat11 ing of zero for low probability events unless oth12 erwise supported by engineering analysis or 

13 operational knowledge. 

14 ‘‘(C) DEADLINES.— 

15 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 

16 years after the date of enactment of this 

17 paragraph, each operator of a distribution 

18 system shall make available to the Sec19 retary or the relevant State authority with 

20 a certification in effect under section 

21 60105, as applicable, a copy of— 

22 ‘‘(I) the distribution integrity 

23 management plan of the operator; 

24 ‘‘(II) the emergency response 

25 plan under section 192.615 of title 49, 


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1 Code of Federal Regulations (or a 

2 successor regulation); and 

3 ‘‘(III) the procedural manual for 

4 operations, maintenance, and emer5 gencies under section 192.605 of title 

6 49, Code of Federal Regulations (or a 

7 successor regulation). 

8 ‘‘(ii) UPDATES.—Each operator of a 

9 distribution system shall make available to 

10 the Secretary or make available for inspec11 tion to the relevant State authority with a 

12 certification in effect under section 60105, 

13 if applicable, an updated plan or manual 

14 described in clause (i) by not later than 60 

15 days after the date of a significant update, 

16 as determined by the Secretary. 

17 ‘‘(iii) APPLICABILITY OF FOIA.—Noth18 ing in this subsection shall be construed to 

19 authorize the disclosure of any information 

20 that is exempt from disclosure under sec21 tion 552(b) of title 5, United States Code. 

22 ‘‘(D) REVIEW OF PLANS AND DOCU23 MENTS.— 

24 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 

25 year after the date of promulgation of the 


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1 regulations under subparagraph (A), and 

2 not less frequently than once every 5 years 

3 thereafter, the Secretary or relevant State 

4 authority with a certification in effect 

5 under section 60105 shall review the dis6 tribution integrity management plan, the 

7 emergency response plan, and the proce8 dural manual for operations, maintenance, 

9 and emergencies of each operator and 

10 record the results of that review for use in 

11 the next review of the program of that op12 erator. 

13 ‘‘(ii) REVIEW.—Each plan or proce14 dural manual made available under sub15 paragraph (C)(i) shall be reexamined— 

16 ‘‘(I) on significant change to the 

17 plan, procedural manual, or system, 

18 as applicable; and 

19 ‘‘(II) not less frequently than 

20 once every 5 years. 

21 ‘‘(iii) CONTEXT OF REVIEW.—The 

22 Secretary may conduct a review under 

23 clause (i) or (ii) as an element of the in24 spection of the operator carried out by the 

25 Secretary. 


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1 ‘‘(iv) INADEQUATE PROGRAMS.—If the 

2 Secretary determines that the documents 

3 reviewed under clause (i) or (ii) do not 

4 comply with the requirements of this chap5 ter (including regulations to implement 

6 this chapter), have not been adequately im7 plemented, or are inadequate for the safe 

8 operation of a pipeline facility, the Sec9 retary may conduct proceedings under this 

10 chapter.’’. 

11 (b) MONITORING.—Section 60105(e) of title 49, 

12 United States Code, is amended— 

13 (1) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘A State 

14 authority’’ and inserting the following: 

15 ‘‘(2) COOPERATION.—A State authority with a 

16 certification in effect under this section’’; 

17 (2) by striking ‘‘The Secretary’’ and inserting 

18 the following: 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary’’; and 

20 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(3) AUDIT PROGRAM.—Not later than 2 years 

22 after the date of enactment of this paragraph, the 

23 Secretary shall— 

24 ‘‘(A) revise the State audit protocols and 

25 procedures to update the annual State Program 


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1 Evaluations carried out under this subsection 

2 and section 60106(d) to ensure that a State au3 thority with a certification in effect under this 

4 section has the capability to sufficiently review 

5 and evaluate the adequacy of the plans and 

6 manuals described in section 60109(e)(7)(C)(i); 

7 ‘‘(B) update the State Inspection Calcula8 tion Tool to take into account factors includ9 ing— 

10 ‘‘(i) the number of miles of natural 

11 gas and hazardous liquid pipelines in the 

12 State, including the number of miles of 

13 cast iron and bare steel pipelines; 

14 ‘‘(ii) the number of services in the 

15 State; 

16 ‘‘(iii) the age of the gas distribution 

17 system in the State; and 

18 ‘‘(iv) environmental factors that could 

19 impact the integrity of the pipeline, includ20 ing relevant geological issues; and 

21 ‘‘(C) promulgate regulations to require 

22 that a State authority with a certification in ef23 fect under this section has a sufficient number 

24 of qualified inspectors to ensure safe operations, 

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1 tion Tool and other factors determined to be 

2 appropriate by the Secretary.’’. 

3 SEC. 203. EMERGENCY RESPONSE PLANS. 

4 Section 60102 of title 49, United States Code, is 

5 amended by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(q) EMERGENCY RESPONSE PLANS.—Not later 

7 than 2 years after the date of enactment of this sub8 section, the Secretary shall update regulations to ensure 

9 that each emergency response plan developed by an oper10 ator of a distribution system under section 192.615 of title 

11 49, Code of Federal Regulations (or a successor regula12 tion), includes written procedures for— 

13 ‘‘(1) establishing communication with first re14 sponders and other relevant public officials, as soon 

15 as practicable, beginning from the time of confirmed 

16 discovery, as determined by the Secretary, by the op17 erator of a gas pipeline emergency involving a re18 lease of gas from a distribution system of that oper19 ator that results in— 

20 ‘‘(A) a fire related to an unintended re21 lease of gas; 

22 ‘‘(B) an explosion; 

23 ‘‘(C) 1 or more fatalities; or 


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1 ‘‘(D) the unscheduled release of gas and 

2 shutdown of gas service to a significant number 

3 of customers, as determined by the Secretary; 

4 ‘‘(2) establishing general public communication 

5 through an appropriate channel— 

6 ‘‘(A) as soon as practicable, as determined 

7 by the Secretary, after a gas pipeline emergency 

8 involving a release of gas that results in— 

9 ‘‘(i) a fire related to an unintended re10 lease of gas; 

11 ‘‘(ii) an explosion; 

12 ‘‘(iii) 1 or more fatalities; or 

13 ‘‘(iv) the unscheduled shutdown of gas 

14 service to a significant number of cus15 tomers, as determined by the Secretary; 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(B) that provides information regard18 ing— 

19 ‘‘(i) the emergency described in sub20 paragraph (A); and 

21 ‘‘(ii) the status of public safety; and 

22 ‘‘(3) the development and implementation of a 

23 voluntary, opt-in system that would allow operators 

24 of distribution systems to rapidly communicate with 

25 customers in the event of an emergency.’’. 


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1 SEC. 204. OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE MANUALS. 

2 Section 60102 of title 49, United States Code (as 

3 amended by section 203), is amended by adding at the 

4 end the following: 

5 ‘‘(r) OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE MANUALS.— 

6 Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this 

7 subsection, the Secretary shall update regulations to en8 sure that each procedural manual for operations, mainte9 nance, and emergencies developed by an operator of a dis10 tribution pipeline under section 192.605 of title 49, Code 

11 of Federal Regulations (or a successor regulation), in12 cludes written procedures for— 

13 ‘‘(1) responding to overpressurization indica14 tions, including specific actions and an order of op15 erations for immediately reducing pressure in or 

16 shutting down portions of the gas distribution sys17 tem, if necessary; and 

18 ‘‘(2) a detailed procedure for the management 

19 of the change process, which shall— 

20 ‘‘(A) be applied to significant technology, 

21 equipment, procedural, and organizational 

22 changes to the distribution system; and 

23 ‘‘(B) ensure that relevant qualified per24 sonnel, such as an engineer with a professional 

25 engineer licensure, subject matter expert, or 

26 other employee who possesses the necessary 


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1 knowledge, experience, and skills regarding nat2 ural gas distribution systems, review and certify 

3 construction plans for accuracy, completeness, 

4 and correctness.’’. 

5 SEC. 205. PIPELINE SAFETY MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 3 years after the 

7 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit 

8 to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor9 tation of the Senate and the Committees on Transpor10 tation and Infrastructure and Energy and Commerce of 

11 the House of Representatives a report describing— 

12 (1) the number of operators of natural gas dis13 tribution systems who have implemented a pipeline 

14 safety management system in accordance with the 

15 standard established by the American Petroleum In16 stitute entitled ‘‘Pipeline Safety Management Sys17 tem Requirements’’ and numbered American Petro18 leum Institute Recommended Practice 1173; 

19 (2) the progress made by operators of natural 

20 gas distribution systems who have implemented, or 

21 are in the process of implementing, a pipeline safety 

22 management system described in paragraph (1); and 

23 (3) the feasibility of an operator of a natural 

24 gas distribution system implementing a pipeline 

25 safety management system described in paragraph 


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1 (1) based on the size of the operator as measured 

2 by— 

3 (A) the number of customers the operator 

4 has; and 

5 (B) the amount of natural gas the operator 

6 transports. 

7 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—As part of the report required 

8 under subsection (a), the Secretary shall provide guidance 

9 or recommendations that would further the adoption of 

10 safety management systems in accordance with the stand11 ard established by the American Petroleum Institute enti12 tled ‘‘Pipeline Safety Management System Requirements’’ 

13 and numbered American Petroleum Institute Rec14 ommended Practice 1173. 

15 (c) EVALUATION AND PROMOTION OF SAFETY MAN16 AGEMENT SYSTEMS.—The Secretary and the relevant 

17 State authority with a certification in effect under section 

18 60105 of title 49, United States Code, as applicable, 

19 shall— 

20 (1) promote and assess pipeline safety manage21 ment systems frameworks developed by operators of 

22 natural gas distribution systems and described in 

23 the report under subsection (a), including— 

24 (A) if necessary, using independent third25 party evaluators; and 


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1 (B) through a system that promotes self2 disclosure of— 

3 (i) errors; and 

4 (ii) deviations from regulatory stand5 ards; and 

6 (2) if a deviation from a regulatory standard is 

7 identified during the development and application of 

8 a pipeline safety management system, certify that— 

9 (A) due consideration will be given to fac10 tors such as flawed procedures, honest mis11 takes, or lack of understanding; and 

12 (B) the operators and regulators use the 

13 most appropriate tools to fix the deviation, re14 turn to compliance, and prevent the recurrence 

15 of the deviation, including— 

16 (i) root cause analysis; and 

17 (ii) training, education, or other ap18 propriate improvements to procedures or 

19 training programs. 

20 SEC. 206. PIPELINE SAFETY PRACTICES. 

21 Section 60102 of title 49, United States Code (as 

22 amended by section 204), is amended by adding at the 

23 end the following: 

24 ‘‘(s) OTHER PIPELINE SAFETY PRACTICES.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) RECORDS.—Not later than 2 years after 

2 the date of enactment of this subsection, the Sec3 retary shall promulgate regulations to require an op4 erator of a distribution system— 

5 ‘‘(A) to identify and manage traceable, re6 liable, and complete records, including maps 

7 and other drawings, critical to ensuring proper 

8 pressure controls for a gas distribution system, 

9 and updating these records as needed, while col10 lecting and identifying other records necessary 

11 for risk analysis on an opportunistic basis; and 

12 ‘‘(B) to ensure that the records required 

13 under subparagraph (A) are— 

14 ‘‘(i) accessible to all personnel respon15 sible for performing or overseeing relevant 

16 construction or engineering work; and 

17 ‘‘(ii) submitted to, or made available 

18 for inspection by, the Secretary or the rel19 evant State authority with a certification 

20 in effect under section 60105. 

21 ‘‘(2) PRESENCE OF QUALIFIED EMPLOYEES.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 

23 days after the date of enactment of this sub24 section, the Secretary shall promulgate regula25 tions to require that not less than 1 agent of 


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1 an operator of a distribution system who is 

2 qualified to perform relevant covered tasks (as 

3 defined in section 192.801(b) of title 49, Code 

4 of Federal Regulations (or a successor regula5 tion)) shall monitor gas pressure at the district 

6 regulator station or at an alternative site with 

7 equipment capable of ensuring proper pressure 

8 controls and have the capability to promptly 

9 shut down the flow of gas or control over pres10 surization at a district regulator station during 

11 any construction project that has the potential 

12 to cause a hazardous overpressurization at that 

13 station, including tie-ins and abandonment of 

14 distribution lines and mains, based on an eval15 uation, conducted by the operator, of threats 

16 that could result in unsafe operation. 

17 ‘‘(B) EXCLUSION.—In promulgating regu18 lations under subparagraph (A), the Secretary 

19 shall ensure that those regulations do not apply 

20 to a district regulating station that has a moni21 toring system and the capability for remote or 

22 automatic shutoff. 

23 ‘‘(3) DISTRICT REGULATOR STATIONS.— 

24 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year 

25 after the date of enactment of this subsection, 


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1 the Secretary shall promulgate regulations to 

2 require that each operator of a distribution sys3 tem assesses and upgrades, as appropriate, 

4 each district regulator station of the operator to 

5 ensure that— 

6 ‘‘(i) the risk of the gas pressure in the 

7 distribution system exceeding, by a com8 mon mode of failure, the maximum allow9 able operating pressure (as described in 

10 section 192.623 of title 49, Code of Fed11 eral Regulations (or a successor regula12 tion)) allowed under Federal law (including 

13 regulations) is minimized; 

14 ‘‘(ii) the gas pressure of a low-pres15 sure distribution system is monitored, par16 ticularly at or near the location of critical 

17 pressure-control equipment; 

18 ‘‘(iii) the regulator station has sec19 ondary or backup pressure-relieving or 

20 overpressure-protection safety technology, 

21 such as a relief valve or automatic shutoff 

22 valve, or other pressure-limiting devices ap23 propriate for the configuration and siting 

24 of the station and, in the case of a regu25 lator station that employs the primary and 


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1 monitor regulator design, the operator 

2 shall eliminate the common mode of failure 

3 or provide backup protection capable of ei4 ther shutting the flow of gas, relieving gas 

5 to the atmosphere to fully protect the dis6 tribution system from overpressurization 

7 events, or there must be technology in 

8 place to eliminate a common mode of fail9 ure; and 

10 ‘‘(iv) if the Secretary determines that 

11 it is not operationally possible for an oper12 ator to implement the requirements under 

13 clause (iii), the Secretary shall require 

14 such operator to identify actions in their 

15 plan that minimize the risk of an over16 pressurization event.’’. 

17 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

18 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

19 ‘‘PIPES Act of 2019’’. 

20 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

21 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

TITLE I—IMPROVING PIPELINE SAFETY AND INFRASTRUCTURE 

Sec. 101. Authorization of appropriations. 

Sec. 102. Pipeline workforce development. 

Sec. 103. Underground natural gas storage user fees. 

Sec. 104. Cost recovery and fees for facility reviews. 

Sec. 105. Advancement of new pipeline safety technologies and approaches. 


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Sec. 106. Pipeline safety testing enhancement study. 

Sec. 107. Regulatory updates. 

Sec. 108. Self-disclosure of violations. 

Sec. 109. Due process protections in enforcement proceedings. 

Sec. 110. Pipeline operating status. 

Sec. 111. Liquefied natural gas facility project reviews. 

Sec. 112. Updates to standards for liquefied natural gas facilities. 

Sec. 113. National Center of Excellence for Liquefied Natural Gas Safety and 

Training. 

Sec. 114. Prioritization of rulemaking. 

TITLE II—LEONEL RONDON PIPELINE SAFETY ACT 

Sec. 201. Short title. 

Sec. 202. Distribution integrity management plans. 

Sec. 203. Emergency response plans. 

Sec. 204. Operations and maintenance manuals. 

Sec. 205. Pipeline safety management systems. 

Sec. 206. Pipeline safety practices. 

1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this Act: 

3 (1) ADMINISTRATION.—The term ‘‘Administra4 tion’’ means the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials 

5 Safety Administration. 

6 (2) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis7 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Administra8 tion. 

9 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

10 the Secretary of Transportation. 

11 TITLE I—IMPROVING PIPELINE 

12 SAFETY AND INFRASTRUCTURE 

13 SEC. 101. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

14 (a) GAS AND HAZARDOUS LIQUID.—Section 60125 of 

15 title 49, United States Code, is amended by striking sub16 section (a) and inserting the following: 

17 ‘‘(a) GAS AND HAZARDOUS LIQUID.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—From fees collected under 

2 section 60301, there are authorized to be appropriated 

3 to the Secretary to carry out section 12 of the Pipe4 line Safety Improvement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 

5 60101 note; Public Law 107–355) and the provisions 

6 of this chapter relating to gas and hazardous liquid— 

7 ‘‘(A) $147,000,000 for fiscal year 2020, of 

8 which— 

9 ‘‘(i) $9,000,000 shall be used to carry 

10 out section 12 of the Pipeline Safety Im11 provement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 

12 note; Public Law 107–355); and 

13 ‘‘(ii) $60,000,000 shall be used for 

14 making grants; 

15 ‘‘(B) $151,000,000 for fiscal year 2021, of 

16 which— 

17 ‘‘(i) $9,000,000 shall be used to carry 

18 out section 12 of the Pipeline Safety Im19 provement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 

20 note; Public Law 107–355); and 

21 ‘‘(ii) $63,000,000 shall be used for 

22 making grants; 

23 ‘‘(C) $155,000,000 for fiscal year 2022, of 

24 which— 


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1 ‘‘(i) $9,000,000 shall be used to carry 

2 out section 12 of the Pipeline Safety Im3 provement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 

4 note; Public Law 107–355); and 

5 ‘‘(ii) $66,000,000 shall be used for 

6 making grants; and 

7 ‘‘(D) $159,000,000 for fiscal year 2023, of 

8 which— 

9 ‘‘(i) $9,000,000 shall be used to carry 

10 out section 12 of the Pipeline Safety Im11 provement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 

12 note; Public Law 107–355); and 

13 ‘‘(ii) $69,000,000 shall be used for 

14 making grants. 

15 ‘‘(2) TRUST FUND AMOUNTS.—In addition to the 

16 amounts authorized to be appropriated under para17 graph (1), there are authorized to be appropriated 

18 from the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund established 

19 by section 9509(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

20 1986 to carry out section 12 of the Pipeline Safety 

21 Improvement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 note; 

22 Public Law 107–355) and the provisions of this chap23 ter relating to hazardous liquid— 

24 ‘‘(A) $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2020, of 

25 which— 


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1 ‘‘(i) $3,000,000 shall be used to carry 

2 out section 12 of the Pipeline Safety Im3 provement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 

4 note; Public Law 107–355); and 

5 ‘‘(ii) $10,000,000 shall be used for 

6 making grants; 

7 ‘‘(B) $26,000,000 for fiscal year 2021, of 

8 which— 

9 ‘‘(i) $3,000,000 shall be used to carry 

10 out section 12 of the Pipeline Safety Im11 provement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 

12 note; Public Law 107–355); and 

13 ‘‘(ii) $11,000,000 shall be used for 

14 making grants; 

15 ‘‘(C) $27,000,000 for fiscal year 2022, of 

16 which— 

17 ‘‘(i) $3,000,000 shall be used to carry 

18 out section 12 of the Pipeline Safety Im19 provement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 

20 note; Public Law 107–355); and 

21 ‘‘(ii) $12,000,000 shall be used for 

22 making grants; and 

23 ‘‘(D) $28,000,000 for fiscal year 2023, of 

24 which— 


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1 ‘‘(i) $3,000,000 shall be used to carry 

2 out section 12 of the Pipeline Safety Im3 provement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 

4 note; Public Law 107–355); and 

5 ‘‘(ii) $13,000,000 shall be used for 

6 making grants. 

7 ‘‘(3) UNDERGROUND NATURAL GAS STORAGE FA8 CILITY SAFETY ACCOUNT.—From fees collected under 

9 section 60302, there is authorized to be appropriated 

10 to the Secretary to carry out section 60141 $8,000,000 

11 for each of fiscal years 2020 through 2023.’’. 

12 (b) OPERATIONAL EXPENSES.—Section 2(b) of the 

13 PIPES Act of 2016 (Public Law 114–183; 130 Stat. 515) 

14 is amended by striking paragraphs (1) through (4) and in15 serting the following: 

16 ‘‘(1) $24,000,000 for fiscal year 2020. 

17 ‘‘(2) $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2021. 

18 ‘‘(3) $26,000,000 for fiscal year 2022. 

19 ‘‘(4) $27,000,000 for fiscal year 2023.’’. 

20 (c) ONE-CALL NOTIFICATION PROGRAMS.—Section 

21 6107 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by striking 

22 ‘‘$1,058,000 for each of fiscal years 2016 through 2019’’ and 

23 inserting ‘‘$1,058,000 for each of fiscal years 2020 through 

24 2023’’. 


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1 (d) PIPELINE SAFETY INFORMATION GRANTS TO COM2 MUNITIES.—Section 60130 of title 49, United States Code, 

3 is amended by striking subsection (c) and inserting the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(c) FUNDING.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Out of amounts made avail7 able under section 2(b) of the PIPES Act of 2016, the 

8 Secretary shall use $1,500,000 for each of fiscal years 

9 2020 through 2023 to carry out this section. 

10 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—Any amounts used to carry 

11 out this section shall not be derived from user fees col12 lected under section 60301.’’. 

13 (e) DAMAGE PREVENTION PROGRAMS.—Section 

14 60134(i) of title 49, United States Code, is amended in the 

15 first sentence by striking ‘‘fiscal years 2012 through 2015’’ 

16 and inserting ‘‘fiscal years 2020 through 2023’’. 

17 (f) PIPELINE INTEGRITY PROGRAM.—Section 12(f) of 

18 the Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 

19 60101 note; Public Law 107–355) is amended by striking 

20 ‘‘2016 through 2019’’ and inserting ‘‘2020 through 2023’’. 

21 SEC. 102. PIPELINE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT. 

22 (a) INSPECTOR TRAINING.—Not later than 1 year after 

23 the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall— 

24 (1) review the inspector training programs pro25 vided at the Inspector Training and Qualifications 


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1 Division of the Administration in Oklahoma City, 

2 Oklahoma; and 

3 (2) determine whether any of the programs re4 ferred to in paragraph (1), or any portions of the 

5 programs, could be provided online through tele6 training or another type of distance learning. 

7 (b) REPORT.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

9 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 

10 submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

11 Transportation of the Senate and the Committees on 

12 Transportation and Infrastructure, Energy and Com13 merce, and Science, Space, and Technology of the 

14 House of Representatives and make publicly available 

15 on a website of the Department of Transportation a 

16 report containing a comprehensive workforce plan for 

17 the Administration. 

18 (2) CONTENTS.—The report under paragraph (1) 

19 shall include— 

20 (A) a description of the current staffing at 

21 the Administration; 

22 (B) an identification of the staff needed to 

23 achieve the mission of the Administration over 

24 the next 10 years following the date of the report; 


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1 (C) an evaluation of whether the inspector 

2 training programs referred to in subsection 

3 (a)(1) provide appropriate exposure to pipeline 

4 operations and current pipeline safety tech5 nology; 

6 (D) a summary of any gaps between the 

7 current workforce of the Administration and the 

8 future human capital needs of the Administra9 tion; and 

10 (E) a description of how the Administra11 tion— 

12 (i) uses the retention incentives defined 

13 by the Office of Personnel Management; and 

14 (ii) plans to use those retention incen15 tives as part of the comprehensive workforce 

16 plan of the Administration. 

17 SEC. 103. UNDERGROUND NATURAL GAS STORAGE USER 

18 FEES. 

19 Section 60302(c) of title 49, United States Code, is 

20 amended— 

21 (1) in paragraph (2)— 

22 (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘and’’ 

23 at the end; 

24 (B) in subparagraph (B)— 


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1 (i) by striking ‘‘the amount of the fee’’; 

2 and 

3 (ii) by striking the period at the end 

4 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

5 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(C) may only be used to the extent pro7 vided in advance in an appropriations Act.’’; 

8 (2) by striking paragraph (3); and 

9 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(d) LIMITATION.—The amount of a fee imposed under 

11 subsection (a) shall be sufficient to pay the costs of activities 

12 referred to in subsection (c), subject to the limitation that 

13 the total amount of fees collected for a fiscal year under 

14 subsection (b) may not be more than 105 percent of the total 

15 amount of the appropriations made for the fiscal year for 

16 activities to be financed by the fees.’’. 

17 SEC. 104. COST RECOVERY AND FEES FOR FACILITY RE18 VIEWS. 

19 (a) FEES FOR COMPLIANCE REVIEWS OF LIQUEFIED

20 NATURAL GAS FACILITIES.—Chapter 603 of title 49, 

21 United States Code, is amended by inserting after section 

22 60302 the following: 

23 ‘‘§ 60303. Fees for compliance reviews of liquefied nat24 ural gas facilities 

25 ‘‘(a) IMPOSITION OF FEE.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transpor2 tation (referred to in this section as the ‘Secretary’) 

3 shall impose on a person who files with the Federal 

4 Energy Regulatory Commission an application for a 

5 liquefied natural gas facility that has design and con6 struction costs totaling not less than $2,500,000,000 a 

7 fee for the necessary expenses of a review, if any, that 

8 the Secretary conducts, in connection with that appli9 cation, to determine compliance with subpart B of 

10 part 193 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations (or 

11 successor regulations). 

12 ‘‘(2) RELATION TO OTHER REVIEW.—The Sec13 retary may not impose fees under paragraph (1) and 

14 section 60117(o) or 60301(b) for the same compliance 

15 review described in paragraph (1). 

16 ‘‘(b) MEANS OF COLLECTION.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall prescribe 

18 procedures to collect fees under this section. 

19 ‘‘(2) USE OF GOVERNMENT ENTITIES.—The Sec20 retary may— 

21 ‘‘(A) use a department, agency, or instru22 mentality of the Federal Government or of a 

23 State or local government to collect fees under 

24 this section; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) reimburse that department, agency, or 

2 instrumentality a reasonable amount for the 

3 services provided. 

4 ‘‘(c) ACCOUNT.—There is established an account, to be 

5 known as the ‘Liquefied Natural Gas Siting Account’, in 

6 the Pipeline Safety Fund established in the Treasury of the 

7 United States under section 60301.’’. 

8 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections for 

9 chapter 603 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by 

10 inserting after the item relating to section 60302 the fol11 lowing: 

‘‘60303. Fees for compliance reviews of liquefied natural gas facilities.’’. 

12 SEC. 105. ADVANCEMENT OF NEW PIPELINE SAFETY TECH13 NOLOGIES AND APPROACHES. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 601 of title 49, United 

15 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘§ 60142. Pipeline safety enhancement programs 

17 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may establish and 

18 carry out limited safety-enhancing testing programs during 

19 the period of fiscal years 2020 through 2026 to evaluate in20 novative technologies and operational practices testing the 

21 safe operation of— 

22 ‘‘(1) a natural gas pipeline facility; or 

23 ‘‘(2) a hazardous liquid pipeline facility. 

24 ‘‘(b) LIMITATIONS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Such testing programs may 

2 not exceed— 

3 ‘‘(A) 5 percent of the total miles of haz4 ardous liquid pipelines in the United States; and 

5 ‘‘(B) 5 percent of the total miles of natural 

6 gas pipelines in the United States. 

7 ‘‘(2) HIGH POPULATION AREAS.—Any program 

8 established under subsection (a) shall not be located in 

9 a high population area (as defined in section 195.450 

10 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations). 

11 ‘‘(c) DURATION.—The term of a testing program estab12 lished under subsection (a) shall be not more than a period 

13 of 4 years beginning on the date of approval of the program. 

14 ‘‘(d) SAFETY STANDARDS.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall require, 

16 as a condition of approval of a testing program under 

17 subsection (a), that the safety measures in the testing 

18 program are designed to achieve a level of safety that 

19 is greater than, or equivalent to, the level of safety re20 quired by this chapter. 

21 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATION.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may 

23 issue an order under subparagraph (A) of section 

24 60118(c)(1) to accomplish the purpose of a test25 ing program for a term not to exceed the time 


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1 period described in subsection (c) if the condition 

2 described in paragraph (1) is met, as determined 

3 by the Secretary. 

4 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION.—An order under sub5 paragraph (A) shall pertain only to those regula6 tions that would otherwise prevent the use of the 

7 safety technology to be tested under the testing 

8 program. 

9 ‘‘(e) CONSIDERATIONS.—In establishing a testing pro10 gram under subsection (a), the Secretary shall consider— 

11 ‘‘(1) whether the owners or operators partici12 pating in the program have a safety management sys13 tem in place; and 

14 ‘‘(2) whether the proposed safety technology has 

15 been tested through a research and development pro16 gram carried out by— 

17 ‘‘(A) the Secretary; 

18 ‘‘(B) collaborative research development or19 ganizations; or 

20 ‘‘(C) other institutions. 

21 ‘‘(f) DATA AND FINDINGS.—As a participant in a test22 ing program established under subsection (a), an operator 

23 shall submit to the Secretary detailed findings and a sum24 mary of data collected as a result of participation in the 

25 testing program. 


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1 ‘‘(g) AUTHORITY TO REVOKE PARTICIPATION.—The 

2 Secretary shall immediately revoke participation in a test3 ing program under subsection (a) if— 

4 ‘‘(1) the participant fails to comply with the 

5 terms and conditions of the testing program; or 

6 ‘‘(2) in the determination of the Secretary, con7 tinued participation in the testing program by the 

8 participant would be unsafe or would not be con9 sistent with the goals and objectives of this chapter. 

10 ‘‘(h) AUTHORITY TO TERMINATE PROGRAM.—The Sec11 retary shall immediately terminate a testing program 

12 under subsection (a) if continuation of the testing program 

13 would not be consistent with the goals and objectives of this 

14 chapter. 

15 ‘‘(i) STATE RIGHTS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) EXEMPTION.—Except as provided in para17 graph (2), if a State submits to the Secretary notice 

18 that the State requests an exemption from any testing 

19 program considered for establishment under this sec20 tion, the State shall be exempt. 

21 ‘‘(2) LIMITATIONS.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall not 

23 grant a requested exemption under paragraph 

24 (1) after a testing program is established. 


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1 ‘‘(B) LATE NOTICE.—The Secretary shall 

2 not grant a requested exemption under para3 graph (1) if the notice submitted under that 

4 paragraph is submitted to the Secretary more 

5 than 10 days after the date on which the Sec6 retary issues an order providing an effective date 

7 for the testing program. 

8 ‘‘(3) EFFECT.—If a State has not submitted a 

9 notice requesting an exemption under paragraph (1), 

10 the State shall not enforce any law (including regula11 tions) that is inconsistent with a testing program in 

12 effect in the State under this section. 

13 ‘‘(j) PROGRAM REVIEW PROCESS AND PUBLIC NO14 TICE.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall publish 

16 in the Federal Register and send directly to each rel17 evant State authority with a certification in effect 

18 under section 60105 a notice of each testing program 

19 under subsection (a), including the order to be consid20 ered, and provide an opportunity for public comment 

21 for not less than 90 days. 

22 ‘‘(2) RESPONSE FROM SECRETARY.—Not later 

23 than the date on which the Secretary issues an order 

24 providing an effective date of a testing program no25 ticed under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall reVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:51 Feb 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00069 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S2299.RS S2299

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1 spond to each comment submitted under that para2 graph. 

3 ‘‘(k) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—At the conclusion of 

4 each testing program, the Secretary shall make publicly 

5 available on the website of the Department of Transpor6 tation a report containing— 

7 ‘‘(1) the findings and conclusions of the Sec8 retary with respect to the testing program; and 

9 ‘‘(2) any recommendations of the Secretary with 

10 respect to the testing program, including any rec11 ommendations for amendments to laws (including 

12 regulations) and the establishment of standards, 

13 that— 

14 ‘‘(A) would enhance the safe operation of 

15 interstate gas or hazardous liquid pipeline facili16 ties; and 

17 ‘‘(B) are technically, operationally, and eco18 nomically feasible. 

19 ‘‘(l) STANDARDS.—If a report under subsection (k) in20 dicates that it is practicable to establish technically, oper21 ationally, and economically feasible standards for the use 

22 of a safety-enhancing technology and any corresponding 

23 operational practices tested by the testing program de24 scribed in the report, the Secretary, as soon as practicable 

25 after submission of the report, may promulgate regulations 


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1 consistent with chapter 5 of title 5 (commonly known as 

2 the ‘Administrative Procedures Act’) that— 

3 ‘‘(1) allow operators of interstate gas or haz4 ardous liquid pipeline facilities to use the relevant 

5 technology or practice to the extent practicable; and 

6 ‘‘(2) establish technically, operationally, and eco7 nomically feasible standards for the capability and 

8 deployment of the technology or practice.’’. 

9 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections for 

10 chapter 601 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by 

11 inserting after the item relating to section 60141 the fol12 lowing: 

‘‘60142. Pipeline safety enhancement programs.’’. 

13 SEC. 106. PIPELINE SAFETY TESTING ENHANCEMENT 

14 STUDY. 

15 Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of 

16 this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on 

17 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and 

18 the Committees on Transportation and Infrastructure, En19 ergy and Commerce, and Science, Space, and Technology 

20 of the House of Representatives a report relating to— 

21 (1) the research and development capabilities of 

22 the Administration, in accordance with section 12 of 

23 the Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2002 (49 

24 U.S.C. 60101 note; Public Law 107–355); 


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1 (2)(A) the development of additional testing and 

2 research capabilities through the establishment of an 

3 independent pipeline safety testing facility under the 

4 Department of Transportation; 

5 (B) whether an independent pipeline safety test6 ing facility would be critical to the work of the Ad7 ministration; and 

8 (C) the costs and benefits of developing an inde9 pendent pipeline safety testing facility under the De10 partment of Transportation; and 

11 (3) the ability of the Administration to use the 

12 testing facilities of other Federal agencies or federally 

13 funded research and development centers. 

14 SEC. 107. REGULATORY UPDATES. 

15 (a) DEFINITION OF OUTSTANDING MANDATE.—In this 

16 section, the term ‘‘outstanding mandate’’ means— 

17 (1) a final rule required to be issued under the 

18 Pipeline Safety, Regulatory Certainty, and Job Cre19 ation Act of 2011 (Public Law 112–90; 125 Stat. 

20 1904) that has not been published in the Federal Reg21 ister; 

22 (2) a final rule required to be issued under the 

23 Protecting our Infrastructure of Pipelines and En24 hancing Safety Act of 2016 (Public Law 114–183; 


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1 130 Stat. 514) that has not been published in the 

2 Federal Register; and 

3 (3) any other final rule regarding gas or haz4 ardous liquid pipeline facilities required to be issued 

5 under this Act or an Act enacted prior to the date of 

6 enactment of this Act that has not been published in 

7 the Federal Register. 

8 (b) REQUIREMENTS.— 

9 (1) PERIODIC UPDATES.—Not later than 30 days 

10 after the date of enactment of this Act, and every 30 

11 days thereafter until a final rule referred to in para12 graphs (1) through (3) of subsection (a) is published 

13 in the Federal Register, the Secretary shall publish on 

14 a publicly available website of the Department of 

15 Transportation an update regarding the status of 

16 each outstanding mandate in accordance with sub17 section (c). 

18 (2) NOTIFICATION OF CONGRESS.—On publica19 tion of a final rule in the Federal Register for an out20 standing mandate, the Secretary shall submit to the 

21 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor22 tation of the Senate and the Committees on Transpor23 tation and Infrastructure and Energy and Commerce 

24 of the House of Representatives a notification in ac25 cordance with subsection (c). 


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1 (c) CONTENTS.—An update published or a notification 

2 submitted under paragraph (1) or (2) of subsection (b) shall 

3 contain, as applicable— 

4 (1) with respect to information relating to the 

5 Administration— 

6 (A) a description of the work plan for each 

7 outstanding mandate; 

8 (B) an updated rulemaking timeline for 

9 each outstanding mandate; 

10 (C) the staff allocations with respect to each 

11 outstanding mandate; 

12 (D) any resource constraints affecting the 

13 rulemaking process for each outstanding man14 date; 

15 (E) any other details associated with the de16 velopment of each outstanding mandate that af17 fect the progress of the rulemaking process with 

18 respect to that outstanding mandate; and 

19 (F) a description of all rulemakings regard20 ing gas or hazardous liquid pipeline facilities 

21 published in the Federal Register that are not 

22 identified under subsection (b)(2); and 

23 (2) with respect to information relating to the 

24 Office of the Secretary— 


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1 (A) the date that the outstanding mandate 

2 was submitted to the Office of the Secretary for 

3 review; 

4 (B) the reason that the outstanding man5 date is under review beyond 45 days; 

6 (C) the staff allocations within the Office of 

7 the Secretary with respect to each the out8 standing mandate; 

9 (D) any resource constraints affecting re10 view of the outstanding mandate; 

11 (E) an estimated timeline of when review of 

12 the outstanding mandate will be complete, as of 

13 the date of the update; 

14 (F) if applicable, the date that the out15 standing mandate was returned to the Adminis16 tration for revision and the anticipated date for 

17 resubmission to the Office of the Secretary; 

18 (G) the date that the outstanding mandate 

19 was submitted to the Office of Management and 

20 Budget for review; and 

21 (H) a statement of whether the outstanding 

22 mandate remains under review by the Office of 

23 Management and Budget. 


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1 SEC. 108. SELF-DISCLOSURE OF VIOLATIONS. 

2 Section 60122(b)(1) of title 49, United States Code, is 

3 amended— 

4 (1) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

5 the end; and 

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

7 ‘‘(D) self-disclosure and correction of viola8 tions, or actions to correct a violation, prior to 

9 discovery by the Pipeline and Hazardous Mate10 rials Safety Administration; and’’. 

11 SEC. 109. DUE PROCESS PROTECTIONS IN ENFORCEMENT 

12 PROCEEDINGS. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 60117 of title 49, United 

14 States Code, is amended— 

15 (1) by redesignating subsections (b) through (o) 

16 as subsections (c) through (p), respectively; and 

17 (2) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol18 lowing: 

19 ‘‘(b) ENFORCEMENT AND REGULATORY PROCE20 DURES.— 

21 ‘‘(1) REQUEST FOR FORMAL HEARING.—On re22 quest of a respondent in an enforcement or regulatory 

23 proceeding under this chapter, a hearing shall be held 

24 in accordance with section 554 of title 5. 

25 ‘‘(2) ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE.—A hearing 

26 under paragraph (1) shall be conducted by an adminVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:51 Feb 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00076 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S2299.RS S2299

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1 istrative law judge appointed under section 3105 of 

2 title 5. 

3 ‘‘(3) OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.— 

4 ‘‘(A) HEARINGS.—A hearing under para5 graph (1) shall be— 

6 ‘‘(i) noticed to the public— 

7 ‘‘(I) on the website of the Pipeline 

8 and Hazardous Materials Safety Ad9 ministration; and 

10 ‘‘(II) in the Federal Register; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) open to the public. 

12 ‘‘(B) AGREEMENTS, ORDERS, AND JUDG13 MENTS.—A consent agreement, consent order, 

14 order, or judgment resulting from a hearing 

15 under paragraph (1) shall be made available to 

16 the public on the website of the Pipeline and 

17 Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. 

18 ‘‘(4) PROCEDURES.—In implementing enforce19 ment and regulatory procedures under this chapter, 

20 the Secretary shall— 

21 ‘‘(A) allow the use of a consent agreement 

22 and consent order to resolve any matter of fact 

23 or law asserted; 

24 ‘‘(B) allow the respondent and the agency to 

25 convene 1 or more meetings— 


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1 ‘‘(i) for settlement or simplification of 

2 the issues; or 

3 ‘‘(ii) to aid in the disposition of issues; 

4 ‘‘(C) require that the case file in an enforce5 ment proceeding include all agency records perti6 nent to the matters of fact and law asserted; 

7 ‘‘(D) require that a recommended decision 

8 be made available to the respondent when issued; 

9 ‘‘(E) allow a respondent to reply to any 

10 post-hearing submission; 

11 ‘‘(F) allow a respondent to request— 

12 ‘‘(i) that a hearing be held, and a rec13 ommended decision and order issued, on an 

14 expedited basis; or 

15 ‘‘(ii) that a hearing not commence for 

16 a period of not less than 90 days; 

17 ‘‘(G) require that the agency have the bur18 den of proof, presentation, and persuasion in 

19 any enforcement matter; 

20 ‘‘(H) require that any recommended deci21 sion and order contain findings of fact and con22 clusions of law; 

23 ‘‘(I) require the Associate Administrator of 

24 the Office of Pipeline Safety to file a post-hear25 ing recommendation not later than 30 days after 


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1 the deadline for any post-hearing submission of 

2 a respondent; 

3 ‘‘(J) require an order on a petition for re4 consideration to be issued not later than 120 

5 days after the date on which the petition is filed; 

6 and 

7 ‘‘(K) allow an operator to request that an 

8 issue of controversy or uncertainty be addressed 

9 through a declaratory order in accordance with 

10 section 554(e) of title 5, which order shall be 

11 issued not later than 120 days after the date on 

12 which a request is made. 

13 ‘‘(5) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—Nothing in this sub14 section alters the procedures applicable to an emer15 gency order under subsection (p).’’. 

16 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

17 (1) Section 60109(g)(4) of title 49, United States 

18 Code, is amended by striking ‘‘section 60117(c)’’ and 

19 inserting ‘‘section 60117(d)’’. 

20 (2) Section 60117(p) of title 49, United States 

21 Code (as redesignated by subsection (a)(1)), is amend22 ed, in paragraph (3)(E), by striking ‘‘60117(l)’’ and 

23 inserting ‘‘subsection (m)’’. 

24 (3) Section 60118(a)(3) of title 49, United States 

25 Code, is amended by striking ‘‘section 60117(a)–(d)’’ 


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1 and inserting ‘‘subsections (a) through (e) of section 

2 60117’’. 

3 SEC. 110. PIPELINE OPERATING STATUS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 601 of title 49, United 

5 States Code (as amended by section 105(a)), is amended 

6 by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘§ 60143. Idled pipelines 

8 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION OF IDLED.—In this section, the term 

9 ‘idled’, with respect to a pipeline, means that the pipeline— 

10 ‘‘(1)(A) has ceased normal operations; and 

11 ‘‘(B) will not resume service for a period of not 

12 less than 180 days; 

13 ‘‘(2) has been isolated from all sources of haz14 ardous liquid, natural gas, or other gas; and 

15 ‘‘(3)(A) has been purged of combustibles and haz16 ardous materials and maintains a blanket of inert, 

17 nonflammable gas at low pressure; or 

18 ‘‘(B) has not been purged as described in sub19 paragraph (A), but the volume of gas is so small that 

20 there is no potential hazard. 

21 ‘‘(b) RULEMAKING.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after 

23 the date of enactment of the PIPES Act of 2019, the 

24 Secretary shall promulgate regulations prescribing the 

25 applicability of the pipeline safety requirements to 


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1 idled natural or other gas transmission and haz2 ardous liquid pipelines. 

3 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.— 

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The applicability of the 

5 regulations under paragraph (1) shall be based 

6 on the risk that idled natural or other gas trans7 mission and hazardous liquid pipelines pose to 

8 the public, property, and the environment, and 

9 shall include requirements to resume operation. 

10 ‘‘(B) INSPECTION.—The Secretary or an 

11 appropriate State agency shall inspect each idled 

12 pipeline and verify that the pipeline has been 

13 purged of combustibles and hazardous materials, 

14 if required under subsection (a). 

15 ‘‘(C) REQUIREMENTS FOR REINSPECTION.— 

16 The Secretary shall determine the requirements 

17 for periodic reinspection of idled natural or other 

18 gas transmission and hazardous liquid pipe19 lines.’’. 

20 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections for 

21 chapter 601 of title 49, United States Code (as amended 

22 by section 105(b)), is amended by inserting after the item 

23 relating to section 60142 the following: 

‘‘60143. Idled pipelines.’’. 


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1 SEC. 111. LIQUEFIED NATURAL GAS FACILITY PROJECT RE2 VIEWS. 

3 Section 60103(a) of title 49, United States Code, is 

4 amended— 

5 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (1) through (7) 

6 as subparagraphs (A) through (G), respectively, and 

7 indenting appropriately; 

8 (2) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘The Sec9 retary of Transportation’’ and inserting the following: 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transpor11 tation’’; 

12 (3) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘In pre13 scribing a standard’’ and inserting the following: 

14 ‘‘(2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In prescribing a stand15 ard under paragraph (1)’’; and 

16 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(3) USE OF LOCATION STANDARDS.—If a Fed18 eral or State authority with jurisdiction over lique19 fied natural gas pipeline facility permits or approv20 als is using the location standards prescribed under 

21 paragraph (1) for purposes of making a decision with 

22 respect to the location of a new liquefied natural gas 

23 pipeline facility and submits to the Secretary of 

24 Transportation a request to provide a determination 

25 of whether the new liquefied natural gas pipeline fa26 cility would meet the location standards, the SecVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:51 Feb 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00082 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S2299.RS S2299

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1 retary may provide such a determination to the re2 questing Federal or State authority. 

3 ‘‘(4) EFFECT.—Nothing in this subsection or 

4 subsection (b)— 

5 ‘‘(A) affects— 

6 ‘‘(i) section 3 of the Natural Gas Act 

7 (15 U.S.C. 717b); 

8 ‘‘(ii) the authority of the Federal En9 ergy Regulatory Commission to carry out 

10 that section; or 

11 ‘‘(iii) any other similar authority of 

12 any other Federal or State agency; or 

13 ‘‘(B) requires the Secretary of Transpor14 tation to formally approve any project proposal 

15 or otherwise perform any siting functions.’’. 

16 SEC. 112. UPDATES TO STANDARDS FOR LIQUEFIED NAT17 URAL GAS FACILITIES. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 3 years after the 

19 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall— 

20 (1) review the minimum operating and mainte21 nance standards prescribed under section 60103(d) of 

22 title 49, United States Code; and 

23 (2) based on the review under paragraph (1), 

24 update the standards described in that paragraph ap25 plicable to large-scale liquefied natural gas facilities 


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1 (other than peak shaving facilities) to provide for a 

2 risk-based regulatory approach for such facilities, con3 sistent with this section. 

4 (b) SCOPE.—In updating the minimum operating and 

5 maintenance standards under subsection (a)(2), the Sec6 retary shall ensure that all regulations, guidance, and in7 ternal documents are developed and applied in a manner 

8 consistent with this section. 

9 (c) REQUIREMENTS.—The updates to the operating 

10 and maintenance standards required under subsection 

11 (a)(2) shall, at a minimum, require operators— 

12 (1) to develop and maintain written safety infor13 mation identifying hazards associated with— 

14 (A) the processes of liquefied natural gas 

15 conversion, storage, and transport; 

16 (B) equipment used in the processes; and 

17 (C) technology used in the processes; 

18 (2) to conduct a hazard assessment, including 

19 the identification of potential sources of accidental re20 leases; 

21 (3)(A) to consult with employees and representa22 tives of employees on the development and conduct of 

23 hazard assessments under paragraph (2); and 


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1 (B) to provide employees access to the records of 

2 the hazard assessments and any other records re3 quired under the updated standards; 

4 (4) to establish a system to respond to the find5 ings of a hazard assessment conducted under para6 graph (2) that addresses prevention, mitigation, and 

7 emergency responses; 

8 (5) to review, when a design change occurs, a 

9 hazard assessment conducted under paragraph (2) 

10 and the response system established under paragraph 

11 (4); 

12 (6) to develop and implement written operating 

13 procedures for the processes of liquefied natural gas 

14 conversion, storage, and transport; 

15 (7)(A) to provide written safety and operating 

16 information to employees; and 

17 (B) to train employees in operating procedures 

18 with an emphasis on addressing hazards and using 

19 safe practices; 

20 (8) to ensure contractors and contract employees 

21 are provided appropriate information and training; 

22 (9) to train and educate employees and contrac23 tors in emergency response; 

24 (10) to establish a quality assurance program to 

25 ensure that equipment, maintenance materials, and 


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1 spare parts relating to the operations and mainte2 nance of liquefied natural gas facilities are fabricated 

3 and installed consistent with design specifications; 

4 (11) to establish maintenance systems for critical 

5 process-related equipment, including written proce6 dures, employee training, appropriate inspections, 

7 and testing of that equipment to ensure ongoing me8 chanical integrity; 

9 (12) to conduct pre-start-up safety reviews of all 

10 newly installed or modified equipment; 

11 (13) to establish and implement written proce12 dures to manage change to processes of liquefied nat13 ural gas conversion, storage, and transport, tech14 nology, equipment, and facilities; and 

15 (14)(A) to investigate each incident that results 

16 in, or could have resulted in— 

17 (i) loss of life; 

18 (ii) destruction of private property; or 

19 (iii) a major accident; and 

20 (B) to have operating personnel— 

21 (i) review any findings of an investigation 

22 under subparagraph (A); and 

23 (ii) if appropriate, take responsive meas24 ures. 


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1 SEC. 113. NATIONAL CENTER OF EXCELLENCE FOR LIQUE2 FIED NATURAL GAS SAFETY AND TRAINING. 

3 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

4 (1) CENTER.—The term ‘‘Center’’ means the Na5 tional Center of Excellence for Liquefied Natural Gas 

6 Safety and Training established under subsection (b). 

7 (2) LNG.—The term ‘‘LNG’’ means liquefied 

8 natural gas. 

9 (3) LNG SECTOR STAKEHOLDER.—The term 

10 ‘‘LNG sector stakeholder’’ means a representative of— 

11 (A) LNG facilities that represent the broad 

12 array of LNG facilities operating in the United 

13 States; 

14 (B) States, Indian Tribes, and units of local 

15 government; 

16 (C) postsecondary education; 

17 (D) labor organizations; 

18 (E) safety organizations; or 

19 (F) Federal regulatory agencies of jurisdic20 tion, which may include— 

21 (i) the Administration; 

22 (ii) the Federal Energy Regulatory 

23 Commission; 

24 (iii) the Department of Energy; 

25 (iv) the Occupational Safety and 

26 Health Administration; 


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1 (v) the Coast Guard; and 

2 (vi) the Maritime Administration. 

3 (b) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 2 years after the 

4 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary, in consultation 

5 with LNG sector stakeholders, shall establish a center, to 

6 be known as the ‘‘National Center of Excellence for Lique7 fied Natural Gas Safety and Training’’. 

8 (c) FUNCTIONS.—The Center shall, for activities regu9 lated under section 60103 of title 49, United States Code— 

10 (1) promote, facilitate, and conduct— 

11 (A) education; 

12 (B) training; and 

13 (C) technological advancements; 

14 (2) be a repository of information on best prac15 tices relating to, and expertise on, LNG operations; 

16 (3) foster collaboration among stakeholders; and 

17 (4) provide a curriculum for training that incor18 porates— 

19 (A) risk-based principles into the operation, 

20 management, and regulatory oversight of LNG 

21 facilities; 

22 (B) the reliance on subject matter expertise 

23 within the LNG industry; 


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1 (C) the transfer of knowledge and expertise 

2 between the LNG industry and regulatory agen3 cies; and 

4 (D) training and workshops that occur at 

5 operational facilities. 

6 (d) LOCATION.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Center shall be located in 

8 close proximity to critical LNG transportation infra9 structure on, and connecting to, the Gulf of Mexico, 

10 as determined by the Secretary. 

11 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In siting the location of 

12 the Center, the Secretary shall take into account the 

13 strategic value of locating resources in close proximity 

14 to LNG facilities. 

15 (e) JOINT OPERATION WITH EDUCATIONAL INSTITU16 TION.—The Secretary may enter into an agreement with 

17 an appropriate official of an institution of higher edu18 cation— 

19 (1) to provide for joint operation of the Center; 

20 and 

21 (2) to provide necessary administrative services 

22 for the Center. 

23 SEC. 114. PRIORITIZATION OF RULEMAKING. 

24 (a) RULEMAKING.—Not later than 90 days after the 

25 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall ensure 


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1 completion of and publish in the Federal Register the out2 standing rulemaking entitled ‘‘Pipeline Safety: Safety of 

3 Gas Transmission and Gathering Pipelines’’, published in 

4 the Federal Register on April 8, 2016 (81 Fed. Reg. 20722; 

5 Docket No. PHMSA–2011–0023), as that rulemaking re6 lates to the consideration of gathering pipelines. 

7 (b) STUDY.—Not later than 1 year after the date of 

8 enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United 

9 States shall— 

10 (1) review the extent to which geospatial and 

11 technical data is collected by operators of gathering 

12 lines, including design and material specifications; 

13 (2) analyze information collected by operators of 

14 gathering lines when the mapping information de15 scribed in paragraph (1) is not available for a gath16 ering line; and 

17 (3) assess any plans and timelines of operators 

18 of gathering lines to develop the mapping information 

19 described in paragraph (1) or otherwise collect infor20 mation described in paragraph (2). 

21 (c) REPORT.—The Comptroller General of the United 

22 States shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

23 and Transportation of the Senate and the Committees on 

24 Transportation and Infrastructure and Energy and Com25 merce of the House of Representatives a report on the review 


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1 required under subsection (b), including any recommenda2 tions that the Comptroller General of the United States may 

3 have as a result of the review. 

4 TITLE II—LEONEL RONDON 

5 PIPELINE SAFETY ACT 

6 SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE. 

7 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Leonel Rondon Pipeline 

8 Safety Act’’. 

9 SEC. 202. DISTRIBUTION INTEGRITY MANAGEMENT PLANS. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 60109(e) of title 49, United 

11 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(7) DISTRIBUTION INTEGRITY MANAGEMENT

13 PLANS.— 

14 ‘‘(A) EVALUATION OF RISK.—Not later than 

15 2 years after the date of enactment of this para16 graph, the Secretary shall promulgate regula17 tions to ensure that each distribution integrity 

18 management plan developed by an operator of a 

19 distribution system includes an evaluation of— 

20 ‘‘(i) the risks resulting from the pres21 ence of cast iron pipes and mains in the 

22 distribution system; and 

23 ‘‘(ii) the risks that could lead to or re24 sult from the operation of a low-pressure 

25 distribution system at a pressure that 


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1 makes the operation of any connected and 

2 properly adjusted low-pressure gas burning 

3 equipment unsafe (as described in section 

4 192.623 of title 49, Code of Federal Regula5 tions (or a successor regulation)). 

6 ‘‘(B) CONSIDERATION.—In the evaluations 

7 required in a plan under subparagraph (A), the 

8 regulations promulgated by the Secretary shall 

9 ensure that the distribution integrity manage10 ment plan evaluates for future potential threats 

11 in a manner that considers factors other than 

12 past observed abnormal operations (within the 

13 meaning of section 192.605 of title 49, Code of 

14 Federal Regulations (or a successor regulation)), 

15 in ranking risks and identifying measures to 

16 mitigate those risks under that subparagraph, so 

17 that operators avoid using a risk rating of zero 

18 for low probability events unless otherwise sup19 ported by engineering analysis or operational 

20 knowledge. 

21 ‘‘(C) DEADLINES.— 

22 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 

23 years after the date of enactment of this 

24 paragraph, each operator of a distribution 

25 system shall make available to the Secretary 


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1 or the relevant State authority with a cer2 tification in effect under section 60105, as 

3 applicable, a copy of— 

4 ‘‘(I) the distribution integrity 

5 management plan of the operator; 

6 ‘‘(II) the emergency response plan 

7 under section 192.615 of title 49, Code 

8 of Federal Regulations (or a successor 

9 regulation); and 

10 ‘‘(III) the procedural manual for 

11 operations, maintenance, and emer12 gencies under section 192.605 of title 

13 49, Code of Federal Regulations (or a 

14 successor regulation). 

15 ‘‘(ii) UPDATES.—Each operator of a 

16 distribution system shall make available to 

17 the Secretary or make available for inspec18 tion to the relevant State authority with a 

19 certification in effect under section 60105, if 

20 applicable, an updated plan or manual de21 scribed in clause (i) by not later than 60 

22 days after the date of a significant update, 

23 as determined by the Secretary. 

24 ‘‘(iii) APPLICABILITY OF FOIA.—Noth25 ing in this subsection shall be construed to 


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1 authorize the disclosure of any information 

2 that is exempt from disclosure under section 

3 552(b) of title 5, United States Code. 

4 ‘‘(D) REVIEW OF PLANS AND DOCUMENTS.— 

5 ‘‘(i) TIMING.— 

6 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 

7 2 years after the date of promulgation 

8 of the regulations under subparagraph 

9 (A), and not less frequently than once 

10 every 5 years thereafter, the Secretary 

11 or relevant State authority with a cer12 tification in effect under section 60105 

13 shall review the distribution integrity 

14 management plan, the emergency re15 sponse plan, and the procedural man16 ual for operations, maintenance, and 

17 emergencies of each operator of a dis18 tribution system and record the results 

19 of that review for use in the next re20 view of the program of that operator. 

21 ‘‘(II) GRACE PERIOD.—For the 

22 third, fourth, and fifth years after the 

23 date of promulgation of the regulations 

24 under subparagraph (A), the Sec25 retary— 


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1 ‘‘(aa) shall not use subclause 

2 (I) as justification to reduce fund3 ing, decertify, or penalize in any 

4 way under section 60105, 60106, 

5 or 60107 a State authority that 

6 has in effect a certification under 

7 section 60105 or an agreement 

8 under section 60106; and 

9 ‘‘(bb) shall— 

10 ‘‘(AA) submit to the 

11 Committee on Commerce, 

12 Science, and Transportation 

13 of the Senate and the Com14 mittees on Transportation 

15 and Infrastructure and En16 ergy and Commerce of the 

17 House of Representatives a 

18 list of States found to be non19 compliant with subclause (I) 

20 during the annual program 

21 evaluation; and 

22 ‘‘(BB) provide a written 

23 notice to each State author24 ity described in item (aa) 

25 that is not in compliance 


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1 with the requirements of sub2 clause (I). 

3 ‘‘(ii) REVIEW.—Each plan or proce4 dural manual made available under sub5 paragraph (C)(i) shall be reexamined— 

6 ‘‘(I) on significant change to the 

7 plans or procedural manual, as appli8 cable; 

9 ‘‘(II) on significant change to the 

10 gas distribution system of the operator, 

11 as applicable; and 

12 ‘‘(III) not less frequently than 

13 once every 5 years. 

14 ‘‘(iii) CONTEXT OF REVIEW.—The Sec15 retary may conduct a review under clause 

16 (i) or (ii) as an element of the inspection of 

17 the operator carried out by the Secretary. 

18 ‘‘(iv) INADEQUATE PROGRAMS.—If the 

19 Secretary determines that the documents re20 viewed under clause (i) or (ii) do not com21 ply with the requirements of this chapter 

22 (including regulations to implement this 

23 chapter), have not been adequately imple24 mented, or are inadequate for the safe oper25 ation of a pipeline facility, the Secretary 


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1 may conduct proceedings under this chap2 ter.’’. 

3 (b) MONITORING.—Section 60105(e) of title 49, United 

4 States Code, is amended— 

5 (1) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘A State 

6 authority’’ and inserting the following: 

7 ‘‘(2) COOPERATION.—A State authority with a 

8 certification in effect under this section’’; 

9 (2) by striking ‘‘The Secretary’’ and inserting 

10 the following: 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary’’; and 

12 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(3) AUDIT PROGRAM.—Not later than 2 years 

14 after the date of enactment of this paragraph, the Sec15 retary shall— 

16 ‘‘(A) revise the State audit protocols and 

17 procedures to update the annual State Program 

18 Evaluations carried out under this subsection 

19 and section 60106(d) to ensure that a State au20 thority with a certification in effect under this 

21 section has the capability to sufficiently review 

22 and evaluate the adequacy of the plans and 

23 manuals described in section 60109(e)(7)(C)(i); 


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1 ‘‘(B) update the State Inspection Calcula2 tion Tool to take into account factors includ3 ing— 

4 ‘‘(i) the number of miles of natural gas 

5 and hazardous liquid pipelines in the State, 

6 including the number of miles of cast iron 

7 and bare steel pipelines; 

8 ‘‘(ii) the number of services in the 

9 State; 

10 ‘‘(iii) the age of the gas distribution 

11 system in the State; and 

12 ‘‘(iv) environmental factors that could 

13 impact the integrity of the pipeline, includ14 ing relevant geological issues; and 

15 ‘‘(C) promulgate regulations to require that 

16 a State authority with a certification in effect 

17 under this section has a sufficient number of 

18 qualified inspectors to ensure safe operations, as 

19 determined by the State Inspection Calculation 

20 Tool and other factors determined to be appro21 priate by the Secretary.’’. 

22 SEC. 203. EMERGENCY RESPONSE PLANS. 

23 Section 60102 of title 49, United States Code, is 

24 amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(q) EMERGENCY RESPONSE PLANS.—Not later than 

2 2 years after the date of enactment of this subsection, the 

3 Secretary shall update regulations to ensure that each emer4 gency response plan developed by an operator of a distribu5 tion system under section 192.615 of title 49, Code of Fed6 eral Regulations (or a successor regulation), includes writ7 ten procedures for— 

8 ‘‘(1) establishing communication with first re9 sponders and other relevant public officials, as soon 

10 as practicable, beginning from the time of confirmed 

11 discovery, as determined by the Secretary, by the op12 erator of a gas pipeline emergency involving a release 

13 of gas from a distribution system of that operator 

14 that results in— 

15 ‘‘(A) a fire related to an unintended release 

16 of gas; 

17 ‘‘(B) an explosion; 

18 ‘‘(C) 1 or more fatalities; or 

19 ‘‘(D) the unscheduled release of gas and 

20 shutdown of gas service to a significant number 

21 of customers, as determined by the Secretary; 

22 ‘‘(2) establishing general public communication 

23 through an appropriate channel— 


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1 ‘‘(A) as soon as practicable, as determined 

2 by the Secretary, after a gas pipeline emergency 

3 involving a release of gas that results in— 

4 ‘‘(i) a fire related to an unintended re5 lease of gas; 

6 ‘‘(ii) an explosion; 

7 ‘‘(iii) 1 or more fatalities; or 

8 ‘‘(iv) the unscheduled shutdown of gas 

9 service to a significant number of cus10 tomers, as determined by the Secretary; and 

11 ‘‘(B) that provides information regarding— 

12 ‘‘(i) the emergency described in sub13 paragraph (A); and 

14 ‘‘(ii) the status of public safety; and 

15 ‘‘(3) the development and implementation of a 

16 voluntary, opt-in system that would allow operators 

17 of distribution systems to rapidly communicate with 

18 customers in the event of an emergency.’’. 

19 SEC. 204. OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE MANUALS. 

20 Section 60102 of title 49, United States Code (as 

21 amended by section 203), is amended by adding at the end 

22 the following: 

23 ‘‘(r) OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE MANUALS.—Not 

24 later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this sub25 section, the Secretary shall update regulations to ensure 


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1 that each procedural manual for operations, maintenance, 

2 and emergencies developed by an operator of a distribution 

3 pipeline under section 192.605 of title 49, Code of Federal 

4 Regulations (or a successor regulation), includes written 

5 procedures for— 

6 ‘‘(1) responding to overpressurization indica7 tions, including specific actions and an order of oper8 ations for immediately reducing pressure in or shut9 ting down portions of the gas distribution system, if 

10 necessary; and 

11 ‘‘(2) a detailed procedure for the management of 

12 the change process, which shall— 

13 ‘‘(A) be applied to significant technology, 

14 equipment, procedural, and organizational 

15 changes to the distribution system; and 

16 ‘‘(B) ensure that relevant qualified per17 sonnel, such as an engineer with a professional 

18 engineer licensure, subject matter expert, or other 

19 employee who possesses the necessary knowledge, 

20 experience, and skills regarding natural gas dis21 tribution systems, review and certify construc22 tion plans for accuracy, completeness, and cor23 rectness.’’. 


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1 SEC. 205. PIPELINE SAFETY MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 3 years after the 

3 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit 

4 to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor5 tation of the Senate and the Committees on Transportation 

6 and Infrastructure and Energy and Commerce of the House 

7 of Representatives a report describing— 

8 (1) the number of operators of natural gas dis9 tribution systems who have implemented a pipeline 

10 safety management system in accordance with the 

11 standard established by the American Petroleum In12 stitute entitled ‘‘Pipeline Safety Management System 

13 Requirements’’ and numbered American Petroleum 

14 Institute Recommended Practice 1173; 

15 (2) the progress made by operators of natural 

16 gas distribution systems who have implemented, or 

17 are in the process of implementing, a pipeline safety 

18 management system described in paragraph (1); and 

19 (3) the feasibility of an operator of a natural gas 

20 distribution system implementing a pipeline safety 

21 management system described in paragraph (1) based 

22 on the size of the operator as measured by— 

23 (A) the number of customers the operator 

24 has; and 

25 (B) the amount of natural gas the operator 

26 transports. 


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1 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—As part of the report required 

2 under subsection (a), the Secretary shall provide guidance 

3 or recommendations that would further the adoption of safe4 ty management systems in accordance with the standard 

5 established by the American Petroleum Institute entitled 

6 ‘‘Pipeline Safety Management System Requirements’’ and 

7 numbered American Petroleum Institute Recommended 

8 Practice 1173. 

9 (c) EVALUATION AND PROMOTION OF SAFETY MAN10 AGEMENT SYSTEMS.—The Secretary and the relevant State 

11 authority with a certification in effect under section 60105 

12 of title 49, United States Code, as applicable, shall— 

13 (1) promote and assess pipeline safety manage14 ment systems frameworks developed by operators of 

15 natural gas distribution systems and described in the 

16 report under subsection (a), including— 

17 (A) if necessary, using independent third18 party evaluators; and 

19 (B) through a system that promotes self-dis20 closure of— 

21 (i) errors; and 

22 (ii) deviations from regulatory stand23 ards; and 


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1 (2) if a deviation from a regulatory standard is 

2 identified during the development and application of 

3 a pipeline safety management system, certify that— 

4 (A) due consideration will be given to fac5 tors such as flawed procedures, honest mistakes, 

6 or lack of understanding; and 

7 (B) the operators and regulators use the 

8 most appropriate tools to fix the deviation, re9 turn to compliance, and prevent the recurrence 

10 of the deviation, including— 

11 (i) root cause analysis; and 

12 (ii) training, education, or other ap13 propriate improvements to procedures or 

14 training programs. 

15 SEC. 206. PIPELINE SAFETY PRACTICES. 

16 Section 60102 of title 49, United States Code (as 

17 amended by section 204), is amended by adding at the end 

18 the following: 

19 ‘‘(s) OTHER PIPELINE SAFETY PRACTICES.— 

20 ‘‘(1) RECORDS.—Not later than 2 years after the 

21 date of enactment of this subsection, the Secretary 

22 shall promulgate regulations to require an operator of 

23 a distribution system— 

24 ‘‘(A) to identify and manage traceable, reli25 able, and complete records, including maps and 


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1 other drawings, critical to ensuring proper pres2 sure controls for a gas distribution system, and 

3 updating these records as needed, while collecting 

4 and identifying other records necessary for risk 

5 analysis on an opportunistic basis; and 

6 ‘‘(B) to ensure that the records required 

7 under subparagraph (A) are— 

8 ‘‘(i) accessible to all personnel respon9 sible for performing or overseeing relevant 

10 construction or engineering work; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) submitted to, or made available 

12 for inspection by, the Secretary or the rel13 evant State authority with a certification 

14 in effect under section 60105. 

15 ‘‘(2) PRESENCE OF QUALIFIED EMPLOYEES.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 

17 days after the date of enactment of this sub18 section, the Secretary shall promulgate regula19 tions to require that not less than 1 agent of an 

20 operator of a distribution system who is quali21 fied to perform relevant covered tasks (as defined 

22 in section 192.801(b) of title 49, Code of Federal 

23 Regulations (or a successor regulation)) shall 

24 monitor gas pressure at the district regulator 

25 station or at an alternative site with equipment 


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1 capable of ensuring proper pressure controls and 

2 have the capability to promptly shut down the 

3 flow of gas or control over pressurization at a 

4 district regulator station during any construc5 tion project that has the potential to cause a haz6 ardous overpressurization at that station, includ7 ing tie-ins and abandonment of distribution 

8 lines and mains, based on an evaluation, con9 ducted by the operator, of threats that could re10 sult in unsafe operation. 

11 ‘‘(B) EXCLUSION.—In promulgating regula12 tions under subparagraph (A), the Secretary 

13 shall ensure that those regulations do not apply 

14 to a district regulating station that has a moni15 toring system and the capability for remote or 

16 automatic shutoff. 

17 ‘‘(3) DISTRICT REGULATOR STATIONS.— 

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year 

19 after the date of enactment of this subsection, the 

20 Secretary shall promulgate regulations to require 

21 that each operator of a distribution system as22 sesses and upgrades, as appropriate, each district 

23 regulator station of the operator to ensure that— 

24 ‘‘(i) the risk of the gas pressure in the 

25 distribution system exceeding, by a common 


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1 mode of failure, the maximum allowable op2 erating pressure (as described in section 

3 192.623 of title 49, Code of Federal Regula4 tions (or a successor regulation)) allowed 

5 under Federal law (including regulations) 

6 is minimized; 

7 ‘‘(ii) the gas pressure of a low-pressure 

8 distribution system is monitored, particu9 larly at or near the location of critical pres10 sure-control equipment; 

11 ‘‘(iii) the regulator station has sec12 ondary or backup pressure-relieving or over13 pressure-protection safety technology, such 

14 as a relief valve or automatic shutoff valve, 

15 or other pressure-limiting devices appro16 priate for the configuration and siting of 

17 the station and, in the case of a regulator 

18 station that employs the primary and mon19 itor regulator design, the operator shall 

20 eliminate the common mode of failure or 

21 provide backup protection capable of either 

22 shutting the flow of gas, relieving gas to the 

23 atmosphere to fully protect the distribution 

24 system from overpressurization events, or 


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1 there must be technology in place to elimi2 nate a common mode of failure; and 

3 ‘‘(iv) if the Secretary determines that 

4 it is not operationally possible for an oper5 ator to implement the requirements under 

6 clause (iii), the Secretary shall require such 

7 operator to identify actions in their plan 

8 that minimize the risk of an overpressuriza9 tion event.’’. 


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Calendar No. 427 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2299 

[Report No. 116–217] 

A BILL 

To amend title 49, United States Code, to enhance 

tation, and for other purposes. the safety and reliability of pipeline transporFEBRUARY 13, 2020 

Reported with an amendment 


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