II

Calendar No. 763

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2438

[Report No. 106–387]

To provide for enhanced safety, public awareness, and environmental

protection in pipeline transportation, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

APRIL 13, 2000

Mr. MCCAIN (for himself, Mrs. MURRAY, and Mr. GORTON) introduced the

following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on

Commerce, Science, and Transportation

AUGUST 25, 2000

Reported under the authority of the order of the Senate of July 26, 2000,

by Mr. MCCAIN with an amendment in the nature of a substitute

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

A BILL

To provide for enhanced safety, public awareness, and environmental protection in 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,
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; AMENDMENT OF TITLE 49,

2 UNITED STATES CODE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

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

4 ‘‘King and Tsiorvas Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of

5 2000’’.

6 (b) AMENDMENT OF TITLE 49, UNITED STATES

7 CODE.—Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever

8 in this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms

9 of an amendment to, or a repeal of, a section or other

10 provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to

11 a section or other provision of title 49, United States

12 Code.

13 SEC. 2. IMPLEMENTATION OF INSPECTOR GENERAL REC14 OMMENDATIONS.

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall implement

16 the safety improvement recommendations provided for in

17 the Department of Transportation Inspector General’s Re18 port (RT–2000–069).

19 (b) REPORTS BY THE SECRETARY.—Not later than

20 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and every

21 90 days thereafter until each of the recommendations re22 ferred to in subsection (a) has been implemented, the Sec23 retary shall transmit to the Committee on Commerce,

24 Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Com25 mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House
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1 of Representatives a report on the specific actions taken

2 to implement such recommendations.

3 (c) REPORTS BY THE INSPECTOR GENERAL.—The

4 Inspector General shall periodically transmit to the Com5 mittees referred to in subsection (b) a report assessing the

6 Secretary’s progress in implementing the recommenda7 tions referred to in subsection (a) and identifying options

8 for the Secretary to consider in accelerating recommenda9 tion implementation.

10 SEC. 3. NTSB SAFETY RECOMMENDATIONS.

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transportation,

12 the Administrator of Research and Special Program Ad13 ministration, and the Director of the Office of Pipeline

14 Safety shall fully comply with section 1135 of title 49,

15 United States Code, to ensure timely responsiveness to

16 National Transportation Safety Board recommendations

17 about pipeline safety.

18 (b) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The Secretary, Adminis19 trator, or Director, respectively, shall make a copy of each

20 recommendation on pipeline safety and response, as de21 scribed in sections 1135 (a) and (b) of title 49, United

22 States Code, available to the public at reasonable cost.

23 (d) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—The Secretary, Admin24 istrator, or Director, respectively, shall submit to the Con25 gress by January 1 of each year a report containing each
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1 recommendation on pipeline safety made by the Board

2 during the prior year and a copy of the response to each

3 such recommendation.

4 SEC. 4. QUALIFICATIONS OF PIPELINE PERSONNEL.

5 (a) TRAINING PLAN.—Each pipeline operator shall

6 submit to the Secretary of Transportation a training plan

7 that is designed to enhance training for pipeline personnel

8 and to reduce the likelihood of accidents and injuries. The

9 plan shall be submitted not more than 6 months after the

10 date of enactment of this Act.

11 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—The enhanced training plan

12 shall include, at a minimum, criteria to demonstrate the

13 ability of an individual to safely and properly perform as14 signed tasks. The plan shall also provide for periodic re15 training and reexamination of pipeline employee qualifica16 tions as appropriate. The Secretary is authorized to review

17 the submitted plans to determine if they are sufficient to

18 provide a safe operating environment and shall periodi19 cally review the plans to ensure the continuation of a safe

20 operation. The Secretary may establish minimum stand21 ards for operators to include in the training plans.

22 SEC. 5. PIPELINE INTEGRITY INSPECTION PROGRAM.

23 Not later than 12 months after the date of enactment

24 of this Act, the Secretary shall issue regulations requiring

25 pipeline operators to periodically determine the adequacy
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1 of pipelines to operate safely in unusually sensitive areas

2 and high-density population areas. Such regulations shall,

3 at a minimum, require operators to perform periodic in4 spections or tests capable of identifying corrosion, me5 chanical damage or other structural or operational defects

6 that could be detrimental to safety and the environment.

7 SEC. 6. SHUTDOWN AUTHORITY.

8 Section 60112 is amended by adding at the end

9 thereof the following:

10 ‘‘(f) SHUTDOWN AUTHORITY.—

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary determines

12 that allowing the continued operation of a hazardous

13 liquid or natural gas pipeline creates an imminent

14 hazard (as defined in section 5102(5)), the Sec15 retary shall take such action as may be necessary to

16 prevent the operator of that system from operating

17 that pipeline for 30 days.

18 ‘‘(2) SUBSEQUENT EXTENSION AFTER NOTICE

19 AND HEARING.—After taking action under para20 graph (1), the Secretary may extend the period that

21 action is in effect for an additional period of up to

22 30 days if the Secretary determines, after notice and

23 an opportunity for a hearing, that allowing the oper24 ator to resume operation of the pipeline would create

25 an imminent hazard (as defined in section 5102).’’.
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1 SEC. 7. PUBLIC EDUCATION, EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS,

2 AND COMMUNITY RIGHT TO KNOW.

3 (a) Section 60116 is amended to read as follows:

4 ‘‘§ 60116. Public education, emergency preparedness,

5 and community right to know

6 ‘‘(a) PUBLIC EDUCATION PROGRAMS.—

7 ‘‘(1) Each owner or operator of a gas or haz8 ardous liquid pipeline facility shall carry out a con9 tinuing program to educate the public on the use of

10 a one-call notification system prior to excavation and

11 other damage prevention activities, the possible haz12 ards associated with unintended releases from the

13 pipeline facility, the physical indications that such a

14 release may have occurred, what steps should be

15 taken for public safety in the event of a pipeline re16 lease, and how to report such an event.

17 ‘‘(2) Within 12 months after the date of enact18 ment of the King and Tsiorvas Pipeline Safety Im19 provement Act of 2000, each owner or operator of

20 a gas or hazardous liquid pipeline facility shall re21 view its existing public education program for effec22 tiveness and modify the program as necessary. The

23 completed plan shall include activities to advise mu24 nicipalities, school districts, businesses, and resi25 dents of pipeline facility locations. The completed
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1 plans shall be submitted to the Secretary and shall

2 be periodically reviewed by the Secretary.

3 ‘‘(3) The Secretary may issue standards pre4 scribing the elements of an effective public education

5 program. The Secretary may also develop material

6 for use in the program.

7 ‘‘(b) EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS.—Within 12

8 months after the date of enactment of the King and

9 Tsiorvas Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2000, an op10 erator of a gas transmission or hazardous liquid pipeline

11 facility shall initiate and maintain liaison with the State

12 emergency response commissions, and local emergency

13 planning committees in the areas of pipeline right-of-way,

14 established under section 301 of the Emergency Planning

15 and Community Right-To-Know Act of 1986 (42 U.S.C.

16 11001) in each State in which it operates. An operator

17 shall, when requested, make available to the State emer18 gency response commissions and local emergency planning

19 committees the information described in section 60102(d),

20 any program for integrity management developed under

21 section 60109(c), and information about implementation

22 of that program. The information about the facility within

23 the public official’s area shall also include, at a

24 minimum—
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1 ‘‘(1) the business name, address, telephone

2 number of the operator, including a 24-hour emer3 gency contact number;

4 ‘‘(2) a description of the facility including pipe

5 diameter, the product or products carried, and the

6 operating pressure;

7 ‘‘(3) maps showing the location of the facility

8 and any high consequence areas which the pipeline

9 facility traverses or adjoins and abuts;

10 ‘‘(4) a summary description of the integrity

11 measures the operator uses to assure safety and pro12 tection for the environment; and

13 ‘‘(5) a point of contact to respond to questions

14 from emergency response representative.

15 In a community without a local emergency planning com16 mittee, the operator shall maintain liaison with the local

17 fire, police, and other emergency response agencies.

18 ‘‘(c) COMMUNITY RIGHT TO KNOW.—Not later than

19 12 months after the date of enactment of the King and

20 Tsiorvas Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2000, and

21 annually thereafter, the owner or operator of each gas or

22 hazardous liquid pipeline facility shall provide to the gov23 erning body of each municipality in which the pipeline fa24 cility is located, a map identifying the location of such fa25 cility. The Secretary may provide technical assistance to
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1 the pipeline industry on developing public safety and pub2 lic education program content and best practices for pro3 gram delivery, and on evaluating the effectiveness of the

4 programs. The Secretary may also provide technical as5 sistance to State and local officials in applying practices

6 developed in these programs to their activities.

7 ‘‘(d) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY OF REPORTS.—The Sec8 retary shall make available to the public a safety-related

9 condition report filed by an operator under section 60102

10 (h) and a report of a pipeline incident filed by an operator

11 under this chapter.’’.

12 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter anal13 ysis for chapter 601 is amended by striking the item relat14 ing to section 60116 and inserting the following:

‘‘60116. Public education, emergency preparedness, community right to know’’.

15 SEC. 8. PENALTIES.

16 Subsection 60122(a)(1) is amended—

17 (1) by striking ‘‘$25,000’’ and inserting

18 ‘‘$100,000’’; and

19 (2) by striking ‘‘$100,000’’ and inserting

20 ‘‘$1,000,000’’.

21 SEC. 9. ENHANCED STATE OVERSIGHT.

22 (a) Section 60106(a) is amended by inserting ‘‘(1)’’

23 before the current text of the subsection, redesignating

24 paragraphs (1) and (2) as subparagraphs (A) and (B),

25 and adding at the end the following:
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1 ‘‘(2) If the Secretary accepts a certification under

2 section 60105 of this title, the Secretary may make an

3 agreement with a State authority authorizing it to partici4 pate in the oversight of interstate pipeline transportation.

5 An agreement shall include a plan for the State authority

6 to participate in special investigations involving new con7 struction or incidents.

8 ‘‘(3) An agreement under paragraph (2) may also in9 clude a program allowing for participation by the State

10 authority in other activities overseeing interstate pipeline

11 transportation that supplement the Secretary’s program

12 and address issues of local concern, provided that the Sec13 retary determines that—

14 ‘‘(A) there are no significant gaps in the regu15 latory jurisdiction of the State authority over intra16 state pipeline transportation;

17 ‘‘(B) implementation of the agreement will not

18 adversely affect the oversight of intrastate pipeline

19 transportation by the State authority;

20 ‘‘(C) the program allowing participation of the

21 State authority is consistent with the Secretary’s

22 program for inspection;

23 ‘‘(D) the State promotes preparedness and pre24 vention activities that enable communities to live

25 safely with pipelines; and
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1 ‘‘(E) the state meets the minimum standards

2 for State one-call notification set forth in chapter

3 61.’’.

4 (b) Section 60106(d) is amended by inserting after

5 the first sentence the following: ‘‘In addition, the Sec6 retary may end an agreement for the oversight of inter7 state pipeline transportation when the Secretary finds that

8 there are significant gaps in the regulatory authority of

9 the State authority over intrastate pipeline transportation,

10 or that continued participation by the State authority in

11 the oversight of interstate pipeline transportation is not

12 consistent with the Secretary’s program or would ad13 versely affect oversight of intrastate pipeline transpor14 tation, or that the State is not promoting activities that

15 enable communities to live safely with pipelines.’’.

16 SEC. 10. IMPROVED DATA AND DATA AVAILABILITY.

17 Within 12 month after the date of enactment of this

18 Act, the Secretary shall develop and implement a com19 prehensive plan for the collection and use of gas and haz20 ardous liquid pipeline data to revise the causal categories

21 on the accident report forms to eliminate overlapping and

22 confusing categories and include subcategories. The plan

23 shall include components to provide the capability to per24 form sound accident trend analysis and evaluations of
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1 pipeline operator performance using normalized accident

2 data.

3 SEC. 11. SUPPORT FOR INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY DEVEL4 OPMENT.

5 As part of the Department’s research and develop6 ment program, the Secretary of Transportation shall di7 rect research attention to the development of alternative

8 technologies—

9 ‘‘(1) to expand the defect detection capabilities

10 of internal inspection devices;

11 ‘‘(2) to inspect pipelines that cannot accommo12 date internal inspection devices available on the date

13 of enactment; and

14 ‘‘(3) to develop innovative techniques measuring

15 the structural integrity of pipelines.’’.

16 SEC. 12. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

17 (a) Section 60125(a) is amended to read as follows:

18 ‘‘(a) GAS AND HAZARDOUS LIQUID.—To carry out

19 this chapter and other pipeline-related damage prevention

20 activities of this title (except for section 60107), there are

21 authorized to be appropriated to the Department of

22 Transportation

23 ‘‘(1) $26,000,000 for fiscal year 2001, of which

24 $20,000,000 is to be derived from user fees for fis-
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1 cal year 2001 collected under section 60301 of this

2 title; and

3 ‘‘(2) $30,000,000 for each of the fiscal years

4 2002 and 2003 of which $23,000,000 is to be de5 rived from user fees for fiscal year 2002 and fiscal

6 year 2003 collected under section 60301 of this

7 title.’’.

8 (b) Section 60125(c) is amended to read as follows:

9 ‘‘(c) STATE GRANTS.—Not more than the following

10 amounts may be appropriated to the Secretary to carry

11 out section 60107—

12 ‘‘(1) $17,000,000 for fiscal year 2001, of which

13 $15,000,000 is to be derived from user fees for fis14 cal year 2002 collected under section 60301 of this

15 title; and

16 ‘‘(2) $20,000,000 for the fiscal years 2002 and

17 2003 of which $18,000,000 is to be derived from

18 user fees for fiscal year 2002 and fiscal year 2003

19 collected under section 60301 of this title.’’.

20 (c) Sections 60525 is amended by redesignating sub21 sections (d), (e), and (f) as subsections (e), (f), (g) and

22 inserting after subsection (c) the following:

23 ‘‘(d) OIL SPILL LIABILITY TRUST FUND.—Of the

24 amounts available in the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund,

25 $8,000,000 shall be transferred to carry out programs au-
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1 thorized in this act for fiscal year 2001, fiscal year 2002,

2 and fiscal year 2003.’’.

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; AMENDMENT OF TITLE 49,

4 UNITED STATES CODE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

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

6 ‘‘Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2000’’.

7 (b) AMENDMENT OF TITLE 49, UNITED STATES

8 CODE.—Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever

9 in this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms

10 of an amendment to, or a repeal of, a section or other provi11 sion, the reference shall be considered to be made to a section

12 or other provision of title 49, United States Code.

13 SEC. 2. IMPLEMENTATION OF INSPECTOR GENERAL REC14 OMMENDATIONS.

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise required by

16 this Act, the Secretary shall implement the safety improve17 ment recommendations provided for in the Department of

18 Transportation Inspector General’s Report (RT-2000-069).

19 (b) REPORTS BY THE SECRETARY.—Not later than 90

20 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and every 90

21 days thereafter until each of the recommendations referred

22 to in subsection (a) has been implemented, the Secretary

23 shall transmit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and

24 Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Trans25 portation and Infrastructure of the House of Representa-
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1 tives a report on the specific actions taken to implement

2 such recommendations.

3 (c) REPORTS BY THE INSPECTOR GENERAL.—The In4 spector General shall periodically transmit to the Commit5 tees referred to in subsection (b) a report assessing the Sec6 retary’s progress in implementing the recommendations re7 ferred to in subsection (a) and identifying options for the

8 Secretary to consider in accelerating recommendation im9 plementation.

10 SEC. 3. NTSB SAFETY RECOMMENDATIONS.

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transportation,

12 the Administrator of Research and Special Program Ad13 ministration, and the Director of the Office of Pipeline

14 Safety shall fully comply with section 1135 of title 49,

15 United States Code, to ensure timely responsiveness to Na16 tional Transportation Safety Board recommendations

17 about pipeline safety.

18 (b) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The Secretary, Adminis19 trator, or Director, respectively, shall make a copy of each

20 recommendation on pipeline safety and response, as de21 scribed in sections 1135 (a) and (b) of title 49, United

22 States Code, available to the public at reasonable cost.

23 (c) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—The Secretary, Admin24 istrator, or Director, respectively, shall submit to the Con25 gress by January 1 of each year a report containing each
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1 recommendation on pipeline safety made by the Board dur2 ing the prior year and a copy of the response to each such

3 recommendation.

4 SEC. 4. QUALIFICATIONS OF PIPELINE PERSONNEL.

5 (a) QUALIFICATION PLAN.—Each pipeline operator

6 shall make available to the Secretary of Transportation, or,

7 in the case of an intrastate pipeline facility operator, the

8 appropriate State regulatory agency, a plan that is de9 signed to enhance the qualifications of pipeline personnel

10 and to reduce the likelihood of accidents and injuries. The

11 plan shall be made available not more than 6 months after

12 the date of enactment of this Act, and the operator shall

13 revise or update the plan as appropriate.

14 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—The enhanced qualification plan

15 shall include, at a minimum, criteria to demonstrate the

16 ability of an individual to safely and properly perform

17 tasks identified under section 60102 of title 49, United

18 States Code. The plan shall also provide for training and

19 periodic reexamination of pipeline personnel qualifications

20 and provide for requalification as appropriate. The Sec21 retary, or, in the case of an intrastate pipeline facility oper22 ator, the appropriate State regulatory agency, may review

23 and certify the plans to determine if they are sufficient to

24 provide a safe operating environment and shall periodically

25 review the plans to ensure the continuation of a safe oper-
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1 ation. The Secretary may establish minimum standards for

2 pipeline personnel training and evaluation, which may in3 clude written examination, oral examination, work per4 formance history review, observation during performance

5 on the job, on the job training, simulations, or other forms

6 of assessment.

7 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall submit a

9 report to the Congress evaluating the effectiveness of

10 operator qualification and training efforts,

11 including—

12 (A) actions taken by inspectors;

13 (B) recommendations made by inspectors

14 for changes to operator qualification and train15 ing programs; and

16 (C) industry responses to those actions and

17 recommendations.

18 (2) CRITERIA.—The Secretary may establish cri19 teria for use in evaluating and reporting on operator

20 qualification and training for purposes of this sub21 section.

22 (3) DUE DATE.—The Secretary shall submit the

23 report required by paragraph (1) to the Congress 3

24 years after the date of enactment of this Act.
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1 SEC. 5. PIPELINE INTEGRITY INSPECTION PROGRAM.

2 Section 60109 is amended by adding at the end the

3 following:

4 ‘‘(c) INTEGRITY MANAGEMENT.—

5 ‘‘(1) GENERAL REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary

6 shall promulgate regulations requiring operators of

7 hazardous liquid pipelines and natural gas trans8 mission pipelines to evaluate the risks to the opera9 tor’s pipeline facilities in areas identified pursuant to

10 subsection (a)(1), and to adopt and implement a pro11 gram for integrity management that reduces the risk

12 of an incident in those areas. The regulations shall be

13 issued no later than one year after the Secretary has

14 issued standards pursuant to subsections (a) and (b)

15 of this section or by December 31, 2001, whichever is

16 sooner.

17 ‘‘(2) STANDARDS FOR PROGRAM.—In promul18 gating regulations under this section, the Secretary

19 shall require an operator’s integrity management

20 plan to be based on risk analysis and each plan shall

21 include, at a minimum—

22 ‘‘(A) internal inspection or pressure testing,

23 or another equally protective method, where these

24 techniques are not feasible, that periodically as25 sesses the integrity of the pipeline;
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1 ‘‘(B) clearly defined criteria for evaluating

2 the results of the inspection or testing done under

3 subparagraph (A) and procedures to ensure iden4 tified problems are corrected in a timely manner;

5 ‘‘(C) measures, as appropriate, that prevent

6 and mitigate unintended releases, such as leak

7 detection, integrity evaluation, restrictive flow

8 devices, or other measures; and

9 ‘‘(D) a description of the operators’ con10 sultation with State and local officials during

11 development of the integrity management plan

12 and actions taken by the operator to address

13 safety concerns raised by such officials.

14 ‘‘(3) CRITERIA FOR PROGRAM STANDARDS.—In

15 deciding how frequently the integrity inspections or

16 testing under paragraph (2)(A) must be conducted,

17 an operator shall take into account the potential for

18 new defects developing or previously identified struc19 tural defects caused by construction or installation,

20 the operational characteristics of the pipeline, and

21 leak history. In addition, the Secretary may establish

22 a minimum testing requirement for operators of pipe23 lines to conduct internal inspections.

24 ‘‘(4) STATE ROLE.—A State authority that has

25 an agreement in effect with the Secretary under sec-
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1 tion 60106 is authorized to review and assess an op2 erator’s risk analyses and integrity management

3 plans required under this section for interstate pipe4 lines located in that State. The reviewing State au5 thority shall provide the Secretary with a written as6 sessment of the plans, make recommendations, as ap7 propriate, to address safety concerns not adequately

8 addressed in the operator’s plans, and submit docu9 mentation explaining the State-proposed plan revi10 sions. The Secretary shall carefully consider the

11 State’s proposals and work in consultation with the

12 States and operators to address safety concerns.

13 ‘‘(5) MONITORING IMPLEMENTATION.—The Sec14 retary of Transportation shall review the risk anal15 ysis and program for integrity management required

16 under this section and provide for continued moni17 toring of such plans. Not later than 2 years after the

18 implementation of integrity management plans under

19 this section, the Secretary shall complete an assess20 ment and evaluation of the effects on safety and the

21 environment of extending all of the requirements

22 mandated by the regulations described in paragraph

23 (1) to additional areas. The Secretary shall submit

24 the assessment and evaluation to Congress along with
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1 any recommendations to improve and expand the uti2 lization of integrity management plans.’’.

3 SEC. 6. ENFORCEMENT.

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 60112 is amended—

5 (1) by striking subsection (a) and inserting the

6 following:

7 ‘‘(a) GENERAL AUTHORITY.—After notice and an op8 portunity for a hearing, the Secretary of Transportation

9 may decide a pipeline facility is hazardous if the Secretary

10 decides that—

11 ‘‘(1) operation of the facility is or would be haz12 ardous to life, property, or the environment; or

13 ‘‘(2) the facility is, or would be, constructed or

14 operated, of a component of the facility is, or would

15 be, constructed or operated with equipment, material,

16 or a technique that the Secretary decides is hazardous

17 to life, property, or the environment.’’;

18 (2) by striking ‘‘is hazardous,’’ in subsection (d)

19 and inserting ‘‘is, or would be, hazardous’; and

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

21 ‘‘(f) SHUTDOWN AUTHORITY.—

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary, or, in the

23 case of an intrastate pipeline facility operator, the

24 appropriate State regulatory agency, determines that

25 allowing the continued operation of a hazardous liq-
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1 uid or natural gas pipeline creates an imminent haz2 ard (as defined in section 5102(5)), the Secretary or

3 the agency shall take such action as may be necessary

4 to prevent or restrict the operation of that system for

5 30 days.

6 ‘‘(2) SUBSEQUENT EXTENSION AFTER NOTICE

7 AND HEARING.—After taking action under paragraph

8 (1), the Secretary or the agency may extend the pe9 riod that action is in effect if the Secretary or the

10 agency determines, after notice and an opportunity

11 for a hearing, that allowing the operation of the pipe12 line to resume would create an imminent hazard (as

13 defined in section 5102).’’.

14 SEC. 7. PUBLIC EDUCATION, EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS,

15 AND COMMUNITY RIGHT TO KNOW.

16 (a) Section 60116 is amended to read as follows:

17 ‘‘§ 60116. Public education, emergency preparedness,

18 and community right to know

19 ‘‘(a) PUBLIC EDUCATION PROGRAMS.—

20 ‘‘(1) Each owner or operator of a gas or haz21 ardous liquid pipeline facility shall carry out a con22 tinuing program to educate the public on the use of

23 a one-call notification system prior to excavation and

24 other damage prevention activities, the possible haz25 ards associated with unintended releases from the
23

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1 pipeline facility, the physical indications that such

2 a release may have occurred, what steps should be

3 taken for public safety in the event of a pipeline re4 lease, and how to report such an event.

5 ‘‘(2) Within 12 months after the date of enact6 ment of the Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2000,

7 each owner or operator of a gas or hazardous liquid

8 pipeline facility shall review its existing public edu9 cation program for effectiveness and modify the pro10 gram as necessary. The completed program shall in11 clude activities to advise affected municipalities,

12 school districts, businesses, and residents of pipeline

13 facility locations. The completed program shall be

14 submitted to the Secretary or, in the case of an intra15 state pipeline facility operator, the appropriate State

16 agency and shall be periodically reviewed by the Sec17 retary or, in the case of an intrastate pipeline facility

18 operator, the appropriate State agency.

19 ‘‘(3) The Secretary may issue standards pre20 scribing the elements of an effective public education

21 program. The Secretary may also develop material

22 for use in the program.

23 ‘‘(b) EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS.—

24 ‘‘(1) OPERATOR LIAISON.—Within 12 months

25 after the date of enactment of the Pipeline Safety Im-
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1 provement Act of 2000, an operator of a gas trans2 mission or hazardous liquid pipeline facility shall

3 initiate and maintain liaison with the State emer4 gency response commissions, and local emergency

5 planning committees in the areas of pipeline right-of6 way, established under section 301 of the Emergency

7 Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act of

8 1986 (42 U.S.C. 11001) in each State in which it op9 erates.

10 ‘‘(2) INFORMATION.—An operator shall, upon re11 quest, make available to the State emergency response

12 commissions and local emergency planning commit13 tees, and shall make available to the Office of Pipeline

14 Safety in a standardized form for the purpose of pro15 viding the information to the public, the information

16 described in section 60102(d), any program for integ17 rity management, and information about implemen18 tation of that program. The information about the fa19 cility shall also include, at a minimum—

20 ‘‘(A) the business name, address, telephone

21 number of the operator, including a 24-hour

22 emergency contact number;

23 ‘‘(B) a description of the facility including

24 pipe diameter, the product or products carried,

25 and the operating pressure;
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1 ‘‘(C) with respect to transmission pipeline

2 facilities, maps showing the location of the facil3 ity and, when available, any high consequence

4 areas which the pipeline facility traverses or ad5 joins and abuts;

6 ‘‘(D) a summary description of the integ7 rity measures the operator uses to assure safety

8 and protection for the environment; and

9 ‘‘(E) a point of contact to respond to ques10 tions from emergency response representative.

11 ‘‘(3) SMALLER COMMUNITIES.—In a community

12 without a local emergency planning committee, the

13 operator shall maintain liaison with the local fire,

14 police, and other emergency response agencies.

15 ‘‘(4) PUBLIC ACCESS.—The Secretary shall pre16 scribe requirements for public access, as appropriate,

17 to this information, including a requirement that the

18 information be made available to the public by widely

19 accessible computerized database.

20 ‘‘(c) COMMUNITY RIGHT TO KNOW.—Not later than 12

21 months after the date of enactment of the Pipeline Safety

22 Improvement Act of 2000, and annually thereafter, the

23 owner or operator of each gas transmission or hazardous

24 liquid pipeline facility shall provide to the governing body

25 of each municipality in which the pipeline facility is lo-
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1 cated, a map identifying the location of such facility. The

2 map may be provided in electronic form. The Secretary

3 may provide technical assistance to the pipeline industry

4 on developing public safety and public education program

5 content and best practices for program delivery, and on

6 evaluating the effectiveness of the programs. The Secretary

7 may also provide technical assistance to State and local of8 ficials in applying practices developed in these programs

9 to their activities to promote pipeline safety.

10 ‘‘(d) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY OF REPORTS.—The Sec11 retary shall—

12 ‘‘(1) make available to the public—

13 ‘‘(A) a safety-related condition report filed

14 by an operator under section 60102(h);

15 ‘‘(B) a report of a pipeline incident filed by

16 an operator;

17 ‘‘(C) the results of any inspection by the Of18 fice of Pipeline Safety or a State regulatory offi19 cial; and

20 ‘‘(D) a description of any corrective action

21 taken in response to a safety-related condition

22 reported under subparagraph (A), (B), or (C);

23 and

24 ‘‘(2) prescribe requirements for public access, as

25 appropriate, to integrity management program infor-
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1 mation prepared under this chapter, including re2 quirements that will ensure data accessibility to the

3 greatest extent feasible.’’.

4 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter analysis

5 for chapter 601 is amended by striking the item relating

6 to section 60116 and inserting the following:

‘‘60116. Public education, emergency preparedness, community right to know’’.

7 SEC. 8. PENALTIES.

8 (a) CIVIL PENALTIES.—Section 60122 is amended—

9 (1) by striking ‘‘$25,000’’ in subsection (a)(1)

10 and inserting ‘‘$500,000’’;

11 (2) by striking ‘‘$500,000’’ in subsection (a)(1)

12 and inserting ‘‘$1,000,000’’;

13 (3) by adding at the end of subsection (a)(1) the

14 following: ‘‘The preceding sentence does not apply to

15 judicial enforcement action under section 60120 or

16 60121.’’; and

17 (4) by striking subsection (b) and inserting the

18 following:

19 ‘‘(b) PENALTY CONSIDERATIONS.—In determining the

20 amount of a civil penalty under this section—

21 ‘‘(1) the Secretary shall consider—

22 ‘‘(A) the nature, circumstances, and gravity

23 of the violation, including adverse impact on the

24 environment;
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1 ‘‘(B) with respect to the violator, the degree

2 of culpability, any history of prior violations,

3 the ability to pay, any effect on ability to con4 tinue doing business; and

5 ‘‘(C) good faith in attempting to comply;

6 and

7 ‘‘(2) the Secretary may consider—

8 ‘‘(A) the economic benefit gained from the

9 violation without any discount because of subse10 quent damages; and

11 ‘‘(B) other matters that justice requires.’’.

12 (b) EXCAVATOR DAMAGE.—Section 60123(d) is

13 amended—

14 (1) by striking ‘‘knowingly and willfully’’;

15 (2) by inserting ‘‘knowingly and willfully’’ before

16 ‘‘engages’’ in paragraph (1); and

17 (3) striking paragraph (2)(B) and inserting the

18 following:

19 ‘‘(B) a pipeline facility, is aware of dam20 age, and does not report the damage promptly to

21 the operator of the pipeline facility and to other

22 appropriate authorities; or’’.

23 (c) CIVIL ACTIONS.—Section 60120(a)(1) is amended

24 to read as follows:
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1 ‘‘(1) On the request of the Secretary of Transportation,

2 the Attorney General may bring a civil action in an appro3 priate district court of the United States to enforce this

4 chapter, including section 60112 of this chapter, or a regu5 lation prescribed or order issued under this chapter. The

6 court may award appropriate relief, including a temporary

7 or permanent injunction, punitive damages, and assessment

8 of civil penalties considering the same factors as prescribed

9 for the Secretary in an administrative case under section

10 60122.’’.

11 SEC. 9. STATE OVERSIGHT ROLE.

12 (a) STATE AGREEMENTS WITH CERTIFICATION.—Sec13 tion 60106 is amended—

14 (1) by striking ‘‘GENERAL AUTHORITY.—’’ in

15 subsection (a) and inserting ‘‘AGREEMENTS WITHOUT

16 CERTIFICATION.—’’;

17 (2) by redesignating subsections (b), (c), and (d)

18 as subsections (c), (d), and (e); and

19 (3) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol20 lowing:

21 ‘‘(b) AGREEMENTS WITH CERTIFICATION.—

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary accepts a

23 certification under section 60105 of this title and

24 makes the determination required under this sub25 section, the Secretary may make an agreement with
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1 a State authority authorizing it to participate in the

2 oversight of interstate pipeline transportation. Each

3 such agreement shall include a plan for the State au4 thority to participate in special investigations involv5 ing incidents or new construction and allow the State

6 authority to participate in other activities overseeing

7 interstate pipeline transportation or to assume addi8 tional inspection or investigatory duties.

9 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATIONS REQUIRED.—The Sec10 retary may not enter into an agreement under this

11 subsection, unless the Secretary determines that—

12 ‘‘(A) the agreement allowing participation

13 of the State authority is consistent with the Sec14 retary’s program for inspection and consistent

15 with the safety policies and provisions provided

16 under this chapter;

17 ‘‘(B) the interstate participation agreement

18 would not adversely affect the oversight respon19 sibilities of intrastate pipeline transportation by

20 the State authority;

21 ‘‘(C) the State is carrying out a program

22 demonstrated to promote preparedness and risk

23 prevention activities that enable communities to

24 live safely with pipelines;
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1 ‘‘(D) the State meets the minimum stand2 ards for State one-call notification set forth in

3 chapter 61; and

4 ‘‘(E) the actions planned under the agree5 ment would not impede interstate commerce or

6 jeopardize public safety.

7 ‘‘(3) EXISTING AGREEMENTS.—Except as pro8 vided in subsection (e), an agreement between the Sec9 retary and a State authority that is in effect on the

10 date of enactment of the Pipeline Safety Improvement

11 Act of 2000 shall remain in effect until the Secretary

12 determines that the State meets the requirements for

13 a determination under paragraph (2).’’.

14 (b) ENDING AGREEMENTS.—Subsection (e) of section

15 60106, as redesignated by subsection (a), is amended to read

16 as follows:

17 ‘‘(e) ENDING AGREEMENTS.—

18 ‘‘(1) PERMISSIVE TERMINATION.—The Secretary

19 may end an agreement under this section when the

20 Secretary finds that the State authority has not com21 plied with any provision of the agreement.

22 ‘‘(2) MANDATORY TERMINATION OF AGREE23 MENT.—The Secretary shall end an agreement for the

24 oversight of interstate pipeline transportation if the

25 Secretary finds that—
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1 ‘‘(A) implementation of such agreement has

2 resulted in a gap in the oversight responsibilities

3 of intrastate pipeline transportation by the State

4 authority;

5 ‘‘(B) the State actions under the agreement

6 have failed to meet the requirements under sub7 section (b); or

8 ‘‘(C) continued participation by the State

9 authority in the oversight of interstate pipeline

10 transportation is not promoting pipeline safety.

11 ‘‘(3) PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENTS.—The Sec12 retary shall give the notice and an opportunity for a

13 hearing to a State authority before ending an agree14 ment under this section. The Secretary may provide

15 a State an opportunity to correct any deficiencies be16 fore ending an agreement. The finding and decision

17 to end the agreement shall be published in the Federal

18 Register and may not become effective for at least 15

19 days after the date of publication unless the Secretary

20 finds that continuation of an agreement poses an im21 minent hazard.’’.

22 (c) CONTINUATION OF INTERSTATE AGENT AGREE23 MENT AUTHORITY.—

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—If an agreement was in effect

25 in 1999 between the Secretary of Transportation or
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1 one of its agencies and a State to permit that State

2 to oversee interstate pipeline transportation, the Sec3 retary shall continue to permit that State to carry

4 out activities under the agreement, including inspec5 tion responsibilities and other actions to ensure com6 pliance with Federal pipeline safety regulations.

7 (2) TERMINATION.—Notwithstanding paragraph

8 (1), the Secretary may terminate an agreement de9 scribed in that paragraph if—

10 (A) the State wishes to withdraw from the

11 agreement;

12 (B) implementation of the agreement has

13 resulted in gaps in the oversight responsibilities

14 of intrastate pipeline transportation by the

15 State; or

16 (C) the State’s oversight actions under the

17 agreement have had an adverse impact on pipe18 line safety or impeded interstate commerce.

19 (3) PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENTS FOR TERMI20 NATION.—Before terminating an agreement described

21 in paragraph (1), the Secretary shall give notice and

22 an opportunity for a hearing to the State, and pro23 vide an opportunity for the State to correct any defi24 ciencies. The Secretary shall publish the decision to

25 terminate such an agreement and the reasons there-
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1 fore in the Federal Register not less than 15 days be2 fore the termination is effective, unless the Secretary

3 finds that continuation of an agreement poses an im4 minent hazard.

5 SEC. 10. IMPROVED DATA AND DATA AVAILABILITY.

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Within 12 months after the date

7 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall develop and

8 implement a comprehensive plan for the collection and use

9 of gas and hazardous liquid pipeline data to revise the caus10 al categories on the incident report forms to eliminate over11 lapping and confusing categories and include subcategories.

12 The plan shall include components to provide the capability

13 to perform sound incident trend analysis and evaluations

14 of pipeline operator performance using normalized accident

15 data.

16 (b) REPORT OF RELEASES EXCEEDING 5 GALLONS.—

17 Section 60117(b) is amended—

18 (1) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘To’’;

19 (2) redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) as sub20 paragraphs (A) and (B);

21 (3) inserting before the last sentence the fol22 lowing:

23 ‘‘(2) A person owning or operating a hazardous liquid

24 pipeline facility shall report to the Secretary each release

25 to the environment greater than five gallons of the haz-
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1 ardous liquid or carbon dioxide transported. This section

2 applies to releases from pipeline facilities regulated under

3 this chapter. A report must include the location of the re4 lease, fatalities and personal injuries, type of product,

5 amount of product release, cause or causes of the release,

6 extent of damage to property and the environment, and the

7 response undertaken to clean up the release.

8 ‘‘(3) During the course of an incident investigation,

9 a person owning or operating a pipeline facility shall make

10 records, reports, and information required under subsection

11 (a) of this section or other reasonably described records, re12 ports, and information relevant to the incident investiga13 tion, available to the Secretary within the time limits pre14 scribed in a written request.’’; and

15 (4) indenting the first word of the last sentence and

16 inserting ‘‘(4)’’ before ‘‘The Secretary’’ in that sentence.

17 (c) PENALTY AUTHORITIES.—

18 (1) Section 60122(a) is amended by striking

19 ‘‘60114(c)’’ and inserting ‘‘60117(b)(3)’’.

20 (2) Section 60123(a) is amended by striking

21 ‘‘60114(c),’’ and inserting ‘‘60117(b)(3),’’.

22 (d) ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL DEPOSITORY.—

23 Section 60117 is amended by adding at the end the fol24 lowing:
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1 ‘‘(l) NATIONAL DEPOSITORY.—The Secretary

2 shall establish a national depository of data on events

3 and conditions, including spill histories and correc4 tive actions for specific incidents, that can be used to

5 evaluate the risk of, and to prevent, pipeline failures

6 and releases. The Secretary shall administer the pro7 gram through the Bureau of Transportation Statis8 tics, in cooperation with the Research and Special

9 Programs Administration, and shall make such infor10 mation available for use by State and local planning

11 and emergency response authorities and the public.’’.

12 SEC. 11. INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT.

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—As part of the Department of

14 Transportation’s research and development program, the

15 Secretary of Transportation shall direct research attention

16 to the development of alternative technologies—

17 (1) to expand the capabilities of internal inspec18 tion devices to identify and accurately measure de19 fects and anomalies;

20 (2) to inspect pipelines that cannot accommodate

21 internal inspection devices available on the date of

22 enactment;

23 (3) to develop innovative techniques measuring

24 the structural integrity of pipelines;
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1 (4) to improve the capability, reliability, and

2 practicality of external leak detection devices; and

3 (5) to develop and improve alternative tech4 nologies to identify and monitor outside force damage

5 to pipelines.

6 (b) COOPERATIVE.—The Secretary may participate in

7 additional technological development through cooperative

8 agreements with trade associations, academic institutions,

9 or other qualified organizations.

10 SEC. 12. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

11 (a) GAS AND HAZARDOUS LIQUIDS.—Section

12 60125(a) is amended to read as follows:

13 ‘‘(a) GAS AND HAZARDOUS LIQUID.—To carry out

14 this chapter and other pipeline-related damage prevention

15 activities of this title (except for section 60107), there are

16 authorized to be appropriated to the Department of

17 Transportation—

18 ‘‘(1) $26,000,000 for fiscal year 2001, of which

19 $20,000,000 is to be derived from user fees for fiscal

20 year 2001 collected under section 60301 of this title;

21 and

22 ‘‘(2) $30,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2002

23 and 2003 of which $23,000,000 is to be derived from

24 user fees for fiscal year 2002 and fiscal year 2003 col25 lected under section 60301 of this title.’’.
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1 (b) GRANTS TO STATES.—Section 60125(c) is amended

2 to read as follows:

3 ‘‘(c) STATE GRANTS.—Not more than the following

4 amounts may be appropriated to the Secretary to carry out

5 section 60107—

6 ‘‘(1) $17,000,000 for fiscal year 2001, of which

7 $15,000,000 is to be derived from user fees for fiscal

8 year 2001 collected under section 60301 of this title;

9 and

10 ‘‘(2) $20,000,000 for the fiscal years 2002 and

11 2003 of which $18,000,000 is to be derived from user

12 fees for fiscal year 2002 and fiscal year 2003 collected

13 under section 60301 of this title.’’.

14 (c) OIL SPILLS.—Sections 60525 is amended by redes15 ignating subsections (d), (e), and (f) as subsections (e), (f),

16 (g) and inserting after subsection (c) the following:

17 ‘‘(d) OIL SPILL LIABILITY TRUST FUND.—Of the

18 amounts available in the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund,

19 $8,000,000 shall be transferred to carry out programs au20 thorized in this Act for fiscal year 2001, fiscal year 2002,

21 and fiscal year 2003.’’.

22 SEC. 13. OPERATOR ASSISTANCE IN INVESTIGATIONS.

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—If the Department of Transpor24 tation or the National Transportation Safety Board inves25 tigate an accident, the operator involved shall make avail-
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1 able to the representative of the Department or the Board

2 all records and information that in any way pertain to

3 the accident (including integrity management plans and

4 test results), and shall afford all reasonable assistance in

5 the investigation of the accident.

6 (b) HAZARDOUS FACILITY DESIGNATION.—A facility

7 operated by an operator that fails to take prompt action

8 to relieve, reassign, or place on leave (with or without com9 pensation) any employee whose duties affect public safety

10 and whose performance of those duties is a subject of such

11 an accident investigation until the conclusion of the inves12 tigation is deemed to be hazardous under section 60112. The

13 Secretary shall take action under section 60112(d) against

14 that facility.

15 SEC. 14. PROTECTION OF EMPLOYEES PROVIDING PIPE16 LINE SAFETY INFORMATION.

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 601 is amended by adding

18 at the end the following:

19 ‘‘§ 60129. Protection of employees providing pipeline

20 safety information

21 ‘‘(a) DISCRIMINATION AGAINST PIPELINE EMPLOY22 EES.—No pipeline operator or contractor or subcontractor

23 of a pipeline may discharge an employee or otherwise dis24 criminate against an employee with respect to compensa25 tion, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment because
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1 the employee (or any person acting pursuant to a request

2 of the employee)—

3 ‘‘(1) provided, caused to be provided, or is about

4 to provide (with any knowledge of the employer) or

5 cause to be provided to the employer or Federal Gov6 ernment information relating to any violation or al7 leged violation of any order, regulation, or standard

8 of the Research and Special Programs Administration

9 or any other provision of Federal law relating to

10 pipeline safety under this chapter or any other law

11 of the United States;

12 ‘‘(2) has filed, caused to be filed, or is about to

13 file (with any knowledge of the employer) or cause to

14 be filed a proceeding relating to any violation or al15 leged violation of any order, regulation, or standard

16 of the Administration or any other provision of Fed17 eral law relating to pipeline safety under this chapter

18 or any other law of the United States;

19 ‘‘(3) testified or is about to testify in such a pro20 ceeding; or

21 ‘‘(4) assisted or participated or is about to assist

22 or participate in such a proceeding.

23 ‘‘(b) DEPARTMENT OF LABOR COMPLAINT PROCE24 DURE.—
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1 ‘‘(1) FILING AND NOTIFICATION.—A person who

2 believes that he or she has been discharged or other3 wise discriminated against by any person in viola4 tion of subsection (a) may, not later than 90 days

5 after the date on which such violation occurs, file (or

6 have any person file on his or her behalf) a complaint

7 with the Secretary of Labor alleging such discharge or

8 discrimination. Upon receipt of such a complaint, the

9 Secretary of Labor shall notify, in writing, the person

10 named in the complaint and the Administrator of the

11 Research and Special Programs Administration of the

12 filing of the complaint, of the allegations contained in

13 the complaint, of the substance of evidence supporting

14 the complaint, and of the opportunities that will be

15 afforded to such person under paragraph (2).

16 ‘‘(2) INVESTIGATION; PRELIMINARY ORDER.—

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days

18 after the date of receipt of a complaint filed

19 under paragraph (1) and after affording the per20 son named in the complaint an opportunity to

21 submit to the Secretary of Labor a written re22 sponse to the complaint and an opportunity to

23 meet with a representative of the Secretary to

24 present statements from witnesses, the Secretary

25 of Labor shall conduct an investigation and de-
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1 termine whether there is reasonable cause to be2 lieve that the complaint has merit and notify in

3 writing the complainant and the person alleged

4 to have committed a violation of subsection (a)

5 of the Secretary’s findings. If the Secretary of

6 Labor concludes that there is reasonable cause to

7 believe that a violation of subsection (a) has oc8 curred, the Secretary shall accompany the Sec9 retary’s findings with a preliminary order pro10 viding the relief prescribed by paragraph (3)(B).

11 Not later than 30 days after the date of notifica12 tion of findings under this paragraph, either the

13 person alleged to have committed the violation or

14 the complainant may file objections to the find15 ings or preliminary order, or both, and request

16 a hearing on the record. The filing of such objec17 tions shall not operate to stay any reinstatement

18 remedy contained in the preliminary order. Such

19 hearings shall be conducted expeditiously. If a

20 hearing is not requested in such 30-day period,

21 the preliminary order shall be deemed a final

22 order that is not subject to judicial review.

23 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS.—

24 ‘‘(i) REQUIRED SHOWING BY COM25 PLAINANT.—The Secretary of Labor shall
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1 dismiss a complaint filed under this sub2 section and shall not conduct an investiga3 tion otherwise required under subparagraph

4 (A) unless the complainant makes a prima

5 facie showing that any behavior described

6 in paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection

7 (a) was a contributing factor in the unfa8 vorable personnel action alleged in the com9 plaint.

10 ‘‘(ii) SHOWING BY EMPLOYER.—Not11 withstanding a finding by the Secretary

12 that the complainant has made the showing

13 required under clause (i), no investigation

14 otherwise required under subparagraph (A)

15 shall be conducted if the employer dem16 onstrates, by clear and convincing evidence,

17 that the employer would have taken the

18 same unfavorable personnel action in the

19 absence of that behavior.

20 ‘‘(iii) CRITERIA FOR DETERMINATION

21 BY SECRETARY.—The Secretary may deter22 mine that a violation of subsection (a) has

23 occurred only if the complainant dem24 onstrates that any behavior described in

25 paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection (a)
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1 was a contributing factor in the unfavorable

2 personnel action alleged in the complaint.

3 ‘‘(iv) PROHIBITION.—Relief may not

4 be ordered under subparagraph (A) if the

5 employer demonstrates by clear and con6 vincing evidence that the employer would

7 have taken the same unfavorable personnel

8 action in the absence of that behavior.

9 ‘‘(3) FINAL ORDER.—

10 ‘‘(A) DEADLINE FOR ISSUANCE; SETTLE11 MENT AGREEMENTS.—Not later than 120 days

12 after the date of conclusion of a hearing under

13 paragraph (2), the Secretary of Labor shall issue

14 a final order providing the relief prescribed by

15 this paragraph or denying the complaint. At any

16 time before issuance of a final order, a pro17 ceeding under this subsection may be terminated

18 on the basis of a settlement agreement entered

19 into by the Secretary of Labor, the complainant,

20 and the person alleged to have committed the

21 violation.

22 ‘‘(B) REMEDY.—If, in response to a com23 plaint filed under paragraph (1), the Secretary

24 of Labor determines that a violation of sub25 section (a) has occurred, the Secretary of Labor
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1 shall order the person who committed such viola2 tion to—

3 ‘‘(i) take affirmative action to abate

4 the violation;

5 ‘‘(ii) reinstate the complainant to his

6 or her former position together with the

7 compensation (including back pay) and re8 store the terms, conditions, and privileges

9 associated with his or her employment; and

10 ‘‘(iii) provide compensatory damages

11 to the complainant.

12 If such an order is issued under this para13 graph, the Secretary of Labor, at the request of

14 the complainant, shall assess against the person

15 whom the order is issued a sum equal to the ag16 gregate amount of all costs and expenses (includ17 ing attorney’s and expert witness fees) reason18 ably incurred, as determined by the Secretary of

19 Labor, by the complainant for, or in connection

20 with, the bringing the complaint upon which the

21 order was issued.

22 ‘‘(C) FRIVOLOUS COMPLAINTS.—If the Sec23 retary of Labor finds that a complaint under

24 paragraph (1) is frivolous or has been brought in

25 bad faith, the Secretary of Labor may award to
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1 the prevailing employer a reasonable attorney’s

2 fee not exceeding $1,000.

3 ‘‘(4) REVIEW.—

4 ‘‘(A) APPEAL TO COURT OF APPEALS.—Any

5 person adversely affected or aggrieved by an

6 order issued under paragraph (3) may obtain re7 view of the order in the United States Court of

8 Appeals for the circuit in which the violation,

9 with respect to which the order was issued, alleg10 edly occurred or the circuit in which the com11 plainant resided on the date of such violation.

12 The petition for review must be filed not later

13 than 60 days after the date of issuance of the

14 final order of the Secretary of Labor. Review

15 shall conform to chapter 7 of title 5, United

16 States Code. The commencement of proceedings

17 under this subparagraph shall not, unless or18 dered by the court, operate as a stay of the order.

19 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION ON COLLATERAL AT20 TACK.—An order of the Secretary of Labor with

21 respect to which review could have been obtained

22 under subparagraph (A) shall not be subject to

23 judicial review in any criminal or other civil

24 proceeding.
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1 ‘‘(5) ENFORCEMENT OF ORDER BY SECRETARY

2 OF LABOR.—Whenever any person has failed to com3 ply with an order issued under paragraph (3), the

4 Secretary of Labor may file a civil action in the

5 United States district court for the district in which

6 the violation was found to occur to enforce such order.

7 In actions brought under this paragraph, the district

8 courts shall have jurisdiction to grant all appropriate

9 relief, including, but not to be limited to, injunctive

10 relief and compensatory damages.

11 ‘‘(6) ENFORCEMENT OF ORDER BY PARTIES.—

12 ‘‘(A) COMMENCEMENT OF ACTION.—A per13 son on whose behalf an order was issued under

14 paragraph (3) may commence a civil action

15 against the person to whom such order was

16 issued to require compliance with such order.

17 The appropriate United States district court

18 shall have jurisdiction, without regard to the

19 amount in controversy or the citizenship of the

20 parties, to enforce such order.

21 ‘‘(B) ATTORNEY FEES.—The court, in

22 issuing any final order under this paragraph,

23 may award costs of litigation (including reason24 able attorney and expert witness fees) to any
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1 party whenever the court determines such award

2 costs is appropriate.

3 ‘‘(c) MANDAMUS.—Any nondiscretionary duty im4 posed by this section shall be enforceable in a mandamus

5 proceeding brought under section 1361 of title 28, United

6 States Code.

7 ‘‘(d) NONAPPLICABILITY TO DELIBERATE VIOLA8 TIONS.—Subsection (a) shall not apply with respect to an

9 employee of a pipeline, contractor or subcontractor who,

10 acting without direction from the pipeline contractor or

11 subcontractor (or such person’s agent), deliberately causes

12 a violation of any requirement relating to pipeline safety

13 under this chapter or any other law of the United States.

14 ‘‘(e) CONTRACTOR DEFINED.—In this section, the term

15 ‘contractor’ means a company that performs safety-sensitive

16 functions by contract for a pipeline.’’.

17 (b) CIVIL PENALTY.—Section 60122(a) is amended by

18 adding at the end the following:

19 ‘‘(3) A person violating section 60129, or an order

20 issued thereunder, is liable to the Government for a civil

21 penalty of not more than $1,000 for each violation. The

22 penalties provided by paragraph (1) do not apply to a vio23 lation of section 60129 or an order issued thereunder.’’.
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1 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter analysis

2 for chapter 601 is amended by adding at the end the fol3 lowing:

‘‘60129. Protection of employees providing pipeline safety information.’’.

4 SEC. 15. PIPELINE SAFETY ADVISORY COUNCIL PILOT PRO5 GRAM.

6 (a) PILOT PROGRAM.—Within 120 days after the date

7 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation

8 shall create a Pipeline Safety Advisory Council pilot pro9 gram. Under the pilot program, the Secretary shall estab10 lish one or more Pipeline Safety Advisory Councils to pro11 vide advice and recommendations to the Secretary on a

12 range of hazardous liquid or natural gas transmission pipe13 line safety issues affecting pipelines operated in the State

14 in which the Council is established.

15 (b) ESTABLISHMENT AND COMPOSITION.—A Council

16 shall be comprised of 11 members, appointed by the Sec17 retary as follows:

18 (1) All members shall be residents of the State in

19 which the pipelines are located the safety of which

20 that Council is to review and monitor.

21 (2) The membership shall include representatives

22 of—

23 (A) the general public (who are not rep24 resentatives of any other category under this

25 paragraph);
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1 (B) pipeline right-of-way property owners

2 (who are not representatives of any other cat3 egory under this paragraph);

4 (C) local governments;

5 (D) emergency responders;

6 (E) environmental organizations; and

7 (F) State officials with jurisdiction over

8 pipeline safety.

9 (c) FUNCTIONS.—Each Advisory Council shall provide

10 advice to the Secretary on pipeline safety regulations and

11 other matters relating to activities and functions of the De12 partment of Transportation’s Office of Pipeline Safety.

13 Each meeting shall be open to the public and the Council

14 shall maintain minutes of each meeting. Any recommenda15 tions made by a Council shall be available upon request

16 to other interested parties. In carrying out its advisory du17 ties, each Council shall—

18 (1) provide advice and recommendations on poli19 cies, permits, and regulations relating to the oper20 ation and maintenance of pipeline facilities which af21 fect the State to the Secretary and the Governor of the

22 State;

23 (2) review and comment on proposals for new

24 pipeline facilities in the State, including issues of

25 public safety and environmental impact;
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1 (3) submit advice to the Secretary on permits

2 and standards that would affect the environment and

3 safety of a pipeline operating in that State;

4 (4) submit recommendations to the Secretary

5 and appropriate authorities of the State on standards

6 to improve pipeline safety, accidental release re7 sponses, emergency preparedness, and efforts to help

8 the public live safely with pipelines; and

9 (5) provide an annual report to the Secretary on

10 its activities and the steps taken in the State to ad11 dress its advice and safety recommendations.

12 (d) FUNDING.—

13 (1) FUNDING REQUEST BY COUNCIL.—Each

14 Council shall submit an application for a funding re15 quest to the Secretary, at such time, in such form,

16 and containing such information as the Secretary

17 may require, outlining the Council’s budget.

18 (2) SECRETARY TO APPROVE BUDGET AND PRO19 VIDE FUNDS.—After receiving a request under para20 graph (1) from a Council, the Secretary shall deter21 mine the level of Council funding and may—

22 (A) utilize funds obtained from fines and

23 penalties to finance the Council; or

24 (B) make appropriated funds available to

25 the Council.
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1 (e) PILOT PROGRAM ASSESSMENT.—A Council estab2 lished under this section shall submit an annual report to

3 the Secretary. The annual report shall list all activities un4 dertaken by the Council to improve the safety of pipelines

5 located within its State and what action taken was by the

6 State and Department of Transportation to address pipe7 line operation safety as a result of the Council’s activities.

8 Based on the submitted annual reports, and any other ma9 terial a Council may submit, the Secretary shall determine

10 the need for continuing and, if appropriate, expanding the

11 pilot program. The Secretary shall report that determina12 tion, together with any recommendations concerning the

13 program, to the House of Representatives Committee on

14 Transportation and Infrastructure and the Senate Com15 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation by De16 cember 31, 2004.

17 SEC. 16. FINES AND PENALTIES.

18 The Inspector General of the Department of Transpor19 tation shall conduct an analysis of the Department’s assess20 ment of fines and penalties on gas transmission and haz21 ardous liquid pipelines, including the cost of corrective ac22 tions required by the Department in lieu of fines, and, no

23 later than 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act,

24 shall provide a report to the Senate Committee on Com25 merce, Science, and Transportation and the House Com-
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1 mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure on any find2 ings and recommendations for actions by the Secretary or

3 Congress to ensure the fines assessed are an effective deter4 rent for reducing safety risks.

5 SEC. 17. STUDY OF RIGHTS-OF-WAY.

6 The Secretary of Transportation is authorized to con7 duct a study on how best to preserve environmental re8 sources in conjunction with maintaining pipeline rights9 of-way. The study shall recognize pipeline operators’ regu10 latory obligations to maintain rights-of-way and to protect

11 public safety.
Calendar No. 763

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2438

[Report No. 106–387]

A BILL

To provide for enhanced safety, public awareness,

and environmental protection in pipeline transportation, and for other purposes.

AUGUST 25, 2000

Reported with an amendment in the nature of a

substitute