I 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2845 

To amend title 49, United States Code, to provide for enhanced safety 

and environmental protection in pipeline transportation, to provide for 

enhanced reliability in the transportation of the Nation’s energy products 

by pipeline, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 7, 2011 

Mr. SHUSTER (for himself and Mr. MICA) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and 

in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to 

be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 

concerned 

A BILL 

To amend title 49, United States Code, to provide for enhanced safety and environmental protection in pipeline 

transportation, to provide for enhanced reliability in the 

transportation of the Nation’s energy products by pipeline, 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; DEFINITIONS; TABLE 

3 OF CONTENTS. 

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

5 ‘‘Pipeline Safety, Regulatory Certainty, and Job Creation 

6 Act of 2011’’. 

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 

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

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

13 Code. 

14 (c) DEFINITIONS.—Any term used in this Act that 

15 is defined in chapter 601 of title 49, United States Code, 

16 shall have the meaning given that term in that chapter. 

17 (d) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

18 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; amendment of title 49, United States Code; definitions; 

table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Civil penalties. 

Sec. 3. Pipeline damage prevention. 

Sec. 4. Automatic and remote-controlled shut-off valves. 

Sec. 5. Integrity management. 

Sec. 6. Public education and awareness. 

Sec. 7. Cast iron gas pipelines. 

Sec. 8. Leak detection. 

Sec. 9. Accident and incident notification. 

Sec. 10. Transportation-related onshore facility response plan compliance. 

Sec. 11. Transportation-related oil flow lines. 

Sec. 12. Cost recovery for design reviews. 

Sec. 13. Biofuel pipelines. 

Sec. 14. Carbon dioxide pipelines. 

Sec. 15. Study of transportation of diluted bitumen. 


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Sec. 16. Study of non-petroleum hazardous liquids transported by pipeline. 

Sec. 17. Clarifications. 

Sec. 18. Maintenance of effort. 

Sec. 19. Administrative enforcement process. 

Sec. 20. Gas and hazardous liquid gathering lines. 

Sec. 21. Authorization of appropriations. 

1 SEC. 2. CIVIL PENALTIES. 

2 (a) GENERAL PENALTIES; PENALTY CONSIDER3 ATIONS.—Section 60122 is amended— 

4 (1) in subsection (a)(1)— 

5 (A) in the first sentence by striking 

6 ‘‘$100,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$175,000’’; and 

7 (B) in the last sentence by striking 

8 ‘‘$1,000,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$1,750,000’’; and 

9 (2) in subsection (b)(1)(B) by striking ‘‘the 

10 ability to pay,’’. 

11 (b) OPERATOR ASSISTANCE IN INVESTIGATIONS.— 

12 Section 60118(e) is amended to read as follows: 

13 ‘‘(e) OPERATOR ASSISTANCE IN INVESTIGATIONS.— 

14 ‘‘(1) ASSISTANCE AND ACCESS.—If the Sec15 retary or the National Transportation Safety Board 

16 investigates an accident involving a pipeline facility, 

17 the operator of the facility shall— 

18 ‘‘(A) make available to the Secretary or 

19 the Board all records and information that in 

20 any way pertain to the accident (including in21 tegrity management plans and test results); and 


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1 ‘‘(B) afford all reasonable assistance in the 

2 investigation of the accident. 

3 ‘‘(2) OPERATOR ASSISTANCE IN INVESTIGA4 TIONS.— 

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

6 impose a civil penalty under section 60122 on 

7 a person who obstructs or prevents the Sec8 retary from carrying out inspections or inves9 tigations under this chapter. 

10 ‘‘(B) DEFINITIONS.—In this paragraph, 

11 the following definitions apply: 

12 ‘‘(i) OBSTRUCTS.—The term ‘ob13 structs’ includes actions that were known, 

14 or reasonably should have been known, to 

15 prevent, hinder, or impede an investigation 

16 without good cause. 

17 ‘‘(ii) GOOD CAUSE.—The term ‘good 

18 cause’ includes, at a minimum, restricting 

19 access to facilities that are not secure or 

20 safe for non-pipeline personnel or visi21 tors.’’. 

22 (c) ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTY CAPS INAPPLI23 CABLE.—Section 60120(a)(1) is amended by adding at the 

24 end the following: ‘‘The maximum amount of civil pen25 alties for administrative enforcement actions under section 


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1 60122 shall not apply to enforcement actions under this 

2 section.’’. 

3 (d) JUDICIAL REVIEW OF ADMINISTRATIVE EN4 FORCEMENT ORDERS.—Section 60119(a) is amended— 

5 (1) in the subsection heading by striking ‘‘AND

6 WAIVER ORDERS’’ and inserting ‘‘, ORDERS, AND

7 OTHER FINAL AGENCY ACTIONS’’; and 

8 (2) by striking ‘‘about an application for a 

9 waiver under section 60118(c) or (d) of this title’’ 

10 and inserting ‘‘under this chapter’’. 

11 SEC. 3. PIPELINE DAMAGE PREVENTION. 

12 (a) MINIMUM STANDARDS FOR STATE ONE-CALL

13 NOTIFICATION PROGRAMS.—Section 6103(a) is amended 

14 to read as follows: 

15 ‘‘(a) MINIMUM STANDARDS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In order to qualify for a 

17 grant under section 6106, a State one-call notifica18 tion program, at a minimum, shall provide for— 

19 ‘‘(A) appropriate participation by all un20 derground facility operators, including all gov21 ernment operators; 

22 ‘‘(B) appropriate participation by all exca23 vators, including all government and contract 

24 excavators; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) flexible and effective enforcement 

2 under State law with respect to participation in, 

3 and use of, one-call notification systems. 

4 ‘‘(2) EXEMPTIONS PROHIBITED.—In order to 

5 qualify for a grant under section 6106, a State one6 call notification program may not exempt munici7 palities, State agencies, or their contractors from its 

8 one-call notification system requirements.’’. 

9 (b) STATE DAMAGE PREVENTION PROGRAMS.—Sec10 tion 60134(a) is amended— 

11 (1) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ after 

12 the semicolon; 

13 (2) in paragraph (2)(B) by striking ‘‘(b).’’ and 

14 inserting ‘‘(b); and’’; and 

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

16 ‘‘(3) does not provide any exemptions to mu17 nicipalities, State agencies, or their contractors from 

18 its one-call notification system requirements.’’. 

19 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

20 this section shall take effect 2 years after the date of en21 actment of this Act. 

22 (d) THIRD PARTY DAMAGE.— 

23 (1) STUDY.—The Secretary of Transportation 

24 shall conduct a study on the impact of third party 

25 damage on pipeline safety. 


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1 (2) CONTENTS.—The study shall include— 

2 (A) an analysis of the frequency and sever3 ity of different types of third party damage in4 cidents; 

5 (B) an analysis of exemptions to the one6 call notification system requirements in each 

7 State; 

8 (C) a comparison of exemptions to the one9 call notification system requirements in each 

10 State to the types of third party damage inci11 dents in that State; and 

12 (D) an analysis of the potential safety ben13 efits and adverse consequences of eliminating 

14 all exemptions for mechanized excavation from 

15 State one-call notification systems. 

16 (3) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the 

17 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 

18 submit to the House of Representatives Committee 

19 on Transportation and Infrastructure and Com20 mittee on Energy and Commerce and the Senate 

21 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor22 tation a report on the results of the study. 

23 SEC. 4. AUTOMATIC AND REMOTE-CONTROLLED SHUT-OFF 

24 VALVES. 

25 Section 60102 is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking subsection (j)(3); and 

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

3 ‘‘(n) AUTOMATIC AND REMOTE-CONTROLLED SHUT4 OFF VALVES FOR NEW TRANSMISSION PIPELINES.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may require 

6 by regulation, if determined appropriate by the Sec7 retary, the use of automatic or remote-controlled 

8 shut-off valves, or equivalent technology, where eco9 nomically, technically, and operationally feasible on 

10 transmission pipeline facilities constructed or en11 tirely replaced after the date on which the Secretary 

12 issues the final rule containing such requirement. 

13 ‘‘(2) FACTORS FOR CONSIDERATION.—In deter14 mining whether to proceed with a rulemaking under 

15 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall consider the fac16 tors specified in subsection (b)(2).’’. 

17 SEC. 5. INTEGRITY MANAGEMENT. 

18 (a) EVALUATION.—Not later than 2 years after the 

19 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transpor20 tation shall evaluate— 

21 (1) whether integrity management system re22 quirements, or elements thereof, should be expanded 

23 beyond high consequence areas; and 

24 (2) with respect to gas transmission pipeline fa25 cilities, whether applying integrity management proVerDate Mar 15 2010 04:05 Sep 09, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2845.IH H2845

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1 gram requirements, or elements thereof, to addi2 tional areas would mitigate the need for class loca3 tion requirements. 

4 (b) REPAIR CRITERIA.—In conducting the evaluation 

5 under subsection (a), the Secretary shall consider applying 

6 repair criteria, such as pressure reductions and special re7 quirements for scheduling remediation, to areas that are 

8 not high consequence areas. 

9 (c) REPORT.—Based on the evaluation to be con10 ducted under subsection (a), the Secretary shall submit 

11 to the House of Representatives Committee on Transpor12 tation and Infrastructure and Committee on Energy and 

13 Commerce and the Senate Committee on Commerce, 

14 Science, and Transportation a report containing the Sec15 retary’s analysis and findings regarding— 

16 (1) expansion of integrity management require17 ments, or elements thereof, beyond high consequence 

18 areas; and 

19 (2) with respect to gas transmission pipeline fa20 cilities, whether applying the integrity management 

21 program requirements, or elements thereof, to addi22 tional areas would mitigate the need for class loca23 tion requirements. 


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1 (d) DATA REPORTING.—The Secretary shall collect 

2 any relevant data necessary to complete the evaluation re3 quired by subsection (a). 

4 (e) TECHNICAL CORRECTION.—Section 

5 60109(c)(3)(B) is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(B) Subject to paragraph (5), periodic re7 assessments of the facility, at a minimum of 

8 once every 7 calendar years, using methods de9 scribed in subparagraph (A). Such deadline 

10 shall be extended for an additional 6 months if 

11 the operator submits written notice to the Sec12 retary that includes an explanation of the need 

13 for the extension.’’. 

14 (f) PROHIBITION.—Notwithstanding the authority of 

15 the Secretary under section 60102 of title 49, United 

16 States Code, the Secretary shall not expand integrity man17 agement system requirements, or elements thereof, beyond 

18 high consequence areas. 

19 (g) REPORT TO CONGRESS ON RISK-BASED PIPE20 LINE REASSESSMENT INTERVALS.—Not later than 2 

21 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comp22 troller General of the United States shall evaluate— 

23 (1) whether risk-based reassessment intervals 

24 are a more effective alternative for managing risks 

25 to pipelines in high-consequence areas once baseline 


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1 assessments are complete when compared to a 7- 

2 year reassessment interval; 

3 (2) the number of anomalies found in baseline 

4 assessments required under section 60109(c)(3)(A) 

5 of title 49, United States Code, as compared to the 

6 number of anomalies found in reassessments re7 quired under section 60109(c)(3)(B) of such title; 

8 and 

9 (3) the progress made in incorporating the rec10 ommendations in GAO Report 06–945 and the cur11 rent relevance of recommendations not incorporated 

12 to date. 

13 (h) HIGH CONSEQUENCE AREA DEFINED.—In this 

14 section, the term ‘‘high consequence area’’ means an area 

15 described in section 60109(a) of title 49, United States 

16 Code. 

17 SEC. 6. PUBLIC EDUCATION AND AWARENESS. 

18 (a) NATIONAL PIPELINE MAPPING SYSTEM.— 

19 (1) MAP OF HIGH CONSEQUENCE AREAS.—The 

20 Secretary of Transportation shall— 

21 (A) maintain, as part of the National Pipe22 line Mapping System, a map of all designated 

23 high consequence areas (as described in section 

24 60109(a) of title 49, United States Code) in 

25 which pipelines are required to meet integrity 


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1 management safety regulations, excluding any 

2 proprietary or sensitive security information; 

3 and 

4 (B) update the map biennially. 

5 (2) PROGRAM TO PROMOTE AWARENESS OF NA6 TIONAL PIPELINE MAPPING SYSTEM.—Not later 

7 than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, 

8 the Secretary shall develop and implement a pro9 gram promoting greater awareness of the existence 

10 of the National Pipeline Mapping System to State 

11 and local emergency responders and other interested 

12 parties. The program shall include guidance on how 

13 to use the National Pipeline Mapping System to lo14 cate pipelines in communities and local jurisdictions. 

15 (b) INFORMATION TO EMERGENCY RESPONSE AGEN16 CIES.— 

17 (1) GUIDANCE.—Not later than 18 months 

18 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec19 retary shall issue guidance to owners and operators 

20 of pipeline facilities on the importance of providing 

21 system-specific information about their pipeline fa22 cilities to emergency response agencies of the com23 munities and jurisdictions in which those facilities 

24 are located. 


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1 (2) CONSULTATION.—Before issuing guidance 

2 under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall consult 

3 with owners and operators of pipeline facilities to de4 termine the extent to which the owners and opera5 tors are already providing system-specific informa6 tion about their pipeline facilities to emergency re7 sponse agencies. 

8 SEC. 7. CAST IRON GAS PIPELINES. 

9 (a) FOLLOW-UP SURVEYS.—Section 60108(d) is 

10 amended by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(4) Not later than December 31, 2012, and every 

12 2 years thereafter, the Secretary shall conduct a follow13 up survey to measure the progress that owners and opera14 tors of pipeline facilities have made in implementing their 

15 plans for the safe management and replacement of cast 

16 iron gas pipelines.’’. 

17 (b) STATUS REPORT.—Not later than December 31, 

18 2013, the Secretary of Transportation shall transmit to 

19 the House of Representatives Committee on Transpor20 tation and Infrastructure and Committee on Energy and 

21 Commerce and the Senate Committee on Commerce, 

22 Science, and Transportation a report that— 

23 (1) identifies the total mileage of cast iron gas 

24 pipelines in the United States; and 


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1 (2) evaluates the progress that owners and op2 erators of pipeline facilities have made in imple3 menting their plans for the safe management and 

4 replacement of cast iron gas pipelines. 

5 SEC. 8. LEAK DETECTION. 

6 (a) LEAK DETECTION REPORT.— 

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

8 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

9 Transportation shall submit to the Senate Com10 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

11 and the House of Representatives Committee on 

12 Transportation and Infrastructure and Committee 

13 on Energy and Commerce a report on leak detection 

14 systems utilized by operators of hazardous liquid 

15 pipeline facilities and transportation-related flow 

16 lines. 

17 (2) CONTENTS.—The report shall include— 

18 (A) an analysis of the technical limitations 

19 of current leak detection systems, including the 

20 systems’ ability to detect ruptures and small 

21 leaks that are ongoing or intermittent, and 

22 what can be done to foster development of bet23 ter technologies; and 

24 (B) an analysis of the feasibility of estab25 lishing technically, operationally, and economiVerDate Mar 15 2010 05:09 Sep 08, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2845.IH H2845

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1 cally feasible standards for the capability of 

2 such systems to detect leaks, and the safety 

3 benefits and adverse consequences of requiring 

4 operators to use leak detection systems. 

5 (b) PROHIBITION.—Notwithstanding the authority of 

6 the Secretary under section 60102 of title 49, United 

7 States Code, the Secretary shall not issue regulations es8 tablishing standards for the capability of leak detection 

9 systems or requiring operators to use leak detection sys10 tems. 

11 SEC. 9. ACCIDENT AND INCIDENT NOTIFICATION. 

12 (a) REVISION OF REGULATIONS.—Not later than 18 

13 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec14 retary of Transportation shall revise regulations issued 

15 under sections 191.5 and 195.52 of title 49, Code of Fed16 eral Regulations, to establish specific time limits for tele17 phonic or electronic notice of accidents and incidents in18 volving pipeline facilities to the Secretary and the National 

19 Response Center. 

20 (b) MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS.—In revising the regu21 lations, the Secretary, at a minimum, shall— 

22 (1) establish time limits for telephonic or elec23 tronic notification of an accident or incident to re24 quire such notification not less than 1 hour and not 


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1 more than 2 hours after discovery of the accident or 

2 incident; 

3 (2) review procedures for owners and operators 

4 of pipeline facilities and the National Response Cen5 ter to provide thorough and coordinated notification 

6 to all relevant State and local emergency response 

7 officials, including 911 emergency call centers, for 

8 the jurisdictions in which those pipeline facilities are 

9 located in the event of an accident or incident, and 

10 revise such procedures as appropriate; and 

11 (3) require such owners and operators to revise 

12 their initial telephonic or electronic notice to the 

13 Secretary and the National Response Center with an 

14 estimated amount of the product released, an esti15 mated number of fatalities and injuries, if any, and 

16 any other information determined appropriate by the 

17 Secretary within 24 to 48 hours of the accident or 

18 incident, to the extent practicable. 

19 (c) UPDATING OF REPORTS.—After receiving revi20 sions described in subsection (b)(3), the National Re21 sponse Center shall update the initial report on an acci22 dent or incident instead of generating a new report. 


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1 SEC. 10. TRANSPORTATION-RELATED ONSHORE FACILITY 

2 RESPONSE PLAN COMPLIANCE. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subparagraphs (A) and (B) of 

4 section 311(m)(2) of the Federal Water Pollution Control 

5 Act (33 U.S.C. 1321(m)(2)) are each amended by striking 

6 ‘‘Administrator or’’ and inserting ‘‘Administrator, the 

7 Secretary of Transportation, or’’. 

8 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

9 311(b)(6)(A) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act 

10 (33 U.S.C. 1321(b)(6)(A)) is amended by striking ‘‘oper11 ating or’’ and inserting ‘‘operating, the Secretary of 

12 Transportation, or’’. 

13 SEC. 11. TRANSPORTATION-RELATED OIL FLOW LINES. 

14 Section 60102, as amended by this Act, is further 

15 amended by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(o) TRANSPORTATION-RELATED OIL FLOW

17 LINES.— 

18 ‘‘(1) DATA COLLECTION.—The Secretary may 

19 collect geospatial or technical data on transpor20 tation-related oil flow lines, including unregulated 

21 transportation-related oil flow lines. 

22 ‘‘(2) TRANSPORTATION-RELATED OIL FLOW

23 LINE DEFINED.—In this subsection, the term ‘trans24 portation-related oil flow line’ means a pipeline 

25 transporting oil off of the grounds of the well where 

26 it originated across areas not owned by the proVerDate Mar 15 2010 05:09 Sep 08, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2845.IH H2845

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1 ducer, regardless of the extent to which the oil has 

2 been processed, if at all. 

3 ‘‘(3) LIMITATION.—Nothing in this subsection 

4 authorizes the Secretary to prescribe standards for 

5 the movement of oil through production, refining, or 

6 manufacturing facilities, or through oil production 

7 flow lines located on the grounds of wells.’’. 

8 SEC. 12. COST RECOVERY FOR DESIGN REVIEWS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 60117(n) is amended to 

10 read as follows: 

11 ‘‘(n) COST RECOVERY FOR DESIGN REVIEWS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.— 

13 ‘‘(A) REVIEW COSTS.—For any project de14 scribed in subparagraph (B), if the Secretary 

15 conducts facility design safety reviews in con16 nection with a proposal to construct, expand, or 

17 operate a new gas or hazardous liquid pipeline 

18 facility or liquefied natural gas pipeline facility, 

19 the Secretary may require the person proposing 

20 the project to pay the costs incurred by the Sec21 retary relating to such reviews. If the Secretary 

22 exercises the cost recovery authority described 

23 in this subsection, the Secretary shall prescribe 

24 a fee structure and assessment methodology 

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1 views and shall prescribe procedures to collect 

2 fees under this subsection. The Secretary shall 

3 not collect design safety review fees under this 

4 chapter and section 60301 for the same design 

5 safety review. 

6 ‘‘(B) PROJECTS TO WHICH APPLICABLE.— 

7 Subparagraph (A) applies to any project that— 

8 ‘‘(i) has design and construction costs 

9 totaling at least $3,400,000,000, as ad10 justed for inflation, based on a good faith 

11 estimate developed by the person proposing 

12 the project; or 

13 ‘‘(ii) uses new or novel technologies or 

14 design. 

15 ‘‘(2) NOTIFICATION.—For any new pipeline fa16 cility construction project for which the Secretary 

17 will conduct design reviews, the person proposing the 

18 project shall notify the Secretary and provide the de19 sign specifications, construction plans and proce20 dures, and related materials at least 120 days prior 

21 to the commencement of construction. If the Sec22 retary determines that the proposed design of the 

23 project is inconsistent with pipeline safety, the Sec24 retary shall provide written comments, feedback, and 

25 guidance on the project on or before the 60th day 


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1 following the date of receipt of the design specifica2 tions, construction plans and procedures, and related 

3 materials for the project. 

4 ‘‘(3) PIPELINE SAFETY DESIGN REVIEW

5 FUND.— 

6 ‘‘(A) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is estab7 lished a Pipeline Safety Design Review Fund in 

8 the Treasury of the United States. 

9 ‘‘(B) DEPOSITS.—The Secretary shall de10 posit funds paid under this subsection into the 

11 Fund. 

12 ‘‘(C) USE.—Amounts in the Fund shall be 

13 available to the Secretary, in amounts specified 

14 in appropriations Acts, to offset the costs of 

15 conducting facility design safety reviews under 

16 this subsection. 

17 ‘‘(4) NO ADDITIONAL PERMITTING AUTHOR18 ITY.—Nothing in this subsection shall be construed 

19 as authorizing the Secretary to require a person to 

20 obtain a permit before beginning design and con21 struction in connection with a project described in 

22 paragraph (1)(B).’’. 

23 (b) GUIDANCE.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

24 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation 

25 shall issue guidance to clarify the meaning of the term 


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1 ‘‘new or novel technologies or design’’ as used in section 

2 60117(n) of title 49, United States Code, as amended by 

3 subsection (a) of this section. 

4 SEC. 13. BIOFUEL PIPELINES. 

5 Section 60101(a)(4) is amended— 

6 (1) in subparagraph (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ after 

7 the semicolon; 

8 (2) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as sub9 paragraph (C); and 

10 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(B) non-petroleum fuels, including 

13 biofuels, that are flammable, toxic, or corrosive 

14 or would be harmful to the environment if re15 leased in significant quantities; and’’. 

16 SEC. 14. CARBON DIOXIDE PIPELINES. 

17 Section 60102(i) is amended to read as follows: 

18 ‘‘(i) PIPELINES TRANSPORTING CARBON DIOXIDE.— 

19 ‘‘(1) MINIMUM SAFETY STANDARDS.—The Sec20 retary shall prescribe minimum safety standards for 

21 the transportation of carbon dioxide by pipeline in a 

22 gaseous state. 

23 ‘‘(2) STANDARDS APPLICABLE TO CERTAIN

24 PIPELINES.—For pipelines that transport carbon di25 oxide in both a liquid and gaseous state, the SecVerDate Mar 15 2010 05:09 Sep 08, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2845.IH H2845

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1 retary shall apply standards, in effect on the date of 

2 enactment of the Pipeline Safety, Regulatory Cer3 tainty, and Job Creation Act of 2011, for the trans4 portation of carbon dioxide by pipeline in a liquid 

5 state to the transportation of carbon dioxide by pipe6 line in a gaseous state.’’. 

7 SEC. 15. STUDY OF TRANSPORTATION OF DILUTED BITU8 MEN. 

9 Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment 

10 of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall complete 

11 a comprehensive review of hazardous liquid pipeline facil12 ity regulations to determine whether these regulations are 

13 sufficient to regulate pipeline facilities used for the trans14 portation of diluted bitumen. In conducting this review, 

15 the Secretary shall conduct an analysis of whether any in16 crease in risk of release exists for pipeline facilities trans17 porting diluted bitumen. The Secretary shall report the 

18 results of this review to the Senate Committee on Com19 merce, Science, and Transportation and the House of Rep20 resentatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastruc21 ture and Committee on Energy and Commerce. 

22 SEC. 16. STUDY OF NON-PETROLEUM HAZARDOUS LIQUIDS 

23 TRANSPORTED BY PIPELINE. 

24 The Secretary of Transportation may conduct an 

25 analysis of the transportation of non-petroleum hazardous 


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1 liquids by pipeline facility for the purpose of identifying 

2 the extent to which pipeline facilities are currently being 

3 used to transport non-petroleum hazardous liquids, such 

4 as chlorine, from chemical production facilities across land 

5 areas not owned by the producer that are accessible to 

6 the public. The analysis should identify the extent to which 

7 the safety of the pipeline facilities is unregulated by the 

8 States and evaluate whether the transportation of such 

9 chemicals by pipeline facility across areas accessible to the 

10 public would present significant risks to public safety, 

11 property, or the environment in the absence of regulation. 

12 The results of the analysis shall be made available to the 

13 Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor14 tation and the House of Representatives Committee on 

15 Transportation and Infrastructure and Committee on En16 ergy and Commerce. 

17 SEC. 17. CLARIFICATIONS. 

18 (a) AMENDMENT OF PROCEDURES CLARIFICA19 TION.—Section 60108(a)(1) is amended by striking ‘‘an 

20 intrastate’’ and inserting ‘‘a’’. 

21 (b) OWNER AND OPERATOR CLARIFICATION.—Sec22 tion 60102(a)(2)(A) is amended by striking ‘‘owners and 

23 operators’’ and inserting ‘‘any or all of the owners or oper24 ators’’. 


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1 SEC. 18. MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT. 

2 Section 60107(b) is amended by adding at the end 

3 the following: ‘‘For each of fiscal years 2012 and 2013, 

4 the Secretary shall grant such a wavier to a State if the 

5 State can demonstrate an inability to maintain or increase 

6 the required funding share of its pipeline safety program 

7 at or above the level required by this subsection due to 

8 economic hardship in that State. For fiscal year 2014 and 

9 each fiscal year thereafter, the Secretary may grant such 

10 a waiver to a State if the State can make the demonstra11 tion described in the preceding sentence.’’. 

12 SEC. 19. ADMINISTRATIVE ENFORCEMENT PROCESS. 

13 (a) ISSUANCE OF REGULATIONS.— 

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

15 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

16 shall prescribe regulations— 

17 (A) requiring hearings under sections 

18 60112, 60117, 60118, and 60122 to be con19 vened before a presiding official; 

20 (B) providing the opportunity for any per21 son requesting a hearing under section 60112, 

22 60117, 60118, or 60122 to arrange for a tran23 script of that hearing, at the expense of the re24 questing person; 

25 (C) ensuring expedited review of any order 

26 issued pursuant to section 60112(e); 


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1 (D) implementing a separation of functions 

2 between personnel involved with investigative 

3 and prosecutorial activities and advising the 

4 Secretary on findings and determinations; and 

5 (E) prohibiting ex-parte communication 

6 relevant to the question to be decided in the 

7 case by parties to an investigation or hearing. 

8 (2) PRESIDING OFFICIAL.—The regulations pre9 scribed under this subsection shall— 

10 (A) define the term ‘‘presiding official’’ to 

11 mean the person who conducts any hearing re12 lating to civil penalty assessments, compliance 

13 orders, safety orders, or corrective action or14 ders; and 

15 (B) require that the presiding official must 

16 be an attorney on the staff of the Deputy Chief 

17 Counsel that is not engaged in investigative or 

18 prosecutorial functions, including the prepara19 tion of notices of probable violations, notices re20 lating to civil penalty assessments, notices relat21 ing to compliance, or notices of proposed cor22 rective actions. 

23 (3) EXPEDITED REVIEW.—The regulations pre24 scribed under this subsection shall define the term 


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1 ‘‘expedited review’’ for the purposes of paragraph 

2 (1)(C). 

3 (b) STANDARDS OF JUDICIAL REVIEW.—Section 

4 60119(a) is amended by adding at the end the following 

5 new paragraph: 

6 ‘‘(3) A judicial review of agency action under this sec7 tion shall apply the standards of review established in sec8 tion 706 of title 5.’’. 

9 SEC. 20. GAS AND HAZARDOUS LIQUID GATHERING LINES. 

10 (a) REVIEW.—The Secretary of Transportation shall 

11 complete a review of existing Federal and State regula12 tions for gas and hazardous liquid gathering lines located 

13 onshore and offshore in the United States, including with14 in the inlets of the Gulf of Mexico. 

15 (b) REPORT TO CONGRESS.— 

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

17 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

18 shall submit to the House of Representatives Com19 mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure and 

20 Committee on Energy and Commerce and the Sen21 ate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Trans22 portation a report on the results of the review. 

23 (2) RECOMMENDATIONS.—The report shall in24 clude the Secretary’s recommendations with respect 

25 to— 


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1 (A) the sufficiency of existing Federal and 

2 State laws and regulations to ensure the safety 

3 of gas and hazardous liquid gathering lines; 

4 (B) quantifying the economical and tech5 nical practicability and challenges of applying 

6 existing Federal regulations to gathering lines 

7 that are currently not subject to Federal regu8 lation when compared to the public safety bene9 fits; and 

10 (C) subject to a risk-based assessment, the 

11 need to modify or revoke existing exemptions 

12 from Federal regulation for gas and hazardous 

13 liquid gathering lines. 

14 SEC. 21. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

15 (a) GAS AND HAZARDOUS LIQUID.—Section 

16 60125(a) is amended to read as follows: 

17 ‘‘(a) GAS AND HAZARDOUS LIQUID.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To carry out the provisions 

19 of this chapter related to gas and hazardous liquid 

20 and section 12 of the Pipeline Safety Improvement 

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

22 107–355), there is authorized to be appropriated to 

23 the Department of Transportation for each of fiscal 

24 years 2012 through 2015, from fees collected under 

25 section 60301, $88,014,000, of which $4,686,000 is 


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1 for carrying out such section 12 and $34,461,000 is 

2 for making grants. 

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

4 the amounts authorized to be appropriated by para5 graph (1), there is authorized to be appropriated for 

6 each of fiscal years 2012 through 2015 from the Oil 

7 Spill Liability Trust Fund to carry out the provi8 sions of this chapter related to hazardous liquid and 

9 section 12 of the Pipeline Safety Improvement Act 

10 of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 note; Public Law 107– 

11 355), $18,905,000, of which $2,185,000 is for car12 rying out such section 12 and $4,985,000 is for 

13 making grants.’’. 

14 (b) EMERGENCY RESPONSE GRANTS.—Section 

15 60125(b)(2) is amended by striking ‘‘2007 through 2010’’ 

16 and inserting ‘‘2012 through 2015’’. 

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

18 6107 is amended— 

19 (1) in subsection (a) by striking ‘‘2007 through 

20 2010.’’ and inserting ‘‘2012 through 2015.’’; 

21 (2) in subsection (b) by striking ‘‘2007 through 

22 2010.’’ and inserting ‘‘2012 through 2015.’’; and 

23 (3) by striking subsection (c). 

24 (d) STATE DAMAGE PREVENTION PROGRAMS.—Sec25 tion 60134 is amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

2 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to provide 

3 grants under this section $1,500,000 for each of fiscal 

4 years 2012 through 2015. Such funds shall remain avail5 able until expended.’’. 

6 (e) COMMUNITY PIPELINE SAFETY INFORMATION

7 GRANTS.—Section 60130 is amended— 

8 (1) in subsection (b)— 

9 (A) by inserting ‘‘to grant recipients and 

10 their contractors’’ after ‘‘this section’’; and 

11 (B) by inserting ‘‘, for any type of advo12 cacy activity for or against a pipeline construc13 tion or expansion project,’’ after ‘‘for lobbying’’; 

14 and 

15 (2) in subsection (d) by striking ‘‘2010’’ and in16 serting ‘‘2015’’. 

17 (f) PIPELINE TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH AND DE18 VELOPMENT.—Section 12 of the Pipeline Safety Improve19 ment Act of 2002 (49 U.S.C. 60101 note) is amended— 

20 (1) in subsection (d) by adding at the end the 

21 following: 

22 ‘‘(3) ONGOING PIPELINE TRANSPORTATION RE23 SEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT.— 

24 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—After the initial 5- 

25 year program plan has been carried out by the 


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1 participating agencies, the Secretary of Trans2 portation shall prepare a research and develop3 ment program plan every 5 years thereafter and 

4 shall transmit a report to Congress on the sta5 tus and results-to-date of implementation of the 

6 program every 2 years. 

7 ‘‘(B) CONSULTATION.—The Secretary of 

8 Transportation shall comply with the consulta9 tion requirements of subsection (d)(2) when 

10 preparing the program plan and in the selection 

11 and prioritization of research and development 

12 projects. 

13 ‘‘(C) FUNDING FROM NON-FEDERAL

14 SOURCES.—When carrying out research and de15 velopment activities, the Secretary, to the great16 est extent practicable, shall obtain funding for 

17 research and development projects from non18 Federal sources.’’; and 

19 (2) in subsection (f) by striking ‘‘2003 through 

20 2006.’’ and inserting ‘‘2012 through 2015.’’. 

Æ 


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