I 
115TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4787 
To impose additional requirements on portions of petroleum pipelines that 
cross the waters of the Great Lakes, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 12, 2018 
Mr. BISHOP of Michigan 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 provi-
sions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To impose additional requirements on portions of petroleum 
pipelines that cross the waters of the Great Lakes, and 
for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Great Lakes Oil Spill 
Prevention Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR GREAT LAKES 
PIPELINES. 
Chapter 601 of title 49, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘§ 60142. Standards for Great Lakes pipelines 
‘‘(a) ADDITIONAL OVERSIGHT.— 
‘‘(1) BIANNUAL
PHMSA
REPORT.—Not later 
than 12 months after the date of enactment of this 
section, and every 6 months thereafter, the Adminis-
trator of PHMSA shall provide a status report on all 
Great Lakes pipelines to the Secretary. 
‘‘(2) ANNUAL PHMSA REPORT.—Not later than 
12 months after the date of enactment of this sec-
tion, and on an annual basis thereafter, the Admin-
istrator of PHMSA shall make available to the pub-
lic a status report on all Great Lakes pipelines. 
‘‘(3) ANNUAL
DEPARTMENT
OF
TRANSPOR-
TATION REPORT.—Not later than 12 months after 
the date of enactment of this section, and on an an-
nual basis thereafter, the Secretary shall provide to 
Congress a status report on all Great Lakes pipe-
lines, including recommendations on additional 
standards that may be necessary to improve the 
safety of such pipelines. 
‘‘(4) AVAILABILITY OF MATERIALS TO STATE 
AND LOCAL AGENCIES.— 
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‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any 
other provision of law and subject to subpara-
graph (B), the Administrator of PHMSA shall 
provide access to the Governor of the State with 
jurisdiction over the relevant portion of such 
pipeline and any additional entities of such 
State designated by such Governor to receive 
such a notification all information in the pos-
session of PHMSA concerning such portion. 
‘‘(B) EXCEPTION FOR SENSITIVE INFOR-
MATION.—Pursuant to subparagraph (A), the 
Administrator may not provide access to secu-
rity-sensitive information, including information 
described in section 1520.5(a) of title 49, Code 
of Federal Regulations. 
‘‘(b) ADDITIONAL STANDARDS.— 
‘‘(1) 
MAINTENANCE
REQUIREMENTS.—The 
owner and operator of a Great Lakes pipeline shall 
adhere to the following requirements with respect to 
a Great Lakes pipeline: 
‘‘(A) Maintain a functional anchor every 
75 feet, at minimum, for every section of such 
pipeline that is at least 30 feet below the sur-
face of the water. 
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‘‘(B) Maintain at least 1 functional com-
putational pipeline monitoring system in every 
1,500-foot section of such pipeline that is at 
least 10 feet below the surface of the water. 
‘‘(C) Install cathodic wrapping on such 
pipeline. 
‘‘(D) No holiday in cathodic wrapping may 
exceed 3 square inches. 
‘‘(E) Install enamel coating on such pipe-
line. 
‘‘(F) No holiday in enamel coating may ex-
ceed 3 square inches. 
‘‘(G) Maintain such pipeline without any 
corrosion. 
‘‘(H) Install and maintain the functional 
ability to shut off the pressure of such pipeline 
in case of an emergency. 
‘‘(2) TESTING REQUIREMENTS.—An operator of 
a Great Lakes pipeline shall, at least once every 12 
months, perform the following actions with respect 
to a Great Lakes pipeline: 
‘‘(A) Conduct at least one in-line test, also 
known as a ‘smart pig’, to determine the integ-
rity of the interior of such pipeline. 
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‘‘(B) Conduct at least one Remote Oper-
ated Vehicle (ROV) inspection to determine the 
structural integrity of the exterior of such pipe-
line. 
‘‘(C) Conduct at least one hydrostatic test 
to determine the integrity and ability of such 
pipeline to sustain pressure. 
‘‘(3) COMPANY REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.— 
The operator and owner of a Great Lakes pipeline 
shall— 
‘‘(A) immediately, but in no event more 
than 1 business day, after the date of discovery 
of a violation of paragraph (1) report any such 
known violation to— 
‘‘(i) the Administrator of PHMSA; 
and 
‘‘(ii) the Governor of the State with 
jurisdiction over the relevant portion of 
such pipeline and any additional entities of 
such State designated by such Governor to 
receive such a notification; and 
‘‘(B) provide notification of any tests con-
ducted pursuant to paragraph (2) to— 
‘‘(i) the Administrator of PHMSA; 
and 
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‘‘(ii) the Governor of the State with 
jurisdiction over the relevant portion of 
such pipeline and any additional entities of 
such State designated by such Governor to 
receive such a notification. 
‘‘(4) CORRECTIVE
ACTION
TIMELINES.—The 
Administrator of PHMSA shall issue to the owner or 
operator of a Great Lakes pipeline a corrective ac-
tion timeline for each violation of paragraph (1), 
during which such violation shall be remedied, as fol-
lows: 
‘‘(A) A corrective action timeline for a vio-
lation of subparagraphs (A), (B), (G), or (H) of 
paragraph (1) may be for a period of not more 
than 365 days. 
‘‘(B) A corrective action timeline for a vio-
lation of subparagraph (C) or (E) of paragraph 
(1) may be for a period of not more than 180 
days. 
‘‘(C) A corrective action timeline for a vio-
lation of subparagraph (D) or (F) of paragraph 
(1) may be for a period of not more than 90 
days. 
‘‘(5) 
RUNNING
OF
CORRECTIVE
ACTION 
TIMELINE.—A corrective action timeline described in 
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paragraph (4) shall begin to run from the date on 
which it is issued to the owner or operator of the 
pipeline. 
‘‘(6) SPECIAL RULE FOR CORROSION.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An owner or operator 
of a Great Lakes pipeline who learns of corro-
sion in such pipeline shall immediately pursue 
steps to ensure such pipeline ceases to transmit 
petroleum until such corrosion is repaired. 
‘‘(B) 
OPTION
TO
RESTART
TRANS-
MISSION.—The Administrator of PHMSA may 
inspect a pipeline described in subparagraph 
(A) and permit such pipeline to resume trans-
mission if the Administrator makes a deter-
mination that such pipeline can operate safely. 
‘‘(7) SPECIAL RULE FOR AGING PIPELINES.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The owner or operator 
of a Great Lakes pipeline may not operate such 
a pipeline (and may replace such a pipeline with 
a new pipeline in accordance with this chapter) 
after the conclusion of the time period described 
in subparagraph (B). 
‘‘(B) TIME PERIOD.—The time period de-
scribed in this subparagraph is— 
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‘‘(C) A penalty for a violation of subsection 
(b)(1)(C) may not be less than $1,000 and not 
more than $10,000 a day. 
‘‘(D) A penalty for a violation of sub-
section (b)(1)(D) may not be less than $100 
and not more than $1,000 a day. 
‘‘(E) A penalty for a violation of sub-
section (b)(1)(E) may not be less than $1,000 
and not more than $10,000. 
‘‘(F) A penalty for a violation of subsection 
(b)(1)(F) may not be less than $100 and not 
more than $1,000. 
‘‘(G) A penalty for a violation of sub-
section (b)(1)(G) may not be less than $5,000 
and not more than $30,000 a day. 
‘‘(H) A penalty for a violation of sub-
section (b)(1)(H) may not be less than $500 
and not more than $1,000 a day. 
‘‘(2) FAILURE
TO
SUBMIT
REQUIRED
RE-
PORTS.—An owner or operator of a Great Lakes 
pipeline that knowingly violates subsection (b)(3)(A) 
shall be liable for a civil penalty of not less than 
$50,000 and not more than $500,000. 
‘‘(3) CONTINUED OPERATION OF AGING PIPE-
LINE.—A civil penalty for a violation of subsection 
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(b)(7) may not be less than $100,000 and not more 
than $500,000 a day after the conclusion of the ap-
plicable period described in such subsection. 
‘‘(4) TREATMENT
OF
PENALTIES.—Amounts 
collected under this section shall be deposited in the 
Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund established under sec-
tion 9509 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 
U.S.C. 9509). 
‘‘(d) REGULATIONS; EFFECTIVE DATE.— 
‘‘(1) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall issue 
regulations to implement the requirements of this 
section not later than 90 days after the date of en-
actment of this section. 
‘‘(2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The requirements of 
paragraphs (1) through (6) of subsection (b) shall 
be effective on the day that is 1 year after the date 
of enactment of this section.’’. 
SEC. 3. ADDITIONAL LIABILITY FOR SPILLS. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 1001 of the Oil Pollution 
Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2701) is amended— 
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (9), (10), (11), 
(12) through (15), (16) through (24), (25), (26), 
(27), (28), (29), (30), (31), (32), (33), (34) through 
(37), (38), (39), (40), (41), (42), (43), and (44) as 
paragraphs (10), (13), (14), (17) through (20), (22) 
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through (30), (32), (33), (36), (35), (37), (39), (38), 
(40), (41), (43) through (46), (34), (9), (11), (12), 
(21), (31), and (42), respectively; and 
(2) by inserting after paragraph (14) (as redes-
ignated) the following: 
‘‘(15) ‘Great Lakes pipeline’ has the meaning 
given such term in section 60101(a) of title 49, 
United States Code; 
‘‘(16) ‘Great Lakes system’ has the meaning 
given such term in section 60101(a) of title 49, 
United States Code;’’. 
(b) LIABILITY FOR GREAT LAKES PIPELINES.—Sec-
tion 1004(a) of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 
2704(a)) is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 
end; 
(2) in paragraph (4), by striking the period at 
the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(5) for a Great Lakes pipeline, the total of all 
removal costs plus $75,000,000.’’. 
(c) FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY REQUIREMENT FOR 
GREAT LAKES PIPELINES.—Section 1016(c) of the Oil 
Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2716(c)) is amended— 
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(1) in the subsection heading, by inserting 
‘‘AND GREAT LAKES PIPELINES’’ after ‘‘FACILI-
TIES’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(3) GREAT LAKES PIPELINES.—A responsible 
party with respect to a Great Lakes pipeline shall 
establish and maintain evidence of financial respon-
sibility in the same manner as described in para-
graph (1).’’. 
SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 
Section 60101(a) of title 49, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘and’’ in paragraph (25); 
(2) by striking the period at the end of para-
graph (26) and inserting ‘‘;’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(27) ‘Great Lakes pipeline’ means the portion 
of any pipeline that— 
‘‘(A) is used in transporting petroleum or 
a petroleum product; and 
‘‘(B) crosses the navigable waters of the 
Great Lakes system; 
‘‘(28) ‘Great Lakes system’ means Lake On-
tario, Lake Erie, Lake Huron (including Lake St. 
Clair), Lake Michigan, and Lake Superior, and the 
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connecting channels (Saint Mary’s River, Saint Clair 
River, Detroit River, Niagara River, and Saint Law-
rence River to the Canadian Border); and 
‘‘(29) ‘PHMSA’ means the Pipeline and Haz-
ardous Materials Safety Administration.’’. 
Æ 
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