2023 Colorado Revised Statutes › Title 40 - UTILITIES (§§ 40-1-101 — 40-43-104) › PUBLIC UTILITIES (§§ 40-1-101 — 40-17.5-105) › GENERAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE (§§ 40-1-101 — 40-9.8-104) › Article 2 - PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION - RENEWABLE ENERGY STANDARD (§§ 40-2-101 — 40-2-203) › Part 1 - GENERAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS (§§ 40-2-101 — 40-2-139) › Section 40-2-115 - Cooperation with other states and with the United States - natural gas pipeline safety - customer-owned service line maintenance and repairs notice of responsibility - rules - definitions

(1)
(a)
The commission may confer with or hold joint hearings with the authorities of any state or any agency of the United States in connection with any matter arising in proceedings under this title 40, under the laws of any state, or under the laws of the United States; avail itself of the cooperation, services, records, and facilities of authorities of this state, any other state, or any agency of the United States as may be practicable in the enforcement or administration of the provisions of this title 40; and enter into cooperative agreements with the various states and with any agency of the United States to enforce the economic and safety laws and rules of this state and of the United States.
(b)
The commission may provide for the exchange of information concerning the enforcement of the economic and safety laws and rules of this state, any other state, and the United States relating to public utilities or to safety of transportation of gas by any person, including a municipality. In particular, the commission may submit a certification to, or enter into an agreement with, the United States secretary of transportation under
49 U.S.C. sec. 60105
or
60106
, respectively, so that the commission may enforce the rules of the United States department of transportation concerning pipeline safety promulgated under
49 U.S.C. sec. 60101
et seq. The commission shall adopt such rules as are necessary and proper to comply with federal requirements.
(c)
The commission's rules adopted pursuant to this section must apply to all persons and entities constituting the intrastate pipeline system to the maximum extent permissible under federal law and the Colorado constitution, including all:
(I)
Public utilities and municipal or quasi-municipal corporations transporting gas or providing gas service;
(II)
Operators of natural gas master metered systems;
(III)
Operators of liquid petroleum gas distribution systems;
(IV)
Operators of pipelines transporting gas in intrastate commerce; and
(V)
Operators of intrastate liquefied natural gas facilities.
(d)
(I)
The commission shall adopt pipeline safety rules that incorporate the most current federal requirements under
49 CFR 191
,
192
,
193
, and
199
, as applicable, to maintain minimum standards for gas pipeline safety.
(II)
The commission's gas pipeline safety rules must address, and may be more stringent than required by federal standards with regard to:
(A)
Qualifications and verifiable credentials for personnel engaged in pipeline construction, inspection, and repair activities;
(B)
Reduction of the risks posed by abandoned gas pipelines;
(C)
Mapping of all pipelines within the commission's jurisdiction. For this purpose, the commission may incorporate information from any existing flowline maps or other maps prepared by the energy and carbon management commission created in section
34-60-104.3 (1)
and showing pipelines subject to the jurisdiction of that agency. The public utilities commission's mapping requirements for pipelines within its jurisdiction must incorporate the same standards for confidentiality, security, and public access and limitations on the scale of publicly available images as adopted by the energy and carbon management commission in 2 CCR 404-1, rule 1101.e.
(D)
Increased frequency of inspections of all pipelines within the commission's jurisdiction;
(E)
Use of advanced leak detection technology to meet the need for pipeline safety and protection of the environment;
(F)
Expansion of annual reporting requirements for pipeline operators;
(G)
Requirements for commission investigation of specific types of pipeline damage and pursuit of appropriate civil remedies for such damage;
(H)
On or before March 1, 2024, requirements for the installation or reinstallation of service regulators by the owner or operator so that any vents associated with the service regulators are at least twelve inches above ground level and located in an area that is protected from external blockage; and
(I)
On or before March 1, 2024, requirements for the visual inspection of gas meters and service regulators by a qualified individual no less frequently than every five calendar years with intervals not to exceed sixty-three months and record documentation of each inspection and for the owner or operator of the gas meter or service regulator to retain the documentation for the lifetime of the gas meter or service regulator.
(e)
In addition to all other powers and duties conferred on the commission by this title 40, the commission may issue orders requiring any person to comply with, or to cease and desist from any violation of, the rules adopted under this section.
(f)
Notwithstanding any provision of this section to the contrary, the commission shall not adopt any rules that regulate underground natural gas storage facilities.
(1.5)
(a)
On or before March 1, 2024, the commission shall promulgate rules to establish a process for determining whether an owner or operator or a customer has responsibility for the maintenance and repairs of a customer-owned service line installed on or after August 14, 1995, and before March 1, 2024.
(b)
On or before March 1, 2024, the commission shall promulgate rules requiring an owner or operator that distributes natural gas to a customer-owned service line installed by the owner or operator on or after March 1, 2024, to provide written notice to the customer within ninety days after installation that, at a minimum, informs the customer whether the customer or the owner or operator is responsible for maintaining and repairing the customer-owned service line.
(c)
The commission's rules pursuant to subsection (1.5)(b) of this section must include specific circumstances for when a customer may be responsible for maintaining and repairing the customer-owned service line and a requirement that:
(I)
The owner or operator use best efforts to obtain a copy of the written notice described in subsection (1.5)(b) of this section with the customer's signature from the customer within ninety days after installation of the customer-owned service line;
(II)
With respect to the copy of the written notice described in subsection (1.5)(b) of this section that includes the customer's signature in accordance with subsection (1.5)(c)(I) of this section, the owner or operator:
(A)
Provide a copy to the customer for the customer's records;
(B)
Maintain a copy for the owner's or operator's records for the duration of the lifetime of the customer-owned service line;
(C)
Provide a copy to an inspector upon request; and
(D)
If the property on which the customer-owned service line is located changes ownership, use best efforts to obtain a new copy of the written notice described in subsection (1.5)(b) of this section with the new property owner's signature from the new property owner within ninety days after the change of ownership if the owner or operator is aware of the change; and
(III)
If the owner or operator fails to obtain a copy of the written notice described in subsection (1.5)(b) of this section with the customer's signature from the customer in accordance with subsection (1.5)(c)(I) of this section, the owner or operator either maintain proof of efforts to obtain the customer's signature or document the customer's refusal to provide a signature.
(d)
Notwithstanding any other provision of this section to the contrary, an owner or operator is responsible for all maintenance and repairs of the portion of a service line that is upstream from the gas meter.
(e)
Notwithstanding any other provision of this section to the contrary, the commission's gas pipeline safety rules pursuant to this section must permit any activity that is within the best practices and standards for the industry given continuous improvement and changes to technology.
(2)
As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires, or as otherwise defined in commission rules:
(a)
"Customer-owned service line" means the portion of the service line that extends downstream from the gas meter to the customer's primary residential or commercial structure that is serviced with natural gas.
(b)
(I)
"Distribution system" means the piping and associated facilities used to deliver natural gas to customers.
(II)
"Distribution system" does not include the facilities that an owner or operator owns that are classified as production, storage, gathering, or transmission facilities.
(c)
"Gas" means natural gas, flammable gas, and any gas that is toxic or corrosive.
(d)
"Gas meter" means the meter that measures the transfer of gas from an owner or operator of a customer-owned service line to a customer.
(e)
"Main line" means the portion of a distribution system that serves, or is designed to serve, as a common source of gas supply for more than one service line.
(f)
"Owner or operator" means an owner or operator of a distribution system or an investor-owned natural gas utility.
(g)
"Qualified" has the meaning set forth in
49 CFR 192.803
.
(h)
"Service line" has the meaning set forth in
49 CFR 192.3
.
(i)
"Service regulator" means the device on a service line that controls the pressure of gas delivered from a higher pressure to the pressure provided to the customer. A service regulator may serve one customer or multiple customers through a meter header or manifold.
(j)
"Transportation of gas" or "transporting gas" means the gathering, transmission, or distribution of gas by pipeline, as defined in
49 CFR 192.3
.
(k)
"Underground natural gas storage facility" has the meaning set forth in section
34-64-102
(3.5).
Amended by 2023 Ch. 235,§ 14, eff. 7/1/2023.
Amended by 2023 Ch. 431,§ 1, eff. 6/7/2023.
Amended by 2021 Ch. 465, § 2, eff. 7/6/2021.
L. 55: p. 697, § 1. CRS 53: § 115-2-16. L. 57: p. 600, § 1. C.R.S. 1963: § 115-2-16. L. 69: p. 931, § 12. L. 71: p. 1098, § 1. L. 89: (1) amended, p. 1526, § 7, effective April 12. L. 93: Entire section amended, p. 2061, § 11, effective July 1. L. 2000: (1) and (1.5) amended, p. 1868, § 95, effective August 2. L. 2003: (1), (1.5), and (2)(a) amended, p. 1699, § 5, effective May 14. L. 2021: Entire section amended, (SB 21-108), ch. 465, p. 3353, § 2, effective July 6.
For the legislative declaration in SB 21-108, see section 1 of chapter 465, Session Laws of Colorado 2021.