The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), which regulates damage prevention for certain hazardous materials, has released its long-awaited rule governing when and how PHMSA could step in to federally enforce inadequate state damage prevention programs.
This rule has its origins in the Pipeline Inspection, Protection, Enforcement, and Safety (PIPES) Act of 2006, which went through two rounds of public comments. The rule is based on the premise that though all States have a damage prevention program, some States may not adequately enforce their State damage prevention laws. The rule sets up: (1) criteria and procedures for determining the adequacy of State pipeline excavation damage prevention law enforcement programs; (2) an administrative process for making State adequacy determinations; (3) the Federal requirements PHMSA will enforce in States with inadequate excavation damage prevention law enforcement programs; and (4) the adjudication process for administrative enforcement proceedings against excavators where Federal authority is exercised.
One of AGC’s primary requests in the proposed rule phase was that PHMSA examine state programs not just from an excavation enforcement perspective, but also from an operator and locator response perspective. While the rule stops short of creating specific provisions to do so, the rule does acknowledge PHMSA’s awareness of the issue and details the tools PHMSA has available to them to enforce operators to respond to locate requests. AGC is still evaluating the bulk of the rule and will provide additional analysis as it is able.
For more information, contact Scott Berry at (703) 837-5321 or berrys@agc.orgReturn to Top