Pipeline safety bill passes Congress, goes to president
WASHINGTON - Legislation designed to significantly improve the safety and security of the nation's natural gas and fuel pipelines cleared Congress today and was sent to the president for his signature.
Rep. Don Young, D-Alaska, chief sponsor of the legislation in the House, said it would "improve pipelines operational efficiency, provide better protections and training for pipeline workers and increase safety for residents who live near our pipelines."
The Senate approved the measure Wednesday, and the House passed it by voice vote earlytoday as one of its last acts before adjourning for the year. The bill awaiting President Bush's signature would broaden safety requirements, improve the authority under which the Transportation Department can order an operator to fix an unsafe pipeline and increase penalties on operators who violate regulations
Pipeline safety advocates have pushed for a bill regulating the nation's 2.2 million miles of pipeline since a 1999 explosion killed three people in Bellingham, Wash. An August 2000 explosion killed 12 people in Carlsbad, N.M., and two more people were killed in pipeline accidents last year.
The bill would require pipeline inspections at least once in the next 10 years and every seven years after that. Some pipelines near large cities would be inspected more frequently.
The bill also would expand the public's right to know about pipeline hazards, set up environmental reviews intended to enable more timely pipeline repairs and increase state oversight of safety activities.
Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., hailed the measure as an important step to improve an often overlooked part of the country's infrastructure.
"I am proud to have been involved in the effort to increase the safety of our nation's pipelines," said Murray, who sponsored a similar bill that won Senate approval last year. That measure died in the House.
Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., said the latest bill should provoke the pipeline industry to be more responsible. The measure increases the maximum penalty for a series of violations from $100,000 to $1 million.
"I believe we have crafted fair legislation that should work to give the public more confidence in the safety of the pipelines that cross our state, particularly when these pipelines impede populated or sensitive areas," Domenici said.
Both the House and Senate approved pipeline bills this year, and an agreement on pipelines was reached this fall as part of a comprehensive energy bill. Senators adopted the stand-alone bill after negotiations on the energy bill collapsed this week.
On the Net:
The bill, H.R. 3609, can be found at http://thomas.loc.gov