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In This Issue

  1. Qualification of Pipeline Personnel: Notice of Public Meeting
  2. Operator Qualification Pipeline Industry Forum January 21 and January 23, 2003
  3. O&M Manual Up-To-Date?
  4. New Pipeline Safety Act – Now Law
  5. DOT Pipeline Compliance Workshop – March 19-20, 2003 – Houston Includes update on the new Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2002 signed into law on Dec 17, 2002
  6. Environmental Report Preparation and Post-Certificate Environmental Compliance Training Seminars
  7. Air Permit Needs?
  8. Proposed NPDES General Permit for Storm Water Discharges From Construction Activities
  9. 2003 User Fee Assessment
  10. SPCC Plan Extension in the works
  11. Notification of the Susceptibility to Premature Brittle-Like Cracking of Older Plastic Pipe – correction.
  12. Interested in Web-Based Compliance Management Systems?
  13. Self Disclosure Pays Off
  14. Acquiring a pipeline?
  15. Biological and Chemical Information Charts
  16. RRT VI Semi-Annual Meeting
  17. Pipeline Drug Testing; Random Testing Rate
  18. MMS Workshop International Offshore Pipeline Workshop February 26-28, 2003 New Orleans, Louisiana
  19. NPDES Permit Deadline Extension for Storm Water Discharges for Oil and Gas Construction Activity That Disturbs One to Five Acres of Land
  20. Pipeline Communications Meeting
  21. API Training and Development Conference
  22. New Edition of API Primary Measurement Property Standard

2003 User Fee Assessment

The DOT assesses and collects user fees to fund pipeline safety program activities. Annual fiscal year appropriations normally form the basis of the user fee assessments that are deposited in the Pipeline Safety Fund (PSF). The PSF provides the funding for DOT’s pipeline safety activities, including the daily operations and program activities of the Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS). To date, Fiscal Year (FY) 2003 appropriations for DOT have not yet been enacted. DOT is operating under continuing resolutions, the most recent of which provides an appropriation through January 11, 2003. In order to assure sufficient funds are available in the PSF for OPS operations, DOT will issue Fiscal Year (FY) 2003 user fee assessments incrementally. The first assessment will be issued in December 2002. Additional assessments will be issued based upon appropriation by Congress as needed to replenish the PSF. To lessen the administrative burden associated with this process, RSPA/OPS will strive to limit the number of assessments and collection of user fees. For now, RSPA/OPS will be issuing the FY 2003 assessments as follows:

Natural gas transmission pipelines: $23.94 per mile (based on 299,358 miles of pipeline).

Hazardous liquid pipelines: $44.51 per mile (based on 161,007 miles of pipeline).

LNG facility operators are assessed user fees based on the number of plants and total storage capacity. However, these fees will not be collected at this time. They will be issued and collected later.