It was brought to our attention that the Pennsylvania Damage Prevention Rule Change that we published in the April DOT Compliance newsletter was correct . . . except for the date. There was a glitch with our regulatory monitoring service which sends us daily notices of changes at the federal and state level and it…
Uncategorized
PHMSA Report on Staffing and Hiring
PHMSA has provided a report to Congress on PHMSA’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 staffing and hiring plans and actual turnover and hiring in FY 2019 for the Office of Pipeline Safety. Per the report, PHMSA continues to work towards its full employment goal of 308 Pipeline Safety personnel. As of September 30, 2019, the Office…
RCP’s 25th Anniversary Challenge
Every month between March 2020 and February 2021, RCP will be giving away a 25th Anniversary Prize to a lucky reader of the DOT Pipeline Compliance Newsletter. All you have to do is find the hidden phrase “Really Cool People” within an article in that month’s newsletter and send an e-mail with the title of…
PHMSA Proposed Revisions to the HL Accident Report Form 7000-1
[Docket No. PHMSA 2019-0141-0003] PHMSA is proposing changes to the HL Accident Report form, some of which will mirror changes already accepted for the NG Gathering & Transmission Incident Report. Listed below are some important proposed changes. The comment period is open until May 8th, 2020. To view the proposed changes or make a comment,…
PHMSA Form Changes Beginning July 1st, 2020
The following forms have been modified per PHMSA’s final rule and will be available via the PHMSA portal on July 1, 2020. OpID Assignment Request and National Registry NotificationOperators will be able to select HL Gravity and HL Reporting-Regulated when submitting either form. Hazardous Liquid/CO2 Annual ReportStarting with CY 2020 reports, new parts collect data…
TRRC Notice to Pipeline Operators Regarding COVID-19 Impact
The Railroad Commission of Texas (TRRC) has issued a Notice to Pipeline Operators and Local Distribution Companies (LDCs) regarding the inability to be in compliance with pipeline safety rules and regulations due to the Corona virus pandemic. These resource constraints, coupled with the continuing need to meet operational and maintenance obligations may necessitate actions by…
PHMSA Issues Guidance and Stay of Enforcement Due to COVID-19
[The following article was previously published in RCP’s Special Edition March 2020 Newsletter.] On March 19th & 20th, PHMSA issued two guidance statements related to pipeline operators’ potential inability to comply with federal safety requirements throughout the United States as a result of COVID-19. Notice of Stay of Enforcement and Notice of Enforcement Discretion to Operators…
NEW Recommended Practice Published: API RP 1182, Construction, Operation and Maintenance of Large Diameter Rural Gas Gathering Lines
The American Petroleum Institute (API) announced it has published a new recommended practice (RP) for rural gas gathering pipelines with outside diameters (OD) greater than 12.75-inches. This RP is expected to be incorporated by reference into Part 192 when the Safety of Gas Gathering Pipelines rule is finalized by PHMSA. API RP 1182 creates two…
NEW Recommended Practice Published: API RP 80, 2nd Edition, Definition of Onshore Gas Gathering Lines
The American Petroleum Institute (API) announced it has published the second edition of recommended practice (RP) 80, Definition of Onshore Gas Gathering Lines. This RP is expected to be incorporated by reference into Part 192 when the Safety of Gas Gathering Pipelines rule is finalized by PHMSA. The second edition restructures the outline of the…
Damage Prevention Rule Changes in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania has modified its requirements for damage prevention programs in P.L. 852, No. 287 – Underground Utility Line Protection Law. In addition to a multitude of minor and editorial changes, the law now specifically applies to unregulated gas gathering lines. It also establishes a state-level Damage Prevention Committee, with a responsibility to: Review a report…
April is National Safe Digging Month
The Common Ground Alliance (CGA) is a member-driven association of individuals, organizations and sponsors in every facet of the underground utility industry. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, April 2020 will be a very different National Safe Digging Month than ever before. CGA recognizes that the industry is focused on adjusting operations in the…
RCP On-Line Training Survey
RCP is well known for our popular 3-day workshops in DOT compliance for both gas and liquid pipelines. These workshops provide an overview of the DOT pipeline regulations in 49 CFR 191, 192, 194, 195, and 199. For the past 20+ years, these workshops have been held at our corporate office in Houston, Texas. Our…
API RP 1162, Version 3 Goes to Letter Ballot
API published RP 1162 Pipeline Public Awareness, version 3 for public comment and ballot. To view this draft version, click here. The deadline for submitting comments is April 13, 2020. Once the final version is published, our understanding is that PHMSA intends to eventually incorporate this version of RP 1162 into Parts 192 and 195. …
PHMSA Public Meeting: New Regulations, FAQs, Docket
PHMSA conducted public meetings on February 26th and 27th to review recently finalized rules for hazardous liquids and natural gas transmission pipelines. In addition to summarizing key issues within each rule, PHMSA also walked through revisions coming to the annual and incident report forms. PHMSA also explained their plans for inspector training and expectations for…
PHMSA UGS Final Rule
[Docket No. PHMSA-2016-0016; Amdt. Nos. 191-27; 192-126; 195-103] PHMSA issued a final rule to amend its minimum safety standards for underground natural gas storage facilities (UNGSFs). The final rule incorporates the American Petroleum Institute’s Recommended Practices (RP) 1170 and 1171 by reference into the pipeline safety regulations as written. RPs 1170 and 1171 outline safety…
NEW Gas Transmission Pipeline Rule Workshop
June 9-11, 2020 Join us June 9-11, 2020 in Houston at our corporate office and dedicated training facility for a deep dive into the recently finalized Safety of Gas Transmission Pipelines rule. There is a lot to unpack with this rule. This workshop will not only dive deep into the rule requirements and some of…
TRRC Chapter 8 Amended Pipeline Safety Regulations
Effective January 3, 2020, the Railroad Commission of Texas (TRRC) adopted amendments to 16 TAC 8 – Pipeline Safety Regulation Subchapters A, B, C, and D. The amendments to Subchapter A require the retention of documents filed with the DOT to be made available to the TRRC upon request rather than concurrent filing. Additionally, some…
Iowa Intrastate Gas Transmission Pipeline Permits
The state of Iowa has made a variety of amendments to its permitting process for intrastate gas transmission pipelines in Title 199 – Utilities Division, Chapter 10 – Intrastate Gas Pipelines and Underground Gas Storage. This includes new definitions for Permit, Amendment of permit, Person, Affected person, and Negotiating. For a copy of the new…
Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board Incident Reporting
[Docket No. CSB-2019-0004] The Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) published a final rule (40 CFR 1604) for accidental release reporting. These reporting requirements will become effective on March 23, 2020. This new rule applies to a wide variety of industry segments, including pipelines and pipeline facilities that are “stationary sources” under EPA regulations. If an…
API Updated Standard for Pipeline Construction Inspection
API has published an updated edition of Recommended Practice (RP) 1169, Pipeline Construction Inspection. This edition updates the issues that pipeline inspectors should review when overseeing each phase of a pipeline’s construction. While the first edition of RP 1169 concentrated on new pipeline construction, the second edition expands the scope of covered activities to cover all pipeline construction along the right of way,…