The Railroad Commission of Texas has proposed amendments to 16 TAC §8.201, relating to Pipeline Safety Program Fees, to implement provisions of House Bill 1, 80th Texas Legislature (2007), and, specifically, Article VI, Railroad Commission Rider 11, which makes the amounts appropriated from general revenue for State fiscal years 2008 and 2009 for the pipeline safety program and the underground pipeline damage prevention program, as well as other direct and indirect costs for the programs, contingent upon the Commission assessing fees sufficient to generate, during the 2008-2009 biennium, revenue to cover that general revenue appropriation.
The proposed amendments in §8.201(b) change the deadline for filing the DOT Distribution Annual Report, Form 7100.1-1, from 2006 to an annual requirement without a specified year; change the deadline by which the annual pipeline safety program fee is to be paid from April 20, 2007, to an annual requirement of March 15 of each year; and increase the assessment rate from $0.37 to $0.50 annually for each service line reported to be in service at the end of each calendar year. The Commission proposes the increase in the annual service line fee in order meet the requirements of House Bill 1 with respect to funding not only the established pipeline safety program, but the underground pipeline damage prevention program as well, for which the Commission adopted rules that go into effect on September 1, 2007.