PHMSA’s Technical Advisory Committees Convene Meetings

On December 13, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) Gas Pipeline Advisory Committee (GPAC) and Hazardous Liquid Pipeline Advisory Committee (LPAC) held a joint meeting to discuss a variety of pipeline safety program and policy issues. The GPAC and the LPAC are peer review committees established under the Pipeline Safety Laws that advise PHMSA on proposed safety standards and make recommendations regarding their “technical feasibility, reasonableness, cost-effectiveness, and practicability.”  PHMSA Administrator Howard “Skip” Elliott emphasized the agency’s goal of zero pipeline incidents and the importance of technology, research, and development to obtaining that goal.  He also made clear that, while the new Administration is working to simplify regulations and make them less onerous, operators should voluntarily pursue safety performance beyond the minimum standards. 

PHMSA staff provided updates on the status of regulatory initiatives, explaining that statutory mandates and executive orders dominate PHMSA’s regulatory agenda.  PHMSA is aggressively implementing regulatory reform initiatives to identify and remove outdated or overly burdensome regulations.  With respect to specific pending regulatory initiatives, PHMSA hopes to issue final rules addressing plastic pipe, hazardous liquid pipelines, and emergency order authority in the coming months.  PHMSA intends to issue a final rule on underground natural gas storage by summer.  PHMSA Staff also provided updates on the Voluntary Information Sharing Working Group, safety management systems, enforcement data, excavation damage enforcement, and PHMSA’s pipeline inspection program. 

PHMSA also shared the results of an Oak Ridge National Laboratory study analyzing whether the 2015 edition of the ASME Boiler Pressure and Vessel Code (BPVC) provides equivalent or superior quality, strength, fire resistance, effectiveness, durability, and safety as the 1992 edition.  Older versions of the ASME BPVC are incorporated by reference into Part 192 and the NFPA 59A (2001) standard, which in turn is incorporated by reference into Part 193.  Inconsistencies between the regulations and current editions have created compliance uncertainties.  The Oak Ridge study concluded that the 2015 BPVC provides an equivalent level of safety as the 1992 version, and that the design and construction of boilers and pressure vessels in accordance with the 1992 BPVC is no longer possible.

On December 14 and 15, the GPAC convened the third of at least five meetings to discuss PHMSA’s notice of proposed rulemaking that would extensively modify Part 192 of the federal gas pipeline safety regulations applicable to transmission and gathering pipelines.  The GPAC considered and extensively discussed proposals regarding material documentation and integrity verification.  Future GPAC meetings to discuss the proposed rule are scheduled for March 26-28, 2018 and June 12-14, 2018.  Proposed provisions that would apply to gas gathering lines are expected to be discussed at the June meeting.  Information from the meetings is here. 

PHMSA Rulemakings Update.  The tables below summarize the status of pipeline safety rulemakings pending before PHMSA, as reflected in the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) October Significant Rulemaking Report and the Unified Regulatory Agenda, released by the Office of Management & Budget’s (OMB) Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA).  The Unified Regulatory Agenda appears in two principal parts:  Current Agenda Agency Regulatory Entries for Active Actions and Current Long Term Actions.

Under Executive Order (EO) 12866, OMB reviews proposed significant rules to ensure they are consistent with applicable law, the President’s priorities, and the principles set forth in the EO, and to ensure the proposals do not conflict with another agency’s policies or actions.  OMB also analyzes the cost-benefit analyses in support of the proposals. While the EO sets out deadlines for OMB evaluation, review periods are often extended.