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Early Session for Weary Lawmakers
By R. Bruce Kershner
NUCA of Florida Director of Government Affairs
PHMSA is the federal safety authority with oversight of the transmission or distribution pipelines used to transport any refined petroleum product or hazardous/highly volatile liquid. The Pipeline Damage Prevention Program Final Rule (49 FR 43835-43869) was published in the Federal Register on July 23, 2015 and became effective on January 1, 2016. In this issue, I will update you on the new rule, and how it can affect your business.
Under the new PHMSA rule, any excavator which damages a pipeline as defined in 49 CFR, Part 196.3, becomes a citable offense if the damage is in excess of $500,00 and/or there is a serious injury or loss of life resulting from the damage. These incidents must be reported to PHMSA. If PHMSA determines that a state has inadequate enforcement, they may use Federal excavation standards to take enforcement action against an excavator who damages pipeline. PHMSA can assess civil and criminal penalties for violations. Federal civil penalty levels are $200,000 for each violation for each day the violation continues with a maximum civil penalty of $2 million for any related series of violations. States without adequate one-call enforcement programs can also lose in grant funding.
Florida’s Underground Facility Damage Prevention and Safety Act, Chapter 556, F.S., and the Sunshine 811 call center provide one of the premiere notification systems in the country. However, when you compare Florida’s one-call laws to PHMSA’s Nine Elements to Better Damage Prevention, you will find that we fall short of the mark on damage prevention enforcement.
Excavators need to be aware that, under a new federal rule, they could face a maximum civil penalty of $2 million. Back in September I reported in the Ditchmen that the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) had published a final rule to establish a process for evaluating state excavation damage prevention programs and enforcing federal standards in states where such requirements are inadequate or do not exist. That rule would allow PHMSA to take enforcement action against an excavator if a state does not meet the PHMSA criteria.
Excavators Facing Stiff Federal Penalties
By R. Bruce Kershner
NUCA of Florida Director of Government Affairs