Regular Session 2015-2016 House Bill 0855 P.N. 1207

PRINTER'S NO. 1207

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

No.

855

Session of

2015

INTRODUCED BY GODSHALL, DeLUCA, COHEN, McNEILL, WATSON AND

PICKETT, APRIL 14, 2015

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON CONSUMER AFFAIRS, APRIL 14, 2015

AN ACT

Amending the act of December 22, 2011 (P.L.586, No.127),

entitled "An act providing for gas and hazardous liquids

pipelines and for powers and duties of the Pennsylvania

Public Utility Commission; and imposing civil penalties,"

further providing for the title of the act; in preliminary

provisions, further providing for definitions; in pipeline

operators, further providing for registry of pipeline

operators; in commission authority and enforcement, further

providing for general powers of commission, for civil

penalties, for jurisdiction and authority of commission and

providing for certification of pipeline safety program and

application for interstate agent status; replacing the

Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission with the Department of

Environmental Protection; and making editorial changes.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1. The title of the act of December 22, 2011

(P.L.586, No.127), known as the Gas and Hazardous Liquids

Pipelines Act, is amended to read:

An Act

Providing for gas and hazardous liquids pipelines and for

powers and duties of the [Pennsylvania Public Utility

Commission] Department of Environmental Protection; and imposing

civil penalties.

Section 2. Sections 102 and 301 of the act are amended to

read:

Section 102. Definitions.

The following words and phrases when used in this act shall

have the meanings given to them in this section unless the

context clearly indicates otherwise:

["Commission." The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission.]

"Department." The Department of Environmental Protection of

the Commonwealth.

"Federal pipeline safety laws." The provisions of 49 U.S.C.

Ch. 601 (relating to safety), the Hazardous Liquid Pipeline

Safety Act of 1979 (Public Law 96-129, 93 Stat. 989), the

Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-355, 116

Stat. 2985) and the regulations promulgated under the acts.

"Gas." Natural gas, liquefied natural gas, landfill gas,

synthetic natural gas and other gas as defined under the Federal

pipeline safety laws.

"Hazardous liquids." Petroleum, a petroleum product,

anhydrous ammonia and other hazardous liquids as defined under

the Federal pipeline safety laws.

"Person." An individual, firm, joint venture, partnership,

corporation, association, municipality, cooperative association

or joint stock association, including any trustee, receiver,

assignee or personal representative thereof. The term does not

include a public utility.

"Pipeline." A part of the physical facilities through which

gas or hazardous liquids move in transportation, including a

pipe valve and other appurtenance attached to the pipe,

compressor unit, metering station, regulator station, delivery

station, holder and fabricated assembly. The term only includes

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pipeline regulated by Federal pipeline safety laws. The term

does not include a pipeline subject to the exclusive

jurisdiction of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

"Pipeline facility." A new or existing pipeline, right-of-

way and any equipment, facility or building used in the

transportation of gas or hazardous liquids or in the treatment

of gas or hazardous liquids during the course of transportation.

The term does not include a pipeline facility subject to the

exclusive jurisdiction of the Federal Energy Regulatory

Commission.

"Pipeline operator." A person that owns or operates

equipment or facilities in this Commonwealth for the

transportation of gas or hazardous liquids by pipeline or

pipeline facility regulated under Federal pipeline safety laws.

The term does not include a public utility or an ultimate

consumer who owns a service line on his real property.

"Public utility." The term shall mean:

(1) A public utility as defined in 66 Pa.C.S. § 102

(relating to definitions).

(2) A city natural gas distribution operation as defined

in 66 Pa.C.S. § 102.

"Transportation of gas." The gathering, transmission or

distribution of gas by pipeline or the storage of gas.

"Transportation of hazardous liquids." The gathering,

transmission or distribution of hazardous liquids by pipeline.

"Unconventional formation." A geological shale formation

existing below the base of the Elk Sandstone or its geologic

equivalent stratigraphic interval where natural gas generally

cannot be produced at economic flow rates or in economic volumes

except by vertical or horizontal well bores stimulated by

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hydraulic fracture treatments or by using multilateral well

bores or other techniques to expose more of the formation of the

well bore.

"Unconventional well." A borehole drilled or being drilled

for the purpose of or to be used for the production of natural

gas from an unconventional formation.

Section 301. Registry of pipeline operators.

(a) Registry.--The [commission] department shall establish

and maintain a registry of all pipeline operators.

(b) Application.--The [commission] department may develop an

application for registration under subsection (a) and may charge

a reasonable registration fee and annual renewal fee.

(1) A pipeline operator shall register with the

[commission] department.

(2) Failure to register shall subject the pipeline

operator to a civil penalty under section 502.

(3) The operator of a pipeline in a Class 1 location

that collects or transports gas from an unconventional well

shall report the location of the pipeline by class location

and approximate aggregate miles for inclusion in the

[commission's] department's registry.

(d) Disclosure.--The [commission] department shall require

each pipeline operator, regardless of class location, to

disclose in its initial registration and in each annual renewal

the country of manufacture for all tubular steel products used

in the exploration, gathering or transportation of natural gas

or hazardous liquids. The [commission] department may develop a

disclosure form and require its use.

(e) Exemptions.--

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(1) No application or registration fee shall be required

of a petroleum gas distributor who is registered under the

act of June 19, 2002 (P.L.421, No.61), known as the Propane

and Liquefied Petroleum Gas Act, and provides proof of

registration to the [commission] department.

(2) The [commission] department shall verify

registrations of petroleum gas distributors within the

Department of Labor and Industry before requiring a petroleum

gas distributor to register under this section.

(3) No registration fee or annual renewal registration

fee shall be required of a borough.

Section 3. The heading of Chapter 5 of the act is amended to

read:

CHAPTER 5

[COMMISSION] DEPARTMENT AUTHORITY AND ENFORCEMENT

Section 4. Sections 501, 502, 503 and 504 of the act are

amended to read:

Section 501. General powers of [commission] department.

(a) [Commission authority] Authority.--The [commission]

department shall have general administrative authority to

supervise and regulate pipeline operators within this

Commonwealth consistent with Federal pipeline safety laws. The

[commission] department may adopt regulations, consistent with

the Federal pipeline safety laws, as may be necessary or proper

in the exercise of its powers and perform its duties under this

act. The regulations shall not be inconsistent with or greater

or more stringent than the minimum standards and regulations

adopted under the Federal pipeline safety law. The [commission]

department shall have the following duties:

(1) To investigate a service, act, practice, policy or

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omission by a pipeline operator to determine compliance with

this act.

(2) To investigate a pipeline transportation facility to

determine if it is hazardous to life or property.

(3) To investigate the existence or report of a safety-

related condition that involves a pipeline transportation

facility.

(4) To enter into contracts or agreements with the

United States Department of Transportation to inspect

intrastate or interstate transmission facilities.

(5) Accept grants-in-aid, cash and reimbursements made

available to the Commonwealth by the Federal Government to

implement Federal pipeline safety laws or other Federal law.

(6) To advise, consult and cooperate with the Federal

Government, other states and other agencies as may be

necessary to carry out the purposes of this act.

(7) To enforce the Federal pipeline safety laws and,

after notice and opportunity for a hearing, impose civil

penalties and fines and take other appropriate enforcement

action.

(8) For purposes of petroleum gas, the [commission's]

department's jurisdiction under this act shall be limited to

those petroleum gas systems that are the following:

(i) Subject to the Federal pipeline safety laws.

(ii) Not a public utility.

(b) Compliance.--Each pipeline operator, its officers,

agents and employees, and other persons subject to this act, or

to an order of the [commission] department, or a court under

this act, shall observe, obey and comply with this act and the

terms and conditions of the orders issued hereunder.

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Section 502. Civil penalties.

(a) Violations.--Any pipeline operator who violates this act

shall be subject to a penalty provided under the Federal

pipeline safety laws or [66 Pa.C.S. § 3301(c) (relating to civil

penalties for violations)] an amount up to $1,000 per violation

per day, whichever is greater.

(b) Disposition of fines and penalties.--Fines imposed and

civil penalties recovered under this act shall be paid to the

[commission] department. The funds received by the [commission]

department under this subsection shall be paid into the State

Treasury, through the Department of Revenue, to the credit of

the General Fund.

Section 503. [Assessments] Fees.

(a) Duty to determine.--The [commission] department shall by

regulation [or order] determine the [assessments of] annual fee

to be paid by pipeline operators in accordance with this

section.

(b) Assessments.--

(1) The [commission] department shall determine an

appropriate annual [assessment] fee based on total interstate

or intrastate [regulated] transmission, [regulated]

distribution and regulated onshore gathering pipeline miles.

The [assessment] fee shall be [adjusted] sufficient to

collect the [commission's] department's total costs of the

pipeline operators' portion, excluding the costs otherwise

reimbursed by the Federal Government, of the department's

total costs incurred to administer:

(i) The gas pipeline safety program[, plus a

reasonable allocation of indirect costs].

(ii) The hazardous liquids pipeline safety program.

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(iii) The department's duties as an interstate

agent.

(2) The [assessment] fee shall be paid by pipeline

operators and shall not be applicable to natural gas public

utilities.

(3) The [assessment] fee under this subsection shall not

apply to boroughs.

due and payable within 30 days from the notice of amount due

from the [commission] department. [The amount of the assessment

may be challenged by a pipeline operator consistent with the

provisions of 66 Pa.C.S. § 510(c), (d) and (e) (relating to

assessment for regulatory expenses upon public utilities).]

(d) Reporting of miles.--Following the submission of the

original application, each pipeline operator shall, on or before

March 31 of each calendar year, report to the [commission]

department its total intrastate regulated transmission,

regulated distribution and regulated onshore gathering pipeline

miles in operation for the transportation of gas and hazardous

liquids in this Commonwealth during the prior calendar year.

(e) [Estimated fees] Fees.--The [estimated] fees to be

collected under this section for each fiscal year shall be

subtracted from the final estimate of total expenditures used to

calculate [the total assessment on public utilities under 66

Pa.C.S. § 510] the annual budget requested by the department for

each fiscal year.

Section 504. Jurisdiction and authority of [commission]

department.

(a) Jurisdiction.--Nothing in this act shall give the

[commission] department jurisdiction over any pipeline operator

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for purposes [of rates or ratemaking or any purpose] other than

those set forth in this act.

(b) Landfill gas distribution systems.--The jurisdiction of

the [commission] department over landfill gas distribution

systems under this act shall be limited to systems subject to

Federal pipeline safety laws. The [commission] department shall

not have jurisdiction over operations and systems within the

property boundary of the landfill.

[(c) Authority.--Nothing in this act grants the commission

additional authority to determine or regulate a pipeline

operator as a public utility as defined in 66 Pa.C.S. § 102

(relating to definitions) or as a natural gas supplier or

natural gas supply services as defined in 66 Pa.C.S. § 2202

(relating to definitions).]

Section 5. The act is amended by adding a section to read:

Section 505. Certification of pipeline safety program and

application for interstate agent status.

(a) Intrastate pipelines.--The department shall submit a

certification to the United States Department of Transportation

in accordance with 49 U.S.C. § 60105 (relating to state pipeline

safety program certifications) to authorize the department to

enforce Federal pipeline safety laws regarding intrastate

pipelines within this Commonwealth.

(b) Interstate pipelines.--The department shall make an

agreement with the United States Department of Transportation to

become an interstate agent in accordance with 49 U.S.C. § 60106

(relating to state pipeline safety agreements) to authorize the

department to enforce Federal pipeline safety laws regarding

interstate pipelines within this Commonwealth.

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and make the agreement under subsections (a) and (b) no later

than September 30 of each year.

(d) Compliance.--The department shall comply with Federal

laws and regulations to receive and maintain the authority to

enforce Federal pipeline safety laws regarding intrastate and

interstate pipelines within this Commonwealth under this

section.

Section 6. This act shall take effect in 60 days.

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