Thomas E. Petri: “4 years ago this Congress passed the Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2002. That piece of legislation expired…”

“4 years ago this Congress passed the Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2002. That piece of legislation expired September 30. The bill before us, H.R. 5782, reauthorizes the Federal pipeline safety programs through 2010 and amends existing pipeline safety law to enhance the safety and reliability of transporting the Nation's energy products by pipelines. By all accounts, the 2002 safety bill was an overwhelming success and, therefore, this bill does not deviate from the directions set forth in that legislation. This bill provides the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration with new civil penalty authority to enforce One-Call laws in States that do not adequately enforce those laws. This enforcement authority is balanced in the sense that it could be used on an operator who fails to respond to a pipeline location request or fails to accurately mark the location of a pipeline, as well as an excavator who fails to use the One-Call system or disregards location information or markings. The bill also provides incentives to States to adopt and implement a comprehensive State damage prevention program and provides guidance to States on elements for an effective underground damage program.”