BP BHEAD INT H [atlas:bill]

AN ACT Relating to oil and gas pipeline safety; amending RCW 19.02.100, 19.122.050, and 19.122.070; adding a new section to chapter 19.122 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 48.48 RCW; adding a new chapter to Title 70 RCW; repealing RCW 81.88.040; and prescribing penalties.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The intent of this act is to protect the health and safety of the citizens of the state of Washington and the quality of the state's environment by developing and implementing environmental and public safety measures applicable to persons transporting hazardous liquids and gas by pipeline within the state of Washington. The legislature finds that public safety and the environment may best be protected by adopting standards that are equal to, or more stringent than, those adopted by the federal government.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter unless the context clearly requires otherwise.

(1) "Dangerous release" means a release of hazardous liquid that poses a clear and immediate danger to life or health or that threatens a significant loss of property.

(2) "Department" means the department of ecology.

(3) "Failsafe system" means a nonelectronic or mechanically based system that prevents a pipeline from exceeding its maximum operating pressure in the event of a failure of the primary or electronic system designed for this purpose.

(4) "Gas" has the meaning given to it in 49 C.F.R. Part 192.

(5) "Hazardous liquid" means: (a) Petroleum, petroleum products, or anhydrous ammonia as those terms are defined in 49 C.F.R. Part 195 in effect March 1, 1998; and (b) carbon dioxide. The department by rule may incorporate by reference other substances designated as hazardous by the secretary of transportation under 49 U.S.C. Sec. 60101(a)(4).

(6) "Liquified natural gas" means natural gas or synthetic gas having as its major constituent methane that has been changed to a liquid or semisolid.

(7) "Local government" means a subdivision of the state or a city or town.

(8) "Person" means an individual, partnership, franchise holder, association, corporation, a state, a city, a county, or any subdivision or instrumentality of a state, and its employees, agents, or legal representatives.

(9) "Pipeline" means: (a) Pipe with a nominal diameter of six inches or more, located in the state, that is used to transport hazardous liquids; or (b) pipe operated at a pressure of more than two hundred seventy-five pounds per square inch that carries gas.

(10) "Pipeline company" means a person or entity constructing, owning, or operating a pipeline for transporting hazardous liquid or gas.

(11) "Process safety management systems" means management systems that include coordinated and interdisciplinary evaluations of the effect of significant changes to a pipeline system before such changes are implemented.

(12) "Release" means a spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, emitting, emptying, discharging, injecting, leaching, dumping, disposing, flowing, or any other uncontrolled escape of a hazardous liquid or gas from a pipeline.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. (1) The department shall have charge for the state of the administration and enforcement of all laws related to pipeline safety. To the extent not expressly prohibited by federal law, the department shall develop and implement a comprehensive program of pipeline safety.

(2) The department shall adopt by rule:

(a) Intrastate pipeline safety standards for pipeline transportation that:

(i) Apply to pipeline companies transporting hazardous liquids;

(ii) Cover the design, construction, and operation of pipelines transporting hazardous liquids; and

(iii) Require pipeline companies to design, construct, and maintain their pipeline facilities so they are safe and efficient;

(b) Requirements for pipeline companies related to the rapid location and isolation of all releases from pipelines, including:

(i) Installation of remote control shut-off valves at a distance of no less than four to ten miles in urban areas and twenty to sixty miles in rural areas, depending on the type and density of development, the presence of environmentally sensitive areas, and the application of appropriate engineering standards. The installation of remote valves shall include design features and safety procedures to minimize risks associated with valve malfunctions;

(ii) Installation of remotely monitored pressure gauges and meters at each pump station and remote valve location; and

(iii) Emergency response procedures, combined with training, for shutting down pumps, locating leaks and spills, and shutting appropriate valves as rapidly as possible;

(d) Measures aimed at the prevention of third-party excavation damage to pipelines through the establishment and required use of a one-call system. Such measures shall require municipal workers and construction workers who are involved in construction work above or near pipelines to receive training on:

(i) Prevention of damage to pipelines;

(ii) The danger involved if a pipeline is damaged;

(iii) The significance of pipeline damage that does not cause immediate failure; and

(iv) The importance of immediately reporting damage to a pipeline and the importance of immediately repairing a damaged pipeline; and

(e) The department shall require pipeline companies to submit operations safety plans once every five years and shall also require annual plan updates that identify plan implementation progress, as well as any amendments to the plan made necessary by changes to the pipeline distribution system or its operation. The department shall approve such plans after they have been deemed fit for service. A plan shall be deemed fit for service when it results in pipelines that are designed, developed, constructed, operated, and periodically modified to provide the highest practicable level of public safety. Pipeline operations safety plans shall include:

(i) A schedule of inspection and testing within the pipeline distribution system of:

(A) All mechanical components;

(B) All electronic components; and

(C) The structural integrity of all pipelines as determined through pressure testing and internal inspection tool surveys;

(ii) Failsafe systems;

(iii) Process safety management principles; and

(iv) Emergency management training for pipeline operators.

(3) The department shall coordinate information related to pipeline safety by providing technical assistance to local planning and siting authorities and to the energy facility site evaluation council established in chapter 80.50 RCW.

(4) The department shall evaluate proposals developed by the federal office of pipeline safety and other agencies and organizations related to methods and technologies for testing the integrity of pipeline structure, leak detection, and other elements of pipeline operation.

(5) The department shall require pipeline companies to provide accurate maps of their pipeline distribution networks to specifications developed by the department. The department shall verify the accuracy of the maps, consolidate the maps into a state-wide geographic information system, and fill any gaps for which companies or local governments may have no information. The mapping system shall be used in conjunction with the one-number locator service as provided in chapter 19.122 RCW. The mapping system shall be compatible with the United States department of transportation national pipeline mapping program.

(6) Within two years of the effective date of this act, the department shall develop for the consideration by local governments:

(a) A model ordinance that establishes setback and depth requirements for new pipeline construction;

(b) A model franchise agreement for jurisdictions through which a hazardous liquid or gas pipeline is located; and

(c) Protective standards applicable to existing and proposed pipelines in densely populated areas and environmentally sensitive areas.

(7) The department shall seek and accept federal designation of the department's inspectors as federal agents for the purposes of enforcement of the federal hazardous liquid pipeline safety act (49 U.S.C. Sec. 1671 to 1686), and federal rules adopted to implement that act, as they exist as of the effective date of this act. The department shall establish and submit to the United States secretary of transportation an inspection program that complies with requirements for delegated interstate agent inspection authority. To the extent that federal delegation of interstate agent inspection authority permits, the inspection program for interstate pipelines and liquified natural gas facilities must be the same as the inspection program for intrastate pipelines and facilities. If the secretary of transportation delegates inspection authority to the state as provided in this subsection, the department, at a minimum, shall do the following to carry out the delegated federal authority:

(a) Inspect pipelines and liquified natural gas facilities periodically as specified in the inspection program;

(b) Collect inspection fees;

(c) Order and oversee the testing of pipelines and liquified natural gas facilities as authorized by federal law and regulation; and

(d) File reports with the United States secretary of transportation as required to maintain the delegated inspection authority.

(8) The department shall also seek federal authority to adopt safety standards related to the monitoring and testing of interstate pipelines.

(9) The department shall inspect, as necessary, any record, map, or written procedure required by federal law to be kept by a pipeline company concerning the reporting of dangerous releases, and the design, construction, testing, or operation and maintenance of pipelines and liquid natural gas facilities.

Sec. 4. RCW 19.02.100 and 1997 c 58 s 865 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) The department shall not issue or renew a master license to any person if:

(a) The person does not have a valid tax registration, if required;

(b) The person is a corporation delinquent in fees or penalties owing to the secretary of state or is not validly registered under Title 23B RCW, chapter 18.100 RCW, Title 24 RCW, and any other statute now or hereafter adopted which gives corporate or business licensing responsibilities to the secretary of state; ((or))

(c) The person has not submitted the sum of all fees and deposits required for the requested individual license endorsements, any outstanding master license delinquency fee, or other fees and penalties to be collected through the system; or

(d) The person has not complied with this act.

(2) Nothing in this section shall prevent registration by the state of an employer for the purpose of paying an employee of that employer industrial insurance or unemployment insurance benefits.

(3) The department shall immediately suspend the license or certificate of a person who has been certified pursuant to RCW 74.20A.320 by the department of social and health services as a person who is not in compliance with a support order or a ((~~residential or~~)) visitation order. If the person has continued to meet all other requirements for reinstatement during the suspension, reissuance of the license or certificate shall be automatic upon the department's receipt of a release issued by the department of social and health services stating that the licensee is in compliance with the order.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. (1) All powers, duties, and functions of the utilities and transportation commission pertaining to pipeline safety are transferred to the department of ecology. All references to the commission or the utilities and transportation commission in the Revised Code of Washington shall be construed to mean the director or the department of ecology when referring to the functions transferred in this section.

(2)(a) All reports, documents, surveys, books, records, files, papers, or written material in the possession of the utilities and transportation commission pertaining to the powers, functions, and duties transferred shall be delivered to the custody of the department of ecology. All cabinets, furniture, office equipment, motor vehicles, and other tangible property employed by the utilities and transportation commission in carrying out the powers, functions, and duties transferred shall be made available to the department of ecology. All funds, credits, or other assets held in connection with the powers, functions, and duties transferred shall be assigned to the department of ecology.

(b) Any appropriations made to the utilities and transportation commission for carrying out the powers, functions, and duties transferred shall, on the effective date of this section, be transferred and credited to the department of ecology.

(c) Whenever any question arises as to the transfer of any personnel, funds, books, documents, records, papers, files, equipment, or other tangible property used or held in the exercise of the powers and the performance of the duties and functions transferred, the director of financial management shall make a determination as to the proper allocation and certify the same to the state agencies concerned.

(3) All employees of the utilities and transportation commission engaged in performing the powers, functions, and duties transferred are transferred to the jurisdiction of the department of ecology. All employees classified under chapter 41.06 RCW, the state civil service law, are assigned to the department of ecology to perform their usual duties upon the same terms as formerly, without any loss of rights, subject to any action that may be appropriate thereafter in accordance with the laws and rules governing state civil service.

(4) All rules and all pending business before the utilities and transportation commission pertaining to the powers, functions, and duties transferred shall be continued and acted upon by the department of ecology. All existing contracts and obligations shall remain in full force and shall be performed by the department of ecology.

(5) The transfer of the powers, duties, functions, and personnel of the utilities and transportation commission shall not affect the validity of any act performed before the effective date of this section.

(6) If apportionments of budgeted funds are required because of the transfers directed by this section, the director of financial management shall certify the apportionments to the agencies affected, the state auditor, and the state treasurer. Each of these shall make the appropriate transfer and adjustments in funds and appropriation accounts and equipment records in accordance with the certification.

(7) Nothing contained in this section may be construed to alter any existing collective bargaining unit or the provisions of any existing collective bargaining agreement until the agreement has expired or until the bargaining unit has been modified by action of the personnel board as provided by law.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. (1) A pipeline safety advisory committee is established to advise the department, energy facility site evaluation council, and other appropriate federal, state, and local government agencies and officials on matters relating to pipeline safety, routing, construction, operation, and maintenance. Members of the advisory committee shall be appointed by the governor to staggered three-year terms and, at a minimum, shall consist of representatives of local government, including elected officials and the general public. If requested by the department, the committee shall review and comment on proposed rules and the operation of the state pipeline safety program.

(2) The advisory committee established in subsection (1) of this section constitutes a class one group under RCW 43.03.220. Expenses for this group, as well as staff support provided by the department, shall be funded through a legislative appropriation to the department.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. A new section is added to chapter 19.122 RCW to read as follows:

The department of ecology shall establish a single state-wide toll-free telephone number to be used for excavation notification and shall require the six one-call centers that exist as of the effective date of this act to be reachable through that number.

Sec. 8. RCW 19.122.050 and 1984 c 144 s 5 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) An excavator who, in the course of excavation, contacts or damages an underground facility shall immediately notify the utility owning or operating such facility and the one-number locator service. If the damage causes an emergency condition, the excavator causing the damage shall also immediately alert the appropriate local public safety agencies and take all appropriate steps to ensure the public safety. No damaged underground facility may be buried until it is repaired or relocated.

(2) Whenever excavation work occurs within five feet of a hazardous liquid or gas pipeline, the pipeline company that owns or operates the pipeline shall be notified prior to the start of excavation.

(3) The owner of the underground facilities damaged shall arrange for repairs or relocation as soon as is practical or may permit the excavator to do necessary repairs or relocation at a mutually acceptable price.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. A new section is added to chapter 48.48 RCW to read as follows:

(1) In consultation with the emergency management program within the state military department, the department of ecology, and local emergency services organizations, the chief of the Washington state patrol, through the director of fire protection or his or her authorized deputy, shall:

(a) Evaluate the preparedness of local first responders in meeting emergency management demands under subsection (2) of this section; and

(b) Conduct an assessment of the equipment needed by local first responders to meet emergency management demands related to pipelines.

(2) The chief of the Washington state patrol, through the director of fire protection or his or her deputy, shall develop curricula for training local first responders to deal with pipeline accidents. The curricula shall be developed in conjunction with pipeline companies and local first responders, and shall include a timetable and costs for providing training as defined in the curricula to all communities housing pipelines. The need for a training program for regional incident management teams shall also be evaluated.

(3) In consultation with other relevant agencies, the chief of the Washington state patrol, through the director of fire protection or his or her deputy, shall identify the need and means for achieving consistent application of the national interagency incident management system.

(4) For the purposes of this section, "local first responders" means police, fire, emergency medical staff, and volunteers.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 10. (1) After a pipeline company has been notified by an excavator pursuant to section 8 of this act that excavation work will occur within five feet of a hazardous liquid or gas pipeline, the pipeline company shall ensure that the pipeline section in the vicinity of the excavation is fully uncovered and examined for damage prior to being reburied.

(2) Immediately upon receiving information of third-party damage to a pipeline owned or operated by a pipeline company, that company shall terminate the flow of hazardous liquid or gas in that pipeline until it has visually inspected the pipeline. After visual inspection, a pipeline company shall determine whether the pipeline section that has sustained third-party damage should be replaced or repaired, or whether it is safe to resume pipeline operation. A record of the company's inspection report and test results shall be provided to the department within fourteen calendar days of the inspection.

(3) Pipeline companies shall immediately notify local first responders and the department of any dangerous release from a pipeline.

Sec. 11. RCW 19.122.070 and 1984 c 144 s 7 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) Any person who fails to notify a pipeline company of excavation work that is planned to occur within five feet of a hazardous liquid or gas pipeline is subject to a civil penalty of not more than one thousand dollars for each violation.

(2) Any person who violates any provision of this chapter, and which violation results in damage to underground facilities, is subject to a civil penalty of not more than ((~~one~~)) ten thousand dollars for each violation. All penalties recovered in such actions shall be deposited in the general fund.

((~~(2)~~)) (3) Any excavator who wilfully or maliciously damages a field-marked underground facility shall be liable for treble the costs incurred in repairing or relocating the facility. In those cases in which an excavator fails to notify known underground facility owners or the one-number locator service, any damage to the underground facility shall be deemed wilful and malicious and shall be subject to treble damages for costs incurred in repairing or relocating the facility.

((~~(3)~~)) (4) This chapter does not affect any civil remedies for personal injury or for property damage, including that to underground facilities, nor does this chapter create any new civil remedies for such damage.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 12. (1) A pipeline company that fails to comply with any provision of this chapter shall be subject to civil penalties of not less than five thousand dollars.

(2) A pipeline company that fails to report a dangerous release shall be guilty of a class B felony punishable under RCW 9A.20.021 if:

(a) The company knows or has reason to know that a dangerous release exists;

(b) The company does not immediately report the release to the local first responder; and

NEW SECTION. Sec. 13. If any part of this act is found to be in conflict with federal requirements that are a prescribed condition to the allocation of federal funds to the state, the conflicting part of this act is inoperative solely to the extent of the conflict and with respect to the agencies directly affected, and this finding does not affect the operation of the remainder of this act in its application to the agencies concerned. Rules adopted under this act must meet federal requirements that are a necessary condition to the receipt of federal funds by the state.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 14. This act may be known and cited as the Washington state pipeline safety act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 15. Sections 1 through 3, 5, 6, 10, and 12 through 14 of this act constitute a new chapter in Title 70 RCW.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 16. RCW 81.88.040 (Intrastate pipeline safety standards--Definitions--Rules--Violations) and 1998 c 123 s 1 are each repealed.