PERMANENT RULES
COMMISSION
1 RULES CONSIDERED: The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission takes this action under Notice No. WSR 01-20-058, filed with the code reviser on September 28, 2001.
2 STATUTORY OR OTHER AUTHORITY: The commission brings this proceeding pursuant to RCW 80.01.040, 80.04.160, 81.04.160 and section 2, chapter 238, Laws of 2001.
3 STATEMENT OF COMPLIANCE: This proceeding complies with the Open Public Meetings Act (chapter 42.30 RCW), the Administrative Procedure Act (chapter 34.05 RCW), the State Register Act (chapter 34.08 RCW), the State Environmental Policy Act of 1971 (chapter 43.21C RCW), and the Regulatory Fairness Act (chapter 19.85 RCW).
4 DATE OF ADOPTION: The commission adopts this rule on the date that this order is entered.
5 EMERGENCY RULES: Emergency rules establishing a methodology for collection of pipeline safety fees pursuant to legislative authority were filed with the code reviser under Notice No. WSR 01-13-045 and effective June 14, 2001. The notice and workshop, and the written comments received before the adoption of the emergency rule are described in the order filed under Notice No. WSR 01-13-045. An identical emergency rule was filed with the Code Reviser under Notice No. WSR 01-21-039 and effective October 12, 2001.
6 CONCISE STATEMENT OF PURPOSE AND EFFECT OF THE RULE: RCW 34.05.325 requires that the commission prepare and provide to commenters a concise explanatory statement about an adopted rule. The statement must include the identification of the reasons for adopting the rule, a summary of the comments received regarding the proposed rule, and responses reflecting the commission's consideration of the comments.
7 The commission often includes a discussion of those matters in its rule adoption order. In addition, most rule-making proceedings involve extensive work by commission staff that includes summaries in memoranda of stakeholder comments, commission decisions, and staff recommendations in each of those areas.
8 In this docket, to avoid unnecessary duplication, the commission designates the discussion in the staff memoranda presented at the adoption hearing and at the open meetings where the commission considered whether to begin a rule making and whether to propose adoption of specific language. Together, the documents provide a complete but concise explanation of the agency actions and its reasons for taking those actions.
9 REFERENCE TO AFFECTED RULES: These rules adopt the following sections of the Washington Administrative Code:
WAC 480-93-240 Annual pipeline safety fee methodology.
New section to establish a methodology for collecting pipeline safety fees pursuant to legislative authority to meet the cost of conducting the pipeline safety program established in Titles 80 and 81 RCW.
WAC 480-75-240 Annual pipeline safety fee methodology.
New section to establish a methodology for collecting pipeline safety fees pursuant to legislative authority to meet the cost of conducting the pipeline safety program established in Titles 80 and 81 RCW.
10 PREPROPOSAL STATEMENT OF INQUIRY: The commission filed a
preproposal statement of inquiry (CR-101) on April 26, 2001, at
WSR 01-01-047.
11 ADDITIONAL NOTICE AND ACTIVITY PURSUANT TO PREPROPOSAL STATEMENT: The statement advised interested persons that the commission was considering entering a rule making to establish the methodology for collecting pipeline safety fees. The commission also informed persons of the inquiry into this matter by providing notice of the subject and the CR-101 to all persons on the commission's list of persons requesting such information pursuant to RCW 34.05.320(3) and by sending notice to all pipeline operators. Pursuant to the notice, the commission called for three rounds of comments and held stakeholder workshops on May 17, and August 2, 2001. Representatives from the following companies and organizations submitted written comments, attended workshops, or both: BP Amoco/Olympic Pipeline Company, Trans Mountain Pipeline, Northwest Industrial Gas Users, Western States Petroleum Association, Puget Sound Energy, Williams Gas Pipeline/West, Tidewater Barge Lines, Inc., Avista Corporation, Weyerhaeuser Paper Company, and Gary Chandler, State Representative.
12 Oral and written comments received from the stakeholders proposed a number of language changes which the commission adopted in making its rule proposal.
13 NOTICE OF PROPOSED RULE MAKING: The commission filed a notice of proposed rule making (CR-102) on September 28, 2001, at WSR 01-20-058. The commission scheduled this matter for oral comment and adoption under Notice No. WSR 01-20-58 [01-20-058] at 9:30 a.m., Friday, November 16, 2001, in the Commission's Hearing Room, Second Floor, Chandler Plaza Building, 1300 South Evergreen Park Drive S.W., Olympia, WA. The notice also provided interested persons the opportunity to submit written comments to the commission.
14 COMMENTERS (WRITTEN COMMENTS): The commission received no additional comments subsequent to filing the CR-102.
15 RULE-MAKING HEARING: The rule proposal was considered for adoption, pursuant to the notice, at a rule-making hearing scheduled during the commission's regularly scheduled open public meeting on November 16, 2001, before Chairwoman Marilyn Showalter, Commissioner Richard Hemstad and Commissioner Patrick Oshie. The commission heard oral comments from Sondra Walsh, representing commission staff. No other interested person made oral comments.
16 COMMISSION ACTION: After considering all of the information regarding this proposal, the commission adopts the proposed rules without change.
17 STATEMENT OF ACTION; STATEMENT OF EFFECTIVE DATE: In reviewing the entire record, the commission determines that WAC 480-93-240 and 480-75-240 should be adopted to read as set forth in Appendix A, as rules of the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission, to take effect pursuant to RCW 34.05.380(2) on the thirty-first day after filing with the code reviser.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted at Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's Own Initiative: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted Using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
18 THE COMMISSION ORDERS:
19 WAC 480-93-240 and 480-75-240 are adopted to read as set forth in Appendix A, as rules of the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission, to take effect on the thirty-first day after the date of filing with the code reviser pursuant to RCW 34.05.380(2). When adopted these rules will replace the emergency rules adopted under Notice No. WSR 01-21-039 and effective October 12, 2001.
20 This order and the rule set out below, after being recorded in the register of the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission, shall be forwarded to the code reviser for filing pursuant to chapters 80.01 and 34.05 RCW and chapter 1-21 WAC.
DATED at Olympia, Washington, this 2nd day of January, 2002.
Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission
Marilyn Showalter, Chairwoman
Richard Hemstad, Commissioner
Patrick J. Oshie, Commissioner
Appendix A(2) The fee will be set by general order of the commission entered before July 1 of each year and will be collected in four equal installments payable on the first day of each calendar quarter, beginning July 1, 2001.
(a) The total of pipeline safety fees will be calculated to recover the costs of the legislatively authorized workload represented by current appropriations, less the amount received in federal funds through the Federal Department of Transportation's Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Program base grant. Federal grants, other than the federal base grant, received by the commission for additional activities not included or anticipated in the legislatively directed workload will not be credited against company pipeline safety fees, nor will the work supported by such grants be considered a cost for purposes of calculating such fees.
(b) Total pipeline fees as determined in subsection (a) will be divided between gas companies and interstate gas pipeline companies based on two components:
(i) The first component is direct assignment of average costs associated with a company's standard inspections, including the average number of inspection days per year, which will be determined annually. Standard inspections are conducted to comply with the state's participation requirement under the "Guidelines for States Participating in the Pipeline Safety Program" of the Federal Department of Transportation, Office of Pipeline Safety.
(ii) The second component is an allocation of the remaining program costs that are not directly assigned in (i). Distribution of these costs between gas companies and interstate gas pipeline companies will be based on miles of transmission lines as defined in WAC 480-93-005(18) and miles of main as defined in WAC 480-93-005(12) operated within Washington state.
(c) The commission general order setting fees pursuant to this rule will detail the allocation of program costs between gas companies and interstate gas pipeline companies, and the specific calculation of each company's pipeline safety fee.
(3) By April 1 of each year every gas company and every interstate gas pipeline company subject to this section must file an annual report as prescribed by the Commission that is necessary to establish the annual pipeline safety fee. By June 1 of each year the commission staff will mail to each company subject to this section an annual invoice showing an estimate of the quarterly amounts.
(4) All funds received by the commission for the pipeline safety program will be deposited to the pipeline safety account. For those companies subject to RCW 80.24.010, the portion of the company's total regulatory fee applicable to pipeline safety will be transferred from the public service revolving fund to the pipeline safety account.
(5) Any company wishing to contest the amount of the fee imposed under this section must pay the fee and, within 6 months of the due date of the fee, file a petition in writing with the commission requesting a refund. The petition must state the name of the petitioner; the date and the amount paid, including a copy of any receipt, if available; the amount of the fee that is contested; and any reasons why the commission may not impose the fee. The commission may grant the petition administratively or may set the petition for adjudication or for brief adjudication.
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(2) The fee will be set by general order of the commission entered before July 1 of each year and will be collected in four equal installments payable on the first day of each calendar quarter, beginning July 1, 2001.
(a) The total of pipeline safety fees will be calculated to recover the costs of the legislatively authorized workload represented by current appropriations, less the amount received in federal funds through the Federal Department of Transportation's Hazardous Liquids Pipeline Safety Program base grant. Federal grants, other than the federal base grant, received by the commission for additional activities not included or anticipated in the legislatively directed workload will not be credited against company pipeline safety fees, nor will the work supported by such grants be considered a cost for purposes of calculating such fees.
(b) Total pipeline fees as determined in (a) will be divided between intrastate hazardous liquid pipeline companies and interstate hazardous liquid pipeline companies based on two components:
(i) The first component is direct assignment of average costs associated with a company's standard inspections, including the average number of inspection days per year which will be determined annually. Standard inspections are conducted to comply with the state's participation requirement under the "Guidelines for States Participating in the Pipeline Safety Program" of the Federal Department of Transportation, Office of Pipeline Safety.
(ii) The second component is an allocation of the remaining program costs that are not directly assigned in (i). Distribution of these costs between interstate and intrastate hazardous liquid pipeline companies will be based on miles of pipeline operated within Washington state.
(b) The commission general order setting fees pursuant to this rule will detail the allocation of program costs between interstate and intrastate hazardous liquid companies and the specific calculation of each company's pipeline fee.
(3) By April 1 of each year every hazardous liquids pipeline company subject to this section must file an annual report as prescribed by the commission that is necessary to establish the annual pipeline safety fee. By June 1 of each year the commission staff will mail to each company subject to this section an annual invoice showing an estimate of the quarterly amounts.
(4) All funds received by the commission for the pipeline safety program will be deposited to the pipeline safety account. For those companies subject to RCW 81.24.010 the portion of the company's total regulatory fee applicable to pipeline safety will be transferred from the public service revolving fund to the pipeline safety account.
(5) Any company wishing to contest the amount of the fee imposed under this section must pay the fee and, within 6 months of the due date of the fee, file a petition in writing with the commission requesting a refund. The petition shall state the name of the petitioner; the date and the amount paid, including a copy of any receipt, if available; the amount of the fee that is contested; and any reasons why the commission may not impose the fee. The commission may grant the petition administratively or may set the petition for adjudication or for brief adjudication.
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