Pipeline Inspection, Protection, Enforcement, And Safety Act of 2006

PIPELINE INSPECTION, PROTECTION, ENFORCEMENT, AND SAFETY ACT OF 2006 -- (House of Representatives - December 06, 2006)

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Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 5782--the Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2006.

I want to thank Chairman YOUNG and Ranking Member OBERSTAR and my other colleagues, who brought this vital and important bill to the floor today.

Pipeline security has gone under the radar in recent years--but there are critical issues which must be addressed. This bill addresses many of these problems.

This bill strengthens the ``one-call notification system'' which allows private citizens and the constructIon industry to quickly and easily notify utilities and pipeline owners of excavation.

The one-call notification system is vital to protecting these key resources and critical infrastructure from third-party damage.

Unfortunately, third parties are the number one cause of pipeline damage--disrupting the economy and putting many in harms way. These occurrences can easily be prevented and this bill helps do just that. This bill subjects anyone who does not comply with this system to stiff action and penalties.

This bill establishes a State Damage Prevention Program--which is a program which aims to prevent damage to underground infrastructure. This program will be based at the state level and this bill provides for a state grant program managed by the Department of Transportation.

This bill improves the management of pipeline infrastructure by mandating the recommendations set forth by the NTSB--the National Transportation Safety Board.

The bill will also improve pipeline security by assessing risk associated with human error and reducing damage from these issues by specifically providing for training and simulation exercises.

On the technology side, this bill will improve on leak detection technology and monitoring alarms which will improve safety around hazardous materials and the pipelines which carry them.

This bill also takes into account environmentally sensitive areas. It mandates new standards for pipelines in these areas which will aim to limit or prevent accidents in these susceptible and crucial areas.

This bill also aims to assess and prevent possible gasoline shortages and price spikes by assessing how future pipeline capacity shortages might impact the price of gas at the pump.

And finally and most importantly, this bill provides for proper communications between the Department of Transportation and the Department of Homeland Security to ensure reliability for these important and critical assets.

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