Texas Oil and Gas Attorney Blog
The staff of the Texas Railroad Commission is proposing amendments to the pipeline safety rules for oil and gas and other pipelines in Texas. These amendments will affect rules 18.1, 18.4 and 18.11. The amendments remove a reference to “intrastate” pipelines to make clear that the Commission now has safety jurisdiction over interstate (between states) as well as intrastate (within the state of Texas) pipelines. Additional amendments to bring the rules into compliance with federal law are new requirements that required excavator who damages a pipeline to notify the pipeline operator at the “earliest practical moment” but not later than one hour after the damage, and a requirement that the excavator must report any release of product from a damage pipeline by calling 911. The full text of the amendments can be viewed here.
The amendments are expected to appear in the Texas Register on November 24, 2017 and there will be a two week public comment period.
The Commission has been especially attentive to pipeline safety in Texas, given the highly publicized pipeline breaks in Texas and other states over the past few years.