82R4756 TRH-D
By: Burnam H.B. No. 1124
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to safety requirements applicable to gas pipelines in
certain counties.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter E, Chapter 121, Utilities Code, is
amended by adding Section 121.2017 to read as follows:
Sec. 121.2017. SAFETY REQUIREMENTS FOR CERTAIN PORTIONS OF
PIPELINES IN CERTAIN POPULOUS COUNTIES. (a) This section applies
only to that portion of a gas pipeline that is located or proposed
to be located in:
(1) a Class 3 or 4 location as defined by 49 C.F.R.
Section 192.5; and
(2) a county that is located wholly or partly above a
hydrocarbon-producing geological formation that underlies all or
part of two counties:
(A) that are adjacent to one another; and
(B) each of which has a population of more than
1.4 million.
(b) A gathering or transmission pipeline may not be
constructed within 50 feet of an established permanent structure
that is used by human beings on a regular basis unless:
(1) the owner of the structure consents in writing to
the construction of the pipeline; or
(2) the pipeline:
(A) operates at a pressure that does not exceed
50 percent of the pipeline's specified minimum yield strength;
(B) is equipped with automatic shutoff valves;
and
(C) is buried at least 12 inches deeper than
required by all other applicable state and federal regulations.
(c) The operator of a gathering or transmission pipeline
shall monitor the pipeline with a supervisory control and data
acquisition system unless:
(1) the operator demonstrates to the railroad
commission that use of the system would be infeasible or
economically impractical; and
(2) the operator conducts a leak survey of the
pipeline at least once every three months.
(d) The pipe used in a gathering or transmission pipeline
must be constructed of materials that meet the requirements of 49
C.F.R. Part 192. The railroad commission may not issue a permit
that exempts a pipeline from the requirements of this subsection.
(e) A gathering or transmission pipeline must be protected
from corrosion in the manner required by 49 C.F.R. Part 192. A
pipeline integrity assessment by in-line inspection, a pressure
test, or a direct assessment as defined by railroad commission
rules of a gathering or transmission pipeline must be conducted
every three years.
(f) The railroad commission shall adopt rules to implement
this section.
(g) This section and railroad commission rules adopted to
implement this section shall be enforced in the same manner as
Section 121.201 and safety standards or other rules prescribed or
adopted under that section.
SECTION 2. (a) As soon as practicable after the effective
date of this Act, the Railroad Commission of Texas shall adopt rules
to implement Section 121.2017, Utilities Code, as added by this
Act.
(b) Sections 121.2017(b) and (d), Utilities Code, as added
by this Act, apply only to a pipeline constructed on or after the
effective date of this Act.
(c) A pipeline subject to this Act that is in existence on
the effective date of this Act is not required to be brought into
compliance with Section 121.2017(e), Utilities Code, as added by
this Act, until January 1, 2014.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect January 1, 2012.