| 1 | | - | Date of enactment: March 27, 2024 |
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| 2 | | - | 2023 Senate Bill 812 Date of publication*: March 28, 2024 |
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| 3 | | - | 2023 WISCONSIN ACT 242 |
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| 4 | | - | AN ACT to amend 196.745 (2) (a) of the statutes; relating to: increasing the penalties for gas pipeline safety viola- |
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| 5 | | - | tions and providing a penalty. |
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| 6 | | - | The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in |
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| 7 | | - | senate and assembly, do enact as follows: |
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| 8 | | - | SECTION 1. 196.745 (2) (a) of the statutes is amended |
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| 9 | | - | to read: |
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| 10 | | - | 196.745 (2) (a) Any person violating sub. (1) (a), or |
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| 11 | | - | any order or rule issued under sub. (1) (a), shall forfeit an |
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| 12 | | - | amount not exceeding $25,000. Each day of violation is |
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| 13 | | - | a separate violation of sub. (1) (a). No person may forfeit |
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| 14 | | - | an amount exceeding $500,000 for a single persisting |
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| 15 | | - | violation of sub. (1) (a) or any order or any rule issued |
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| 16 | | - | under sub. (1) (a) the maximum applicable penalty under |
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| 17 | | - | 49 CFR 190. The commission shall remit all forfeitures |
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| 18 | | - | paid under this paragraph to the secretary of administra- |
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| 19 | | - | tion for deposit in the school fund. |
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| 20 | | - | * Section 991.11, WISCONSIN STATUTES: Effective date of acts. “Every act and every portion of an act enacted by the legislature over the governor’s |
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| 21 | | - | partial veto which does not expressly prescribe the time when it takes effect shall take effect on the day after its date of publication.” |
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| 1 | + | LRB-5125/1 |
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| 2 | + | KP:cjs |
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| 3 | + | 2023 - 2024 LEGISLATURE |
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| 4 | + | 2023 SENATE BILL 812 |
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| 5 | + | December 15, 2023 - Introduced by Senators BRADLEY and SMITH, cosponsored by |
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| 6 | + | Representatives SUMMERFIELD, DITTRICH, O'CONNOR and SUBECK. Referred to |
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| 7 | + | Committee on Utilities and Technology. |
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| 8 | + | AN ACT to amend 196.745 (2) (a) of the statutes; relating to: increasing the |
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| 9 | + | penalties for gas pipeline safety violations and providing a penalty. |
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| 10 | + | Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau |
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| 11 | + | The bill increases the maximum penalties for persons who fail to operate and |
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| 12 | + | maintain gas production, transmission, and distribution facilities in a reasonably |
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| 13 | + | adequate and safe manner. Current law requires gas production, transmission, and |
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| 14 | + | distribution facilities to be operated and maintained in a reasonably adequate and |
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| 15 | + | safe manner and authorizes the PSC to issue orders and rules to promote safety of |
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| 16 | + | those facilities. Under current law, a person who violates one of these PSC orders |
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| 17 | + | or rules or fails to operate and maintain gas production, transmission, and |
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| 18 | + | distribution facilities in a reasonably adequate and safe manner is subject to a |
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| 19 | + | forfeiture of up $25,000 per day and a total forfeiture of up to $500,000 for a single |
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| 20 | + | persisting violation. Under the bill, a violator is subject to a forfeiture of up to the |
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| 21 | + | maximum applicable penalty for such violations under federal regulations |
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| 22 | + | promulgated by the U.S. Department of Transportation. Currently, those federal |
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| 23 | + | regulations provide a maximum forfeiture of up to $257,664 per day and a total |
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| 24 | + | forfeiture of up to $2,576,627 for a related series of violations. |
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| 25 | + | The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do |
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| 26 | + | enact as follows: |
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| 27 | + | SECTION 1. 196.745 (2) (a) of the statutes is amended to read: |
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| 30 | + | 3 - 2 -2023 - 2024 Legislature LRB-5125/1 |
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| 31 | + | KP:cjs |
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| 32 | + | SECTION 1 SENATE BILL 812 |
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| 33 | + | 196.745 (2) (a) Any person violating sub. (1) (a), or any order or rule issued |
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| 34 | + | under sub. (1) (a), shall forfeit an amount not exceeding $25,000. Each day of |
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| 35 | + | violation is a separate violation of sub. (1) (a). No person may forfeit an amount |
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| 36 | + | exceeding $500,000 for a single persisting violation of sub. (1) (a) or any order or any |
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| 37 | + | rule issued under sub. (1) (a) the maximum applicable penalty under 49 CFR 190. |
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| 38 | + | The commission shall remit all forfeitures paid under this paragraph to the secretary |
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| 39 | + | of administration for deposit in the school fund. |
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| 40 | + | (END) |
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