US government approves pipeline safety amendment

Congressman Tim Griffin issued the following statement after the House passed his amendment to prioritise funding for the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) in the fiscal year 2015 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act (H.R. 4745):

“My amendment makes pipeline safety a priority by transferring US$ 500 000 to cover operational expenses of the PHMSA from the account used to fund salaries and administrative expenses at the Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration (FTA). This eliminates needless bureaucracy at FTA, allocates additional resources to maintain the safety of America’s pipelines and continues to fund essential public transportation projects – all at no additional cost to hardworking taxpayers.”

The PHMSA is the federal government’s primary agency for regulating and ensuring the safe and secure movement of oil and petroleum products to industry and consumers through America’s interstate pipelines. The amendment is fully offset by cutting US$ 500 000 from the US$ 103 million provided in H.R. 4745 for Administrative Expenses at the Federal Transit Administration. FTA is an agency within the Department of Transportation that provides technical and financial assistance to local public transit systems. The Administrative Expenses account is used to fund salaries and other administrative expenses at FTA, and not any grants or funding for local public transportation programs or projects.

Last year, Griffin passed a similar amendment in the FY14 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act, which later was incorporated into the 2014 Consolidated Appropriations Act (H.R.3547) that passed the House on 14 January and was signed into law on 17 January.

Adapted from press release by Rosalie Starling

Read the article online at: https://www.worldpipelines.com/business-news/18062014/us_government_approves_pipeline_safety_amendment_519/