The Department of Transportation/Pipeline Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) has adopted, with minor modifications, an interim final rule issued by PHMSA on March 28, 2008, conforming PHMSA's administrative procedures with the Pipeline Inspection, Protection, Enforcement, and Safety Act of 2006 by establishing the procedures PHMSA will follow for issuing safety orders and handling requests for special permits, including emergency special permits. The rule also notifies operators about electronic docket information availability; updates addresses for filing reports, telephone numbers, and routing symbols; and clarifies the time period for processing requests for written interpretations of the regulations. This final rule makes minor amendments and technical corrections to the regulatory text in response to written public comments received after issuance of the interim final rule, as explained more fully below.

Safety Orders. Pursuant to section 13 of the PIPES Act, the interim final rule established the process by which PHMSA will initiate safety order proceedings to address identified pipeline integrity risks that may not rise to the level of a hazardous condition requiring immediate corrective action under 49 U.S.C. 60112, but should be addressed over time to prevent failures. The rule requires PHMSA to provide operators with notice and an opportunity for a hearing before issuing a safety order and expressly authorizes informal consultation in advance of an administrative hearing. In the absence of consent, a safety order must be based on a finding by the Associate Administrator for Pipeline Safety that a pipeline facility has a condition that poses a risk to public safety, property, or the environment. In making the required finding, the Associate Administrator will consider all relevant information, including the nine considerations expressly enumerated in 49 U.S.C. 60117(l)(2). PHMSA expects the majority of safety order proceedings to be resolved by consent agreement between the operator and PHMSA. The safety order process established in the interim final rule is largely unchanged in this final rule.

Special Permits. To clarify the procedures governing special permits, and to establish new procedures for exercise of the agency's emergency authority, the interim final rule added a new section, entitled "Special permits," to the administrative procedures in 49 CFR Part 190. The rule outlines the procedures under which pipeline operators (and prospective operators) may request special permits. It specifies the information that must be provided in each application and, in accordance with 49 U.S.C. 60118(c)(1)(B), provides for public notice and hearing on applications for (non-emergency) special permits. Section 10 of the PIPES Act provided PHMSA with the authority to issue an emergency waiver of a pipeline safety regulation without prior notice and hearing if necessary to address an emergency involving pipeline transportation, and the rule outlines the procedures for operators to request such emergency special permits. The special permit process established in the interim final rule is largely unchanged in this final rule.

Other Amendments. The interim final rule also amended part 190 by adding a new paragraph notifying operators that all materials they submit in response to administrative enforcement actions may be placed on publicly accessible websites. The rule sets forth the procedure for seeking confidential treatment, along with other information concerning the agency's new enforcement transparency website. The rule also reflects the recent relocation of DOT Headquarters and the transition from the Department's electronic docket management system to the government-wide electronic docket system (found at regulations.gov), enabling electronic service of enforcement documents. This final rule also amends 49 CFR Parts 191-199 to correct the address for filing annual, accident, and safety-related condition reports for hazardous liquid pipelines (which was inadvertently omitted from the interim final rule) and corrects addresses, telephone numbers, and routing symbols in the regulations for filing various other forms and reports.

This final rule is effective February 17, 2009.