[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 11 (Friday, January 22, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Page S926]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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               PROTECTING OUR UNDERGROUND INFRASTRUCTURE

 Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, the last Congress enacted legislation 
which protects our nation's vital underground infrastructure. Power 
cables, telephone lines, water mains and pipelines affect our daily 
lives, and it is essential that they are given the best protection 
possible. This legislation, based on S.1115, the Comprehensive One-Call 
Notification Act, does just that. It provides incentives for states to 
improve their notification systems--systems which provide for accurate 
marking of underground facilities, and systems which prevent damage 
during excavation. This bill became law as part of the Transportation 
Equity Act for the 21st Century, TEA 21.
  I am pleased to report that the response to the one-call legislation 
has been extremely positive. The truely bipartisan spirit that 
characterized Congress' approach to the legislation has been carried 
over into the cooperative spirit of the participants in implementing 
the bill.
  The bill's first mandate convened a study on the best practices in 
one-call notification. This study will be submitted to Congress in June 
of this year, and is being carried out by the Office of Pipeline Safety 
(OPS) of the Department of Transportation. I have received reports that 
OPS has fully involved those affected by the law in all phases of the 
design and implementation of the best practices. This has proven to be 
an excellent model for conducting a cooperative effort between the 
public and private sectors. Mr. President, I am particularly pleased by 
the leadership the excavation community has shown in working with one-
call center representatives, underground facility operators and others 
interested in underground infrastructure protection by moving this 
study process forward.
  This study is a bottom-up effort with emphasis on letting those with 
hands-on experience play leading roles. After a public meeting last 
August to bring together interested parties, the participants formed 
nine teams covering various aspects of underground infrastructure 
protection: one-call center practices, excavation, mapping, locating 
and marketing, compliance, planning and design, reporting and 
evaluation, public education, and emerging technologies. The teams are 
currently gathering information, receiving and discussing any and all 
comments, and will produce the first drafts of the chapters for the 
final report. Team meetings are completely open to interested members 
of the public. Infact, schedules and minutes are being published on the 
OPS web page, http://ops.dot.gov, under ``damage prevention.''
  Mr. President, the affected parties have checked their differences at 
the door, have worked together with openness and goodwill, have solved 
a very important infrastructure problem, and, because there was real 
world input, it will improve practices in the real world.
  Looking ahead, the second phase of the bill calls for the Secretary 
of Transportation to offer grants to states which encourage 
improvements in their states' one-call notification systems. I expect 
the best practices study to significantly help devise criteria for 
awarding these grants. I hope the President's budget proposal funds 
these grant activities from general revenues in full recognition of the 
broad public benefit that accrues from effective underground 
infrastructure protection.
  Mr. President, the process moving forward within the Department of 
Transportation has enlightened federalism through a government-industry 
partnership. I congratulate the monitoring the additional steps in the 
inclusive process to implement the protection of our vital underground 
infrastructure.

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