[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 119 (Tuesday, June 22, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34720-34721]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-14076]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Research and Special Programs Administration

[Docket No. RSPA-98-4470]


Pipeline Safety: Meeting of the Technical Pipeline Safety 
Standards Advisory Committee and the Technical Hazardous Liquid 
Pipeline Safety Standards Committee

AGENCY: Office of Pipeline Safety, Research and Special Programs 
Administration, DOT.

ACTION: Notice; Meeting of the Technical Pipeline Safety Standards 
Committee and the Technical Hazardous Liquid Pipeline Safety Standards 
Committee.

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SUMMARY: The Research and Special Programs Administration's (RSPA) 
Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS) will convene a conference call of the 
Technical Pipeline Safety Standards Committee (TPSSC) and the Technical 
Hazardous Liquid Pipeline Safety Standards Committee (THLPSSC) to vote 
on a proposed rule to require underwater periodic inspection of gas and 
hazardous liquid pipelines. The advisory committees will discuss the 
proposals and comments and vote on the reasonableness, cost-
effectiveness, and practicability of the proposed regulation.

ADDRESSES: The conference call will be held on June 30, 2004, from 1 
p.m. to 4 p.m., EST. The Advisory Committee members will participate 
via telephone conference call. Members of the public may attend the 
meeting at the U.S. Department of Transportation, 400 Seventh Street, 
SW., Washington, DC Room 6332-6336.
    An opportunity will be provided for the public to make short 
statements on the topic under discussion. Anyone wishing to make an 
oral statement should notify Jean Milam, (202) 493-0967, not later than 
June 25, 2004, on the topic of the statement and the length of the 
presentation. The presiding officer at the meeting may deny any request 
to present an oral statement and may limit the time of any 
presentation.
    You may submit comments [identified by DOT DMS Docket Number RSPA-
03-15852] by any of the following methods:
     Web site: http://dms.dot.gov. Follow the instructions for 
submitting comments on the DOT electronic docket site.
     Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
     Mail: Docket Management Facility; U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Nassif Building, Room PL-401, 
Washington, DC 20590-0001.
     Hand Delivery: Room PL-401 on the plaza level of the 
Nassif Building, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC, between 9 
a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal Holidays.
     Federal Rulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments.
    Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name and 
docket number or Regulatory Identification Number (RIN for this 
rulemaking). For detailed instructions on submitting comments and 
additional information on the rulemaking process, see the Public 
Participation heading of the Supplementary Information section of this 
document. Note that all comments received will be posted without change 
to http://dms.dot.gov. including any personal information provided. 
Please see the Privacy Act heading under Regulatory Notices.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to http://dms.dot.gov at any time or to Room PL-
40 on the plaza level of the Nassif Building, 400 Seventh Street, SW., 
Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal Holidays.
    Anyone is able to search the electronic form of all comments 
received into any of our dockets by the name of the individual 
submitting the comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf 
of an association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review DOT's 
complete Privacy Act Statement in the Federal Register published on 
April 11, 2000 (Volume 65, Number 70; Pages 19477-78) or you may visit 
http://dms.dot.gov.
    You may obtain copies of this proposed rule or other material in 
the docket. All materials in this docket may be accessed electronically 
at http://dms.dot.gov.

Information on Services for Individuals With Disabilities

    For information on facilities or services for individuals with 
disabilities or to request special assistance at the meeting, contact 
Jean Milam at (202) 493-0967.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cheryl Whetsel, RSPA/OPS, (202) 366-
4431 or Richard Huriaux, RSPA/OPS, (202) 366-4565, in regard to the 
subject matter of this notice.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    The TPSSC and THLPSSC are statutorily mandated advisory committees 
that advise the Research and Special Programs Administration's Office 
of Pipeline Safety on proposed safety standards for gas and hazardous 
liquid pipelines. These advisory committees are constituted in 
accordance with section 10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act 
(Pub. L. 92-463, 5 U.S.C. App. 1). The committees consist of 15 
members--five each representing government, industry, and the public. 
The TPSSC and THLPSSC are tasked with determining reasonableness, cost-
effectiveness, and practicability of proposed pipeline regulations.
    Federal law requires that RSPA/OPS submit cost-benefit analyses and 
risk assessment information on proposed safety standards to the 
advisory committees. The TPSSC and the THLPSSC evaluate the merits of 
the data and methods used within the analyses, and when appropriate, 
provide recommendations relating to the cost-benefit analyses.
    The advisory committees will discuss the Notice of Proposed 
Rulemaking (NPRM) entitled, ``Pipeline Safety: Underwater Periodic 
Inspection'' (68 FR 69368) and vote on the reasonableness, cost-
effectiveness, and practicability of the proposed regulation. The NPRM 
proposes to amend the pipeline safety regulations to require operators 
of gas and hazardous liquid pipelines to have procedures for periodic 
inspections of underwater pipeline facilities in waters less than 15 
feet deep. These inspections will inform the operator if the pipeline 
is exposed or a hazard to navigation.
    RSPA/OPS will issue a final rule based on the proposed rule, the 
comments received from the public, and the vote and comments of the 
advisory committees.


[[Page 34721]]


    Authority: 49 U.S.C. 60102, 60115.

    Issued in Washington, DC on June 17, 2004.
Richard D. Huriaux,
Director, Technical Standards.
[FR Doc. 04-14076 Filed 6-21-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-60-P