NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A9772A
SPONSOR: Paulin (MS) TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the public service law, in relation to
reporting of natural gas leaks by gas corporations
PURPOSE OF THE BILL:
The bill would (a) require the classification by gas companies of all
reported leaks of natural gas; (b) require that each gas company report
annually to the Department of Public Service (the "department") the
location and classification of each reported leak, the date each such
leak was classified and the date each such leak is repaired; (c) require
that the department make such information available upon request to any
municipal or state public safety official and to members of the legisla-
ture; and (d) require the Public Service Commission (the "commission")
to commence a proceeding to investigate the need for additional winter
surveillance of gas pipelines due to extended frost.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of the bill would amend the public service law by adding a new
section 67-b.
Subdivision one of section 67-b that would require the department to
establish a uniform system for classifying natural gas leaks. Subdivi-
sion two of section 67-b would describe the system to be used to classi-
fy the leaks according to the level of hazard presented to buildings or
the public, based on location and/or relative magnitude. Leaks would be
classified type 1 (which constitutes a potentially hazardous condition
to the public or buildings), type 2A (which does not present an imme-
diately hazardous condition to the public or buildings, but is of a
nature that requires frequent surveillance and scheduled repair), type 2
(which does not present an immediately hazardous condition to the public
or buildings, but is of a nature requiring scheduled repair), or type 3
(which is not immediately hazardous at the time of detection and can be
reasonably expected to remain that way).
Subdivision 3 of section 67-b would require each gas corporation to
report annually to the department, beginning March 1, 2015, the location
of each Type 1, Type 2A, Type 2 and Type 3 leak, the date of classifica-
tion of each such leak, and the date of repair performed on each such
leak as required under such gas corporation's approved operations and
maintenance programs. Subdivision 3 would also require that such gas
leak information be made available to any municipal or state public
safety official and any member of the legislature upon request to the
department.
Subdivision 4 of section 67-b would require the department to promulgate
regulations necessary to implement the uniform leak classification stan-
dards, and to oversee and monitor gas company response and reporting.
Subdivision 5 of section 67-b would require the commission to investi-
gate whether New York State should require winter surveillance and
patrol of cast iron or ductile iron pipelines and to determine the
effect on such pipelines of extended frost cap conditions.
Section 2 of the bill would provide for an immediate effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
Under current regulations, gas companies are required to classify leaks
of natural gas according to severity, which is determined by a combina-
tion of location and the magnitude of the leak. They maintain records of
the leaks but are not required to report them to the department, which
relies on periodic audits of the companies to ensure compliance with
relevant regulations. Because the department maintains no records, none
are available to public safety officials.
The proposed change would lead to a new level of transparency regarding
the locations and classifications of leaks, which would accomplish
several important public safety goals. Knowledge of existing leaks would
facilitate safe, rapid response by local first responders to accidents
and other emergencies that might occur at or near the locations of known
gas leaks. Further, members of the public would be more likely to call
911 or their local gas company about suspected gas leaks if they
believed that the information would be included into a readily accessi-
ble database that would be used to help prevent property damage, inju-
ries or even loss of life.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
Some administrative costs to the Department of Public Service
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9772--A
IN ASSEMBLY
May 22, 2014
___________
Introduced by M. of A. PAULIN, BRENNAN, ENGLEBRIGHT, ROSENTHAL,
BUCHWALD, GALEF, MOSLEY, OTIS, COOK, GOTTFRIED, JACOBS, LIFTON, STECK
-- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. ARROYO, CAMARA, LUPARDO, THIELE --
read once and referred to the Committee on Corporations, Authorities
and Commissions -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered
reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the public service law, in relation to reporting of
natural gas leaks by gas corporations
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The public service law is amended by adding a new section
2 67-b to read as follows:
3 § 67-b. Natural gas leak reporting requirements. 1. The department
4 shall establish a uniform natural gas leak classification system as set
5 forth in this section.
6 2. All leaks shall be assessed a class based on the following system:
7 (a) Type 1 classification. (1) A Type 1 leak is one which, due to its
8 location and/or relative magnitude, constitutes a potentially hazardous
9 condition to the public or buildings. In the event of a Type 1 leak
10 classification the following requirements apply:
11 (i) the leak shall require an immediate effort to protect life and
12 property;
13 (ii) continuous action shall be thereafter taken until the condition
14 is no longer hazardous; and
15 (iii) completion of repairs shall be scheduled on a regular day-aft-
16 er-day basis, or the condition kept under daily surveillance until the
17 source of the leak has been corrected.
18 (2) Type 1 leaks include, but are not limited to:
19 (i) damage by contractors or outside sources resulting in leakage;
20 (ii) any indication on a combustible gas indicator (CGI) of natural
21 gas entering buildings or tunnels;
22 (iii) any reading on a CGI within five feet (1.5 meters) of a building
23 wall;
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD15044-03-4
A. 9772--A 2
1 (iv) any reading of four percent or greater gas-in-air on a CGI within
2 manholes, vaults or catch basins (sampling will be conducted with the
3 structure in its normal condition as nearly as physically possible); or
4 (v) any leak which, in the judgment of the operating personnel at the
5 scene, is regarded as potentially hazardous.
6 (b) Type 2A classification. (1) A Type 2A leak does not present an
7 immediately hazardous condition to the public or buildings, but is of a
8 nature that requires frequent surveillance and scheduled repair. In the
9 event of a Type 2A leak classification the following requirements apply:
10 (i) the leak shall be repaired within a period not to exceed six
11 months; and
12 (ii) the leak shall be maintained under surveillance with a frequency
13 not to exceed two weeks until repaired.
14 (2) Type 2A leaks include, but are not limited to:
15 (i) any reading of ten percent or greater gas-in-air in any area
16 continuously paved from the curb to the building wall, which is more
17 than five feet (1.5 meters) but within thirty feet (9.1 meters) of the
18 building and inside the curbline or shoulder of the road;
19 (ii) any reading, in an unpaved area, of twenty percent or greater
20 gas-in-air which is more than five feet (1.5 meters) but within twenty
21 feet (6.1 meters) of the building and inside the curb or shoulder of the
22 road; or
23 (iii) any leak, other than Type 1, which, under frost or other condi-
24 tions, in the judgment of the operating personnel at the scene should be
25 classified as a Type 2A.
26 (c) Type 2 classification. (1) A Type 2 leak does not present an imme-
27 diate hazardous condition to the public or buildings, but is of a nature
28 requiring scheduled repair. In the event of a Type 2 leak classification
29 the following requirements apply:
30 (i) the leak shall be repaired within a period not to exceed one year,
31 except that leaks classified under clause (v) of subparagraph two of
32 this paragraph shall be repaired within six months; and
33 (ii) the leak shall be maintained under surveillance with a frequency
34 not to exceed two months, except that leaks classified under clause (v)
35 of subparagraph two of this paragraph shall be surveilled every two
36 weeks.
37 (2) Type 2 leaks include, but are not limited to:
38 (i) any reading less than ten percent gas-in-air between the building
39 and the curbline in any area continuously paved which is more than five
40 feet (1.5 meters) but within thirty feet (9.1 meters) of the building
41 and inside the curbline or shoulder of the road; or
42 (ii) any reading less than twenty percent gas-in-air in any unpaved
43 area which is more than five feet (1.5 meters) but within twenty feet
44 (6.1 meters) of a building and inside the curbline or shoulder of the
45 road; or
46 (iii) any reading of thirty percent or greater gas-in-air in an
47 unpaved area which is more than twenty feet (6.1 meters) but within
48 fifty feet (15.2 meters) of a building and inside the curbline or shoul-
49 der of the road; or
50 (iv) any reading of thirty percent or greater gas-in-air in a paved
51 area which is more than thirty feet (9.1 meters) but within fifty feet
52 (15.2 meters) of a building and inside the curbline or shoulder of the
53 road; or
54 (v) any reading above one percent but below four percent gas-in-air,
55 within manholes, vaults or catch basins (sampling will be conducted with
A. 9772--A 3
1 the structure in its normal condition as nearly as is physically possi-
2 ble).
3 (d) Type 3 classification. A Type 3 leak is not immediately hazardous
4 at the time of detection and can be reasonably expected to remain that
5 way.
6 (1) A Type 3 leak is any leak not classified as Type 1, 2A or 2.
7 (2) Type 3 leaks shall be reevaluated during the next required leakage
8 survey or annually, whichever is less.
9 3. Beginning March first, two thousand fifteen, each gas corporation
10 shall report annually to the department the location of each Type 1,
11 Type 2A, Type 2 and Type 3 leak existing as of that date classified by
12 the corporation, the date each Type 1, Type 2A, Type 2 and Type 3 leak
13 was classified and the date of repair performed on each Type 1, Type 2A,
14 Type 2 and Type 3 leak as part of its required gas surveillance program
15 as required under its approved operations and maintenance programs.
16 Each gas corporation shall also include in such report a statement indi-
17 cating (a) whether it had or has a sufficient number of employees, in
18 its own employ, to successfully complete the repairs identified in the
19 report within the timeframes set forth in this section, (b) a list of
20 pipeline replacement or other similar safety projects undertaken during
21 the reporting period and whether it has a sufficient number of employ-
22 ees, in its own employ, to successfully complete such projects, and (c)
23 the number of employees required for such repair and pipeline replace-
24 ment projects and their respective classifications. Such gas leak infor-
25 mation shall be made available to any municipal or state public safety
26 official and any member of the legislature upon request to the depart-
27 ment.
28 4. The department shall promulgate regulations necessary to implement
29 the uniform leak classification standards as specified in this section,
30 and shall oversee and monitor company response and reporting.
31 5. The commission shall commence a proceeding to investigate whether
32 New York state should require the winter surveillance and patrol of cast
33 iron or ductile iron pipelines in the state and shall determine whether
34 the presence of extended frost cap conditions may result in additional
35 stress on cast iron or ductile iron pipe segments, requiring enhanced
36 surveillance and patrol. The department is authorized to establish mini-
37 mum uniform procedures for cast iron and ductile iron surveillance and
38 patrols. Gas companies are authorized to establish procedures that
39 exceed any minimum standards at their discretion.
40 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
