Washington, D.C. - Today, U.S. Representative John D. Dingell (D-MI15) issued the following opening statement at the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and Power markup of legislation entitled Pipeline Infrastructure and Community Protection Act of 2011.
Mr. Chairman, thank you for your courtesy. The amendment in the nature of a substitute is a good, balanced bipartisan bill that will help instill public confidence in our pipeline safety system. I want to thank Chairman Upton for his tremendous courtesy in reaching out to me over the last few weeks and for the hard work of his staff. I also want to thank Jeff Baran of the minority staff for the technical assistance he provided during these negotiations. The inclusive process the Committee has used in this case is an excellent model for how we should move forward on a host of other issues and I hope it is instructive. Together, we have come up with a sound piece of legislation which I believe members of this Committee should support.
The Energy and Commerce Committee has a long history of bipartisan cooperation on this important issue, and this legislation before us today helps us continue this great tradition. Pipeline safety is not a partisan issue, but rather is something that impacts all Americans. We have an obligation to protect the American people and the environment from harm while maintaining a system which transports our energy resources efficiently. I believe this bill helps us accomplish both of these important goals.
The bill before us today strengthens existing law in several key areas and helps address concerns which were raised after several recent failures in our pipeline system. Specifically, the bill expands the integrity management program while phasing out class location requirements, thereby putting a stronger safety standard in place while taking steps to remove redundant regulations. The legislation mandates the use of automatic and remote controlled shut-off valves for new pipelines, and studies the feasibility of retrofitting. The leak detection standard is also an improvement over existing law and will help move the ball forward. There are many other sections which promote the cause of pipeline safety, as well as several provisions that benefit industry which have been included at their request. On balance, this is a good bill and it deserves to be supported.
Once again, I commend Chairman Upton for having a very inclusive process which has brought us to this position today. This legislation is fair to the American people and is fair to industry. It is my hope that today the Committee will continue its long history of bipartisan cooperation on the important issue of pipeline safety, and I yield back the balance of my time.
