BILL ANALYSIS �
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 1064
Author: Hill (D)
Amended: 4/8/14
Vote: 21
SENATE ENERGY, UTILITIES & COMMUNIC. COMM. : 9-0, 4/1/14
AYES: Padilla, Fuller, Cannella, Corbett, DeSaulnier, Hill,
Knight, Pavley, Wolk
NO VOTE RECORDED: Block, De Le�n
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT : Public Utilities Commission: railroads: natural
gas pipelines: safety
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill enacts provisions applicable to the
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) safety
recommendations and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA)
safety advisories concerning rail facilities, as specified.
ANALYSIS :
Existing federal law:
1.Requires the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to regulate
railroads, and prohibits states from adopting laws,
regulations, rules, or orders containing the same subject
matter as a regulation or order prescribed by the FRA. In
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practice, this preempts state jurisdiction over many railroad
issues including train routing, equipment, and tank car design
standards.
2.Requires the FTA to regulate rail facilities, including rail
fixed guideways operated by transit agencies.
3.Requires the NTSB to investigate significant pipeline,
railroad, and other accidents and issue safety recommendations
aimed at preventing future accidents.
Existing state law:
1.Regulates the design, construction, and operation of rail
fixed guideways and oversee safety and worker protection on
them.
2.Requires the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to respond
within 90 days to gas pipeline safety recommendations
addressed to it by the NTSB, and to indicate the PUC's
intended actions, if any.
3.Requires the PUC to detail in writing whether it is
appropriate to implement NTSB safety recommendations
concerning PUC-regulated gas pipeline facilities. Such
determination must be approved by a majority vote of the PUC.
If a recommendation is deemed appropriate and/or action is
deemed necessary, then the PUC is required to issue orders or
adopt rules relating to implementation as soon as practicable.
4.Requires that any action on a gas pipeline safety
recommendation be reported to the Legislature in the PUC's
annual workplan report.
This bill:
1.Requires the PUC to respond within 90 days to rail safety
recommendations addressed to it by the NTSB, and to indicate
the PUC's intended actions, if any.
2.Requires the PUC to detail in writing whether it is
appropriate to implement NTSB safety recommendations and FTA
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safety advisories concerning PUC-regulated rail facilities.
The determination will need to be approved by a majority vote
of the PUC. If a recommendation is deemed appropriate and/or
action is deemed necessary, then the PUC will issue orders or
adopt rules relating to implementation as soon as practicable.
3.Directs the PUC to report in its annual workplan any action on
a safety recommendation or safety advisory as well as any
correspondence from the NTSB indicating that a recommendation
has been classified as Closed-Unacceptable.
Background
The NTSB has primary jurisdiction for investigating rail and
pipeline accidents, among others, where there is a fatality,
substantial property damage, or significant environmental
impact. In the course of an investigation, the NTSB will often
make recommendations to the parties involved, such as the gas
utility or rail operator, local first responders, and/or
regulatory agencies including state entities responsible for
enforcement, e.g., the PUC. Safety recommendations usually
identify specific problems uncovered during an investigation and
specify how to correct them. Letters containing the
recommendations are directed to the public or private
organization best able to rectify the problem.
Overall, the NTSB has issued more than 13,000 safety
recommendations since 1967. In response to San Bruno, the NTSB
issued 39 safety recommendations in 11 letters directed to the
U.S. Department of Transportation, the Pipeline Hazardous
Materials Safety Administration, PG&E, PUC, Governor Brown, and
the American Gas Association. The NTSB has specifically issued
to the PUC 12 safety recommendations since 1982 : six relating
to pipelines and six relating to rail, including four on rail
fixed guideways (e.g. Metrolink), one on a freight line, and one
on AMTRAK.
Whereas the NTSB classifies all gas pipeline safety
recommendations to the PUC as Acceptable, two safety
recommendations to the PUC regarding one particular rail fixed
guideway - Angels Flight - have been classified as Unacceptable.
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Angels Flight is a short rail fixed guideway that sends one
ascending car and one descending car along a hill in Los
Angeles. On February 1, 2001 the two cars collided, resulting
in a fatality and several injuries. In response, the NTSB
issued two specified safety recommendations on August 8, 2003
recommending that the PUC verify that Angels Flight equipment
met industry standards, including having an emergency evacuation
guideway, before reauthorizing service. The PUC conducted an
independent investigation. When Angels Flight reopened on March
15, 2010, it did so without an emergency evacuation guideway.
The NTSB reclassified the specified safety recommendation as
Closed-Unacceptable and urged the PUC to add an emergency
evacuation guideway. Although the five commissioners had not
voted on the matter, the PUC responded that the existing
equipment was consistent with industry standards and therefore
sufficient. The PUC lobbied to have the NTSB safety
recommendation status changed to Closed-Acceptable, but the NTSB
would not comply.
September 5, 2013 saw another accident on Angels Flight: the
descending car containing one passenger derailed, thereby
stranding five passengers in the ascending car and prompting a
dangerous rescue. A year later, the NTSB issued a safety
recommendation outlining five urgent recommendations . The PUC
President sent a letter to NTSB within 30 days detailing what
actions the PUC would take to address each of the
recommendations. The NTSB Web site currently classifies this
item as Open-Initial Response Received.
On September 19, 2013 a BART train struck and killed two
employees in the right-of-way near Walnut Creek. On December
19, 2013 NTSB made two safety recommendations to the FTA
regarding roadway worker protection. According to the PUC, the
NTSB never made safety recommendations directly to the PUC
because the PUC quickly revised General Order 175, which
satisfied what the NTSB otherwise would have recommended.
Following NTSB's two safety recommendations, the FTA issued
Safety Advisory 14-1 to all state public utilities commissions.
The PUC responded last month, and the FTA acknowledged this.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
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JG:k 4/25/14 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: NONE RECEIVED
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