# 255.616 Customer education and information program. **Citation:** 16 NYCRR 255.616 **Type / status:** regulation / current **Agency:** New York State Public Service Commission **Effective:** Not stated **Published:** Not stated Transmission and Distribution of Gas. (a) Except for an operator of a petroleum gas system covered under subdivision (j) of this section, each pipeline operator must develop and implement a written continuing public education program that follows the guidance provided in the American Petroleum Institute's (API) Recommended Practice (RP) 1162 (as described in section 10.3 of this Title). (b) The ## Document text (a) Except for an operator of a petroleum gas system covered under subdivision (j) of this section, each pipeline operator must develop and implement a written continuing public education program that follows the guidance provided in the American Petroleum Institute's (API) Recommended Practice (RP) 1162 (as described in section 10.3 of this Title). (b) The operator's program must follow the general program recommendations of API RP 1162 (as described in section 10.3 of this Title) and assess the unique attributes and characteristics of the operator's pipeline and facilities. (c) The operator must follow the general program recommendations of API RP 1162 (as described in section 10.3 of this Title), unless the operator provides justification in its program or procedural manual as to why compliance with all or certain provisions of the recommended practice is not practicable and not necessary for safety. (d) The operator's program must specifically include provisions to educate the public, appropriate government organizations, and persons engaged in excavation related activities on: (1) use of a one-call notification system prior to excavation and other damage prevention activities; (2) possible hazards associated with unintended releases from a gas pipeline facility; (3) physical indications that such a release may have occurred; (4) steps that should be taken for public safety in the event of a gas pipeline release; and (5) procedures for reporting such an event. (e) The program must include activities to advise affected municipalities, school districts, businesses, and residents of pipeline facility locations. (f) The program and the media used must be as comprehensive as necessary to reach all areas in which the operator transports gas. (g) The program must be conducted in English and in other languages commonly understood by a significant number and concentration of the non-English speaking population in the operator's area. (h) Operators in existence on June 20, 2005, must have completed their written programs no later than June 20, 2006. As an exception, operators of petroleum gas or petroleum gas/air distribution systems having less than 25 customers must have completed development and documentation of their programs no later than June 20, 2007. The operator of a petroleum gas system covered under subdivision (j) of this section must complete development of its written procedure by June 13, 2008. (i) The operator's program documentation and evaluation results must be available for periodic review by appropriate regulatory agencies. (j) Unless the operator transports gas as a primary activity, the operator of a master meter or a petroleum gas system is not required to develop a public awareness program as prescribed in subdivisions (a) through (g) of this section. Instead the operator must develop and implement a written procedure to provide its customers public awareness messages twice annually. If the petroleum gas system is located on property the operator does not control, the operator must provide similar messages twice annually to persons controlling the property. The public awareness message must include: (1) a description of the purpose and reliability of the pipeline; (2) an overview of the hazards of the pipeline and prevention measures used; (3) information about damage prevention; (4) how to recognize and respond to a leak; and (5) how to get additional information. (k) In addition, the program shall include annual distribution of plain language literature, news releases and commercial messages to advise the public of the importance of the inspection and cleaning of flues and chimneys on a periodic basis, regardless of the fuel used (particularly whenever converting to gas usage), and to provide information on identifying symptoms of carbon monoxide exposure including recommended remedial measures. ## Provenance - Official: Yes - Source: - Source ID: `ny-dps-nycrr` - SHA-256: `d1defff0af2a30d5703c32574407f98ac1c7037eb202a626997a8f7ef05b32ec` - Retrieved: 2026-08-12T06:20:40.894Z - Exported: 2026-08-22T05:07:53.113Z - Document slug: `ny-nycrr-255-616` ### Source metadata ```json { "jurisdiction": "US-NY", "title": 16, "part": "255", "partTitle": "Transmission and Distribution of Gas", "scopeKind": "gas-pipeline-safety", "tocPath": [ "Part 255 Transmission and Distribution of Gas", "Operations" ], "legalScope": "Complete current terminal legal unit exposed by the DPS-designated Title 16 NYCRR pipeline-safety part inventory.", "applicabilityCaveat": "Applicability depends on the part and section, Commission jurisdiction, commodity and facility type, intrastate or interstate status, operator and activity, exemptions, waivers, federal preemption, Commission orders, and incorporated law. DPS inspects portions of interstate systems for PHMSA, but PHMSA retains federal enforcement authority. DPS states that all jurisdictional Part 256 gas-holder and Part 257 LPG-plant facilities have been decommissioned even though those regulations remain unrepealed.", "incorporationCaveat": "These parts incorporate or rely on federal pipeline regulations, federal and New York statutes, Commission rules and orders, and privately authored technical standards. Part 10 supplies incorporation details. References metadata preserves explicit citations but does not reproduce external material, determine licensing rights, or decide whether a particular incorporation is static or dynamic.", "publicationCaveat": "The New York Department of Public Service identifies these eleven Title 16 NYCRR parts as its state pipeline-safety regulations and links to the public DOS/Westlaw NYCRR reading copy. That site labels the online text unofficial and directs users needing evidentiary accuracy to the Official NYCRR maintained by the Department of State Division of Administrative Rules. Each section's 'Current through' date is the most recent official NYCRR supplement covering that section, not a uniform corpus-wide amendment date.", "rights": "New York government-edict text is preserved with DPS, Department of State, and publisher attribution. The public reading site's presentation and enhancements, agency marks, forms, annotations, and incorporated federal or privately authored standards require separate rights review; this connector does not claim rights in those materials.", "rightsReviewRequired": true, "currentThrough": "2024-05-31", "historyEvents": "No event is emitted because the section reading copy does not supply an explicit adoption, filing, or effective-date history.", "publisherCitation": "16 CRR-NY 255.616", "identityAnomaly": null, "references": [ { "citation": "16 NYCRR 10.3", "referenceType": "new-york-administrative-code", "url": "https://govt.westlaw.com/nycrr/Document/I50525ddbcd1711dda432a117e6e0f345?viewType=FullText&originationContext=documenttoc&transitionType=CategoryPageItem&contextData=(sc.Default)" } ], "region": "NY" } ```