{"operation":"document","citation":"CPF 120160006","title":"RICHMOND, CITY OF — Notice of Probable Violation","source_type":"enforcement","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"historical","official":true,"published_on":"2016-11-10","effective_on":null,"summary":"CLOSED notice of probable violation citing 192.303.","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-120160006.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-120160006.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-120160006","source_url":"https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/120160006","body":"Notice of Probable Violation involving RICHMOND, CITY OF. PHMSA's enforcement data identifies the cited regulation as 192.303. The case was opened on 2016-11-10 and is reported as closed as of 2018-07-13. Proposed civil penalty: $36,200. Assessed civil penalty: $36,200. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.\n\nOfficial case documents:\n\n120160006_Final Order_04052018.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/120160006/120160006_Final%20Order_04052018.pdf\n\n120160006_Final Order_04052018_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/120160006/120160006_Final%20Order_04052018_text.pdf\n\n120160006_NOPV PCP_11102016.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/120160006/120160006_NOPV%20PCP_11102016.pdf\n\n120160006_NOPV PCP_11102016_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/120160006/120160006_NOPV%20PCP_11102016_text.pdf\n\n120160006_Operator Response to Notice_03222017.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/120160006/120160006_Operator%20Response%20to%20Notice_03222017.pdf\n\n120160006_Final Order_04052018_text.pdf\n\nApril 5, 2018\nHon. Levar M. Stoney, Mayor\nCity of Richmond\n730 East Broad Street\nRichmond, VA 23219\nRe: CPF No. 1-2016-0006\nDear Mayor Stoney:\nEnclosed please find the Final Order issued in the above-referenced case. It makes one finding\nof violation and assesses a civil penalty of $36,200. The penalty payment terms are set forth in\nthe Final Order. This enforcement action closes automatically upon receipt of payment. Service\nof the Final Order by certified mail is effective upon the date of mailing as provided under\n49 C.F.R. § 190.5.\nThank you for your cooperation in this matter.\nSincerely,\nAlan K. Mayberry\nAssociate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety\nEnclosure\ncc: Mr. Robert Steidel, Director, Department of Public Utilities, City of Richmond\nDirector, Eastern Region, Office of Pipeline Safety, PHMSA\nCERTIFIED MAIL - RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED\n\n\n\nU.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION\nPIPELINE AND HAZARDOUS MATERIALS SAFETY ADMINISTRATION\nOFFICE OF PIPELINE SAFETY\nWASHINGTON, D.C. 20590\n____________________________________\nIn the Matter of )\nCity of Richmond, Virginia, ) CPF No. 1-2016-0006\na municipal corporation, )\n)\n)\n)\nRespondent. )\n____________________________________)\nFINAL ORDER\nOn May 16, 2016, pursuant to 49 U.S.C. § 60117, a representative of the Virginia State\nCorporation Commission (VA SCC) acting as agent for the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials\nSafety Administration (PHMSA), Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS), conducted an on-site pipeline\nsafety inspection of the facilities and records of the City of Richmond’s Department of Public\nUtilities (City or Respondent) in Henrico County, Virginia. The City operates five gas\ndistribution utilities and serves more than 500,000 residential and commercial customers in\nRichmond and the surrounding metropolitan region.1\nAs a result of the inspection, the Director, Eastern Region, OPS (Director), issued to Respondent,\nby letter dated November 10, 2016, a Notice of Probable Violation and Proposed Civil Penalty\n(Notice). In accordance with 49 C.F.R. § 190.207, the Notice proposed finding that the City had\nviolated 49 C.F.R. § 192.303 and proposed assessing a civil penalty of $36,200 for the alleged\nviolation.\nRespondent failed to respond within 30 days of receipt of service of the Notice. Under 49 C.F.R.\n§ 190.208(d), such failure to respond constitutes a waiver of the City’s right to contest the\nallegations in the Notice and authorizes the Associate Administrator, without further notice, to\nfind facts as alleged in the Notice and to issue this Final Order under § 190.213. In this case, the\nNotice was mailed to Respondent by certified mail on November 10, 2016, but Respondent did\nnot answer until March 22, 2017 (Response). In that Response, the City neither admitted nor\ndenied the violation alleged in the Notice, but stated that the City “has chosen not to contest the\nallegations and has determined to pay the proposed civil penalty of $36,200 for Item 1.”2 Under\nsuch circumstances, I find it reasonable and appropriate to enter this Final Order without further\nproceedings.\n1 See http://www.richmondgov.com/publicutilities/. Current as of July 20, 2017.\n2 See Respondent’s March 22, 2017 response.\n\n\n\nCPF No. 1-2016-0006\nPage 2\nFINDING OF VIOLATION\nIn its Response, the City did not contest the allegation in the Notice that it violated 49 C.F.R.\nPart 192, as follows:\nItem 1: The Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 192.303, which states:\n§ 192.303 Compliance with specifications or standards.\nEach transmission line or main must be constructed in accordance with\ncomprehensive written specifications or standards that are consistent with\nthis part.\nThe Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 192.303 by failing to construct each\ntransmission line or main in accordance with comprehensive written specifications or standards\nthat are consistent with this part. Specifically, the Notice alleged that the City had failed to\nfollow its own construction procedures for coating application on a 12-inch-diameter steel main\non Hungry Road in Henrico County, Virginia. During the May 12, 2016 inspection, the VA SCC\ninspector witnessed a construction crew performing a non-destructive inspection of a weld,\nfollowed by the use of a rag and water to clean the couplant gel used during the non-destructive\ntesting. The crew then mixed and applied a two-part Powercrete F1 coating to the girth weld.\nThe VA SCC subsequently reviewed the City’s Pipeline Construction procedures (Natural Gas\nProcedures Manual, Chapter 3 / II Pipeline Construction3). Section 4 of those procedures\nrequires that coating materials should be used in accordance with practices/materials as\nrecommended by the manufacturer, which requires that the pipe surface be prepared by\nsandblasting before coating is applied.4 The City confirmed that in one instance the Powercrete\ncoating was applied to an inspected weld without proper cleaning, sandblasting, or\nreestablishing a proper surface profile, and, in another instance, a weld was in the process of\nbeing coated without proper cleaning, sandblasting or, establishing a proper surface profile. The\nCity acknowledged the error in a response to VA SCC’s Notice of Investigation on May 18,\n2016.5\nRespondent did not contest this allegation of violation. Accordingly, based upon a review of all\nof the evidence, I find that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 192.303 by failing to construct each\ntransmission line or main in accordance with comprehensive written specifications or standards\nthat are consistent with Part 192.\n3 Effective date 5/15/2015, revised 3/12/2015.\n4 See Manufacturer’s Manual Application Guide for Powercrete R65-F1 PC-AG-R65-F1-Manual-Rev4-0208, Steps\n4 and 5.\n5 See City’s response to VA SCC Notice of Investigation, dated May 18, 2016. Pipeline Safety Violation Report,\n(November 10, 2016) (on file with PHMSA), Exhibit A-4, at 2.\n\n\n\nCPF No. 1-2016-0006\nPage 3\nThis finding of violation will be considered a prior offense in any subsequent enforcement action\ntaken against Respondent.\nASSESSMENT OF PENALTY\nUnder 49 U.S.C. § 60122, Respondent is subject to an administrative civil penalty not to exceed\n$200,000 per violation for each day of the violation, up to a maximum of $2,000,000 for any\nrelated series of violations.6 In determining the amount of a civil penalty under 49 U.S.C.\n§ 60122 and 49 C.F.R. § 190.225, I must consider the following criteria: the nature,\ncircumstances, and gravity of the violation, including adverse impact on the environment; the\ndegree of Respondent’s culpability; the history of Respondent’s prior offenses; and any effect\nthat the penalty may have on its ability to continue doing business; and the good faith of\nRespondent in attempting to comply with the pipeline safety regulations. In addition, I may\nconsider the economic benefit gained from the violation without any reduction because of\nsubsequent damages, and such other matters as justice may require. The Notice proposed a total\ncivil penalty of $36,200 for the violation cited above.\nItem 1: The Notice proposed a civil penalty of $36,200 for Respondent’s violation of 49 C.F.R.\n§ 192.303, for failing to construct each transmission line or main in accordance with\ncomprehensive written specifications or standards that are consistent with this part. The City\nstated that it would pay the proposed penalty and neither contested the allegation nor presented\nany evidence or argument justifying elimination of the proposed penalty. Given the clarity of the\nprocedural requirement, the inspection circumstances, and Respondent’s acknowledgement of\nthe violation, there is no reason to adjust the penalty proposed in the Notice.\nAccordingly, having reviewed the record and considered the assessment criteria for violation of\n49 C.F.R. § 192.303, I assess Respondent a total civil penalty of $36,200.\nPayment of the civil penalty must be made within 20 days of service. Federal regulations\n(49 C.F.R. § 89.21(b)(3)) require such payment to be made by wire transfer through the Federal\nReserve Communications System (Fedwire), to the account of the U.S. Treasury. Detailed\ninstructions are contained in the enclosure. Questions concerning wire transfers should be\ndirected to: Financial Operations Division (AMK-325), Federal Aviation Administration, Mike\nMonroney Aeronautical Center, 6500 S MacArthur Blvd, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 79169.\nThe Financial Operations Division telephone number is (405) 954-8845.\nFailure to pay the $36,200 civil penalty will result in accrual of interest at the current annual rate\nin accordance with 31 U.S.C. § 3717, 31 C.F.R. § 901.9 and 49 C.F.R. § 89.23. Pursuant to\nthose same authorities, a late penalty charge of six percent (6%) per annum will be charged if\npayment is not made within 110 days of service. Furthermore, failure to pay the civil penalty\nmay result in referral of the matter to the Attorney General for appropriate action in a district\ncourt of the United States.\n6 These amounts are adjusted annually for inflation. See, e.g., Pipeline Safety: Inflation Adjustment of Maximum\nCivil Penalties, 82 Fed. Reg. 19325 (April 27, 2017).\n\n\n\nCPF No. 1-2016-0006\nPage 4\nThe terms and conditions of this Final Order are effective upon service in accordance with\n49 C.F.R. § 190.5.\nApril 5, 2018\n___________________________________ __________________________\nAlan K. Mayberry Date Issued\nAssociate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety","truncated":false,"body_characters":10574}