{"operation":"document","citation":"CPF 420051012","title":"NATURAL GAS PIPELINE CO OF AMERICA (KMI) — Notice of Probable Violation","source_type":"enforcement","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"historical","official":true,"published_on":"2005-06-15","effective_on":null,"summary":"CLOSED notice of probable violation citing 192.745.","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-420051012.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-420051012.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-420051012","source_url":"https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/420051012","body":"Notice of Probable Violation involving NATURAL GAS PIPELINE CO OF AMERICA (KMI). PHMSA's enforcement data identifies the cited regulation as 192.745. The case was opened on 2005-06-15 and is reported as closed as of 2006-10-18. Proposed civil penalty: $9,500. Assessed civil penalty: $9,500. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.\n\nOfficial case documents:\n\n420051012_Final Order_04102006.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420051012/420051012_Final%20Order_04102006.pdf\n\nCPF_NO_4-2005-1012.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420051012/CPF_NO_4-2005-1012.pdf\n\nCPF_NO_4_2005_1012.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420051012/CPF_NO_4_2005_1012.pdf\n\n420051012_Final Order_04102006.pdf\n\nUS. D e m\nof TfOnSportaHan\n~lpulno and\nnazardou,Md.rkb~ AdminirtroHon\n400 fimmntl sweet. S.W.\n-. D.C. 20580\nDwayne M. Burton\nVice President, Gas Pipelines Operations\nNatural Gas Pipeline Company of America\nKinder Morgan, Inc.\n500 Dallas St., Suite 1000\nHouston, TX 77002-47 1 8\nRe: CPF No. 4-2005-1012\nDear Mr. Burton:\nEnclosed is the Final Order issued by the Associate Administrator for Pipeline Safety\nin the above-referenced case. It makes a finding of violation, assesses a civil penalty of\n$9,500, and specifies actions to be taken to comply with the pipeline safety regulations. The\npenalty payment terms are set forth in the Final Order. When the civil penalty is paid and the\nterms of the compliance order completed, as determined by the Director, Southwest Region,\nthis enforcement action will be closed. Your receipt of the Final Order constitutes service\nunder 49 C.F.R. 3 190.5.\nSincerely,\nJames Reynolds\nPipeline Compliance Registry\nOffice of Pipeline Safety\nEnclosure\nCERTIFIED MAIL - RETURN RECEIPT REOUESTED\n\n\n\nDEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION\nPIPELINE AND HAZARDOUS MATERIALS SAFETY ADMINISTRATION\nOFFICE OF PIPELINE SAFETY\nWASHINGTON, DC 20590\nIn the Matter of\n1\nNatural Gas Pipeline Company of America, ) CPF No. 4-2005-1012\na subsidiary of Kinder Morgan, Inc., 1\n1\nRespondent 1\nFINAL ORDER\nOn June 14-18, 2004, pursuant to 49 U.S.C. fj 601 17, a representative of the Pipeline and\nHazardous Materials Safety Administration's Office of Pipeline Safety (PHMSA) conducted an\non-site pipeline safety inspection of Respondent's facilities and records in Texas and Oklahoma.\nAs a result of the inspection, the Director, Southwest Region, PHMSA, issued to Respondent, by\nletter dated June 15,2005, a Notice of Probable Violation, Proposed Civil Penalty, and Proposed\nCompliance Order (Notice). In accordance with 49 C3.R. 5 190.207, the Notice proposed\nfinding that Respondent had violated 49 C.F.R. 5 192.745 and proposed assessing a civil penalty\nof $9,500 for the alleged violation. The Notice also proposed ordering Respondent to take\ncertain measures to correct the alleged violation.\nRespondent responded to the Notice by letter dated July 20, 2005 (Response). Respondent\ncontested the allegation of violation, offered information to explain the allegation, and requested\nthat the proposed civil penalty be eliminated. Respondent did not request a hearing, and\ntherefore has waived its right to one.\nFMDING OF VIOLATION\nThe Notice alleged Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. 6 192.745(a) by failing to partially operate\nseveral transmission line valves and document their operation. Section 192.745(a) requires\nRespondent to inspect and partially operate each transmission line valve that might be required\nduring an emergency at intervals not exceeding 15 months, but at least once each calendar year.\nIn its Response, Respondent acknowledged that inspection forms used to record several valve\ninspections did not show that the valves had been partially operated. Respondent stated that the\nvalves were operated at the time of their inspection, but the employee performing the inspection\ninadvertently did not record their operation on the designated inspection form. Respondent\nsubmitted copies of the original inspection forms subsequently corrected to show that the valves\n\n\n\nhad been operated at the time of their inspection. Respondent also submitted three affidavits, all\ndated July 12, 2005, signed by Respondent's Operations Specialist, Respondent's Operations\nSupervisor and a contractor. The affidavits state that the valves were operated by Respondent's\nOperations Specialist in accordance with Respondent's procedures at the time of the valves'\ninspection.\nThe original valve inspection forms witnessed by PHMSA inspectors during their inspection did\nnot record that the valves had been operated in accordance with § 192.745(a}. When PHMSA\ninspectors drew attention to the apparent noncompliance, Respondent corrected the forms by\nhaving the employee responsible for the inspections mark on the forms that the valves had been\noperated. Although Respondent stated in its response that the employee merely \"finished\ncompleting\" the forms in front of the inspectors, the original valve inspections were performed\nseveral months before the PHMSA inspection in June 2004. In a few cases, the valve inspections\noccurred almost two years before the PHMSA inspection. Accordingly, I cannot find that the\nemployee was merely completing the forms when he made changes to the forms during the\nPHMSA inspection. Nor do I find the affidavits submitted, which were signed between several\nmonths and almost two years after the valve inspections occurred, ere sufficient to demonstrate\ncompliance with 5 192.745(a) and Respondent's procedures, which require Respondent to\ninspect and partially operate the valves at intervals not exceeding 15 months (but at least once\neach calendar year) and to document compliance on the designated inspection form.\nAccordingly, I find Respondent violated 5 192.745(a) by failing to partially operate transmission\nline valves that might be necessary during an emergency and document the operation.\nASSESSMENT OF PENALTY\nUnder 49 U.S.C. tj 60122, Respondent is subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $100,000 per\nviolation for each day of the violation up to a maximum of $1,000,000 for any related series of\nviolations. The Notice proposed a total civil penalty of $9,500 for the violation of 8 192.745ta).\n49 U.S.C. 5 60122 and 49 C.F.R. § 190.225 require that, in determining the amount of the civil\npenalty, I consider the following criteria: nature, circumstances, and gravity of the violation,\ndegree of Respondent's culpability, history of Respondent's prior offenses, Respondent's ability\nto pay the penalty, good faith by Respondent in attempting to achieve compliance, the effect on\nRespondent's ability to continue in business, and such other matters as justice may require.\nRespondent did not provide information in mitigation of the proposed civil penalty beyond its\nchallenge to the violation. A -violation of 5 192.745(a) concerns the safety of valves that may be\nneeded during an emergency. Emergency valves must be operable at all times in order to\nprevent and minimize danger to the public and environment during an emergency. Respondent's\nfailure to ensure the safe and reliable operation of emergency valves threatened public safety and\nthe environment.\nAccordingly, having reviewed the record and considered the assessment criteria, I assess\nRespondent a total civil penalty of $9,500 for the violation of $ 192.745ta). Respondent has the\nability to pay this penalty without adversely affecting its ability to continue in business.\n\n\n\nPayment of the civil penalty must be made within 20 days of service. Payment may be made by\nsending a certified check or money order (containing the CPF Number for this case) payable to\n\"U.S. Department of Transportation\" to the Federal Aviation Administration, Mike Monroney\nAeronautical Center, Financial Operations Division (AMZ-300), P.O. Box 25082, Oklahoma\nCity, OK 73225.\nFederal regulations (49 C.F.R. 5 89.21@)(3)) also permit this payment to he made by wire\ntransfer, through the Federal Reserve Communications System (Fedwire), to the account of the\nU. S. Treasury. Detailed instructions are contained in the enclosure. Questions concerning wire\ntransfers should be directed to: Financial Operations Division (AMZ-300), Federal Aviation\nAdministration, Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center, P.O. Box 25082, Oklahoma City, OK\n73 125; (405) 954-8893.\nFailure to pay the $9,500 civil penalty will result in a c d 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. 4 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 1 10 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 United\nStates District Court.\nThe Notice proposed a compliance order with respect to the violation of 49 C.F.R. 4 192.745(a).\nUnder 49 U.S.C. 4 601 18(a), each person who engages in the transportation of gas or who owns\nor operates a pipeline facility is required to comply with the applicable safety standards\nestablished under Chapter 60 1. Pursuant to the authority of 49 U.S.C. 5 60 1 1 8(b) and 49 C.F.R.\n4 190.217, Respondent is ordered to take the following actions to ensure compliance with the\npipeline safety regulations applicable to its operations. Respondent must-\n1. Achieve compliance with 49 C.F.R. $ 192.745(a) for each transmission line valve in the\nFritch District that might be required during an emergency. For the purpose of this\nOrder, the Fritch District includes Balko, Stinnet and Pampa Districts. Demonstrate\ncompliance by submitting sufficient evidence to show that each valve has been inspected\nduring the most recent calendar year(s) in accordance with 192.745(a) and\nRespondent's Operations and Maintenance (ObM) procedure number 301 and Planning\nGuide procedure 1-0306.\n2. Complete Item 1 and submit documentation of compliance within 30 days of receipt of\nthis Order to the Director, Southwest Region, Office of Pipeline Safety, 870 1 S. Gessner\nDr., Suite 1 110, Houston, TX 77074-2949.\nThe Director, Southwest Region, may grant an extension of time to comply with any of the\nrequired items upon a written request timely submitted by the Respondent demonstrating good\ncause for an extension.\n\n\n\ns\nFailure to comply with this Final. Order may result in the assessment of civil penalties of up to\n$1 00,000 per violation per day, or in the referral of the case for judicial enforcement.\nUnder 49 C.F.R. § 190.215, Respondent has a right to submit a Petition for Reconsideration of\nthis Final Order. The petition must be received within 20 days of Respondent's receipt of this\nFinal Order and must contain a brief statement of the issue(s). The filing of the petition\nautomatically stays the payment of any civil penalty assessed. All other terms of the order,\nincluding any required corrective action, remain in full effect unless the Associate Administrator,\nupon request, grants a stay. The terms and conditions of this Final Order are effective on receipt.\nI\nDate Issued\niate Administrator","truncated":false,"body_characters":11139}