{"operation":"document","citation":"CPF 420141002","title":"WILLIAMS ENERGY, LLC — Notice of Probable Violation","source_type":"enforcement","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"historical","official":true,"published_on":"2014-03-03","effective_on":null,"summary":"CLOSED notice of probable violation citing 191.22(b), 191.22(c)(1)(ii).","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-420141002.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-420141002.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-420141002","source_url":"https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/420141002","body":"Notice of Probable Violation involving WILLIAMS ENERGY, LLC. PHMSA's enforcement data identifies the cited regulations as 191.22(b),  191.22(c)(1)(ii). The case was opened on 2014-03-03 and is reported as closed as of 2014-10-14. Proposed civil penalty: $15,800. Assessed civil penalty: $15,800. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.\n\nOfficial case documents:\n\n420141002_Final Order_09292014.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420141002/420141002_Final%20Order_09292014.pdf\n\n420141002_Final Order_09292014_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420141002/420141002_Final%20Order_09292014_text.pdf\n\n420141002_NOPV PCP PCO_03032014.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420141002/420141002_NOPV%20PCP%20PCO_03032014.pdf\n\n420141002_NOPV PCP PCO_03032014_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420141002/420141002_NOPV%20PCP%20PCO_03032014_text.pdf\n\n420141002_Operator Response to Notice_04032014.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420141002/420141002_Operator%20Response%20to%20Notice_04032014.pdf\n\n420141002_Final Order_09292014_text.pdf\n\nSEPTEMBER 29, 2014\nMr. Rory L. Miller\nSenior Vice President, Williams Energy, LLC\nThe Williams Companies, Inc.\nOne Williams Center\nTulsa, OK 74172\nRe: CPF No. 4-2014-1002\nDear Mr. Miller:\nEnclosed please find the Final Order issued in the above-referenced case. It makes findings of\nviolation, assesses a civil penalty of $15,800, and specifies actions that need to be taken by\nWilliams Energy, LLC, to comply with the pipeline safety regulations. The penalty payment\nterms are set forth in the Final Order. When the civil penalty has been paid this enforcement\naction will be closed. Service of the Final Order by certified mail is deemed effective upon the\ndate of mailing, or as otherwise provided under 49 C.F.R. § 190.5.\nThank you for your cooperation in this matter.\nSincerely,\nJeffrey D. Wiese\nAssociate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety\nEnclosure\ncc: Mr. R. M. Seeley, Director, Southwest Region, OPS\nMr. Alan S. Armstrong, President, The Williams Companies, Inc.,\nOne Williams Center, Tulsa, OK 74172\nMs. Marie G. Sotak, Manager Pipeline Safety, Gas & Liquids, Williams Energy, LLC,\n2800 Post Oak Blvd., L-11, Houston, TX 77056\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____________________________________\n)\nIn the Matter of )\n)\nWilliams Energy, LLC, ) CPF No. 4-2014-1002\n)\nRespondent. )\n____________________________________)\nFINAL ORDER\nRepresentatives of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA),\nOffice of Pipeline Safety (OPS), pursuant to Chapter 601 of 49 United States Code, have\nreviewed the reports and notifications that Williams Energy, LLC (Williams or Respondent), a\nsubsidiary of The Williams Companies, Inc.,1 provided to PHMSA in January 2014 regarding\nthe construction of a 20-inch offshore gas gathering pipeline running approximately 209 miles in\nlength and generally referred to as the Keathley Canyon Connector. As of 2012, Williams\nreported operating 276 miles of gas transmission and gathering lines in Louisiana and the Gulf of\nMexico and 23 miles of hazardous liquid pipelines in Louisiana.2\nAs a result of PHMSA’s review of Williams’ 2014 filings, the Director, Southwest Region, OPS\n(Director), issued to Respondent, by letter dated March 3, 2014, a Notice of Probable Violation,\nProposed Civil Penalty, and Proposed Compliance Order (Notice). In accordance with 49 C.F.R.\n§ 190.207, the Notice proposed finding that Williams had committed two violations of\n49 C.F.R. Part 191 and assessing a civil penalty of $15,800 for the alleged violations. The\nNotice also proposed ordering Respondent to take certain measures to correct the alleged\nviolations.\nWilliams responded to the Notice by letter dated April 3, 2014 (Response). Respondent\ncontested one of the allegations of violation, provided an explanation of its actions, and\nrequested that the proposed civil penalty be reduced or eliminated. Respondent did not request a\nhearing and therefore has waived its right to one.\n1 http://co.williams.com/williams/operations/midstream/ (last accessed July 21, 2014).\n2 Pipeline Safety Violation Report (Violation Report), (March 3, 2014) (on file with PHMSA), at 1.\n\n\n\n2\nFINDINGS OF VIOLATION\nThe Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. Part 191, as follows:\nItem 1: The Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 191.22(c)(1)(ii), which states:\n§ 191.22 National Registry of Pipeline and LNG operators.\n(a) . . .\n(c) Changes. Each operator of a gas pipeline, gas pipeline facility,\nLNG plant or LNG facility must notify PHMSA electronically through the\nNational Registry of Pipeline and LNG Operators at\nhttp://opsweb.phmsa.dot.gov of certain events.\n(1) An operator must notify PHMSA of any of the following events\nnot later than 60 days before the event occurs:\n(i) …\n(ii) Construction of 10 or more miles of a new pipeline; . . . .\nThe Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 191.22(c)(1)(ii) by failing to timely\nnotify PHMSA of the construction of 10 or more miles of a new pipeline. Specifically, the\nNotice alleged that Williams failed to notify PHMSA at least 60 days before the company began\nconstruction of a 209-mile offshore pipeline in the Gulf of Mexico. Construction of the pipeline\nbegan on October 15, 2013, approximately 83 days prior to the filing of the notification on\nJanuary 6, 2014, or 143 days late.\nRespondent contested this Item, asserting that it had “created the original PHMSA Notification\nType G in the PHMSA Portal and indicated an anticipated construction start date of October 7,\n2013.” It further asserted that “[a]t that time, Williams assumed the notification was submitted\nin final,” as indicated in an internal e-mail dated June 4, 2013.3 In support of its position,\nWilliams provided a screenshot of the PHMSA reporting portal and an internal company e-mail\nindicating that company personnel had notified PHMSA of the pending construction. The\nscreenshot showed the notification type, project status, start date, who entered and/or updated the\ninformation, and the last date the information was updated. The screenshot, however, did not\nshow when the notification was made.\nBased upon the evidence presented by Respondent, it is unclear whether Williams attempted but\nfailed to timely submit the construction notice in June 2013. It is undisputed, however, that a\ncomplete submission of the construction notice was not made until January 6, 2014.\nAccordingly, based upon a review of all of the evidence, I find that Respondent violated\n49 C.F.R. § 191.22(c)(1)(ii) by failing to timely notify PHMSA of its construction of a 209-mile\ngas gathering pipeline in the Gulf of Mexico.\nItem 2: The Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 191.22(b), as follows:\n3 Response at 1.\n\n\n\n3\n§ 191.22 National Registry of Pipeline and LNG operators.\n(a) . . . .\n(b) [Operator Identification Number (OPID)] validation.\nAn operator who has already been assigned one or more OPID by\nJanuary 1, 2011, must validate the information associated with\neach OPID through the National Registry of Pipeline and LNG\nOperators at http://opsweb.phmsa.dot.gov, and correct that\ninformation as necessary, no later than June 30, 2012.\nThe Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 191.22(b) by inaccurately updating the\ncompany’s OPID information with the National Registry of Pipeline and LNG Operators.\nSpecifically, the Notice alleged that Williams failed to accurately update its Contact Information\nby listing only one individual and phone number for the following duties: DOT Compliance,\nEmergency Contact 24-7, Normal Operations 24-7, Senior Executive, NPMS and User Fee\ndepartments.\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. § 191.22(b) by failing to accurately\nupdate its OPID information with the National Registry of Pipeline and LNG Operators.\nThese findings of violation will be considered prior offenses in any subsequent enforcement\naction taken 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. 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 $15,800 for the violations cited above.\nItem 1: The Notice proposed a civil penalty of $15,800 for Respondent’s violation of\n49 C.F.R. § 191.22(c)(1)(ii), for failing to timely notify PHMSA of the construction of a new\npipeline. As discussed above, I found that Williams did not report the construction of a new\n209-mile pipeline until 143 days after the notification deadline and nearly half of the\nconstruction had been completed. Parties are required to notify PHMSA in advance of new\nconstruction so the agency can review the construction documents and, if necessary, observe\nconstruction to ensure that proper safety and construction protocols are being followed. Thus,\nthe failure of an operator to make a timely construction notification potentially affects the long-\n\n\n\n4\nterm safety of a pipeline.\nWhile I have considered the evidence that Williams may have made some attempt to file a timely\nnotification, I do not find this alone warrants a penalty reduction. PHMSA will, on occasion,\nreduce a proposed penalty where an operator can show that the violation was based upon the\ncompany’s good-faith reliance on an incorrect interpretation of the regulations. In this case,\nhowever, Williams simply did not file a timely notification and had no system in place to\nmonitor or assure compliance. Furthermore, this violation does not appear to be an isolated\nevent. Other subsidiaries of The Williams Companies, Inc., have recently been charged with\nfiling late reports, which suggests a more systemic problem than the present case alone would\nindicate.4 Accordingly, based upon the foregoing, I assess Respondent a civil penalty of $15,800\nfor violation of 49 C.F.R. § 191.22(c)(1)(ii).\nIn summary, having reviewed the record and considered the assessment criteria for the Item cited\nabove, I assess Respondent a total civil penalty of $15,800.\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, P.O. Box 269039, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73125. The\nFinancial Operations Division telephone number is (405) 954-8845.\nFailure to pay the $15,800 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.\nCOMPLIANCE ORDER\nThe Notice proposed a compliance order with respect to Item 2 in the Notice for violation of\n49 C.F.R. § 191.22(b). Under 49 U.S.C. § 60118(a), each person who engages in the\ntransportation of gas or who owns or operates a pipeline facility is required to comply with the\napplicable safety standards established under chapter 601. The Director indicates that\nRespondent has taken the following actions specified in the proposed compliance order:\n1. With respect to the violation of § 191.22(b) (Item 2), Respondent updated its\n4 The Violation Report states that on August 14, 2013, PHMSA issued: (1) a Warning Letter to Williams Field\nServices-Gulf Coast [CPF No. 4-2013-9001W], alleging that the company had filed a late notification on another\npipeline construction project; and (2) a Notice of Probable Violation and Proposed Compliance Order to Williams\nOlefins Feedstock Pipelines, LLC [CPF No. 4-2013-5016], alleging that the company had filed a late notification on\nthe acquisition of a new pipeline The latter case has not yet been adjudicated. Williams has not challenged these\nallegations in the Violation Report.\n\n\n\n5\noperator Contact Information, previously provided, with the correct contact\ninformation for the individuals responsible for: DOT Compliance, Emergency\nContact 24-7, Normal Operations Contact 24-7, the named Executive, NPMSA and\nUser Fee.\nAccordingly, I find that compliance has been achieved with respect to this violation. Therefore,\nthe compliance terms proposed in the Notice are not included in this Order [CPF No. 4-2014-\n1002].\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 sent to: Associate Administrator, Office of Pipeline\nSafety, PHMSA, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE, East Building, 2nd Floor, Washington, DC\n20590, with a copy sent to the Office of Chief Counsel, PHMSA, at the same address. PHMSA\nwill accept petitions received no later than 20 days after receipt of service of this Final Order by\nthe Respondent, provided they contain a brief statement of the issue(s) and meet all other\nrequirements of 49 C.F.R. § 190.215. The filing of a petition automatically stays the payment of\nany civil penalty assessed. Unless the Associate Administrator, upon request, grants a stay, all\nother terms and conditions of this Final Order are effective upon service in accordance with\n49 C.F.R. § 190.5.\n___________________________________ __________________________\nJeffrey D. Wiese Date Issued\nAssociate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety\n\n420141002_NOPV PCP PCO_03032014_text.pdf\n\nNOTICE OF PROBABLE VIOLATION\nPROPOSED CIVIL PENALTY\nAND\nPROPOSED COMPLIANCE ORDER\nCERTIFIED MAIL - RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED\nMarch 3, 2014\nMr. Alan Armstrong\nPresident, Chief Executive Officer\nWilliams Energy LLC\nOne Williams Center\nTulsa, Oklahoma 74172\nCPF 4-2014-1002\nDear Mr. Armstrong:\nRepresentatives of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), Office of\nPipeline Safety (OPS), pursuant to Chapter 601 of 49 United States Code have been reviewing your\nreports and notifications that have been submitted to PHMSA. As a result of this review, it appears that\nyou have committed probable violations of the Pipeline Safety Regulations, Title 49, Code of Federal\nRegulations. The items inspected and the probable violations are:\n1. §191.22 National Registry of Pipeline and LNG Operators\n(c) Changes. Each operator of a gas pipeline, gas pipeline facility, LNG plant, or LNG facility\nmust notify PHMSA electronically through the National Registry of Pipeline and LNG\nOperators at http:/opsweb.phmsa.dot.gov, of certain events.\n(1) An operator must notify PHMSA of any of the following events not later than 60 days\nbefore the event occurs:\n(ii) Construction of 10 or more miles of a new pipeline\nWilliams Field Services did not notify PHMSA of the construction of a new pipeline within the proper\ntimeframe. On January 6, 2014 Williams Field Services submitted an Operator Registry Notification G-\n20140106-2328 for construction of 209 miles of 20” offshore gas gathering pipeline in the Gulf of\nMexico. The information that was submitted states that “The Gas Export Pipeline component of the\n\n\n\nKeathley Canyon Connector (KCC) system consists of an approximately 209 mile 20-inch OD pipeline\noriginating at a Pipeline End Termination (PLET) in the vicinity of KC-831 and terminating at a newly\nbuilt junction platform in the vicinity of South Timbalier Area (ST) Block 283.” According to the\nnotification, anticipated start date of field construction activities was October 7, 2013; however, through\nconversation with company personnel, actual construction on October 15, 2013. The original\nnotification was filed approximately 143 days after construction began and not 60 days prior to\nconstruction.\nOn February 13, 2014, Williams Energy LLC submitted Operator Registry Notification G-20140213-\n4263. In it Williams stated that the earlier notification G 20140106-2328 incorrectly stated that the\npipeline was being constructed by Williams Field Services LLC. Williams Energy LLC, and not\nWilliams Field Services, was the entity constructing the pipeline. All other information was unchanged\nfrom the earlier notification from Williams Field Services.\n2. §191.22 National Registry of Pipeline and LNG Operators\n(b) OPID Validation. An operator who has already been assigned one or more OPID by January\n1, 2011, must validate the information associated with each OPID through the National Registry of\nPipeline and LNG Operators http://opsweb.phmsa.dot.gov and correct that information as\nnecessary, no later than June 30, 2012.\nWilliams Energy LLC has inaccurately updated the information with the National Registry of Pipeline\nand LNG Operators. The operator Contact Information has one named individual, with the same phone\nnumber for: DOT Compliance, the Emergency Contact 24-7, and contact for Normal Operations 24-7,\nthe Senior Executive, NPMS, and User Fee. The date of the most recent revision that PHMSA received\nwas September 24, 2012.\nProposed Civil Penalty\nUnder 49 United States Code, § 60122, you are subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $200,000 per\nviolation per day the violation persists up to a maximum of $2,000,000 for a related series of violations.\nFor violations occurring prior to January 4, 2012, the maximum penalty may not exceed $100,000 per\nviolation per day, with a maximum penalty not to exceed $1,000,000 for a related series of violations.\nThe Compliance Officer has reviewed the circumstances and supporting documentation involved in the\nabove probable violation and has recommended that you be preliminarily assessed a civil penalty of\n$15,800 for item 1.\n2\n\n\n\nProposed Compliance Order\nWith respect to item 2, and pursuant to 49 United States Code § 60118, the Pipeline and Hazardous\nMaterial Safety Administration proposes to issue a Compliance Order to Williams Energy LLC. Please\nrefer to the Proposed Compliance Order, which is enclosed and made a part of this Notice.\nResponse to this Notice\nEnclosed as part of this Notice is a document entitled Response Options for Pipeline Operators in\nCompliance Proceedings. Please refer to this document and note the response options. All material\nsubmit in response to this enforcement action may be made publicly available. If you believe that any\nportion of your responsive material qualifies for confidential treatment under 5 U.S.C. 552(b), along\nwith the complete original document you must provide a second copy of the document with the portions\nyou believe qualify for confidential treatment redacted and an explanation of why you believe the\nredacted information qualifies for confidential treatment under 5 U.S.C. 552(b). If you do not respond\nwithin 30 days of receipt of this Notice, this constitutes a waiver of your right to contest the allegations\nin this Notice and authorizes the Associate Administrator for Pipeline Safety to find facts as alleged in\nthis Notice without further notice to you and to issue a Final Order.\nIn your correspondence on this matter, please refer to CPF 4-2014-1002 and for each document you\nsubmit, please provide a copy in electronic format whenever possible.\nSincerely,\nR. M. Seeley\nDirector, Southwest Region\nPipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration\nEnclosures: Response Options for Pipeline Operators in Compliance Proceedings\n3\n\n\n\nPROPOSED COMPLIANCE ORDER\nPursuant to 49 United States Code § 60118, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration\n(PHMSA) proposes to issue to Williams Energy LLC a Compliance Order incorporating the following\nremedial requirement to ensure the compliance of Williams Energy LLC with the pipeline safety\nregulations:\n1. In regard to Item 2 of the Notice pertaining to the inaccurately updated information with the\nNational Registry of Pipeline and LNG Operators. Williams Energy LLC is to update their\nOperator Contact information with the correct contacts for their: DOT Compliance, the\nEmergency Contact 24-7, Normal Operations Contact 24-7, the Executive, NPMS and User Fee.\n4","truncated":false,"body_characters":21382}