{"operation":"document","citation":"CPF 420185026","title":"PLAINS MARKETING, L.P. — Notice of Probable Violation","source_type":"enforcement","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"historical","official":true,"published_on":"2018-12-20","effective_on":null,"summary":"CLOSED notice of probable violation citing 195.505(b).","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-420185026.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-420185026.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-420185026","source_url":"https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/420185026","body":"Notice of Probable Violation involving PLAINS MARKETING, L.P.. PHMSA's enforcement data identifies the cited regulation as 195.505(b). The case was opened on 2018-12-20 and is reported as closed as of 2019-08-09. Proposed civil penalty: $81,500. Assessed civil penalty: $81,500. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.\n\nOfficial case documents:\n\n420185026_Final Order_08092019.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420185026/420185026_Final%20Order_08092019.pdf\n\n420185026_Final Order_08092019_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420185026/420185026_Final%20Order_08092019_text.pdf\n\n420185026_NOPV PCO_12202018.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420185026/420185026_NOPV%20PCO_12202018.pdf\n\n420185026_NOPV PCP_12202018_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420185026/420185026_NOPV%20PCP_12202018_text.pdf\n\n420185026_Operator Response to Notice_01242019.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420185026/420185026_Operator%20Response%20to%20Notice_01242019.pdf\n\n420185026_Final Order_08092019_text.pdf\n\nAugust 9, 2019\nMr. Willie C. W. Chiang\nChief Executive Officer and Director\nPlains All American Pipeline, LP\n333 Clay Street, Suite 1600\nHouston, Texas 77002\nRe: CPF No. 4-2018-5026\nDear Mr. Chiang:\nEnclosed please find the Final Order issued in the above-referenced case. It makes a finding of\nviolation against your subsidiary, Plains Marketing, LP, and assesses a civil penalty of $81,500.\nThis is to acknowledge receipt of payment of the full penalty amount, by wire transfer, dated\nJanuary 25, 2019. This enforcement action is now closed. Service of the Final Order by\ncertified mail is effective upon the date of mailing, as provided under 49 C.F.R. § 190.5.\nThank you for your cooperation in this matter.\nSincerely,\nAlan K. Mayberry\nAssociate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety\nEnclosure\ncc: Ms. Mary McDaniel, Director, Southwestern Region, Office of Pipeline Safety, PHMSA\nMr. Dean Gore, Vice President, Environmental and Regulatory Compliance, Plains All\nAmerican Pipeline, LP, 333 Clay Street, Suite 1600, Houston, Texas 77002\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 )\n)\n)\nPlains Marketing, LP, )\na subsidiary of Plains All American Pipeline, LP, )\nRespondent. )\n________________________________________________)\n) CPF No. 4-2018-5026\nFINAL ORDER\nFrom May 7, 2018 through August 24, 2018, pursuant to 49 U.S.C. § 60117, a representative of\nthe Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), Office of Pipeline Safety\n(OPS), conducted an on-site pipeline safety inspection of the facilities and records of Plains\nMarketing, LP’s (Plains or Respondent), tank terminal facilities in St. James, Louisiana and\nCushing, Oklahoma. Plains Marketing, LP is an operating subsidiary of Plains All American\nPipeline, LP (PAA).1 PAA operates midstream energy infrastructure and provides logistics\nservices for crude oil, natural gas liquids and natural gas.2\nAs a result of the inspection, the Director, Southwest Region, OPS (Director), issued to\nRespondent, by letter dated December 20, 2018, a Notice of Probable Violation and Proposed\nCivil Penalty (Notice). In accordance with 49 C.F.R. § 190.207, the Notice proposed finding\nthat Plains had violated 49 C.F.R. § 195.505(b) and proposed assessing a civil penalty of $81,500\nfor the alleged violation.\nPlains responded to the Notice by letter dated January 24, 2019 (Response). The company did\nnot contest the allegation of violation and paid the proposed civil penalty of $81,500. In\naccordance with 49 C.F.R. § 190.208(a)(1), such payment authorizes the Associate\nAdministrator to make a finding of violation and to issue this final order without further\nproceedings.\nFINDING OF VIOLATION\n1 US SEC Form 10-L, Plains All American Pipeline, LP, available at\nhttps://www.edgarexplorer.com/EFX dll/EdgarPro.dll?FetchFilingHTML1?SessionID=OzIxUFTZgRk1iwc&ID=1\n3256218 (last accessed July 9, 2019).\n2 Plains All American Pipeline, About Us, available at https://www.plainsallamerican.com/about-us (last accessed\nJuly 9, 2019).\n\n\n\nCPF 4-2018-5026\nPage 2\nIn its Response, Plains did not contest the allegation in the Notice that it violated 49 C.F.R. Part\n195, as follows:\nItem 1: The Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 195.505(b), which states:\n§ 195.505 Qualification program.\nEach operator shall have and follow a written qualification program.\nThe program shall include provisions to:\n(a) ….\n(b) Ensure through evaluation that individuals performing covered tasks\nare qualified;\nThe Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 195.505(b) by failing to ensure through\nevaluation that individuals performing covered tasks were qualified. Specifically, the Notice\nalleged that two employees performed monthly tank inspections, covered task (CT) 27.1, in 2017\nand 2018, without being qualified to perform that covered task and without the direct supervision\nof an individual qualified to perform that covered task.\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. § 195.505(b) by failing to ensure\nthrough evaluation that individuals performing covered tasks were qualified.\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.3 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; any effect that\nthe penalty may have on its ability to continue doing business; and the good faith of Respondent\nin attempting to comply with the pipeline safety regulations. In addition, I may consider the\neconomic benefit gained from the violation without any reduction because of subsequent\ndamages, and such other matters as justice may require. The Notice proposed a total civil\npenalty of $81,500 for the violation cited above.\nItem 1: The Notice proposed a civil penalty of $81,500 for Respondent’s violation of 49 C.F.R.\n§ 195.505(b), for failing to ensure through evaluation that individuals performing covered tasks\nwere qualified. Plains neither contested the allegation nor presented any evidence or argument\n3 These amounts are adjusted annually for inflation. See 49 C.F.R. § 190.223; Revisions to Civil Penalty Amounts,\n83 Fed. Reg. 60732, 60744 (Nov. 27, 2018).\n\n\n\nCPF 4-2018-5026\nPage 3\njustifying a reduction in or elimination of the proposed penalty. Accordingly, having reviewed\nthe record and considered the assessment criteria, I assess Respondent a civil penalty of $81,500\nfor violation of 49 C.F.R. § 195.505(b).\nThe total civil penalty of $81,500 was paid in full by wire transfer on January 25, 2019.\nThe terms and conditions of this Final Order are effective upon service in accordance with 49\nC.F.R. § 190.5.\nAugust 9, 2019\n___________________________________ _________________________\nAlan K. Mayberry Date Issued\nAssociate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety","truncated":false,"body_characters":7701}