{"operation":"document","citation":"CPF 520120023W","title":"PALO ALTO, CITY OF — Warning Letter","source_type":"enforcement","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"historical","official":true,"published_on":"2012-10-15","effective_on":null,"summary":"CLOSED warning letter citing 192.616(c), 192.616(f), 192.616(i).","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-520120023w.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-520120023w.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-520120023w","source_url":"https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/520120023W","body":"Warning Letter involving PALO ALTO, CITY OF. PHMSA's enforcement data identifies the cited regulations as 192.616(c),  192.616(f),  192.616(i). The case was opened on 2012-10-15 and is reported as closed as of 2012-10-15. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.\n\nOfficial case documents:\n\n520120023W_Warning Letter_10152012.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/520120023W/520120023W_Warning%20Letter_10152012.pdf\n\n520120023W_Warning Letter_10152012_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/520120023W/520120023W_Warning%20Letter_10152012_text.pdf\n\n520120023W_Warning Letter_10152012_text.pdf\n\nWARNING LETTER\nCERTIFIED MAIL - RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED\nOctober 15, 2012\nMs. Valerie Fong\nUtilities Director\nCity of Palo Alto\n250 Hamilton Avenue\nPalo Alto, CA 94301\nCPF 5-2012-0023W\nDear Ms. Fong:\nOn March 6, 2012, representatives of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety\nAdministration (PHMSA), pursuant to Chapter 601 of 49 United States Code, inspected your\nPublic Awareness Program (PAP) in Palo Alto, California.\nAs a result of the inspection, it appears that you have committed probable violations of the\nPipeline Safety Regulations, Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations. The items inspected and the\nprobable violations are:\n1. §192.616 Public Awareness:\n(f) The program and the media used must be as comprehensive as necessary to\nreach all areas in which the operator transports gas.\nThe City of Palo Alto does not have procedures to identify the individual stakeholders in the four\naffected stakeholder audience groups: (1) affected public, (2) emergency officials, (3) local\npublic officials, and (4) excavators, as well as affected municipalities, school districts, businesses\nand residents.\n\n\n\nFurthermore, the City of Palo Alto could not produce any documentation showing how they\nattempted to identify the individual stakeholders in the four affected stakeholder audience\ngroups: (1) affected public, (2) emergency officials, (3) local public officials, and (4) excavators,\nas well as affected municipalities, school districts, businesses and residents.\n2. §192.616 Public Awareness:\n(c) The operator must follow the general program recommendations, including\nbaseline and supplemental requirements of API RP 1162, unless the operator\nprovides justification in its program or procedural manual as to why compliance\nwith all or certain provisions of the recommended practice is not practicable and\nnot necessary for safety.\nThe City of Palo Alto did not determine the statistical sample size and margin-of-error for each\nof the four intended stakeholder audiences. The City of Palo Alto also needs to break down the\npercentages of the non-customers reached for: 1) Affected Public, 2) Excavators 3) Public\nOfficials and 4) Emergency Responders.\n3. §192.616 Public Awareness:\n(c) The operator must follow the general program recommendations, including\nbaseline and supplemental requirements of API RP 1162, unless the operator\nprovides justification in its program or procedural manual as to why compliance\nwith all or certain provisions of the recommended practice is not practicable and\nnot necessary for safety.\nThe City of Palo Alto has used the annual APGA benchmark survey for 2008 thru 2011, to\nassess information regarding efforts to measure understandability of messages and recall.\nThe City of Palo Alto needs to determine and document the percentages of the non-customers\naudience that 1) understood the key information in each PAP message and 2) retained that key\ninformation.\n4. §192.616 Public Awareness:\n(i) The operator’s program documentation and evaluation results must be available\nfor periodic review by appropriate regulatory agencies.\nThe City of Palo Alto, on page 2 of the PAP, states that the effectiveness of the program will be\nperiodically evaluated. A specific time frame for the effectiveness evaluation of the program\nneeds to be added. In addition the City of Palo Alto also could not produce any documentation\nshowing that the effectiveness evaluation of the program had been conducted.\n2\n\n\n\nUnder 49 United States Code, § 60122, you are subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $100,000\nfor each violation for each day the violation persists up to a maximum of $1,000,000 for any\nrelated series of violations. We have reviewed the circumstances and supporting documents\ninvolved in this case, and have decided not to conduct additional enforcement action or penalty\nassessment proceedings at this time. We advise you to correct the item(s) identified in this letter.\nFailure to do so will result in The City of Palo Alto being subject to additional enforcement\naction.\nNo reply to this letter is required. If you choose to reply, in your correspondence please refer to\nCPF 5-2012-0023W. Be advised that all material you submit in response to this enforcement\naction is subject to being made publicly available. If you believe that any portion of your\nresponsive material qualifies for confidential treatment under 5 U.S.C. 552(b), along with the\ncomplete 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\nthe redacted information qualifies for confidential treatment under 5 U.S.C. 552(b).\nSincerely,\nChris Hoidal\nDirector, Western Region\nPipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration\ncc: PHP-60 Compliance Registry\nPHP-500 R. Reineke (#137905)\n3","truncated":false,"body_characters":5514}