[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 120 (Monday, June 22, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37496-37497]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-13357]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

[Docket No. PHMSA-2016-0136]


Pipeline Safety: Meeting of the Gas and Liquid Pipeline Safety 
Advisory Committees

AGENCY: Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), 
Department of Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Notice of advisory committee meetings.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces public teleconference meeting of the 
Technical Pipeline Safety Standards Committee, also known as the Gas 
Pipeline Advisory Committee (GPAC), and the Technical Hazardous Liquid 
Pipeline Safety Standards Committee, also known as the Liquid Pipeline 
Advisory Committee (LPAC), to discuss the Valve Installation and 
Minimum Rupture Detection Standards notice of proposed rulemaking 
(NPRM).

DATES: PHMSA will hold public meetings on July 22-23, 2020. GPAC will 
meet from 10:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET on Wednesday, July 22, 2020, while 
LPAC will meet from 10:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET on Thursday, July 23, 
2020. Members of the public who want to attend are asked to register no 
later than July 15, 2020. PHMSA requests that individuals who require 
disability accommodations to notify Tewabe Asebe by July 15, 2020.

ADDRESSES: The meetings will be held via teleconference. The agenda and 
any additional information, including information how to participate in 
the teleconference will be published on the meeting website at https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/meetings/MtgHome.mtg?mtg=149. Presentations will 
be available on the meeting website and on the E-Gov website, https://www.regulations.gov/, under docket number PHMSA-2016-0136 no later than 
30 days following the meetings. You may submit comments, identified by 
Docket No. PHMSA-2016-0136, by any of the following methods:
     E-Gov Web: https://www.regulations.gov. This site allows

[[Page 37497]]

the public to enter comments on any Federal Register notice issued by 
any agency. Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
     Fax: 1 (202) 493-2251.
     Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building: Room W12-140, 
Washington, DC 20590-0001.
     Hand Delivery: U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE, West Building: Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-
0001, between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. ET Monday through Friday, except 
federal holidays.
     Instructions: Identify Docket No. PHMSA-2016-0136 at the 
beginning of your comments. If you submit your comments by mail, submit 
two copies. Internet users may submit comments at https://www.regulations.gov. If you would like confirmation that PHMSA received 
your comments, please include a self-addressed stamped postcard that is 
labeled ``Comments on PHMSA-2016-0136.'' The docket clerk will date 
stamp the postcard prior to returning it to you via the U.S. mail.
     Note: All comments received will be posted without edits 
to https://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information 
provided. Please see the Privacy Act heading for more information. 
Anyone can use the site to search all comments by the name of the 
submitting individual or, if the comment was submitted on behalf of an 
association, business, labor union, etc., the name of the signing 
individual. Therefore, please review the complete U.S. Department of 
Transportation Privacy Act Statement in the Federal Register (65 FR 
19477) or the Privacy Notice at https://www.regulations.gov before 
submitting comments.
     Privacy Act Statement: In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), 
DOT solicits comments from the public to better inform its rulemaking 
process. The DOT posts these comments without edit, including any 
personal information the commenter provides, to https://www.regulations.gov, as described in the system of records notice (DOT/
ALL-14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at https://www.dot.gov/privacy.
     Confidential Business Information: Confidential Business 
Information (CBI) is commercial or financial information that is both 
customarily and actually treated as private by its owner. Under the 
Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552), CBI is exempt from public 
disclosure. If your comments in response to this notice contain 
commercial or financial information that is customarily treated as 
private, that you actually treat as private, and that is relevant or 
responsive to this notice, it is important that you clearly designate 
the submitted comments as CBI. Pursuant to 49 CFR 190.343, you may ask 
PHMSA to provide confidential treatment to information you give to the 
agency by taking the following steps: (1) Mark each page of the 
original document submission containing CBI as ``Confidential;'' (2) 
send PHMSA a copy of the original document with the CBI deleted along 
with the original, unaltered document; and (3) explain why the 
information you are submitting is CBI. Unless you are notified 
otherwise, PHMSA will treat such marked submissions as confidential 
under the Freedom of Information Act and they will not be placed in the 
public docket of this notice. Submissions containing CBI should be sent 
to Tewabe Asebe, DOT, PHMSA, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, PHP-30, 
Washington, DC 20590-0001. Any commentary PHMSA receives that is not 
specifically designated as CBI will be placed in the public docket.
     Docket: For access to the docket or to read background 
documents or comments, go to https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 
online instructions for accessing the dockets. Alternatively, this 
information is available by visiting DOT at 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, 
West Building: Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001, between 9:00 
a.m. and 5:00 p.m. ET Monday through Friday, except federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tewabe Asebe, Transportation 
Specialist, Office of Pipeline Safety, by phone at 202-366-5523 or by 
email at tewabe.asebe@dot.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Meeting Agenda

    GPAC and LPAC will meet in separate sessions to discuss the Valve 
Installation and Minimum Rupture Detection Standards NPRM that PHMSA 
published in the Federal Register on February 6, 2020, (85 FR 7162). 
GPAC and LPAC will review the NPRM and its associated regulatory 
analysis. PHMSA will post additional details on the meeting website in 
advance of the meetings.
    PHMSA proposed to revise the Pipeline Safety Regulations applicable 
to newly constructed and entirely replaced onshore natural gas 
transmission and hazardous liquid pipelines to mitigate ruptures. 
Additionally, PHMSA is revising the regulations regarding rupture 
detection to shorten pipeline segment isolation times. These proposals 
address congressional mandates, incorporate recommendations from the 
National Transportation Safety Board, and are necessary to reduce the 
consequences of large-volume, uncontrolled releases of natural gas and 
hazardous liquid pipeline ruptures.

II. Background

    GPAC and LPAC are statutorily mandated advisory committees that 
provide PHMSA and the Secretary of Transportation with recommendations 
on proposed standards for the transportation of natural gas or 
hazardous liquids by pipeline. These committees were established in 
accordance with 49 U.S.C. 60115 and the Federal Advisory Committee Act, 
as amended (5 U.S.C. App. 2), to review PHMSA's regulatory initiatives 
and determine their technical feasibility, reasonableness, cost-
effectiveness, and practicability. Each committee consists of 15 
members, with membership evenly divided among Federal and state 
governments, regulated industry, and the general public.

III. Public Participation

    These meetings will be open to the public. Members of the public 
who wish to virtually attend must register on the meeting website and 
include their names and affiliations. PHMSA will provide members of the 
public with opportunities to make a statement during the course of 
these meetings. Additionally, PHMSA will record the meetings and post a 
record to the public docket. PHMSA is committed to providing all 
participants with equal access to these meetings. If you need 
disability accommodations, please contact Tewabe Asebe by phone at 
(202) 366-5523 or by email at tewabe.asebe@dot.gov.
    PHMSA is not always able to publish a notice in the Federal 
Register quickly enough to provide timely notice regarding last-minute 
issues that impact a previously announced advisory committee meeting. 
Therefore, individuals should check the meeting website or contact 
Tewabe Asebe regarding any possible changes.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on June 15, 2020, under authority 
delegated in 49 CFR 1.97.
Alan K. Mayberry,
Associate Administrator for Pipeline Safety.
[FR Doc. 2020-13357 Filed 6-19-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-60-P


