Section 76 Gas Pipeline Safety 6

Section 145 of said chapter 164, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out subsection (b) and inserting in place thereof the following subsection:-

(b) A gas company shall file with the department a plan to address aging or leaking natural gas infrastructure within the commonwealth and the leak rate on the gas company's natural gas infrastructure in the interest of public safety and reducing lost and unaccounted for natural gas through a reduction in natural gas system leaks. Each company's gas infrastructure plan shall include interim targets for the department's review. The department shall review these interim targets to ensure each gas company is meeting the appropriate pace to reduce the leak rate on and to replace the gas company's natural gas infrastructure in a safe and timely manner. The interim targets shall be for periods of not to exceed five years. The gas companies shall incorporate these interim targets into timelines for removing all leak-prone infrastructure filed pursuant to subsection(c) and may update them based on overall progress. The department may levy a penalty against any gas company which fails to meet its interim target in an amount up to and including the equivalent of 2.5 per cent of such gas company's transmission and distribution service revenues for the previous calendar year.

This section, along with six others, increases the safety of the Commonwealth's gas pipeline infrastructure by requiring gas companies to file plans to address aging or leaking natural gas infrastructure, requiring municipal water companies to comply with Dig Safe regulations, and increasing the penalties for violations of various safety regulations.