Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Pipeline Penalties topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Committee advances bill that removes caps on pipeline‑safety civil penalties
Summary
Sen. Solis introduced SB9 to remove statutory caps on per‑day and aggregate civil penalties for pipeline safety violations; the committee voted to pass the bill by voice consent after no questions were raised.
Senate Bill 9, a measure to change civil penalties for pipeline safety violations, was advanced out of committee after brief discussion.
Sen. Solis introduced SB9 and said the Public Regulation Commission brought the bill to her. She explained that current law caps penalties at $100,000 per day for each violation and $1,000,000 for persistent violations; the bill would strike those caps. Jason Montoya, identified in the hearing as special engineer and pipeline safety bureau chief, accompanied the sponsor and stood for questions.
The chair asked whether anyone had registered for or against the bill; no witnesses spoke in opposition. With no further questions, Senator Stewart moved to pass the bill. The chair asked if there were any objections; none were stated on the record and the chair declared the motion carried.
The chair thanked participants and the committee moved on to other business.
No roll‑call vote was recorded in the transcript; committee members moved SB9 forward by unanimous consent as noted on the record.
