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Sponsor recounts deadly factory blast as committee advances pipeline-safety bills
Summary
A three-bill package responding to an explosion that killed seven people drew an emotional sponsor statement. The committee approved an amendment and voted to advance HB 15-25 unanimously; members debated HB 15-26's overlap with recent PUC action, a motion to table failed, and the bill passed on a subsequent roll call.
Representative Zepeda Fratiz delivered prepared remarks for the record describing the March 24, 2023 explosion at the R&M Palmer chocolate factory in West Reading and introduced a three-bill package aimed at preventing similar tragedies. She said the blast struck minutes after she was sworn in and described "chaos, confusion, and fear," noting the National Transportation Safety Board later identified a likely degraded natural gas connection.
Representative Zepeda…
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