Cantwell Introduces Bipartisan Bill To Close Pipeline Safety Gaps

WASHINGTON, D.C.– Yesterday, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), ranking member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and senior member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, introduced the bipartisan PIPELINE Act of 2025 to address known safety risks, close gaps in the transportation of underregulated carbon dioxide and hydrogen pipelines, and improve the accountability of pipeline operators.
The legislation reauthorizes the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration through September 2030. It’s cosponsored by U.S. Senators Ted Cruz (R-TX), chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation; Gary Peters (D-MI), ranking member of the Commerce Subcommittee on Surface Transportation, Freight, Pipelines, and Safety; and Todd Young (R-IN).
“We just had the deadliest two-year period in pipeline safety since 2015,”said Sen. Cantwell.“Clearly, we need a more proactive approach to the safe transportation of our nation’s energy products, including the 46,000 miles of pipeline in Washington state. This bill does just that by increasing civil penalties by 50 percent, eliminating gaps in hydrogen and carbon dioxide pipeline requirements, and requiring permanent cybersecurity standards for pipeline operators.”
“This bipartisan pipeline safety bill introduced today contains critical provisions that will save lives,”said Bill Caram, executive director of the Bellingham-based Pipeline Safety Trust.“The Aldyl-A requirement is particularly important – we've been calling for action on this dangerous plastic pipe material for years. The deadly UGI Utilities explosion at the R.M. Palmer candy factory in West Reading, PA that killed seven people was caused by an Aldyl-A failure. In another incident likely caused by Aldyl-A last fall, a 15-year-old boy was killed when his home exploded in South Jordan, Utah. This bill would finally require operators to locate all Aldyl-A piping in their systems. It's a common-sense requirement that's long overdue. No family should have to endure the senseless grief that comes from a preventable pipeline tragedy. We thank Senator Cantwell and Senator Cruz for their leadership, and look forward to working with Congress to get this bill passed, and will continue pushing for the safety improvements our communities deserve.”
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Over the last 20 years, pipeline incidents have resulted in 257 deaths, more than 1,000 injuries, and have caused over $11 billion in damages nationwide. In addition to immediately increasing the civil penalties that operators face from $260,000 per day for violations (with a maximum of $2.6 million for a series of violations), up to $400,000 per day, with a maximum of $4 million per series of violations, the legislation also addresses key concerns that Sen. Cantwell raised at a recent hearing, including:
The bill also requires proactive actions to address additional well-known safety risks, including:
Sen. Cantwell has also been a vocal advocate about the need to hold pipeline operators accountable. In May she sent aletter to Deputy Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administrator Ben Kochmandemanding answers on why the Trump Administration had stopped enforcing pipeline safety laws.
A section by section of the bill can be foundHERE,the bill text isHEREand a one pager highlighting the key safety provisions of the PIPELINE Act of 2025 can be foundHERE.