As the U.S. House of Representatives considers reauthorization of the Pipeline Safety Act (PSA), a House Transportation & Infrastructure Subcommittee requested input from the Department of Transportation (DOT) Office of Inspector General (OIG) on ways to enhance the enforcement of criminal pipeline safety laws under the PSA.  In a letter dated March 8, 2016, DOT Inspector General (IG) Scovel provided two recommendations: (1) that the mental state required for prosecutions under the Pipeline Safety Act be reduced from “knowingly and willfully” to “recklessly;” and (2) that the law provide for greater whistleblower incentives, such as the one recently enacted by the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act).
Continue Reading DOT IG Recommends Lowering Pipeline Safety Criminal Liability Standard to ‘Reckless’