U.S. pipeline safety regulators rolled out a new enforcement policy Monday that allows companies to put off compliance activities if they can prove the actions would exacerbate what the Trump administration calls a “national energy emergency.”
The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) said the policy — issued in response to the energy “emergency” President Donald Trump declared on the first day of his second term — is meant to give relief to consumers in areas affected by the emergency.
Trump’s executive order said Biden administration policies pushed the United States into an energy emergency, with “inadequate” energy supply and an “increasingly unreliable” electric grid. A number of environmental advocates have disputed the emergency designation, saying it helps the Trump administration promote the use of fossil fuels.
“PHMSA is announcing a limited exercise of enforcement discretion and statement of policy for issuing special permits in response to the national energy emergency,” the Transportation Department agency said in a three-page notice released Monday.
