PHMSA Voluntary Information Sharing Act
Sponsored By: Senator Sen. Moran, Jerry [R-KS]
Introduced
Summary
This bill would create a confidential voluntary pipeline information‑sharing system (VIS) to collect de‑identified safety data and share lessons learned to improve the safety of gas and hazardous‑liquid pipelines. It centers on secure data analysis, legal protections for contributors, and a public‑private governing board to turn shared data into safety recommendations.
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- Operators and workers would be able to voluntarily submit integrity data, accident and near‑miss lessons, and technology practices with promises of confidentiality and limited discovery protections. Submissions are allowed only with operator authorization and generally cannot be used in litigation except for narrow exceptions like criminal violations.
- Safety advocates, researchers, State and Tribal safety authorities, and standards bodies would get de‑identified analyses via Issue Analysis Teams and annual public reports to help identify trends and remediation measures. The Governing Board can approve public reports that include de‑identified examples.
- A 15‑member Governing Board with triad co‑chairs would run VIS, appoint a Third‑Party Data Manager for de‑identification and analytics, and set data rules. The bill would authorize $5 million per year for 2024–2027 to fund VIS.
*This bill would authorize $5.0 million per year for fiscal years 2024–2027, totaling $20.0 million, to establish and operate VIS.*
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
3 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 1 costs, 1 mixed.
New voluntary pipeline safety system
If enacted, the bill would create a confidential, voluntary information sharing system for pipeline safety. The Secretary would have to make the system operational within 1 year. A 15‑member Governing Board would be set up within 180 days to hire a data manager and oversee the system. The Board and the Secretary would publish annual public and Congressional reports on VIS work and safety trends. The bill would also exempt the Board and its teams from the Federal Advisory Committee Act.
New pipeline fee for safety system
If enacted, the bill would let the Secretary collect an extra $5 million a year under existing pipeline fee authority for each fiscal year 2024 through 2027. That totals $20 million authorized over four years. The bill would also direct the Secretary to seek sustainable funding, including public‑private partnerships, to support the VIS.
Strong privacy rules for shared pipeline data
If enacted, VIS information that is not public would be kept confidential and generally exempt from FOIA. The Board (or Administrator under Board rules) could release only de‑identified data when needed to show safety findings. VIS data generally could not be used in lawsuits or discovery, with exceptions for criminal evidence, required safety reports, State law reports, or information from other sources. The bill would also define what counts as "nonpublic" versus "public" information for VIS.
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Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Sen. Moran, Jerry [R-KS]
KS • R
Cosponsors
Tammy Duckworth
IL • D
Sponsored 10/7/2025
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
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