Pipelines Get Smarter Safety Rules as Neighborhoods Encroach
Published Date: 1/14/2026
Rule
Summary
This new rule helps gas pipeline operators use smarter, modern safety checks when neighborhoods grow around their pipes. Instead of old-school methods, they can now use risk-based tools to decide if they need to adjust pipeline pressure, keeping everyone safer. The rule kicks in on March 16, 2026, and could save operators time and money while boosting safety.
Analyzed Economic Effects
6 provisions identified: 3 benefits, 2 costs, 1 mixed.
New IM Option for Class 3 Pipelines
If you operate gas transmission pipeline segments that move into a Class 3 location, you may use a new integrity-management (IM) alternative to confirm or restore the maximum allowable operating pressure (MAOP) instead of automatically reducing pressure, pressure testing, or replacing pipe. The IM alternative requires meeting a set of programmatic requirements and complying with Subpart O and becomes available when the rule is effective on March 16, 2026.
Large Net Cost Savings For Operators
PHMSA estimates the final rule will produce net cost-savings of $461,000,000 per year after accounting for an estimated $61,500,000 in annual implementation costs (both discounted at 7%). Those figures represent the rule's quantified industry-level financial impact.
Reduces Gas Losses and Service Disruptions
The final rule is expected to avoid about 1.3 billion cubic feet of lost natural gas per year from pipeline replacements and to reduce service disruptions and related impacts. PHMSA also cites increased regulatory certainty and flexibility as non-quantified benefits.
Narrow Eligibility Blocks Some Segments
Not all segments are eligible for the IM alternative: the rule excludes segments that contain bare pipe, wrinkle bends, certain longitudinal seam types (e.g., lap-welded seams with joint factor below 1.0), pipe that lacks traceable pressure-test records (e.g., an eight-hour 1.25x MAOP test), or segments that experienced a leak or rupture due to cracking within 5 miles. A segment that experiences an in-service rupture or leak from the pipe body cannot continue using the IM alternative.
Compliance Timeline and Program Requirements
An operator choosing the IM alternative must designate the eligible Class 3 segment as a high consequence area (HCA), comply with Subpart O, and meet specified initial programmatic requirements within 24 months of using the IM alternative. Recurring programmatic requirements (patrolling, leak surveys, gas quality, close-interval surveys, class location studies, etc.) also apply and operators must notify PHMSA when using the program.
MAOP Limits and Restoration Pathway
For segments using the IM alternative, MAOP may not exceed a hoop stress corresponding to 72 percent of specified minimum yield strength (SMYS). The rule also allows an operator to restore a previously established MAOP for an eligible Class 3 segment after complying with specified uprating and initial programmatic requirements.
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Key Dates
Department and Agencies
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