# 2026-00566: Pipelines Get Smarter Safety Rules as Neighborhoods Encroach 2026-00566, Pipeline Safety: Class Location Change Requirements, is a Federal Register rule from Transportation Department, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration published 2026-01-14, effective 2026-03-16; deemed significant under Executive Order 12866 (as of 2026-11-04). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-00566 - As of: 2026-11-04 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Document number: 2026-00566 - Title: Pipeline Safety: Class Location Change Requirements - Type: Rule - Agencies: Transportation Department; Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration - Citation: 91 FR 1608 - Published: 2026-01-14 - Effective: 2026-03-16 - Comments close: not stated - Significant: yes (OIRA_API) - Touches household money: no - Regulation identifier numbers: 2137-AF29 - Last updated: 2026-11-04 ## In one line Pipelines Get Smarter Safety Rules as Neighborhoods Encroach ## 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. ## Abstract PHMSA is updating its regulations to allow operators to apply modern risk management principles in addressing the safety of gas pipelines affected by class location changes. Relying on an approach originally developed in the 1950s, PHMSA's regulations use class locations to provide an additional margin of safety in the design, construction, testing, operation, and maintenance of gas pipelines based on population density. When the class location of a pipeline changes due to an increase in population density, an operator may need to take certain actions to confirm or to revise the maximum allowable operating pressure of a segment. Because the methods traditionally used for that purpose do not account for modern risk management principles, PHMSA has granted special permits for more than two decades allowing operators to use an integrity-management-based alternative. This final rule adopts that `IM alternative' by regulation to provide operators with an additional method for confirming or restoring the maximum allowable operating pressure of certain eligible segments that experience class location changes. ## Effects PRIA read - New IM Option for Class 3 Pipelines: benefit, high. 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… - Large Net Cost Savings For Operators: benefit, high. 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: benefit, medium. 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: cost, medium. 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 seg… - Compliance Timeline and Program Requirements: cost, medium. 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 surve… - MAOP Limits and Restoration Pathway: mixed, medium. 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 init… ## Related documents - [2026-22396](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-22396): Pipeline Safety: Amendments to Liquefied Natural Gas Facilities, 2026-11-03 - [2026-13805](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-13805): Pipeline Safety: Repair Criteria for Hazardous Liquid and Gas Transmission Pipelines, 2026-07-08 - [2026-10969](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-10969): Pipeline Safety: Breakout Tank Inspection Rule, 2026-06-02 - [2026-10782](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-10782): Pipeline Safety: Class Location Change Requirements; Correction, 2026-05-29 - [2026-08144](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-08144): Administrative Rulemaking, Guidance, and Enforcement Procedures, 2026-04-27 - [2026-08058](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-08058): Pipeline Safety: Safety of Gas Transmission Pipelines: MAOP Reconfirmation, Expansion of Assessment Requirements, and Other Related Amendme…, 2026-04-24 ## Sources - [2026-00566 on federalregister.gov](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/01/14/2026-00566/pipeline-safety-class-location-change-requirements) - [2026-00566 as published (PDF)](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2026-01-14/pdf/2026-00566.pdf) ## Related - [Previous: 2026-00545, Permethrin; Pesticide Tolerances](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-00545) - [Next: 2026-00577, Texas Regulatory Program](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-00577) - [All Federal Register documents](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-00566 (as of 2026-11-04).