Washington House approves tighter oil train rules

OLYMPIA – In the latest move to tighten safety regulations on oil trains and pipelines that run through Washington, the state House of Representatives on Tuesday voted to make shippers pay for spills and derailments and publicly disclose what kinds of oil they transport through communities.

The topic has riled debate between the Democratic-controlled House and the Republican-controlled Senate, which have been working to reconcile competing bills. Sticking points include how much the state should tax refiners per barrel of crude oil, and whether some regulations should apply to pipelines and marine tankers.

The legislation was proposed in response to growing concern over railroads’ ability to safely transport crude oil, as a spate of train accidents over the last few years has resulted in deaths and environmental hazards. Spokane is a major crossing for railroads that carry crude oil from other states and Canada to Western Washington.

The House passed the Senate bill on a 58-40 vote with some major revisions, raising the barrel tax from 4 cents to 8 cents and expanding some of the bill’s public disclosure requirements. While those measures run counter to the Republicans’ plan, the House also passed an amendment from Rep. Matt Shea, R-Spokane Valley, removing the requirement for at least three crew members on each oil train, which would have conflicted with federal law requiring only two.

“This bill represents an excellent compromise between protecting our natural environment, protecting the safety of our communities, protecting proprietary information, and making sure that we are able to pay for the programs … to keep our communities safe,” said Rep. Jessyn Farrell, D-Seattle, who authored the House bill.

As currently written, both bills would add rail inspectors at the state Utilities and Transportation Commission through increases in an existing railroad regulatory fee.

Both bills also would require shippers to notify the state Department of Ecology of their expected shipments for the upcoming week. Aggregated reports would be made public at the end of each quarter, including the type, volume and route of the oil shipped by train. That information could help firefighters respond to spills, fires and other emergencies.

Democrats want the Department of Ecology to collect similar information from pipelines, including the type of solvents used to thin oil from Canadian tar sands, although that wouldn’t be made public. They also want pipelines to pay the barrel tax, which currently applies only to marine tankers.

Shea, like other Republicans, argued that the legislation should focus on oil trains, without interfering with pipeline companies.

“They already have safety protocols in place,” Shea said. “We need to be focusing this on rail.”

The amended bill now goes back to the Senate, which has yet to vote on the House bill.