Offshore Pipeline Safety Act

This bill updates safety rules for offshore oil and gas pipelines. It tells the federal safety office (BSEE) to finish and put in place stronger rules. Pipeline owners would need third‑party inspections at least every two years and leak‑detection systems that constantly compare what goes in and out to catch leaks quickly.

It also deals with old pipelines left on the sea floor. The agency must study whether removing or leaving pipelines is safer, consider risks to boats, fishing, other ocean uses, and the environment, and keep monitoring any pipelines left in place. If any pipeline segment is exposed, the agency must remove it or re‑secure it. Pipeline owners would pay an annual fee to help cover removals if a company goes bankrupt: at least $10,000 per mile in waters 500 feet deep or more, and $1,000 per mile in shallower water. The bill also orders a study on the environmental risks of chemicals used in oil and gas operations, with a report due in two years, and says actions must consider whether they would reduce reef fish habitat.

• Who is affected: offshore pipeline owners, BSEE, and people who use the ocean like commercial and recreational fishers and boaters.
• What changes: regular independent inspections, better leak detection, ongoing monitoring of old lines, action on exposed segments, annual fees to fund removals, and two studies (pipelines left in place vs. removal; risks from oil and gas chemicals).
• When: final pipeline rules within 18 months; fee rules within 180 days; the decommissioning study report within 18 months; the chemicals study report within two years .