There are no new PHMSA or IUB rule makings to address; however, substantial changes were made. 

The biggest change: Division 3, the Emergency Plan, is now separate from the O&M and is its own document. Not many changes are made to the Emergency Plan from year to year. Having it as a separate document will allow you to finalize the Emergency Plan and not have to transfer it over from year to year when O&M changes are made. This change will also make it easier to distribute the Emergency Plan in the appropriate places, such as utility vehicles, utility offices, etc. Note: All Gas Employees must be familiar with and understand the Emergency Plan requirements.

Additional changes to the O&M include (just to name a few):

• A meter installation diagram showing installation 3 foot from any ignition sources.
•  PHMSA code requirements that were omitted in previous years.
•  EFV-installation requirements.
•  Many new recordkeeping forms to allow for easier documentation.

Reminder: Your Board or Council must adopt both the O&M and Emergency Plan revisions. Also, be sure to review the O&M and Emergency Plan changes with your employees so everyone is aware of the changes. As always, document the O&M and Emergency Plan review and training. 

Numerous changes made to the O&M in the last few years, but IAMU is working hard to keep the manuals current and address everything that Code requires so our members have all of the resources available to stay compliant with regulations. IAMU will host a webinar on Thursday, March 29 at 9:30 a.m. to review/discuss O&M and Emergency Plan changes. IAMU will send information this week about the webinar to all gas members.

If you have any comments, concerns, or suggestions about the O&M or Emergency Plan, contact Nick Vandegriff, IAMU Gas Services & Compliance Specialist, at 641.919.8411 or by email at nvandegriff@iamu.org.

Note: Check your email. All gas members should have received an email from Nick that included a Word and PDF version of the 2018 O&M and 2018 Emergency Plan to download and print. He also attached a “changes tracker” – an Excel spreadsheet of the changes. There are two tabs at the bottom – one tab is for the O&M changes and the other for the Emergency Plan changes.