As soon as Transportation Secretary Mineta announced the creation in February 2005 of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) from what was once the Research and Special Programs Administration, the new agency went to work adding accomplishments to its blank historical record.

"The placement of the Offices of Pipeline Safety and Hazardous Materials Safety in one new administration ensures these issues get the attention they deserve," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Mineta.

Authorized under the Norman Y. Mineta Research and Special Programs Improvement Act, PHMSA consolidated its authority to oversee the safety of the more than 1.2 million daily shipments of hazardous materials in the United States and the 64 percent of the nation’s energy transported by pipelines.

With that consolidation, the professionals within the new organization began the fulfillment of one goal after another, one milestone after another. In the area of organizational excellence, PHMSA far exceeded several DOT and agency goals for targeted contracting by awarding 56 percent of its fiscal year 2005 contracts to small businesses, 54 percent to disadvantaged small businesses, 12 percent to women-owned small businesses, and 16 percent to service disabled, veteran-owned small businesses.

In 2005, the National Transportation Safety Board closed as acceptable 12 of 25 recommendations for the PHMSA pipeline safety program, and PHMSA formally requested closure of four more of the remaining recommendations. The PHMSA pipeline safety program successfully satisfied six Government Accounting Office recommendations for pipeline safety enforcement.

In reference to the President’s Management Agenda (PMA), PHMSA remains "Green" for progress on all PMA initiatives. PHMSA successfully created a Most Efficient Organization pursuant to a 2004 streamlined competitive sourcing competition which is projected to save PHMSA $147 thousand per year.

And lastly, in the area of legislation and rulemaking, the Hazardous Materials Safety Program was reauthorized as part of SAFTEA-LU. This included the Administration's proposal to shift DOT's responsibility under the Safe Food Transportation Act to the U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services.

[PHOTO: Acting Administrator, Brigham McCown]

This is the first, in what will become a regular quarterly newsletter issued by our fine folks over in Public Affairs. Our first newsletter is being published as an internal publication, while future editions will offer expanded coverage aimed at improving communication inside and outside the agency.

Please let me kick things off by saying I’m excited to be here. It is a real honor and privilege to be a part of the PHMSA family. Although I really enjoyed serving since 2003 as FMCSA’s first Chief Counsel, it is a true honor to be asked by Secretary Mineta and the Administration to be PHMSA’s first Deputy Administrator.

People ask me all the time for my thoughts on PHMSA and I always tell them the same thing. I am impressed, very impressed. Not only am I impressed with the dedication and high professional standards set by the agency during routine operations, but also with our response to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

This past hurricane season is likely to go down in history as one of the most costly. Without exception, each office within PHMSA played an important part in our response. We were challenged early, and we came through with flying colors. We were the “little agency that could.” We not only acted expeditiously in our traditional areas, but we forged new paths by solving many safety challenges some may consider outside our traditional comfy zone. No matter what the emergency, task, or mission, we not only said yes, but we did it all on the fly. We saved lives, comforted the sick and ill, and gave our department something to be proud of in the face of general criticism cast toward the federal government. More importantly, we made a difference. Now to be fair to the rest of our colleagues, we had a lot of help from our sister agencies. We should all be proud that we lived up to the “ONE-DOT” motto.

It’s not always easy coming together after significant change, and we have had a lot of change. The RITA-PHMSA re-organization highlighted previously existing challenges as well as a few new ones. PHMSA’s future is bright and while some see these challenges as problems, I hope you’ll join me in seeing these as opportunities.

Many have asked me to communicate the agency’s priorities in the upcoming year. Our first goal is to provide a positive environment in which the seeds for the future growth of PHMSA are set. It means that the culture of our agency should be one in which ideas are encouraged, and where hard work in protecting the American public is rewarded.

In order for us to achieve this goal, we have to take a look at the way we do business. More than that, we need to adopt our own best practices. In other words, I need your help to figure out what works well, and what doesn’t.

To this end, we will be working on the following items during 2006. First, we need to improve our internal communications. Many of you have said the agency suffers from a lack of sufficient information exchange up and down the chain of command. We’re going to improve our ability to communicate.

Second, we are going to look at ways to improve our company’s bottom line by ensuring the President’s Management Agenda is fully implemented. Strategic Use of Human Capital, Competitive Sourcing, Budget and Performance Integration, Financial Performance, and expanded use of E-Government are not just buzz words; they’re part of our success strategy. We will need to ask some basic questions. For example, are we spending the taxpayer’s money responsibly? This means taking a hard look at how and where we spend this money, and perhaps more importantly, whether our programs are achieving results. In enforcement and rulemaking, are we using the right metrics, based upon a scientific risk assessment model, in order to reach higher risk companies and shippers? Can we consolidate specific agency functions that actually improve service and capability while reducing our overhead? Are we leveraging technology to our advantage? These questions all need to be answered.

We also need to move as expeditiously as possible to fill our vacancies now that the hiring freeze has been removed. As we hire, we need to ensure we place people with the right skill sets in the right positions. We need to take a hard look at how we manage our resources and whether we are doing everything in our power to ensure that performance is recognized. While there remains much to do, I am proud to say that we have made a lot of progress in the HR arena.

Finally, we need to improve our ability to respond to emergencies. Whether WMD stands for weapons, wind, or water of mass destruction, we need to be able to respond quickly when our expertise is needed.

We have a lot on our plate and while all of this will not be accomplished overnight, it does start now. As owners in PHMSA, we owe it to ourselves and to each other to ensure we are running efficiently the best place to work in the government.

Efficiency, safety, and hard work do not come at the expense of a pleasant work environment. It is the responsibility of each one of us to ensure our agency is a positive place in which to work. Positive can of course have many meanings but it’s fair to say that at a minimum it includes a healthy quality of life, one free of workplace hostility or discrimination, and a place where everyone is treated with respect and dignity. It should also be a place where ideas are encouraged, considered, rewarded, and acted upon in a timely manner.

Thank you for your dedication and I look forward to working together to achieve excellence.

[PHOTO: PHMSA Acting Administrator Brigham McCown (rt) and Special Assistant to U.S. DOT Secretary, Rear Admiral Christopher McMahon, USMS, enter FEMA’s mobile response trailer in Jackson, Miss., as part of the U.S. DOT support team.]

PHMSA Amid the Storms

Hurricane Devastation

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita dealt a devastating blow to the United States central gulf coast causing widespread destruction to transportation infrastructure in the region. As a major portion of the nation’s oil and gas production and refinery capability was curtailed, PHMSA reached out to the pipeline industry to ensure the public’s safety.

Hurricane Katrina was one of the strongest storms to impact the coast of the United States during the last 100 years. Katrina made landfall August 29 just east of New Orleans with sustained winds of  140 mph, a strong category-4 hurricane, and it was followed three weeks later by hurricane Rita which slammed into Port Arthur, Texas.

After the storms’ passing, initial reports indicated that 100 percent of oil production and over 80 percent of natural gas production from the Gulf of Mexico Federal Outer Continental Shelf was brought to a halt. Normal oil production is 1.5 million barrels per day. Normal gas production is 10 billion cubic feet per day.

Representatives from DOT’s PHMSA were on the ground in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas providing needed assistance to pipeline operators, the hazardous materials industry, and state and local government officials.

“Because of everyone’s heroic efforts, we succeeded in restoring critical pipeline operations within days of the worst natural disaster to hit this great Nation,” said Transportation Secretary Mineta.

“In the end, all of us want to keep America moving, and that starts and ends with a safe, secure, and efficient pipeline system.”

Before the storms hit, regional PHMSA pipeline personnel were reaching out to all pipeline operators in the gulf coast region to take necessary steps of precaution including making employees available for emergency response. The Region offices issued notices requesting onshore and offshore facilities to conduct needs assessments for continual operation and product distribution.

As part of the Bush Administration’s response and recovery efforts, Transportation Secretary Mineta deployed the Department’s Transportation Team to the gulf region. The Team, composed of top DOT executives, included PHMSA’s Acting Administrator Brigham McCown. The Team provided assistance in facilitating the continuance of key transportation related activities with federal and state heads of government.

McCown was assigned duties at the Federal Emergency Management Agency field office in Jackson, Miss., and fast-tracked numerous transportation relief and response requests. These included clearances to conduct aircraft over flights for post storm damage assessment and to get emergency electrical generators to idle pipeline pumping stations.

The fast action and teamwork between PHMSA and its industry partners in restarting these critical facilities saved lives by providing power for diesel generators at local hospitals, supporting emergency relief operations, and providing critical gasoline supplies for FEMA and local authorities.

With this first edition, PHMSA officially launches its newsletter, PHMSA Focus, an internal communication publication of the Governmental, International and Public Affairs Office. PHMSA Focus is produced with news gathered from its headquarters and regional field program offices. If you would like to contribute story leads and photos, please contact Gordon “Joe” Delcambre at gordon.delcambre@dot.gov.

On September 22 twenty-three Houston nursing home evacuees fleeing in advance of Hurricane Rita lost their lives in a catastrophic bus fire outside of Dallas, Texas, that appeared to be fueled, in part, by cylinder tanks used to aid some passengers’ breathing. This tragic incident triggered PHMSA to issue industry-wide safety guidance to bus and train operators to take precautions to ensure that medical oxygen being transported for passengers’ personal use is handled and transported safely.

Compressed oxygen is listed as a Class 2.2 Federal Hazardous Material Regulations and requires special handling while in transportation.

Several key safety recommendations made were:

• Oxygen should be transported on a bus or train only when medically necessary.
• Limit the number of cylinders to be transported on board the vehicle to the extent practicable. If possible, transportation in the passenger compartment should be limited to one cylinder per person.
• Each cylinder should be secured to prevent movement and leakage. Each cylinder should be loaded and secured in an upright position.
• The release of oxygen from a cylinder could accelerate a fire. Each cylinder should be secured away from sources of heat or potential sparks.
• Under no circumstances should smoking or open flames (cigarette lighters or matches) be permitted in the passenger compartment when medical oxygen is present.

PHMSA’s Office of Hazardous Materials Enforcement along with the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, are participating in the ongoing investigation of the tragic Dallas bus fire.

For a copy of “Guidance for the Safe Transportation of Medical Oxygen for Personal Use on Buses and Trains,” visit PHMSA’s web page:

http://www.phmsa.dot.gov/news/gstomo.pdf

PHMSA Transportation Regulations Specialist Gary McGinnis, on special hurricane survey detail in Lake Shore, Miss., to locate and inspect pumping station damage. In the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the Agency issued nine emergency hazardous materials (hazmat) transportation exemptions to certain hazmat shippers and carriers, as well as state, local, and Federal government officials to authorize the shipment and transportation of hazmat which may not fully comply with the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR). This was done to speed the hurricane recovery and relief efforts by getting critical equipment and supplies to those who needed it most to sustain or save lives.

Even before the storms made landfall, PHMSA was focusing attention on two major hazmat transportation issues: the movement into and through the affected regions of hazardous supplies and materials necessary to the rescue and recovery effort; and the transportation of damaged hazmat packages and containers, and water and materials contaminated with hazardous wastes.

PHMSA issued emergency exemptions to state, local, and Federal officials in the States of Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Florida and Texas which allow for the transport of hazmat under authority of, and controls stipulated by, officials in the affected states. When compliance with the HMR is not possible, or practicable, these exemptions allow government officials to modify regulatory requirements for hazmat transported to, from, and within the hurricane disaster areas to facilitate relief and recovery activities.

The hazmat exemption to Mercury Marine allowed the transport of inflatable boats with fueled engines by cargo aircraft into the Hurricane Katrina disaster area. Also, PHMSA issued another hazmat exemption for the movement of cylinders that had lost their hazard communication markings and labels, and to permit their reuse without cylinder retesting thereby accommodating the emergency need for industrial gases in the affected areas.

A primary role of PHMSA’s hazmat safety program is to serve as a resource for government and private sector personnel by providing guidance and technical assistance on the safe and quick transport of hazmat. PHMSA’s Hazardous Materials Information Center operates a 24/7 toll-free hotline 1-800-HMR-4922 (1-800-4674922) and 202-366-4488 Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (EST).

[PHOTO: Emergency crews work to connect one of several mega-watt electrical generator trailers to meet the supplemental power requirements needed to restore operations at Colonial Pipeline and Plantation Pipeline pumping stations, storage tanks, and truck loading terminals in Collins, Miss.]

In the days after the August 29 landfall of Hurricane Katrina, gasoline was in short supply. On September 14, Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta, Energy Secretary Samuel W. Bodman, and Interior Secretary Gale Norton went to Collins, Miss., to thank those who worked to restore power to the pipelines.

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration personnel worked with pipeline industry stakeholders to arrange delivery of large electrical generators to Mississippi to provide the emergency power needed to resume pipeline operations once Hurricane Katrina passed.

The facility at Collins, Miss., is a joint-use location where Colonial Pipeline, Plantation Pipeline, Exxon/Mobile Corp., and TransMontaigne Partners all have product holding tanks and pumps used in transporting refined petroleum products through transmission pipelines to the northeast region of the United States.

Tom Kiddy (left) Renita Bivins (right) and Joy Kadnar (not pictured) are recent PHMSA participants in the Council for Excellence in Government Fellows Program. The next crop of senior government managers and leaders are already here among us. Three Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration mid-level managers are currently enrolled in the Council for Excellence in Government Fellows Program – Tom Kiddy is just completing the year-long series of activities which explored the demands of xecutive leadership. Renita Bivins and Joy Kadnar are just starting. The new session began October 17 in Williamsburg, Va.

Kiddy is the Chief of Publications Development and Information Dissemination within the Office of Hazardous Initiatives and Training; Bivins is a Senior Attorney with the Office of Chief Counsel; and Kadnar is the Director of Engineer Services, Security and Emergency Response for the Office of Pipeline Safety.

When asked about her selection to the Program, Bivins said that the training will help her to transition to a higher level of effectiveness in a leadership role as a strategist, manager, and communicator. She expects to strengthen her ability to lead and to work better with governmental and private sector organizations to achieve demonstrable results and add more value to PHMSA.

Fellows learn from the most forward-thinking, results-driven individuals in the country—Fortune 500 CEOs, top government administrators, academics from the most respected institutions of higher learning, and directors in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. From them, participants absorb real life leadership lessons.

“Thanks to the support of my sponsor in the Program, Dave Sargent, I will be able to explore further the leadership competencies the Fellows Program focuses on,” said Kiddy.

Tom Kiddy graduated September 22, as a Senior Fellow of the Council for Excellence in Government Fellows Program. An unexpected honor was an invitation for Kiddy to participate in the 2005/2006 program as one of several cocoaches. This honor was based on Kiddy’s exceptional leadership insights and enthusiasm towards the program. Coaches help Fellows to find and filter information, identify risks, and recognize leadership opportunities. They act as neutral observers, assisting Fellows to identify and address the barriers that hinder their productivity and ability to produce results.

“The Fellows Program was an excellent springboard for me to expand my leadership potential,” Kiddy said. “Now, as a co-coach, I will assist the coach in planning, facilitating, and processing each session for the new batch of executive leadership Fellows throughout the upcoming year.

While continuing in their current jobs, the selectees participate in a year-long series of activities which explores the demands of executive leadership and the commitments required for successful leaders. Participants come to the Program ready to work on a specific issue, project, or goal critical to the mission of their organization. Their time is allocated to approximately 21 days of formal sessions in workshops, site visits, and coaching days.

The non-profit, non-partisan Council for Excellence in Government brings over 20 years of experience to its mission of improving government performance. Since 1988, the program has included over 2,000 participants from all the Cabinet Departments and major agencies.

[PHOTO: (lft to rt) Albert Mitchell, State Fire Marshal, Commonwealth of Kentucky; the Honorable John Clay, Deputy Secretary Environmental and Public Protection Cabinet, Commonwealth of Kentucky; and James Wiggins, PHMSA Associate Administrator for Governmental, International and Public Affairs, participated in panel discussions at the pipeline “Super Week” event in Kentucky co-sponsored by PHMSA.]

Taking the pipeline safety and integrity management message on the road October 24-26, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) and the Southern Gas Association hosted a three-day “Super Week” training and education conference in Lexington, Ky., for pipeline operators and industry stakeholders. Free technical training sessions were provided to hazardous liquid pipeline and natural gas distribution and transmission operators from the tri-state area of Kentucky, Tennessee, and Ohio.

“Education and training is a key component in our strategy to enhancing the safety of the nation’s pipeline system,” said James Wiggins, PHMSA Associate Administrator for Governmental, International and Public Affairs.

During his remarks, Wiggins highlighted safety improvements the country experienced as a result of the Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2002. Also, PHMSA held a Federal, state and industry panel session entitled “The Pipeline Infrastructure – Then, Now and During a Natural Disaster,” as a timely issue in the wake of recent hurricanes. The session was used as a way to get pipeline operators not directly affected by the hurricanes to think about developing useful preemptive tactics to deal with emergency situations.

The General Session, hosted by PHMSA, was targeted to pipeline industry and stakeholder managers, directors, vice presidents, and senior level staff. The following two days of workshops were geared more toward field-level supervisors and manager-level operating professionals.

Sponsors and supporters of the “Super Week” conference included the U.S. Department of Transportation, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration; the Southern Gas Association; the Kentucky Public Service Commission; the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners; the National Association of Pipeline Safety Representatives; the Common Ground Alliance; the American Gas Association; the Association of Oil Pipelines; the American Petroleum Institute; the American Public Gas Association; the  Interstate Natural Gas Association of America; the Kentucky Gas Association and the Kentucky Oil & Gas Association.

PHMSA’s Office of Hazardous Materials Safety will sponsor a Multimodal Hazardous Materials Transportation Training Seminar in Dallas, Texas, on December 6-7, 2005. This outreach seminar provides an opportunity to educate industry on the use of the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR) and is a forum to discuss the latest developments and issues regarding hazardous materials transportation.

It is anticipated that over 300 shippers, carriers, enforcement personnel, and other individuals involved with the transportation of hazardous materials will be in attendance. This compliance assistance effort will include hazmat specialists from the Federal Aviation Administration, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, Federal Railroad Administration, PHMSA, United States Coast Guard, and Texas State law enforcement.

Multimodal Hazardous Materials Transportation Training Seminars Schedule

Also, PHMSA Hazardous Materials Transportation Workshops are available for anyone who has a desire to learn about US DOT’s HMR.

Hazardous Materials Transportation Workshops Schedule

For more information about these training opportunities, visit the PHMSA web site: http://hazmat.dot.gov/training/training.htm.

[PHOTO: Sergeant Waldo meets Secretary Mineta.]

"Heroes Deserve More Than Medals. They Deserve an Opportunity."

You may have seen this patriotic statement on one of many new posters displayed around the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) headquarters promoting the service of those in the U.S.
Armed Forces. Yet, many DOT employees do not realize that this statement has been transformed into action and there are actual American heroes among us.

Sgt. Jeffrey D. Waldo, Mississippi Army National Guard (ARNG), is pulling temporary double-duty as an attorney advisor with the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). Since early September 2005, Sgt. Waldo hung up his desert camouflage battle dress uniform for a suit and tie to assist PHMSA’s Office of Chief Counsel reduce its backlog of pipeline and hazardous materials enforcement cases.

The soft spoken Southern lawyer and father of three from Pontotoc, Miss., can be picked out of the crowd by his mild Southern drawl and short military-style haircut as he walks the eighth floor halls
of DOT headquarters. A graduate of Ole Miss University Law School, Waldo works as a civilian lawyer in solo practice specializing in real estate, domestic and criminal matters when not pulling military duty.

Sgt. Waldo is part of the Walter Reed Army Medical Center’s “Operation War Fighter” program. The program allows soldiers who have reached maximum medical benefit, but not yet discharged from the hospital, to apply for a temporary work assignment with any number of local Federal agencies in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area. Sgt. Waldo is awaiting a Physical Evaluation Board and a recommendation to either return to full military duty or to be given a certain level of medical disability.

Sgt. Waldo came to Walter Reed after being medically evacuated from the Iraqi theatre of operations due to a gastrointestinal complication not associated with combat that required immediate surgical
correction.

When asked the question if he was a hero, and what qualifies someone to be designated a hero, Sgt. Waldo offered his personal thoughts.

“I see a hero as being someone who has done something above and beyond what was called for…, someone who has been injured in war, or who made a sacrifice that they never intended to,” said Waldo. “I don’t see myself as a hero.”

Sgt. Waldo is an Abrams tanker of the Mississippi Army National Guard 155th Armored Brigade mobilized in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom to the U.S. Army First Division, 198th Armored Battalion, assigned duties in Najaff, Iraq, since January 2005.

DOT has many “citizen” soldiers, sailors, Marines, airmen, and Coast Guardsmen who are pulling double-duty for short or extended periods throughout the year. We should never forget to acknowledge their personal sacrifices in keeping our country free.

Thank you, Sgt. Waldo, for your service to America!

In what was one of PHMSA’s single largest contracts ever awarded, Catapult Technology Ltd. will receive $36M over 10 years to support the Hazardous Materials Information System for both the pipeline and hazardous materials programs.

As an added benefit to both PHMSA and the Department, this award greatly exceeded Bush Administration goals to steer 3 percent or more of annual Federal government contracts to Small Business Administration-certified 8(a) and Service Disabled Veteran-Owned small businesses.

In total for FY 2005, PHMSA awarded 56 percent of its contracts to small businesses, 54 percent to disadvantaged small businesses, 12 percent to women-owned small businesses, and 16 percent to service disabled, veteran-owned small businesses.

[PHOTO: Suzie Kay, Founder of Hoop Dreams, was a guest speaker at the PHMSA 2005 CFC Kick-Off elebration and provided insightful background on her local Washington, DC, CFC charity.]

With the Fall season also comes the annual Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) drive. This year, the CFC drive runs from October 20 through December 15, 2005. PHMSA’s CFC goal is $45,320. As in years
past, it is your generosity that truly makes a difference in the lives of millions of people throughout our region, across our nation, and around the globe.

One of the unique features of the CFC drive is that YOU, the donor, can determine to which organizations your contributions are directed, dollar-by-dollar. Your office key worker can provide you with a booklet that lists thousands of local, national and global organizations that are qualified to receive donations through the CFC drive.

In the coming weeks, PHMSA will host a number of events to support the CFC drive.

All are encouraged to consider either a cash contribution or payroll deduction. This is the first year that you can use the option of going through Employee Express. To find out more about making a contribution visit the web site:

https://www.employeeexpress.gov/

You should have already received a CFC Catalog of Caring listing over 3,400 charities and a pledge card from your key worker. The 2005 PHMSA key workers are: Richard Flint, Frank Licari, Charles Turner, Blenda Perez, Vince Lopez, Diane Jones, Fred Ferate, Marilyn Burke, Ronald Strayhorne, Kevin Leary, and Damon Hill.

[IMAGE: CFC LOGO] PHMSA CFC Upcoming Events

December 6th
ChiliCook Off

“I am proud of all the PHMSA Team is accomplishing. I believe reaching our CFC goal will serve as yet another example of how the PHMSA Team responds both to the challenges placed before us and to the needs of our fellow citizens. Thank you, again, for your consideration and your participation.

I look forward to an enthusiastic and spirited Combined Federal Campaign.”

—PHMSA Acting Administrator,
Brigham McCown

U.S. Department of Transportation
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials
Safety Administration

Office of Governmental, International
 & Public Affairs
400 Seventh Street SW, Suite 8406
Washington, DC 20590
Phone: (202) 366-4831 Fax: (202) 366-7431

PHMSA Acting Administrator
Brigham A. McCowan

Editor-in-Chief G. J. Delcambre
gordon.delcambre@dot.gov

Editor/Design Ruben Ingram
ruben.ingram@dot.gov

Reporter Damon Hill
damon.hill@dot.gov

Photographer Jerre Thomas
jerre.thomas@dot.gov

Office of the Administrator

Katia Cervoni, Advisor

Office of Chief Counsel

Office of Pipeline Safety

Kevin M. Coburn, IT Specialist
Richard H. Flint, Gen. Eng
Erika Jones, Student Trainee (Gen. Eng)
David McMillan, Gen. Eng (Insp.)
Harlotte Bolden, Gen Eng. Insp.)
Maria Howard, Program Assistant
Victor C. Lopez, Gen. Eng (Insp.)

Office of Administration

Satyamdeep Grewal, IT Spec. (Multi)
Teddy Siatita, IT Spec. (Asset Mgr.)
Mark Kyriss, IT Spec. (Data Mgt.)
Lisa T. Robinson, Budget Analyst
Emil Pagoaga, Stud. Train. (Con. Spec.)
Glen E. Vierk, Stud. Train. (Con. Spec.)

Office of Hazardous Materials Safety

Felicia Boyd, Hazmat Info Mgr
Kevin Leary, Trans. Spec. (Reg.)
Vallary S. Maxey, Trans. Spec. (Reg.)
Guadalupe Mondragon, Stud. Train. (Trans. Spec.)
Kelcey White, Stud. Train. (Trans. Spec.)
Candace A. Simon, Trans. Spec. (Training)
Gilbert Escamilla, Economist
Karen Pluessas, Trans Spec.

Administrative and Management Support

On November 16, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon signed the Alaska Pipeline measure into law.

PHMSA Associate Administrator Named

On October 11, Transportation Secretary Mineta appointed James Wiggins to serve as the PHMSA Associate Administrator for Governmental, International and Public Affairs. Wiggins joined the Department in July 2003 as the Director of Policy, Program Support and Governmental Affairs in the former Research and Special Programs Administration.