In the late 1990's and early 2000's, there were a number of pipeline failures that drew a large amount of public attention. These failures heightened awareness about the issues surrounding pipeline integrity and safety. In response to these failures the US Congress passed a series of bills that directed the US Department of Transportation Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS) to develop regulations to address pipeline integrity. As OPS began developing these new regulations, they first looked for industry standards to guide this effort.
In 2000 stakeholders from government, trade associations, professional societies, and industry came together to form a loose coalition to work with the Office of Pipeline Safety on standards. The group, known as the Pipeline Standards Development Organizations Coordinating Council (PSDOCC) coordinates guidance to OPS about which standards could be used in the making these new regulations. In addition the PSDOCC provides assistance in helping OPS comply with the Public Law 104-113, the National Technology Transfer Advancement Act.
In 2006 the PSDOCC enter into a Memorandum of Agreement with the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration to enhance cooperation and coordination between them and to facilitate a more effective and efficient integration of pipeline safety research and development results into the development and revision of voluntary consensus technical standards.
Memorandum of Agreement between PSDOCC and PHMSA