Missouri Laws 386.572 – Natural gas safety standards, gas plants not to violate — maximum penalties ..
1. No corporation, person, public utility, or municipality that owns any gas plant shall violate any law or any order, decision, decree, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the commission or any part or portion thereof relating to federally mandated natural gas safety standards. Notwithstanding the above, a municipality that owns any gas plant shall be subject to the provisions of this section only for violations of natural gas safety laws, rules, or orders.
2. The maximum penalties for violations of federally mandated natural gas safety standards, or such stricter natural gas safety standards or rules as may be approved by the commission, shall not be greater than fifteen thousand dollars for each violation with a maximum penalty for a continuing violation or a multiple series of violations of the same standard or rule provision not to exceed one hundred fifty thousand dollars, notwithstanding any provisions of subsection 1 of section 386.570 to the contrary. The maximum penalty for each violation shall increase to twenty thousand dollars, effective January 1, 2015, twenty-five thousand dollars, effective January 1, 2025, thirty thousand dollars, effective January 1, 2035, and forty thousand dollars, effective January 1, 2040. The maximum penalty for a continuing violation or a multiple series of violations of the same standard or rule provision shall increase to two hundred thousand dollars, effective January 1, 2015, two hundred fifty thousand dollars, effective January 1, 2025, three hundred thousand dollars, effective January 1, 2035, and four hundred thousand dollars, effective January 1, 2040. In determining the amount of the penalty, the commission shall consider the nature, circumstances, and gravity of the violation, and also shall consider, with respect to the entity found to have committed the violation:
Terms Used In Missouri Laws 386.572
- Commission: the "Public Service Commission" hereby created. See Missouri Laws 386.020
- Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
- Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
- Corporation: includes a corporation, company, association and joint stock association or company. See Missouri Laws 386.020
- Gas plant: includes all real estate, fixtures and personal property owned, operated, controlled, used or to be used for or in connection with or to facilitate the manufacture, distribution, sale or furnishing of gas, natural or manufactured, for light, heat or power. See Missouri Laws 386.020
- Municipality: includes a city, village or town. See Missouri Laws 386.020
- Person: includes an individual, and a firm or copartnership. See Missouri Laws 386.020
- Public utility: includes every pipeline corporation, gas corporation, electrical corporation, telecommunications company, water corporation, heating company or refrigerating corporation, and sewer corporation, as these terms are defined in this section, and each thereof is hereby declared to be a public utility and to be subject to the jurisdiction, control and regulation of the commission and to the provisions of this chapter. See Missouri Laws 386.020
(1) The degree of culpability;
(2) Any history of prior violations;
(3) The effect of the penalty on the entity’s ability to continue operation;
(4) Any good faith effort in attempting to achieve compliance;
(5) Ability to pay the penalty; and
(6) Such other matters as are relevant in the case.
3. Every violation of a specific natural gas safety standard or rule by any corporation, person, public utility, or municipality that owns any gas plant is a separate and distinct offense, regardless of whether such violations relate to the same incident. In case of a continuing violation, each day’s continuance thereof shall be a separate and distinct offense.
4. In construing and enforcing the provisions of this section, the act, omission, or failure of any officer, agent, or employee of any corporation, person, public utility, or municipality that owns any gas plant acting within the scope of official duties of employment shall in every case be considered the act, omission, or failure of such corporation, person, public utility, or municipality that owns any gas plant.