California Public Utilities Commission(CPUC) safety staff on Monday levied a $2.25 million citation against Sempra Energy'sSouthern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) for 45 instances of failing to promptly correct deficiencies found in its corrosion control in parts of its natural gas pipeline system. During two gas safety inspections last year, the CPUC’s Safety and  Enforcement Division (SED) found that SoCalGas failed to fix cathodic protection packages for periods in some cases of more than three years. Cathodic protection helps prevent corrosion. Federal regulations require gas operators to test systems at least once each year, with intervals not exceeding 15 months, to determine whether the protection is adequate. SED found numerous SoCalGas cathodic protection packages to be deficient for intervals exceeding federal and state standards.