The Senate on Tuesday approved a measure that creates a new Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Administration (PHMA) under the authority of the Department of Transportation, elevating the issue of pipeline safety to a higher level within the Bush administration and giving the administrator of the office a position requiring Senate approval. The PHMA will oversee the Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS), which has oversight over natural gas and hazardous liquids pipelines. An earlier proposal, which was opposed by the American Gas Association and others in the industry, sought to transfer the OPS to the Federal Railroad Administration.

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