Next Generation Pipelines Research and Development Act

• Authority: United States Congress
• Parent authority: Federal government
• Jurisdiction: United States
• Collections: U.S. federal laws
• Most recent activity: Proposed
• Most recent activity date: 2025-04-29

Risk subdomain coverage

Minimal coverage — Brief mention but no specific mitigations, recommendations or governance measures relating to the risk subdomain are described.

• AI system security vulnerabilities
• Lack of capability or robustness

All other risk subdomains had no coverage in this document.

Risk Coverage Summary

The document has minimal coverage of AI risk domains, with limited focus on AI system security (2.2) and system safety/robustness (7.3). The primary focus is on pipeline infrastructure research and development, with AI mentioned only as a tool for monitoring and prediction. Coverage is concentrated in technical reliability and security aspects rather than broader AI governance risks.

Sector coverage

Good coverage — Comprehensive governance measures or mitigations with clear procedures relating to the sector are explicitly described.

• Trade, Transportation & Utilities
• Scientific Research & Development Services
• Public Administration (excl. National Security)

Minimal coverage — Brief mention but no specific mitigations, recommendations or governance measures relating to the sector are described.

• Agriculture, Mining, Construction & Manufacturing
• Professional & Technical Services
• Educational Services
• National Security

All other sectors had no coverage in this document.

Sectors Summary

The document primarily governs the Trade, Transportation and Utilities sector through regulation of pipeline infrastructure and transportation systems. It also has significant coverage of Scientific Research and Development Services through establishment of research programs, and Public Administration through federal agency coordination and oversight.

Legislative Status

Hard Law

Legislative Status Summary

This is a binding legislative act from the United States Congress establishing mandatory programs, appropriating specific funding amounts, and creating enforceable obligations on federal agencies through the use of 'shall' throughout the document.

Actors

Proposer

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor
• Summary: The document is a Congressional bill enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, establishing federal research and development programs for pipeline systems.

Target

• Entity Types: AI_Developer, AI_Infrastructure_Provider
• Summary: The Act targets eligible entities that will receive funding to carry out demonstration projects and research on AI-driven pipeline technologies. These include universities, research organizations, National Labs, and private companies developing AI models and systems for pipeline monitoring and integrity.

Enforcer

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor
• Summary: The Secretary of Energy is designated as the primary enforcer with authority to establish programs, award funding, and ensure coordination. The Secretary of Transportation and NIST Director have supporting enforcement roles through the joint program and memorandum of understanding.

Monitor

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor
• Summary: The Act establishes monitoring responsibilities through coordination requirements, development of goals and metrics, and evaluation of technical performance and economic feasibility of projects. Multiple agencies share monitoring responsibilities.

AI Lifecycle Stages

Lifecycle stages covered by the documents, as defined in the OECD Framework for the Classification of AI Systems

• Plan and Design
• Collect and Process Data
• Build and Use Model
• Verify and Validate
• Deploy
• Operate and Monitor

AI Lifecycle Summary

The document covers multiple AI lifecycle stages with primary focus on Build and Use Model (AI models for monitoring and prediction), Verify and Validate (testing and evaluation infrastructure), Deploy (demonstration projects), and Operate and Monitor (real-time monitoring and autonomous systems). It addresses AI development for pipeline safety applications across the full lifecycle from research through operational deployment.

Technical Scope

Terms relating to technical scope that are mentioned or implicitly referenced in the document

• AI Models
• AI Systems
• Predictive AI
• Task-specific AI

Technical Scope Summary

The document explicitly mentions AI models and machine learning models for pipeline monitoring and prediction. It focuses on task-specific AI applications for pipeline safety and does not mention frontier AI, general purpose AI, foundation models, or compute thresholds. The emphasis is on predictive and monitoring AI systems rather than generative AI.