Next Generation Pipelines Research and Development Act, Section 4 ("Advanced pipeline materials and technologies demonstration initiative")

• Authority: United States Congress
• Parent authority: Federal government
• Jurisdiction: United States
• Collections: U.S. federal laws
• Most recent activity: Defunct
• Most recent activity date: 2024-09-25

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
• Environmental harm

All other risk subdomains had no coverage in this document.

Risk Coverage Summary

This document has minimal to no coverage of AI-specific risks. While it mentions advanced computational, data analytics, and machine learning models, as well as autonomous systems, these are discussed purely as technological capabilities to be developed for pipeline infrastructure, not as sources of risk requiring governance. The document focuses on technical performance and economic feasibility of pipeline technologies rather than AI safety, security, or societal 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

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

• Information
• Public Administration (excl. National Security)

All other sectors had no coverage in this document.

Sectors Summary

This document primarily governs the Trade, Transportation and Utilities sector through its focus on pipeline infrastructure and energy distribution systems. It also has significant coverage of Scientific Research and Development Services through its establishment of a research demonstration initiative. The Information sector receives minimal coverage through references to data analytics and computational technologies.

Legislative Status

Hard Law

Legislative Status Summary

This is a binding federal statute enacted by the United States Congress that establishes mandatory obligations for the Secretary of Energy, with specific appropriations authorized and a competitive merit review process required.

Actors

Proposer

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor
• Entities: United States Congress
• Summary: The document is a Congressional Act ('Next Generation Pipelines Research and Development Act') proposed and enacted by the United States Congress, which has legislative authority to create federal programs and authorize appropriations.

Target

• Entity Types: AI_Developer, AI_Infrastructure_Provider
• Entities: eligible entities (not specifically named); Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy; Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management
• Summary: The Act targets 'eligible entities' that will receive financial assistance to carry out demonstration projects involving advanced technologies including machine learning models, autonomous sensor systems, and autonomous robotic technologies for pipeline infrastructure.

Enforcer

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor
• Entities: Secretary of Energy; Department of Energy
• Summary: The Secretary of Energy is designated as the primary authority responsible for establishing the initiative, selecting projects through competitive merit review, and ensuring compliance with selection requirements and coordination mandates.

Monitor

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor
• Entities: Secretary of Energy; Department of Energy
• Summary: The Secretary of Energy is responsible for monitoring and evaluating projects for technical performance and economic feasibility, ensuring coordination with existing Department programs, and overseeing the demonstration initiative throughout its five-year term.

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, Deploy, and Operate and Monitor stages. It addresses the development of machine learning models, autonomous sensor systems, and robotic technologies for pipeline infrastructure, along with their deployment and real-time monitoring capabilities.

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 systems (autonomous sensor systems, autonomous robotic technologies) and machine learning models for pipeline infrastructure applications. It focuses on task-specific AI applications for pipeline monitoring, inspection, and repair. No mention of frontier AI, general purpose AI, foundation models, or compute thresholds.