(a) It is the purpose and intent of the General Assembly in enacting § 23-15-214 to specifically authorize the Arkansas Public Service Commission to make assessments upon interstate pipelines operating within this state and to provide funds to initiate and carry out an effective gas pipeline safety inspection program in order to properly protect the public health and safety of the citizens of this state.
(b) In enacting this section, the General Assembly is aware that:
(1) Recent federal court decisions have specifically upheld the right of states to impose safety assessments upon interstate pipelines;
(2) The United States Department of Transportation has recently designated the commission as its agent for inspection of interstate pipeline facilities located in Arkansas;
(3) The Sixty-Ninth General Assembly, in House Concurrent Resolution No. 95, specifically recognized and declared that the commission can provide effective public safety inspections of interstate gas transmission facilities at far less cost than this service can be provided by federal inspectors and that the future safety of the residents of the State of Arkansas requires the support of the General Assembly to ensure a safety inspection program for such pipelines located in Arkansas; and
(4) Legislation enacted by the United States Congress authorizes federal funds for reimbursement of up to fifty percent (50%) of the annual cost to the state which initiates such a program.