BRISTOL — A bill aimed at adding another obstacle in the path of a proposed liquefied natural gas terminal in Fall River was approved last night by a Rhode Island House committee during a special session in Bristol.

The House Committee on Municipal Government voted 9 to 0, with one abstention, in favor of legislation that would require any emergency management plan developed for the transportation of LNG through Rhode Island waters be subject to approval by the General Assembly and by seven coastal communities that border the proposed route of tankers supplying the marine terminal planned for Fall River’s north end.

Rep. Raymond E. Gallison Jr., D-Bristol, Portsmouth, introduced the bill as a way to further complicate the approval process for the controversial proposal put forward by Weaver’s Cove Energy and Hess LNG.

“At this point in time, I don’t think we can take any chances,” Gallison, chairman of the municipal government committee, said after the hearing. “We have to do everything we can to stop this.”

The hearing was held at Mt. Hope High School as part of the legislature’s effort to bring state government to the people. Only two members of the public were in the audience.

Eight pieces of legislation were on the agenda last night, but the bulk of discussion at the brief meeting was devoted to Gallison’s LNG bill.

Gallison argues that the chances of an emergency management plan winning approval are decreased if more groups have approval power over it. Without such a plan, the project companies would not be able to bring LNG tankers up Narragansett Bay and then through Mount Hope Bay to supply the proposed facility on the Taunton River, he says.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission voted for the LNG proposal in July 2005, but the decision is subject to winning separate approvals from several local and federal agencies.

Since the decision by FERC, the proposal has suffered setbacks, including a preliminary report from the Coast Guard questioning whether LNG tankers can safely navigate the Taunton River.

Gallison introduced his bill in response to correspondence between the state and the head of Weaver’s Cove Energy regarding the creation of an emergency response plan. After Gordon Shearer, chief executive officer of the company, inquired with Governor Carcieri about such a plan, Maj. Gen. Robert T. Bray, the commanding general of the Rhode Island National Guard, wrote back, saying that it’s the state’s responsibility to design one.

The April 25 letter makes specific reference to the Rhode Island Emergency Management Agency and says it is preparing to resume “safety and security planning” meetings for the project.

Gallison believes that it is not just up to state agencies to develop a plan. It must also be reviewed by the legislature, he contends, and by select cities and towns on Narragansett and Mount Hope bays. The seven communities listed in the bill are Bristol, Jamestown, Middletown, Newport, Portsmouth, Tiverton and Warren.

If the General Assembly or any of those towns do not support the plan, it would not go forward, according to Gallison’s assessment of the bill.

Rep. Rene R. Menard, D-Lincoln, abstained from the vote after raising concerns that the bill may cause problems for developing an emergency response plan without blocking the proposed terminal.

“I’m worried that we’re putting ourselves in a situation where we don’t have any emergency response plan,” he said to Gallison. Menard said he would have a hard time requiring that any and all communities agree to a plan.

No representatives of Weaver’s Cove or Hess were at the hearing.

Gallison said he expects the legislation to be put to a vote by the full House next Tuesday. The General Assembly is set to adjourn at the end of next week.

“I’m making this one of my priority bills,” he said.

akuffner@projo.com