Women own about 10% of United States pipeline companies, according to a federal audit released by a Government Accountability Office (GAO).

Another 6% of U.S. pipeline companies are minority-owned, according to the GAO.

“Minority- or female-owned, minority-owned, and female-owned firms represented 15%, 6% and 10%, respectively, of firms in the U.S. pipeline industry in 2007,” the GAO summarized.

“In terms of market share, minority- or female-owned firms are estimated to have accounted for a total of 13% of industry receipts, with minority-owned firms having accounted for 3% and female-owned firms having accounted for 11% of receipts.”

The GAO conducted the report, Ownership by Minority, Female and Disadvantaged Firms in the Pipeline Industry, after Congress passed the Pipeline Safety, Regulatory and Job Creation Act of 2011, which compelled the U.S. Comptrollers Office to asses minority-owned, women-owned and disadvantaged pipeline businesses, no later than one year after its enactment.

The report utilized data from 2007, the most recent industry-wide data available, and was submitted to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce and the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. The GAO defines a pipeline firm as “pipeline construction firms and pipeline firms that transport crude oil, natural gas and other refined petroleum products.”

According to the report, in 2007, approximately 2,500 natural gas and hazardous liquid pipelines operated in the U.S., which made up about 2.5 million miles of pipeline across the U.S. The GAO found that these companies generated $200 billion in receipts and employed over 275,000 workers. Out of the more than 2,500 existing companies surveyed, 67% of them were non-minority or male-owned companies and produced 80% of the estimated share of receipts.

Another 19% of the total firms surveyed and 7% of receipts were from firms classified as “other."

The Pipeline Safety Act also called for the GAO to assess the amount of federal contract obligations provided to the firms studied. The GAO found that most of these contracts were construction based and less than 16% -- or $484 million of $3 billion -- went to minority or female-owned businesses.

“About $246 million—or 8%—of federal contract obligations went to disadvantaged pipeline firms, which may be minority-owned or female-owned firms, from 2007 to 2011,” the report said.

The report goes on to mention that although the Department of Transportation (DOT) does not provide programs to encourage the participation of minority and female-owned companies, it does aim to assist disadvantaged firms.

“A federal statute has established a goal that at least 10% of DOT-assisted contracts are expended on socially and economically disadvantaged firms, which include minority- and female-owned firms,” the report said.

“In addition, DOT administers a program aimed at helping disadvantaged firms participate in contract opportunities created by DOT financial assistance programs in some sectors of the economy, such as public transportation.”

According to the report, female-owned firms represented about 30% of all U.S. firms classifiable by race and gender in 2007, and generated about 11% of all receipts.