Search

DOT to Adopt Old Special Permits into Hazardous Materials Regulations

Posted on 7/26/2012 by Roger Marks

In previous installments of LionBlog’s coverage of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) highway bill, we discussed rising civil penalties and Congress’ take on the DOT’s Enhanced Enforcement Authority. Today, we will take a look at instructions Congress had for the DOT’s hazmat Special Permits program.
 
In the Special Permits, Approvals, and Exclusions section of the MAP-21 law, Congress instructed the DOT to review and revise the requirements and procedures pertaining to special permits. Congress hopes to clarify the process and make alternative, safe procedures more easily available to industry on the whole. A review of the special permitting program has been laid out over the next 3 years, with important deadlines as follows:
 
July 1, 2013 – By this date, the DOT must review all special permits older than 10 years. Congress hopes that many of these special permits will be officially incorporated into the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR)—the idea being that if the alternative procedures outlined in the special permit are widely applicable and equally as effective as the procedures in the regulations, these alternative procedures should be part of the rules so that industry can take advantage of them without applying for coverage under the special permit.
 
July 1, 2014 – By this date, the DOT will issue regulations establishing a standard operating procedure for the evaluation of special permits and the administration of the special permit/approval program. Included in this will be procedures for automatically incorporating into the HMR special permits with longstanding safety records.
 
July 1, 2015 – By this date, the DOT must incorporate permits 10 years old or older into the regulations. The DOT must provide an explanation for any special permits it decides will not be added to the rules.
 
Have you been using a special permit for 10 or more years? Are there any special permits you’d like to see officially adopted into the HMR? How will easier access to alternative procedures affect your hazmat operations? Let us know in the comments below!
 
In the upcoming final installment of LionBlog’s coverage of the MAP-21 highway bill, we’ll discuss some miscellaneous amendments made to the Hazardous Materials Regulations, including Congress’ plans for wet-lines, electronic shipping papers, improving incident reporting, training inspectors, and the hazmat safety permit program. Stay tuned!
 

Tags: DOT, hazmat shipping, MAP 21, new rules

Find a Post

Compliance Archives

Lion - Quotes

Excellent job. Made what is very dry material interesting. Thoroughly explained all topics in easy-to-understand terms.

David Hertvik

Vice President

Lion's online training is more comprehensive, has better slides, and is a superior training experience than what I would get from other trainers.

Robert Brenner

District Environmental Manager

The exercises in the DOT hazardous materials management course are especially helpful in evaluating your understanding of course information.

Morgan Bliss

Principal Industrial Hygienist

I have over 26 years of environmental compliance experience, and it has been some time since I have attended an environmental regulations workshop. I attended this course as preparation for EHS Audits for my six plants, and it was exactly what I was looking for.

Frank Sizemore

Director of Regulatory Affairs

The instructor made the class enjoyable. He presented in a very knowledgeable, personable manner. Best class I've ever attended. Will take one again.

John Nekoloff

Environmental Compliance Manager

I used the IT support number available and my issue was resolved within a few minutes. I don't see anything that could have made it better.

Danny Province

EHS Professional

Much better than my previous class with another company. The Lion instructor made sense, kept me awake and made me laugh!

Marti Severs

Enterprise Safety Manager

Lion was very responsive to my initial questions and the website was user friendly.

Michael Britt

Supply Chain Director

Having the tutorial buttons for additional information was extremely beneficial.

Sharon Ziemek

EHS Manager

I chose Lion's online webinar because it is simple, effective, and easily accessible.

Jeremy Bost

Environmental Health & Safety Technician

Download Our Latest Whitepaper

In-flight hazmat incidents can be disastrous. This guide gives 5 tips for first-time air shippers to consider before offering dangerous goods for transportation on passenger or cargo aircraft.

Latest Whitepaper

By submitting your phone number, you agree to receive recurring marketing and training text messages. Consent to receive text messages is not required for any purchases. Text STOP at any time to cancel. Message and data rates may apply. View our Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.