Search
Search

New Highway Bill Raises Civil Penalties for Hazmat Violations

Posted on 7/9/2012 by Lion Staff

On Friday, President Obama signed into law the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21stCentury (MAP-21) highway bill.  This bill made significant changes to the hazmat portions of the current highway law, including increasing civil penalties for hazmat violations.
 
The maximum civil penalty for a standard hazmat violation rose from $50,000 per day/per violation to $75,000 per day/per violation.  The penalty for a violation that causes death, significant injury, or property damage rose from $100,000 per day/per violation to $175,000 per day/per violation.
 
MAP-21 also includes a provision that authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to penalize persons or businesses that “obstruct” hazmat inspections.  In this rule, “obstruct” is defined as “actions that were known, or reasonably should have been known, to prevent, hinder, or impede an investigation.”
 
Lastly, the DOT now has the authority to shut down any business that fails to pay its penalties (or set up a payment plan) within 90 days. 
 
In the MAP-21 law, Congress also laid out instructions for the DOT to answer many of the public comments raised regarding its Enhanced Enforcement Authority, also known as the “package-open” rule.  We’ll have more on exactly what instructions Congress gave the DOT in next week’s installment of LionBlog, so stay tuned.
 
You will find the full text of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century highway bill here: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-112hr4348enr/pdf/BILLS-112hr4348enr.pdf
 

Tags: DOT, hazmat shipping, new rules

Find a Post

Recent Posts

Compliance Topics

Compliance Archives

Lion - Quotes

I think LION does an excellent job of any training they do. Materials provided are very useful to my day-to-day work activities.

Pamela Embody

EHS Specialist

Excellent class, super instructor, very easy to follow. No rushing through material. Would like to take his class again.

Lawrence Patterson

EH&S Facility Maintenance & Security Manager

The instructor did an excellent job presenting a very dry subject; keeping everyone interested and making it enjoyable.

Marc Bugg

Hazardous Waste Professional

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

The course was very well structured and covered the material in a clear, concise manner.

Ian Martinez

Hazmat Shipping Professional

The instructor does a great job at presenting material in an approachable way. I have been able to save my company about $30,000 in the last year with what I have learned from Lion!

Curtis Ahonen

EHS&S Manager

If I need thorough training or updating, I always use Lion. Lion is always the best in both instruction and materials.

Bryce Parker

EHS Manager

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

David Hertvik

Vice President

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

Jeremy Bost

Environmental Health & Safety Technician

Very well structured, comprehensive, and comparable to live training seminars I've participated in previously. I will recommend the online course to other colleagues with training requirement needs.

Neil Luciano

EHS Manager

Download Our Latest Whitepaper

Start with these fundamentals to simplify hazardous materials shipping compliance.

Download
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.