I

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 968

To authorize appropriations for hazardous material transportation safety,

and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

MARCH 3, 1999

Mr. SHUSTER (for himself, Mr. OBERSTAR, Mr. FRANKS of New Jersey, and

Mr. WISE) (all by request) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

A BILL

To authorize appropriations for hazardous material

transportation safety, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Hazardous Material

5 Transportation Safety Reauthorization Act of 1999’’.

6 SEC. 2. PURPOSES.

7 (a) PURPOSES.—Section 5101 of title 49, United

8 States Code, is amended to read as follows:
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1 ‘‘§ 5101. Purposes

2 ‘‘(a) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this chapter are

3 to—

4 ‘‘(1) ensure the safe and efficient transpor5 tation of hazardous material in intrastate, interstate,

6 and foreign commerce, including the loading, unload7 ing, and incidental storage of hazardous material;

8 ‘‘(2) provide the Secretary of Transportation

9 with preemption authority to achieve uniform regula10 tion of hazardous material transportation, eliminate

11 inconsistent rules that apply differently than rules

12 issued by the Secretary, ensure efficient movement

13 of hazardous material in commerce, and promote the

14 national health, welfare, and safety; and

15 ‘‘(3) provide adequate training for public sector

16 emergency response teams and hazmat employees to

17 ensure safe responses to hazardous material trans18 portation accidents and incidents.’’.

19 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The analysis for

20 chapter 51 of title 49, United States Code, is amended

21 by striking the item relating to section 5101 and inserting

22 the following:

‘‘5101. Purposes.’’.

23 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

24 Section 5102 of title 49, United States Code, is

25 amended—
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1 (1) in paragraph (1)—

2 (A) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of subpara3 graph (A);

4 (B) by striking the period at the end of

5 subparagraph (B) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and

6 (C) by adding at the end the following:

7 ‘‘(C) on a United States-registered air8 craft.’’; and

9 (2) in paragraph (3)—

10 (A) in subparagraph (A)(i) by inserting

11 ‘‘or self-employed’’ after ‘‘employer’’;

12 (B) in subparagraph (B) by striking ‘‘vehi13 cle’’ and inserting ‘‘vehicle, vessel, or aircraft’’;

14 and

15 (C) in subparagraph (C)(ii)—

16 (i) by inserting ‘‘designs, inspects,’’

17 after ‘‘manufactures,’’; and

18 (ii) by striking ‘‘and packagings’’ and

19 inserting ‘‘or other packagings, or a com20 ponent thereof,’’; and

21 (D) in subparagraph (C)(iii) by inserting

22 ‘‘or rejects’’ after ‘‘prepares’’;

23 (3) by striking paragraph (4) and inserting the

24 following:

25 ‘‘(4) ‘hazmat employer’ means a person who—
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1 ‘‘(A) either—

2 ‘‘(i) is self-employed;

3 ‘‘(ii) is an owner-operator of a motor

4 vehicle, vessel, or aircraft; or

5 ‘‘(iii) has at least one employee; and

6 ‘‘(B) performs, or uses at least one em7 ployee to perform, a function in connection

8 with—

9 ‘‘(i) transporting hazardous material

10 in commerce;

11 ‘‘(ii) causing hazardous material to be

12 transported in commerce;

13 ‘‘(iii) rejecting hazardous material for

14 transportation in commerce; or

15 ‘‘(iv) designing, manufacturing, recon16 ditioning, inspecting, or testing containers,

17 drums, other packagings, or a component

18 thereof, represented as qualified for use in

19 transporting hazardous material.’’;

20 (4) in paragraph (7) by striking ‘‘title’’ and in21 serting ‘‘title, except that a freight forwarder is in22 cluded only if performing a function related to high23 way transportation’’;

24 (5) by redesignating paragraphs (9) through

25 (13) as paragraphs (12) through (16), respectively;
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1 (6) by inserting after paragraph (8) the follow2 ing:

3 ‘‘(9) ‘out-of-service order’ means a mandate

4 that an aircraft, vessel, motor vehicle, train, railcar,

5 other vehicle, transport unit, transport vehicle,

6 freight container, portable tank, or other package

7 not be moved until specified conditions have been

8 met.

9 ‘‘(10) ‘package’ or ‘outside package’ means a

10 packaging and its contents.

11 ‘‘(11) ‘packaging’ means a receptacle and any

12 other components or materials necessary for the re13 ceptacle to perform its containment function in con14 formance with the minimum packaging requirements

15 established by the Secretary of Transportation.’’;

16 and

17 (7) in paragraph (12)(A) (as redesignated by

18 paragraph (5) of this section) by striking ‘‘commerce

19 or transporting hazardous material to further a com20 mercial enterprise’’ and inserting ‘‘commerce, trans21 porting hazardous material to further a commercial

22 enterprise, or manufacturing, reconditioning, or test23 ing containers, drums, or other packagings, or a

24 component thereof, represented as qualified for use

25 in transporting hazardous material’’.
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1 SEC. 4. HAZMAT EMPLOYEE TRAINING REQUIREMENTS.

2 Section 5107 of title 49, United States Code, is

3 amended—

4 (1) in subsection (d) by striking ‘‘or duplicate’’

5 in the matter preceding paragraph (1);

6 (2) in subsection (d)(2) by striking ‘‘Agency’’

7 and inserting ‘‘Administrator of the Environmental

8 Protection Agency’’ ; and

9 (3) in subsection (e) by striking section

10 ‘‘5127(c)(3)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 5129(b)(1)’’.

11 SEC. 5. REGISTRATION.

12 Section 5108 of title 49, United States Code, is

13 amended—

14 (1) by striking subsection (b)(1)(C) and insert15 ing the following:

16 ‘‘(C) each State in which the person carries out

17 any of the activities.’’;

18 (2) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the

19 following:

20 ‘‘(c) FILING SCHEDULE.—Each person required to

21 file a registration statement under subsection (a) of this

22 section shall file that statement in accordance with regula23 tions issued by the Secretary.’’;

24 (3) in subsection (g)(1) by striking ‘‘may’’ and

25 inserting ‘‘shall’’;
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1 (4) in subsection (g)(2)(A) by striking ‘‘$250

2 but not more than $5,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$500’’;

3 (5) in subsection (g)(2)(A) by striking ‘‘sub4 paragraph (B)’’ and inserting ‘‘subparagraph (E)’’;

5 (6) in subsection (g)(2)(A)(viii) by striking

6 ‘‘sections 5108(g)(2), 5115, and 5116’’ and insert7 ing ‘‘chapter 51 (except sections 5109, 5112, and

8 5119)’’;

9 (7) by striking subparagraphs (B) and (C) of

10 subsection (g)(2) and inserting the following:

11 ‘‘(B) At the beginning of each fiscal year, the Sec12 retary shall publish a fee schedule for the fee established

13 under this paragraph. The fee schedule shall be designed

14 to collect the following amounts:

15 ‘‘(i) Amounts authorized for that fiscal year

16 under sections 5129(b), 5129(d), 5129(e), and

17 5129(f).

18 ‘‘(ii) Amounts appropriated to the Research and

19 Special Programs Administration (RSPA) for that

20 fiscal year under subsection 5129(a)(2).

21 ‘‘(iii) Amounts appropriated to RSPA for that

22 fiscal year under subsections 5129(c) and 5129(g).

23 ‘‘(C) The Secretary shall transfer to the Secretary of

24 the Treasury all funds received by the Secretary under

25 this paragraph, except the amounts appropriated to RSPA
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1 pursuant to subsection 5129(a)(2), for deposit in the ac2 count the Secretary of the Treasury established under sec3 tion 5116(i) of this title.

4 ‘‘(D) Fees authorized under subsection (g)(2)(B)(ii)

5 shall be collected and available for obligation only to the

6 extent and in the amount provided in advance in appro7 priations Acts. Such fees are authorized to remain avail8 able until expended.

9 ‘‘(E) The Secretary shall adjust the amount being

10 collected under subparagraph (B) to reflect any unex11 pended balance in the account established under section

12 5116(i) of this title. However, the Secretary is not re13 quired to refund any fee collected under this paragraph.’’;

14 and

15 (8) in subsection (i)(2)(B) by striking ‘‘State,’’

16 and inserting ‘‘State, Indian tribe,’’.

17 SEC. 6. MOTOR CARRIER SAFETY.

18 (a) MOTOR CARRIER SAFETY PERMITS.—Section

19 5109(h) of title 49, United States Code, is amended by

20 striking ‘‘not later than November 16, 1991’’ and insert21 ing ‘‘based upon the findings of the study required by sec22 tion 5128(a) of this title’’.

23 (b) UNSATISFACTORY SAFETY RATING.—Section

24 5113 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by strik-
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1 ing subsections (a) through (d) and inserting the follow2 ing:

3 ‘‘A violation of section 31144(c)(3) of this title shall

4 be considered a violation of this chapter and shall be sub5 ject to the penalties in sections 5123 and 5124 of this

6 chapter.’’.

7 (c) SAFETY FITNESS OF OWNERS AND OPERA8 TORS.—Section 31144(c) of title 49, United States Code,

9 is amended—

10 (1) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘sections

11 521(b)(5)(A) and 5113’’ and inserting ‘‘section

12 521(b)(5)(A)’’; and

13 (2) in paragraph (3) by adding at the end the

14 following: ‘‘A violation of this paragraph shall be

15 considered a violation of chapter 51, and shall be

16 subject to the penalties in sections 5123 and 5124

17 of this title.’’.

18 SEC. 7. SHIPPING PAPER RETENTION.

19 Section 5110(e) of title 49, United States Code, is

20 amended by striking the first sentence and inserting the

21 following: ‘‘The person who provided the shipping paper

22 and the carrier required to maintain it under subsection

23 (a) of this section shall retain the paper, or an electronic

24 image of it, for a period of 1 year after the shipping paper
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1 was provided to the carrier, to be accessible through their

2 respective principal places of business.’’.

3 SEC. 8. PUBLIC SECTOR TRAINING CURRICULUM.

4 Section 5115 of title 49, United States Code, is

5 amended—–

6 (1) in subsection (a)—

7 (A) by striking ‘‘DEVELOPMENT AND UP8 DATING.—Not later than November 16, 1992,

9 in’’ and inserting ‘‘UPDATING.—In’’;

10 (B) in the first sentence by striking ‘‘na11 tional response team’’ and inserting ‘‘National

12 Response Team for Oil and Hazardous Sub13 stances’’;

14 (C) in the first sentence by striking ‘‘de15 velop and’’; and

16 (D) by striking the second sentence;

17 (2) in subsection (b)—

18 (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1)

19 by striking ‘‘developed’’ and inserting ‘‘main20 tained’’;

21 (B) in paragraphs (1)(A) and (1)(B) by in22 serting ‘‘or involving an alternative fuel vehicle’’

23 after ‘‘material’’ ; and

24 (C) in paragraph (1)(C) by striking ‘‘under

25 other United States Government grant pro-
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1 grams, including those developed with grants

2 made under section 126(g) of the Superfund

3 Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986

4 (42 U.S.C. 9660a)’’ and inserting ‘‘with Fed5 eral financial assistance’’ ;

6 (3) in subsection (c)(3) by striking ‘‘the Na7 tional Fire Protection Association’’ and inserting

8 ‘‘such voluntary consensus standard-setting organi9 zations as the Secretary deems appropriate’’; and

10 (4) by striking subsection (d) and inserting the

11 following:

12 ‘‘(d) DISTRIBUTION AND PUBLICATION.—With the

13 National Response Team for Oil and Hazardous Sub14 stances, the Secretary of Transportation may publish a

15 list of programs that use a course developed under this

16 section for training public-sector employees to respond to

17 accidents or incidents involving hazardous material.’’.

18 SEC. 9. PLANNING AND TRAINING GRANTS; EMERGENCY

19 PREPAREDNESS FUND.

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 5116 of title 49, United

21 States Code, is amended by—

22 (1) by striking the section heading and insert23 ing the following:
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1 ‘‘§ 5116. Planning and training grants; emergency

2 preparedness fund’’;

3 (2) in the second sentence of subsection (e) by

4 striking ‘‘of the State or tribe under subsections

5 (a)(2)(A) and (b)(2)(A)’’ and inserting ‘‘received by

6 the State or tribe under subsections (a)(1) and

7 (b)(1)’’;

8 (3) by striking subsection (f) and inserting the

9 following:

10 ‘‘(f) MONITORING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—

11 The Secretary of Transportation shall monitor public sec12 tor emergency response planning and training for an acci13 dent or incident involving hazardous material. Considering

14 the results of the monitoring, the Secretary shall provide

15 technical assistance to a State, political subdivision of a

16 State, or Indian tribe for carrying out emergency response

17 training and planning for an accident or incident involving

18 hazardous material and shall coordinate the assistance

19 using the existing coordinating mechanisms of the Na20 tional Response Team for Oil and Hazardous Substances

21 and, for radioactive material, the Federal Radiological

22 Preparedness Coordinating Committee.’’;

23 (4) in subsection (g) by striking ‘‘Government

24 grant’’ and inserting ‘‘Federal financial assistance’’;

25 (5) by striking subsection (i) and inserting the

26 following:
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1 ‘‘(i) EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS FUND.—The Sec2 retary of the Treasury shall establish an Emergency Pre3 paredness Fund account in the Treasury into which the

4 Secretary of the Treasury shall deposit amounts the Sec5 retary of Transportation transfers to the Secretary of the

6 Treasury under section 5108(g)(2)(C) of this title. With7 out further appropriation, amounts in the account are

8 available—

9 ‘‘(1) to make grants under this section;

10 ‘‘(2) to monitor and provide technical assistance

11 under subsection (f) of this section;

12 ‘‘(3) to publish and distribute the North Amer13 ican Emergency Response Guidebook; and

14 ‘‘(4) to pay administrative costs of carrying out

15 this section and sections 5108(g)(2) and 5115 of

16 this title, except that not more than 10 percent of

17 the amounts made available from the account in a

18 fiscal year to carry out these sections may be used

19 to pay these costs.’’; and

20 (6) by striking subsection (k) and inserting the

21 following:

22 ‘‘(k) SMALL BUSINESSES.—The Secretary may au23 thorize a State or Indian tribe receiving a grant under

24 this section to use up to 25 percent of the amount of the
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1 grant to assist small businesses in complying with regula2 tions issued under this chapter.’’.

3 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of sec4 tions for chapter 51 of title 49, United States Code, is

5 amended by striking the item relating to section 5116 and

6 inserting the following:

‘‘5116. Planning and training grants; emergency preparedness fund.’’.

7 SEC. 10. SPECIAL PERMITS AND EXCLUSIONS.

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 5117 of title 49, United

9 States Code, is amended—

10 (1) by striking the section heading and insert11 ing the following:

12 ‘‘§ 5117. Special permits and exclusions’’;

13 (2) in subsection (a) by striking ‘‘AUTHORITY

14 TO EXEMPT’’ and inserting ‘‘AUTHORITY TO ISSUE

15 SPECIAL PERMITS’’;

16 (3) by striking ‘‘an exemption’’ each place it ap17 pears and inserting ‘‘a special permit’’;

18 (4) by striking ‘‘the exemption’’ each place it

19 appears and inserting ‘‘the special permit’’;

20 (5) in subsection (a)(1) by inserting ‘‘authoriz21 ing variances’’ before ‘‘from this chapter’’;

22 (6) in subsection (a)(2)—

23 (A) by striking ‘‘An exemption’’ and in24 serting ‘‘A special permit’’; and
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1 (B) by striking ‘‘2 years’’ and inserting ‘‘4

2 years’’.

3 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The analysis for

4 chapter 51 of title 49, United States Code, is amended

5 by striking the item relating to section 5117 and inserting

6 the following:

‘‘5117. Special permits and exclusions.’’.

7 SEC. 11. UNIFORM FORMS AND PROCEDURES.

8 Section 5119 of title 49, United States Code, is

9 amended—

10 (1) in subsection (a)(1)(A) by inserting ‘‘and

11 issue permits to’’ after ‘‘register’’; and

12 (2) by adding at the end of subsection (c) the

13 following:

14 ‘‘(4) Pending promulgation of regulations under this

15 subsection, States may participate in a program of uni16 form forms and procedures recommended by the working

17 group under subsection (b).’’.

18 SEC. 12. ADMINISTRATION.

19 Section 5121 of title 49, United States Code, is

20 amended—

21 (1) by striking subsections (a), (b), and (c);

22 (2) by redesignating subsections (d) and (e) as

23 subsections (a) and (b), respectively:

24 (3) in the second sentence of subsection (b) (as

25 so redesignated) by striking ‘‘The report shall in-
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1 clude’’ and inserting ‘‘The report shall include or

2 make appropriate reference to’’; and

3 (4) by adding at the end the following:

4 ‘‘(c) AUTHORITY FOR GRANTS, COOPERATIVE

5 AGREEMENTS, AND OTHER TRANSACTIONS.—To carry

6 out this chapter, the Secretary may enter into grants, co7 operative agreements, and other transactions with a per8 son, agency or instrumentality of the United States, a unit

9 of State or local government, an Indian tribe, a foreign

10 government (in coordination with the Department of

11 State), an educational institution, or other entity to fur12 ther the objectives of this chapter. The objectives of this

13 chapter include the conduct of research, development,

14 demonstration, risk assessment, emergency response plan15 ning and training activities.’’.

16 SEC. 13. ENFORCEMENT.

17 Section 5122 of title 49, United States Code, is

18 amended to read as follows:

19 ‘‘§ 5122. Enforcement

20 ‘‘(a) GENERAL AUTHORITY.—To carry out this chap21 ter, the Secretary of Transportation may investigate,

22 make reports, issue subpoenas, conduct hearings, require

23 the production of records and property, take depositions,

24 and conduct research, development, demonstration, and

25 training activities. Except as provided in subsection (d)
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1 of this section, the Secretary shall provide notice and an

2 opportunity for a hearing prior to issuing an order direct3 ing compliance with this chapter or a regulation, order,

4 special permit, or approval issued under this chapter.

5 ‘‘(b) RECORDS, REPORTS, PROPERTY, AND INFORMA6 TION.—A person subject to this chapter shall—

7 ‘‘(1) maintain records, make reports, and pro8 vide information that the Secretary by regulation or

9 order requires; and

10 ‘‘(2) make the records, reports, property, and

11 information available for inspection when the Sec12 retary requests.

13 ‘‘(c) INSPECTIONS AND INVESTIGATIONS.—(1) A des14 ignated officer or employee of the Secretary may—

15 ‘‘(A) inspect and investigate, at a reasonable

16 time and in a reasonable way, records and property

17 related to—

18 ‘‘(i) designing, manufacturing, fabricating,

19 marking, maintaining, reconditioning, repairing,

20 inspecting, testing, or distributing a packaging,

21 or a component thereof, for use by a person in

22 transporting hazardous materials in commerce;

23 or

24 ‘‘(ii) the transportation of hazardous mate25 rial in commerce;
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1 ‘‘(B) except for the packaging immediately ad2 jacent to its hazardous material contents, open and

3 examine a package offered for or in transportation

4 when the officer or employee has an objectively rea5 sonable and articulable belief that the package may

6 contain a hazardous material;

7 ‘‘(C) remove from transportation a package or

8 related packages in a shipment offered for or in

9 transportation, and for which such officer or em10 ployee has an objectively reasonable and articulable

11 belief that the package or packages may pose an im12 minent hazard, and for which the officer or employee

13 contemporaneously documents that belief in accord14 ance with procedures adopted under subsection (e)

15 of this section;

16 ‘‘(D) gather information from the offeror, pack17 aging manufacturer or retester, or other person re18 sponsible for the package to ascertain the nature

19 and hazards of the contents of the package;

20 ‘‘(E) as necessary, under terms and conditions

21 specified by the Secretary, order the offeror, packag22 ing manufacturer or retester, or other person re23 sponsible for the package to have the package trans24 ported to, opened, and the contents examined and
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1 analyzed at a facility appropriate for the conduct of

2 this activity; and

3 ‘‘(F) when safety might otherwise be com4 promised, authorize properly qualified personnel to

5 assist in the activities conducted under subsection

6 (c)(1)(B) of this section.

7 ‘‘(2) An officer or employee acting under this sub8 section shall display proper credentials when requested.

9 ‘‘(3) For instances when, as a result of the inspection

10 or investigation, an imminent hazard is not found to exist,

11 the Secretary shall develop procedures to assist in the safe

12 resumption of transportation of the package and transport

13 unit.

14 ‘‘(d) EMERGENCY ORDERS.—(1) If, upon inspection

15 or investigation, the Secretary determines that either a

16 violation of a provision of this chapter or a regulation

17 issued under this chapter, or an unsafe condition or prac18 tice, is causing an imminent hazard, the Secretary may

19 issue or impose emergency restrictions, prohibitions, re20 calls, or out-of-service orders, without notice or the oppor21 tunity for a hearing, but only to the extent necessary to

22 abate the imminent hazard.

23 ‘‘(2) The Secretary’s action under subsection (d)(1)

24 must be in a written order describing the violation, condi25 tion or practice that is causing the imminent hazard, and
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1 stating the restrictions, prohibitions, recalls, or out-of2 service orders issued or imposed. The order also shall de3 scribe the standards and procedures for obtaining relief

4 from the emergency order.

5 ‘‘(3) After taking action under subsection (d)(1), the

6 Secretary shall provide an opportunity for review of that

7 action under section 554 of title 5, and such review shall

8 occur no later than 20 days after issuance of such order.

9 ‘‘(e) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall issue regu10 lations with notice and comment, including an opportunity

11 for informal hearing, to implement the authority in sub12 sections (c) and (d) of this section.

13 ‘‘(f) ENFORCEMENT BY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL.—

14 At the request of the Secretary, the Attorney General may

15 bring a civil action in an appropriate district court of the

16 United States to enforce this chapter or a regulation pre17 scribed or order issued under this chapter. The court may

18 award appropriate relief, including punitive damages.

19 ‘‘(g) IMMINENT HAZARD.—If the Secretary has rea20 son to believe that an imminent hazard exists, the Sec21 retary may request the Attorney General to bring a civil

22 action in an appropriate district court of the United

23 States—
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1 ‘‘(1) to suspend or restrict the transportation of

2 the hazardous material responsible for the hazard;

3 or

4 ‘‘(2) to eliminate or mitigate the hazard.

5 ‘‘(h) WITHHOLDING OF CLEARANCE.—(1) If an

6 owner, operator, or individual in charge of a vessel is liable

7 for a civil penalty under section 5123 of this title or for

8 a fine under section 5124 of this title, or if reasonable

9 cause exists to believe that the owner, operator, or individ10 ual in charge may be subject to penalty or fine, the Sec11 retary of the Treasury, upon request of the Secretary of

12 Transportation, shall with respect to such vessel refuse or

13 revoke any clearance required by section 4197 of the re14 vised Statutes of the United States (46 U.S.C. App. 91).

15 ‘‘(2) Clearance refused or revoked under this sub16 section may be granted upon the filing of a bond or other

17 surety satisfactory to the Secretary of the Treasury.’’.

18 SEC. 14. PENALTIES.

19 (a) CIVIL PENALTY.—Section 5123 of title 49,

20 United States Code, is amended—

21 (1) in subsection (a)(1) by striking the first

22 sentence and inserting the following: ‘‘A person that

23 knowingly violates this chapter or a regulation,

24 order, special permit, or approval issued under this

25 chapter is liable to the United States Government
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1 for a civil penalty of at least $250 but not more

2 than $27,500 for each violation.’’; and

3 (2) by striking subsection (c)(2) and inserting

4 the following:

5 ‘‘(2) with respect to the violator, the degree of cul6 pability, any good-faith efforts to comply with the applica7 ble requirements, any history of prior violations, any eco8 nomic benefit resulting from the violation, the ability to

9 pay, and any effect on the ability to continue to do busi10 ness; and’’.

11 (b) CRIMINAL PENALTY.—Section 5124 of title 49,

12 United States Code, is amended to read as follows:

13 ‘‘§ 5124. Criminal penalty

14 ‘‘(a) GENERAL.—A person knowingly violating sec15 tion 5104(b) of this title or willfully violating this chapter

16 or a regulation, order, special permit, or approval issued

17 under this chapter, shall be fined under title 18, impris18 oned for not more than 5 years, or both. Knowledge by

19 the person of the existence of a regulation or requirement

20 prescribed by the Secretary is not an element of an offense

21 under this section.

22 ‘‘(b) AGGRAVATED VIOLATIONS.— A person know23 ingly violating section 5104(b) of this title or willfully vio24 lating this chapter or a regulation, order, special permit,

25 or approval issued under this chapter, and thereby causing
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1 the release of a hazardous material, shall be fined under

2 title 18, imprisoned for not more than 20 years, or both.’’.

3 SEC. 15. PREEMPTION.

4 Section 5125 of title 49, United States Code, is

5 amended—

6 (1) in subsection (a)(2) by striking ‘‘chapter’’

7 the first place it appears and inserting ‘‘chapter, the

8 purposes of this chapter,’’;

9 (2) in subsection (b)(2) by striking ‘‘after No10 vember 16, 1990’’; and

11 (3) by adding at the end the following:

12 ‘‘(h) INDEPENDENT APPLICATION OF EACH STAND13 ARD.—Each preemption standard in subsections (a),

14 (b)(1), (c), and (g) of this section and section 5119(c)(2)

15 of this title is independent in its application to a require16 ment of any State, political subdivision of a State, or In17 dian tribe.’’.

18 SEC. 16. JUDICIAL REVIEW.

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 51 of title 49, United

20 States Code, is amended—

21 (1) by redesignating section 5127 as section

22 5129; and

23 (2) by inserting after section 5126 the follow24 ing:
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1 ‘‘§ 5127. Judicial review

2 ‘‘(a) FILING AND VENUE.—Except as provided in

3 section 20114(c) of this title, a person disclosing a sub4 stantial interest in a final order issued, under the author5 ity of section 5122 or 5123 of this title, by the Secretary

6 of Transportation, with respect to the duties and powers

7 designated to be carried out by the Secretary under this

8 chapter, may apply for review of the order in the United

9 States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia or

10 in the court of appeals for the United States for the circuit

11 in which the person resides or has its principal place of

12 business. The petition must be filed not more than 60 days

13 after the order is issued. The court may allow the petition

14 to be filed after the 60th day only if there are reasonable

15 grounds for not filing by the 60th day.

16 ‘‘(b) JUDICIAL PROCEDURES.—When a petition is

17 filed under subsection (a) of this section, the clerk of the

18 court immediately shall send a copy of the petition to the

19 Secretary. The Secretary shall file with the court a record

20 of any proceeding in which the order was issued, as pro21 vided in section 2112 of title 28, United States Code.

22 ‘‘(c) AUTHORITY OF COURT.—When the petition is

23 sent to the Secretary, the court has exclusive jurisdiction

24 to affirm, amend, modify, or set aside any part of the

25 order and may order the Secretary to conduct further pro-
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1 ceedings. Findings of fact by the Secretary, if supported

2 by substantial evidence, are conclusive.

3 ‘‘(d) REQUIREMENT FOR PRIOR OBJECTION.—In re4 viewing a final order under this section, the court may

5 consider an objection to a final order of the Secretary only

6 if the objection was made in the course of a proceeding

7 or review conducted by the Secretary or if there was a

8 reasonable ground for not making the objection in the pro9 ceeding.

10 ‘‘(e) SUPREME COURT REVIEW.—A decision by a

11 court under this section may be reviewed only by the Su12 preme Court under section 1254 of title 28, United States

13 Code.’’.

14 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The analysis for

15 chapter 51 of title 49, United States Code, is amended

16 by striking the item related to section 5127 and inserting

17 the following:

‘‘5127. Judicial review.’’

18 SEC. 17. SAFETY STUDY.

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 51 of title 49, United

20 States Code (as amended by section 16 of this Act) is

21 amended by inserting after section 5127 the following:

22 ‘‘§ 5128. High-risk hazardous material; motor carrier

23 safety study

24 ‘‘(a) STUDY.—The Secretary of Transportation shall

25 conduct a study to—
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1 ‘‘(1) determine the safety benefits and adminis2 trative efficiency of implementing a Federal permit

3 program for high-risk hazardous material carriers;

4 ‘‘(2) identify and evaluate alternative regulatory

5 methods and procedures that may improve the safety

6 of high-risk hazardous material carriers;

7 ‘‘(3) examine the safety benefits of increased

8 monitoring of high-risk hazardous material carriers,

9 and the costs, benefits, and procedures of existing

10 State permit programs;

11 ‘‘(4) make such recommendations as may be

12 appropriate for the improvement of uniformity

13 among existing State permit programs; and

14 ‘‘(5) assess the potential of advanced tech15 nologies for improving the assessment of high-risk

16 hazardous material carriers’’ compliance with motor

17 carrier safety regulations.

18 ‘‘(b) TIME FRAME.—The Secretary shall begin the

19 study required by subsection (a) within 6 months after

20 the date of enactment of this section and complete it with21 in 30 months.

22 ‘‘(c) REPORT.—The Secretary shall report the find23 ings of the study required by subsection (a), together with

24 such recommendations as may be appropriate, within 36

25 months after the date of enactment of this section.’’.
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1 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter analy2 sis for chapter 51 of title 49, United States Code, is

3 amended by adding at the end the following:

‘‘5128. High-risk hazardous material; motor carrier safety study.

‘‘5129. Authorization of appropriations.’’.

4 SEC. 18. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 5129 of title 49, United

6 States Code, as redesignated by section 16 of this Act,

7 is amended to read as follows:

8 ‘‘§ 5129. Authorization of appropriations

9 ‘‘(a) GENERAL.—To carry out this chapter (except

10 sections 5107(e), 5108(g), 5109, 5112, 5113, 5115, 5116,

11 5119, and 5128)—

12 ‘‘(1) not more than $13,638,000 is authorized

13 to be appropriated to the Secretary of Transpor14 tation for fiscal year 2000; and

15 ‘‘(2) from amounts collected under section

16 5108(g)(2)(B)(ii) of this title, not more than

17 $18,213,000 is authorized to be appropriated to the

18 Secretary for fiscal year 2000, and such sums as

19 may be necessary are authorized to be appropriated

20 to the Secretary for fiscal years 2001 through 2005.

21 ‘‘(b) SUPPLEMENTAL TRAINING GRANTS.—Not more

22 than $250,000 is available to the Secretary for fiscal year

23 2000 and such amounts as are necessary for fiscal years

24 2001 through 2005, from amounts in the account estab-
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1 lished under section 5116(i) of this title, to carry out sec2 tion 5116(j) of this title.

3 ‘‘(c) TRAINING CURRICULUM.—Not more than

4 $200,000 is available to the Secretary for fiscal year 2000

5 and such amounts as are necessary for fiscal years 2001

6 through 2005, from amounts in the account established

7 under section 5116(i) of this title, to carry out section

8 5115 of this title.

9 ‘‘(d) PLANNING AND TRAINING.—(1) Not more than

10 $5,000,000 is available to the Secretary for fiscal year

11 2000 and such amounts as are necessary for fiscal years

12 2001 through 2005, from amounts in the account estab13 lished under section 5116(i) of this title, to carry out sec14 tion 5116(a) of this title.

15 ‘‘(2) Not more than $7,800,000 is available to the

16 Secretary for fiscal year 2000 and such amounts as are

17 necessary for fiscal years 2001 through 2005, from

18 amounts in the account established under section 5116(i)

19 of this title, to carry out section 5116(b) of this title.

20 ‘‘(3) Not more than $150,000 is available to the Sec21 retary for fiscal year 2000 and such amounts as are nec22 essary for fiscal years 2001 through 2005, from amounts

23 in the account established under section 5116(i) of this

24 title, to carry out section 5116(f) of this title.
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1 ‘‘(e) EMERGENCY RESPONSE GUIDEBOOK.—Not

2 more than $600,000 is available to the Secretary for fiscal

3 year 2000 and such amounts as are necessary for fiscal

4 years 2001 through 2005, from amounts in the account

5 established under section 5116(i) of this title, to publish

6 and distribute the North American Emergency Response

7 Guidebook.

8 ‘‘(f) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—Not more than

9 $300,000 is available to the Secretary for fiscal year 2000

10 and such amounts as are necessary for fiscal years 2001

11 through 2005, from amounts in the account established

12 under section 5116(i) of this title, to carry out section

13 5116(i)(4) of this title.

14 ‘‘(g) TRAINING OF HAZMAT EMPLOYEE INSTRUC15 TORS.—Such amounts as necessary are authorized to be

16 appropriated to the Secretary, from amounts in the ac17 count established under section 5116(i) of this title, for

18 each of fiscal years 2001 through 2005, to carry out sec19 tion 5107(e) of this title.

20 ‘‘(h) CREDITS TO APPROPRIATIONS.—The Secretary

21 of Transportation may credit to any appropriation to carry

22 out this chapter an amount received from a State, Indian

23 tribe, or other public authority or private entity for ex24 penses the Secretary incurs in providing training to the

25 State, authority, or entity.
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1 ‘‘(i) AVAILABILITY OF AMOUNTS.—Amounts avail2 able under this section remain available until expended.’’.

3 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 5107(e) of

4 title 49, United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘sec5 tion 5127(c)(3)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 5129’’.

6 SEC. 19. INTERMODAL CONTAINER PILOT PROGRAM.

7 The Secretary of Transportation, through the Com8 mandant of the Coast Guard, shall conduct a two-year

9 pilot program to randomly inspect intermodal containers

10 in coastal port areas in order to determine the extent to

11 which undeclared hazardous material is being offered for

12 transportation in commerce. Under this program, Coast

13 Guard inspection personnel may open and inspect any

14 intermodal container on a vessel or marine terminal or

15 elsewhere in a port area on the Atlantic, Pacific, or Gulf

16 of Mexico coasts if that container has been randomly se17 lected for inspection by a supervisor who is not on site.

18 The Secretary shall initiate such program within 1 year

19 after the date of enactment of this Act. Within 6 months

20 after completion of this program, the Secretary shall re21 port to Congress on the results of this program. That re22 port shall contain the number of containers inspected, the

23 number of containers containing undeclared hazardous

24 material, a description of the safety hazards posed by the
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1 undeclared hazardous material, and a recommendation for

2 any legislation necessary to address those safety hazards.

3 SEC. 20. MODES AND ROUTES STUDY.

4 Section 5105 of title 49, United States Code, is

5 amended—

6 (1) by striking subsection (d); and

7 (2) by redesignating subsection (e) as sub8 section (d).

Æ