I 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4016 

To reauthorize the hazardous material safety program, ensure the safe transport of hazardous material in all modes of transportation, and reduce 

the risks to life and property inherent in the commercial transportation 

of hazardous material, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 4, 2009 

Mr. OBERSTAR introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

A BILL 

To reauthorize the hazardous material safety program, ensure the safe transport of hazardous material in all 

modes of transportation, and reduce the risks to life 

and property inherent in the commercial transportation 

of hazardous material, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Hazardous Material Transportation Safety Act of 2009’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 


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Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Amendments to title 49, United States Code. 

Sec. 3. General definitions. 

TITLE I—STRENGTHENING EMERGENCY RESPONSE 

CAPABILITIES AND INFORMATION 

Sec. 101. Minimum standards for emergency response information services. 

Sec. 102. Training for emergency responders. 

Sec. 103. Assessment of volunteer firefighter training capabilities. 

Sec. 104. National hazardous materials fusion center. 

Sec. 105. Paperless hazard communications pilot program. 

TITLE II—STRENGTHENING HAZARDOUS MATERIAL SAFETY 

Sec. 201. Transportation of lithium cells and batteries on board aircraft. 

Sec. 202. Requirements relating to external product piping on cargo tanks 

transporting flammable liquid. 

Sec. 203. Improving data collection, analysis, and reporting. 

TITLE III—STRENGTHENING ENFORCEMENT 

Sec. 301. Hazardous material enforcement training program. 

Sec. 302. Inspections and investigations. 

Sec. 303. Civil penalties. 

Sec. 304. Additional resources. 

TITLE IV—MISCELLANEOUS 

Sec. 401. Special permits, approvals, and exclusions. 

Sec. 402. Uniform hazardous material State registration and permit program. 

Sec. 403. Regular reporting on use of fees. 

Sec. 404. Implementation of the hazardous material safety permit program. 

Sec. 405. Authorization of appropriations. 

1 SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE 49, UNITED STATES CODE. 

2 Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in 

3 this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms 

4 of an amendment to, or a repeal of, a section or other 

5 provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to 

6 a section or other provision of title 49, United States 

7 Code. 

8 SEC. 3. GENERAL DEFINITIONS. 

9 In this Act, the following definitions apply: 


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1 (1) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’ 

2 means the Department of Transportation. 

3 (2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

4 the Secretary of Transportation. 

5 TITLE I—STRENGTHENING 

6 EMERGENCY RESPONSE CA7 PABILITIES AND INFORMA8 TION 

9 SEC. 101. MINIMUM STANDARDS FOR EMERGENCY RE10 SPONSE INFORMATION SERVICES. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 24 months after 

12 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall pre13 scribe, by regulation, minimum standards for persons who 

14 provide hazardous material transportation emergency re15 sponse information services required or governed by regu16 lations prescribed under chapter 51 of title 49, United 

17 States Code. 

18 (b) AUTHORITY.—Section 5103(b)(1)(A) is amend19 ed— 

20 (1) in clause (vi) by striking ‘‘or’’ after the 

21 semicolon; 

22 (2) by redesignating clause (vii) as clause (viii); 

23 (3) in clause (viii), as so redesignated, by strik24 ing ‘‘through (vi)’’ and inserting ‘‘through (vii)’’; 

25 and 


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1 (4) by inserting after clause (vi) the following: 

2 ‘‘(vii) provides hazardous material 

3 transportation emergency response infor4 mation services required or governed by 

5 regulations prescribed under this chapter; 

6 or’’. 

7 SEC. 102. TRAINING FOR EMERGENCY RESPONDERS. 

8 (a) OPERATIONS LEVEL TRAINING.—Section 5116 is 

9 amended— 

10 (1) in subsection (b)(1) by adding at the end 

11 the following: ‘‘To the extent that a grant is used to 

12 train emergency responders, the State or Indian 

13 tribe shall certify, in writing, to the Secretary that 

14 the emergency responders who receive training under 

15 the grant, at a minimum, will have the ability to 

16 protect nearby persons, property, and the environ17 ment from the effects of accidents or incidents in18 volving the transportation of hazardous material in 

19 accordance with existing regulations or National 

20 Fire Protection Association Standard 472.’’; 

21 (2) in subsection (i)(4) by striking ‘‘2 percent’’ 

22 and inserting ‘‘4 percent’’; 

23 (3) in subsection (j)— 

24 (A) by redesignating paragraph (5) as 

25 paragraph (7); and 


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1 (B) by inserting after paragraph (4) the 

2 following: 

3 ‘‘(5) The Secretary may make a grant to an or4 ganization under this subsection only if the organi5 zation ensures that emergency responders who re6 ceive training under the grant, at a minimum, will 

7 have the ability to protect nearby persons, property, 

8 and the environment from the effects of accidents or 

9 incidents involving the transportation of hazardous 

10 material in accordance with existing regulations or 

11 National Fire Protection Association Standard 472. 

12 ‘‘(6) Notwithstanding paragraphs (1) and (3), 

13 to the extent determined appropriate by the Sec14 retary, a grant made by the Secretary to an organi15 zation under this subsection to conduct hazardous 

16 material response training programs may be used to 

17 train individuals with statutory responsibility to re18 spond to accidents and incidents involving hazardous 

19 material.’’; and 

20 (4) in subsection (k)— 

21 (A) by striking ‘‘The Secretary shall sub22 mit annually’’ and inserting ‘‘Not later than 

23 March 1, 2010, and every 2 years thereafter, 

24 the Secretary shall submit’’; and 


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1 (B) by striking the second sentence and in2 serting the following: ‘‘The report shall identify 

3 the ultimate recipients of such grants and in4 clude— 

5 ‘‘(1) a detailed accounting and description of 

6 each grant expenditure by each grant recipient, in7 cluding the amount of and purpose for each expendi8 ture; 

9 ‘‘(2) the number of persons trained under the 

10 grant program by training level; 

11 ‘‘(3) an evaluation of the efficacy of such train12 ing; and 

13 ‘‘(4) any recommendations the Secretary may 

14 have for improving such grant programs.’’. 

15 (b) TRAINING CURRICULUM.—Section 5115 is 

16 amended in each of subsections (b)(1)(B), (b)(2), and (c) 

17 by striking ‘‘basic’’. 

18 SEC. 103. ASSESSMENT OF VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTER 

19 TRAINING CAPABILITIES. 

20 (a) ASSESSMENT.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may conduct 

22 an assessment of the existing training capabilities of, 

23 and delivery methods available for the preparedness 

24 and training of, volunteer fire services personnel to 


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1 safely respond to accidents and incidents involving 

2 the transportation of hazardous material. 

3 (2) CONSULTATION.—In carrying out the as4 sessment, the Secretary may collaborate with the na5 tional hazardous materials fusion center established 

6 under section 5128 of title 49, United States Code, 

7 (as added by section 104 of this Act) and organiza8 tions representing volunteer fire services personnel. 

9 (b) PILOT PROGRAM.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Upon completion of the as11 sessment, the Secretary may carry out a volunteer 

12 firefighter hazardous material training pilot program 

13 based on the results of the assessment. 

14 (2) ACTIVITIES.—Under the pilot program, the 

15 Secretary, in order to assist volunteer fire services 

16 personnel in safely responding to accidents and inci17 dents involving the transportation of hazardous ma18 terial, may— 

19 (A) develop innovative measures for deliv20 ering training; 

21 (B) determine authorized training pro22 grams that are eligible for reimbursement from 

23 the Secretary; 

24 (C) provide assistance to volunteer fire 

25 services personnel to enable the acquisition of 


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1 training materials and supplies and to support 

2 preparedness training and exercises; and 

3 (D) coordinate with Federal, State, and 

4 local agencies to foster the exchange of fire-re5 lated training information and resources. 

6 (c) REPORT.—Upon completion of the assessment 

7 and, if applicable, the pilot program, the Secretary shall 

8 transmit to the Committee on Transportation and Infra9 structure of the House of Representatives and the Com10 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

11 Senate a report on the results of the assessment and pilot 

12 program, including any recommendations for strength13 ening training for volunteer firefighters to safely respond 

14 to accidents and incidents involving the transportation of 

15 hazardous material. 

16 SEC. 104. NATIONAL HAZARDOUS MATERIALS FUSION CEN17 TER. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 51 is amended by redes19 ignating section 5128 as section 5129 and by inserting 

20 after section 5127 the following: 

21 ‘‘§ 5128. National hazardous materials fusion center 

22 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish 

23 and maintain a national hazardous materials fusion center 

24 to serve as a data and information network for emergency 

25 response providers, Federal, State, and local government 


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1 agencies, and for-profit and nonprofit organizations that 

2 are engaged in hazardous material response. 

3 ‘‘(b) DUTIES.—The center shall— 

4 ‘‘(1) enhance emergency response provider com5 munication and safety with respect to accidents and 

6 incidents involving the transportation of hazardous 

7 material; 

8 ‘‘(2) improve decisionmaking for the prevention 

9 and mitigation of such accidents and incidents; 

10 ‘‘(3) establish and operate regional incident sur11 vey teams to— 

12 ‘‘(A) determine lessons learned from emer13 gency response providers involved in such acci14 dents or incidents; 

15 ‘‘(B) develop best practices for responding 

16 to such accidents or incidents; and 

17 ‘‘(C) improve curricula and training mate18 rials for emergency response providers in re19 sponding to such accidents and incidents; and 

20 ‘‘(4) collect and analyze data from the re21 sponses to accidents and incidents involving the 

22 transportation of hazardous material in order to un23 derstand accident and incident trends and patterns 

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1 cidents and incidents, including the safety of emer2 gency response providers and the public. 

3 ‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following 

4 definitions apply: 

5 ‘‘(1) EMERGENCY RESPONSE PROVIDER.—The 

6 term ‘emergency response provider’ includes Federal, 

7 State, and local governmental and nongovernmental 

8 emergency public safety, fire, law enforcement, 

9 emergency response, emergency medical (including 

10 hospital emergency facilities), and related personnel, 

11 agencies, and authorities. 

12 ‘‘(2) REGIONAL INCIDENT SURVEY TEAM.—The 

13 term ‘regional incident survey team’ means a team 

14 that is established by the national hazardous mate15 rials fusion center and that is composed of persons 

16 who are skilled by reason of education, training, or 

17 experience in responding to hazardous material acci18 dents and incidents. 

19 ‘‘(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

20 is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

21 $1,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2011, 2012, 2013, and 

22 2014.’’. 

23 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for such 

24 chapter is amended by striking the item relating to section 


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1 5128 and inserting after the item relating to section 5127 

2 the following: 

‘‘5128. National hazardous materials fusion center. 

‘‘5129. Authorization of appropriations.’’. 

3 SEC. 105. PAPERLESS HAZARD COMMUNICATIONS PILOT 

4 PROGRAM. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may conduct 3 

6 pilot projects, at least 1 of which shall be in a rural area, 

7 to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of using 

8 paperless hazard communications systems. 

9 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—In conducting the pilot 

10 projects, the Secretary— 

11 (1) may not waive the requirements of section 

12 5110 of title 49, United States Code; and 

13 (2) shall consult with organizations rep14 resenting— 

15 (A) fire services personnel; 

16 (B) law enforcement and other appropriate 

17 enforcement personnel; 

18 (C) other emergency response providers; 

19 (D) persons who offer hazardous material 

20 for transportation; 

21 (E) persons who transport hazardous ma22 terial by air, highway, rail, and water; and 


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1 (F) employees of persons who transport or 

2 offer for transportation hazardous material by 

3 air, highway, rail, and water. 

4 (c) REPORTS.— 

5 (1) INTERIM REPORT.—Not later than 3 years 

6 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec7 retary shall— 

8 (A) prepare an interim report on the re9 sults of the pilot projects carried out under this 

10 section, including— 

11 (i) a detailed description of the pilot 

12 projects; 

13 (ii) an evaluation of each pilot project, 

14 including an evaluation of the performance 

15 of each paperless hazard communications 

16 system in such project; 

17 (iii) an assessment of the safety and 

18 security impact of using paperless hazard 

19 communications systems, including any im20 pact on the public, emergency response, 

21 law enforcement, and the conduct of in22 spections and investigations; and 

23 (iv) a recommendation on whether 

24 paperless hazard communications systems 

25 should be incorporated into the Federal 


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1 hazardous material transportation safety 

2 program under chapter 51 of title 49, 

3 United States Code, on a permanent basis; 

4 and 

5 (B) transmit such interim report to the or6 ganizations consulted under subsection (b)(2) 

7 and request that such organizations provide 

8 written comments in response to the interim re9 port within 60 days. 

10 (2) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 120 days 

11 after transmitting the interim report to the organi12 zations consulted under subsection (b)(2), the Sec13 retary shall transmit to the Committee on Transpor14 tation and Infrastructure of the House of Represent15 atives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

16 and Transportation of the Senate a final report on 

17 the results of the pilot projects carried out under 

18 this section, including the matter described in para19 graph (1)(A) and any written comments received 

20 pursuant to paragraph (1)(B). 

21 (d) PAPERLESS HAZARD COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM

22 DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘paperless hazard 

23 communications system’’ means the use of advanced com24 munications methods, such as wireless communications 

25 devices, to convey hazard information between all parties 


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1 in the transportation chain, including emergency respond2 ers and law enforcement personnel. 

3 TITLE II—STRENGTHENING 

4 HAZARDOUS MATERIAL SAFETY 

5 SEC. 201. TRANSPORTATION OF LITHIUM CELLS AND BAT6 TERIES ON BOARD AIRCRAFT. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 51 is amended by insert8 ing after section 5110 the following: 

9 ‘‘§ 5111. Transportation of lithium cells and batteries 

10 on board aircraft 

11 ‘‘(a) REVISIONS TO CURRENT REGULATIONS.—Not 

12 later than 24 months after the date of enactment of the 

13 Hazardous Material Transportation Safety Act of 2009, 

14 the Administrator of the Pipeline and Hazardous Mate15 rials Safety Administration, in coordination with the Ad16 ministrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, shall 

17 issue regulations in accordance with this section to provide 

18 for the safe transportation of lithium cells and batteries 

19 on board aircraft. 

20 ‘‘(b) REQUIREMENTS.—In carrying out subsection 

21 (a), the Administrator of the Pipeline and Hazardous Ma22 terials Safety Administration, at a minimum, shall— 

23 ‘‘(1) require packages containing lithium cells 

24 and batteries to be identified as hazardous material 

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1 ards, and dangers of such cells and batteries on such 

2 packages and in shipping documents; 

3 ‘‘(2) establish requirements for testing and re4 testing lithium cells and batteries that, at a min5 imum, are equivalent to the United Nations testing 

6 regime; 

7 ‘‘(3) provide for an appropriate marking or 

8 other measure that indicates that lithium cells and 

9 batteries are in compliance with the requirements es10 tablished under paragraph (2); 

11 ‘‘(4) adopt a watt-hours requirement in lieu of 

12 equivalent lithium content to provide a more easily 

13 understood measure of the hazard posed by lithium14 ion cells and batteries; 

15 ‘‘(5) establish appropriate packaging perform16 ance requirements, including outer packaging per17 formance requirements, for lithium cells and bat18 teries to minimize risk during transportation on 

19 board aircraft, including the prevention of short20 circuiting, overheating, initiation of fires, and fire 

21 propagation; 

22 ‘‘(6) establish limits on the number of packages 

23 containing lithium cells and batteries that may be 

24 transported in a unit load device, pallet, or container 

25 on board an aircraft based on the watt-hour rating 


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1 of the total number of lithium cells and batteries in 

2 a package; 

3 ‘‘(7) limit the stowage of lithium cells and bat4 teries to crew accessible locations on aircraft, unless 

5 such cells and batteries are transported in a fire-re6 sistant container or the aircraft contains a fire sup7 pression system capable of extinguishing or control8 ling a fire involving a lithium cell or battery; and 

9 ‘‘(8) require reporting of all accidents and inci10 dents involving lithium cells and batteries that occur 

11 on board an aircraft or during loading or unloading 

12 operations or storage incidental to movement and re13 quire retention of the failed cells and batteries for 

14 evaluation purposes. 

15 ‘‘(c) BATTERIES SHIPPED FOR PERSONAL USE.— 

16 The Administrator, in coordination with the Administrator 

17 of the Federal Aviation Administration, shall except from 

18 the regulations established under subsection (a) small 

19 quantities of lithium cells or batteries that are shipped on 

20 board aircraft for the personal use of the receiver of the 

21 shipment. 

22 ‘‘(d) REVIEW OF EXEMPTIONS.—The Administrator 

23 of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Adminis24 tration, in coordination with the Administrator of the Fed25 eral Aviation Administration, shall review all special perVerDate Nov 24 2008 02:43 Nov 05, 2009 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4016.IH H4016

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1 mits and approvals issued by the Administrator that allow 

2 holders of and parties to such special permits and approv3 als to deviate from requirements for the transportation of 

4 lithium cells or batteries on board aircraft to determine 

5 if such special permits and approvals should be terminated 

6 or modified to reflect regulations established pursuant to 

7 this section. 

8 ‘‘(e) TRANSPORTATION OF DEFECTIVE OR DAMAGED

9 BATTERIES.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the 

11 Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Adminis12 tration, in coordination with the Administrator of 

13 the Federal Aviation Administration, shall prohibit 

14 the transportation on board aircraft of lithium cells 

15 and batteries identified by the manufacturer or a 

16 Federal Government entity as being defective for 

17 safety reasons or damaged and that have the poten18 tial of producing heat or fire or short-circuiting on 

19 board aircraft. The Administrator of the Pipeline 

20 and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration 

21 shall establish appropriate safety measures for 

22 transporting (other than on board aircraft) such de23 fective or damaged lithium cells and batteries. 

24 ‘‘(2) RECALLS.—When such lithium cells or 

25 batteries are recalled for safety reasons, the AdminVerDate Nov 24 2008 02:12 Nov 05, 2009 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4016.IH H4016

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1 istrator of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials 

2 Safety Administration, in consultation with the Con3 sumer Product Safety Commission, shall establish a 

4 mechanism for appropriate notification to the manu5 facturer and consumers that these items are prohib6 ited from being transported on board aircraft. 

7 ‘‘(f) SIMPLIFICATION AND CONSOLIDATION OF RE8 QUIREMENTS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the 

10 Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Adminis11 tration, in coordination with the Administrator of 

12 the Federal Aviation Administration, shall consoli13 date and simplify for clarity, ease of understanding, 

14 and use the regulations of the Department of Trans15 portation governing requirements for the transpor16 tation of lithium cells and batteries on board air17 craft. 

18 ‘‘(2) EDUCATION.—The Administrator of the 

19 Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Adminis20 tration, in coordination with the Administrator of 

21 the Federal Aviation Administration, shall review 

22 and modify, as necessary, the existing program to 

23 educate and provide guidance to the air traveling 

24 public, including flight crews, about how to safely 

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1 tronic devices containing such cells or batteries on 

2 board an aircraft and shall establish a process to pe3 riodically measure the effectiveness of efforts to edu4 cate the air traveling public, including flight crews. 

5 ‘‘(g) NONPREEMPTION OF CERTAIN REGULA6 TIONS.— 

7 ‘‘(1) PRIMARY LITHIUM BATTERIES.—The Sec8 retary shall continue in effect the prohibition on the 

9 transportation of primary lithium batteries and cells 

10 on board passenger-carrying aircraft, unless the Sec11 retary issues, through publication in the Federal 

12 Register, a determination that such prohibition must 

13 be modified or withdrawn. 

14 ‘‘(2) PASSENGER EXCEPTION.—Notwith15 standing paragraph (1), the exceptions provided for 

16 passengers, crew members, and air operators in sec17 tion 175.10 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, 

18 shall remain in effect unless the Secretary issues, 

19 through publication in the Federal Register, a deter20 mination that the regulation in such section must be 

21 modified or withdrawn for safety reasons. 

22 ‘‘(h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

23 ‘‘(1) BATTERY.—The term ‘battery’ means 1 or 

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1 nent means and includes the case, terminals, and 

2 markings. 

3 ‘‘(2) CELL.—The term ‘cell’ means a single en4 cased electrochemical unit (1 positive and 1 negative 

5 electrode) that exhibits a voltage differential across 

6 its 2 terminals. 

7 ‘‘(3) LITHIUM CELL OR BATTERY.—The term 

8 ‘lithium cell or battery’ means a primary lithium cell 

9 or battery or a lithium-ion cell or battery. 

10 ‘‘(4) LITHIUM-ION CELL OR BATTERY.—The 

11 term ‘lithium-ion cell or battery’ means a recharge12 able electrochemical cell or battery in which the posi13 tive and negative electrodes are both intercalation 

14 compounds constructed with no metallic lithium in 

15 either electrode. A lithium polymer cell or battery 

16 that uses lithium-ion chemistries shall be considered 

17 to be a lithium-ion cell or battery. 

18 ‘‘(5) PRIMARY LITHIUM CELL OR BATTERY.— 

19 The term ‘primary lithium cell or battery’ means a 

20 lithium metal cell or battery that is not designed to 

21 be electrically charged or recharged.’’. 

22 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for chap23 ter 51 is amended by inserting after the item relating to 

24 section 5110 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 5111. Transportation of lithium cells and batteries on board aircraft.’’. 


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1 SEC. 202. REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO EXTERNAL PROD2 UCT PIPING ON CARGO TANKS TRANS3 PORTING FLAMMABLE LIQUID. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 51 is amended by insert5 ing after section 5117 the following: 

6 ‘‘§ 5118. Requirements relating to external product 

7 piping on cargo tanks transporting flam8 mable liquid 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.— 

10 ‘‘(1) PROHIBITION FOR NEW CARGO TANK

11 MOTOR VEHICLES.—Subject to subsection (b), the 

12 Secretary shall prohibit the transportation of a Class 

13 3 flammable liquid in the external product piping of 

14 a cargo tank motor vehicle manufactured on or after 

15 the 2-year period beginning on the date of enact16 ment of the Hazardous Material Transportation 

17 Safety Act of 2009. 

18 ‘‘(2) PROHIBITION FOR EXISTING CARGO TANK

19 MOTOR VEHICLES.—Subject to subsection (b), no 

20 person may offer for transportation or transport a 

21 Class 3 flammable liquid in the external product pip22 ing of a cargo tank motor vehicle on or after Decem23 ber 31, 2020. 

24 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION ON APPLICABILITY.—Subsection 

25 (a) does not apply— 


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1 ‘‘(1) to a cargo tank motor vehicle designed and 

2 constructed with engine, body, and cargo tank per3 manently mounted on the same chassis with product 

4 piping protected from impact by another motor vehi5 cle by the structural components of the cargo tank 

6 motor vehicle, such as damage protection guards, 

7 framing members, or wheel assemblies; or 

8 ‘‘(2) to a minimal amount, as determined by 

9 the Secretary by regulation, of hazardous material 

10 residue that remains in the external product piping 

11 after the piping is drained. 

12 ‘‘(c) ENFORCEMENT PERSONNEL.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall issue 

14 guidance to motor carrier safety enforcement per15 sonnel on how to conduct inspections of cargo tank 

16 motor vehicles in a manner that ensures safety. The 

17 guidance shall prohibit such enforcement personnel 

18 from opening valves of external product piping dur19 ing inspections or conducting any other activity that 

20 could cause the release of hazardous material at the 

21 inspection site. 

22 ‘‘(2) CONSULTATION.—In developing the guid23 ance under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall con24 sult with a nonprofit organization comprised of FedVerDate Nov 24 2008 02:12 Nov 05, 2009 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00022 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4016.IH H4016

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1 eral, State, and local motor carrier safety enforce2 ment personnel. 

3 ‘‘(d) WORKER SAFETY.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and the Sec5 retary of Labor shall each review and update, as ap6 propriate, existing standards of the Secretary to en7 sure that personnel who conduct any activities pur8 suant to this section, including welding, are ade9 quately protected. 

10 ‘‘(2) CONSULTATION.—In conducting the review 

11 and update under paragraph (1), the Secretary and 

12 the Secretary of Labor shall each consult, as appro13 priate, with a nonprofit organization representing 

14 employees of cargo tank motor vehicle operators and 

15 a nonprofit organization representing cargo tank 

16 motor vehicle owners and operators. 

17 ‘‘(e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

18 ‘‘(1) CARGO TANK MOTOR VEHICLE.—The term 

19 ‘cargo tank motor vehicle’ has the meaning given 

20 such term in part 171 of title 49, Code of Federal 

21 Regulations, as in effect on the date of enactment of 

22 the Hazardous Material Transportation Safety Act 

23 of 2009. 

24 ‘‘(2) CLASS 3 FLAMMABLE LIQUID.—The term 

25 ‘Class 3 flammable liquid’ has the meaning given 


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1 such term in section 173.120(a) of title 49, Code of 

2 Federal Regulations, as in effect on the date of en3 actment of the Hazardous Material Transportation 

4 Safety Act of 2009.’’. 

5 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for chap6 ter 51 is amended by inserting after the item relating to 

7 section 5117 the following: 

‘‘5118. Requirements relating to external product piping on cargo tanks transporting flammable liquid.’’. 

8 SEC. 203. IMPROVING DATA COLLECTION, ANALYSIS, AND 

9 REPORTING. 

10 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF WORKING GROUP.—Not 

11 later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 

12 the Secretary shall establish a working group for the pur13 pose of improving the collection, analysis, reporting, and 

14 use of data related to accidents and incidents involving 

15 the transportation of hazardous material. 

16 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The working group shall consist 

17 of the following: 

18 (1) At least 1 representative of each of the fol19 lowing agencies, to be appointed by the head of the 

20 agency: 

21 (A) The Federal Aviation Administration. 

22 (B) The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Ad23 ministration. 

24 (C) The Federal Railroad Administration. 


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1 (D) The Coast Guard. 

2 (E) The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials 

3 Safety Administration. 

4 (2) Such other officers or employees of the De5 partment as the Secretary may appoint. 

6 (c) DUTIES.—The working group shall— 

7 (1) review the Pipeline and Hazardous Mate8 rials Safety Administration’s methods for collecting, 

9 analyzing, and reporting accidents and incidents in10 volving the transportation of hazardous material, in11 cluding the adequacy of— 

12 (A) information requested on the accident 

13 and incident reporting forms required to be 

14 submitted to the Administration; 

15 (B) methods used by the Administration to 

16 verify that the information provided on such 

17 forms is accurate and complete; 

18 (C) resources of the Administration related 

19 to data collection, analysis, and reporting, in20 cluding staff and information technology; and 

21 (D) the database used by the Administra22 tion for recording and reporting such accidents 

23 and incidents, including the ability of users to 

24 adequately search the database and find infor25 mation; 


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1 (2) make recommendations to the Administra2 tion for improving the collection, analysis, reporting, 

3 and use of such data; and 

4 (3) such other duties as the Secretary deter5 mines are appropriate. 

6 (d) DEVELOPMENT OF ACTION PLAN.—Not later 

7 than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, tak8 ing into consideration the recommendations made by the 

9 working group, the Secretary shall develop an action plan 

10 and timeline for improving the collection, analysis, report11 ing, and use of data by the Administration, including re12 vising the database of the Administration, as appropriate. 

13 (e) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 15 

14 days after the date of development of the action plan and 

15 timeline under subsection (d), the Secretary shall submit 

16 the action plan and timeline to the Committee on Trans17 portation and Infrastructure of the House of Representa18 tives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

19 Transportation of the Senate. 

20 TITLE III—STRENGTHENING 

21 ENFORCEMENT 

22 SEC. 301. HAZARDOUS MATERIAL ENFORCEMENT TRAIN23 ING PROGRAM. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry out a 

25 hazardous material enforcement training program— 


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1 (1) to develop uniform performance standards 

2 for training hazardous material inspectors and inves3 tigators; 

4 (2) to train hazardous material inspectors and 

5 investigators on how to collect, analyze, and publish 

6 findings from inspections and investigations of acci7 dents or incidents involving the transportation of 

8 hazardous material; and 

9 (3) to train hazardous material inspectors and 

10 investigators on how to identify noncompliance with 

11 regulations issued under chapter 51 of title 49, 

12 United States Code, and take appropriate enforce13 ment action. 

14 (b) STANDARDS AND GUIDELINES.—Under the pro15 gram, the Secretary may develop— 

16 (1) guidelines for hazardous material inspector 

17 and investigator qualifications; 

18 (2) best practices and standards for hazardous 

19 material inspector and investigator training pro20 grams; and 

21 (3) standard protocols to coordinate investiga22 tion efforts among Federal, State, and local jurisdic23 tions on accidents or incidents involving the trans24 portation of hazardous material. 


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1 (c) AVAILABILITY.—The Secretary may make the 

2 standards, protocols, and findings of the program de3 scribed in this section available to Federal, State, and 

4 local hazardous material safety enforcement personnel. 

5 SEC. 302. INSPECTIONS AND INVESTIGATIONS. 

6 (a) NOTICE OF ENFORCEMENT MEASURES.—Section 

7 5121(c)(1) is amended— 

8 (1) in subparagraph (E) by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

9 the end; 

10 (2) in subparagraph (F) by striking the period 

11 at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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

13 ‘‘(G) shall provide to the affected offeror, 

14 carrier, packaging manufacturer or tester, or 

15 other person responsible for the package rea16 sonable notice of any findings made and actions 

17 being taken as a result of a finding of non18 compliance.’’. 

19 (b) REGULATIONS.—Section 5121(e) is amended by 

20 adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(3) MATTERS TO BE ADDRESSED.—In issuing 

22 the regulations to carry out subsections (c) and (d), 

23 the Secretary shall address, at a minimum, the fol24 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(A) Safe and expeditious resumption of 

2 transportation of perishable hazardous material, 

3 including radiopharmaceuticals and other med4 ical products, that may require timely delivery 

5 due to life-threatening situations. 

6 ‘‘(B) Appropriate training and equipment 

7 for inspectors. 

8 ‘‘(C) The proper closure of packaging in 

9 accordance with the hazardous material regula10 tions.’’. 

11 (c) GRANTS AND COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.—Sec12 tion 5121(g)(1) is amended by striking ‘‘security’’ and in13 serting ‘‘safety and security’’. 

14 (d) AUTHORITY TO CONDUCT INVESTIGATIONS.— 

15 Section 5121 is amended by adding at the end the fol16 lowing: 

17 ‘‘(i) ACCIDENT OR INCIDENT INVESTIGATIONS.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A designated officer, em19 ployee, or agent of the Secretary may investigate an 

20 accident or incident involving the transportation of 

21 hazardous material. 

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1 ardous material, a designated officer, employee, or 

2 agent of the Secretary may— 

3 ‘‘(A) enter property; 

4 ‘‘(B) subpoena witnesses; 

5 ‘‘(C) require the production of records, ex6 hibits, and other evidence; 

7 ‘‘(D) administer oaths; and 

8 ‘‘(E) take testimony. 

9 ‘‘(3) COORDINATION WITH STATE INVESTIGA10 TIONS.—If an accident or incident involving the 

11 transportation of hazardous material is investigated 

12 by the State in which such accident or incident oc13 curred, the Secretary, to the extent practicable, shall 

14 coordinate any investigation conducted by the Sec15 retary with respect to such accident or incident with 

16 the State’s investigation. 

17 ‘‘(4) AUTHORITY OF NATIONAL TRANSPOR18 TATION SAFETY BOARD.—Pursuant to chapter 11, 

19 the National Transportation Safety Board retains 

20 authority to lead the investigation into an accident 

21 or incident involving the transportation of hazardous 

22 material. The Secretary shall use the Secretary’s au23 thority under this paragraph to support any inves24 tigation the Board undertakes. 


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1 ‘‘(5) REPORTS.—When the Secretary deter2 mines it to be in the public interest, the Secretary 

3 shall make available to the public the results of an 

4 investigation conducted by the Secretary with re5 spect to an accident or incident involving the trans6 portation of hazardous material, including a state7 ment of the cause of the accident or incident and 

8 such recommendations as the Secretary considers 

9 appropriate.’’. 

10 SEC. 303. CIVIL PENALTIES. 

11 Section 5123 is amended by adding at the end the 

12 following: 

13 ‘‘(h) PENALTY FOR OBSTRUCTION OF INSPECTIONS

14 AND INVESTIGATIONS.—The Secretary may impose a pen15 alty on a person who obstructs or prevents the Secretary 

16 from carrying out inspections or investigations under sec17 tion 5121(c) or 5121(i). 

18 ‘‘(i) PROHIBITION ON HAZARDOUS MATERIAL OPER19 ATIONS AFTER NONPAYMENT OF PENALTIES.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A person subject to the ju21 risdiction of the Secretary under this chapter for 

22 whom a civil penalty is assessed under this chapter 

23 and who does not pay such penalty or fails to ar24 range and abide by an acceptable payment plan for 

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1 lated under this chapter beginning on the 91st day 

2 after the date specified by order of the Secretary for 

3 payment of such penalty. 

4 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—Paragraph (1) shall not 

5 apply to any person who is unable to pay a civil pen6 alty because such person is a debtor in a case under 

7 chapter 11 of title 11, United States Code. 

8 ‘‘(3) RULEMAKING REQUIRED.—Not later than 

9 24 months after the date of the enactment of this 

10 subsection, the Secretary, after providing notice and 

11 an opportunity for public comment, shall issue regu12 lations setting forth procedures to require a person 

13 who is delinquent in paying civil penalties to cease 

14 any activity regulated under this chapter until pay15 ment has been made or an acceptable payment plan 

16 has been arranged. The regulation shall ensure that 

17 the person is notified in writing and given an oppor18 tunity to respond before the person is required to 

19 cease the activity.’’. 

20 SEC. 304. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall increase the 

22 personnel of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety 

23 Administration by a total of 84 full-time employees to 

24 carry out the hazardous material safety program and the 

25 administration of that program, of which— 


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1 (1) 24 employees shall be added in fiscal year 

2 2010; 

3 (2) 40 employees shall be added in fiscal year 

4 2011; and 

5 (3) 20 employees shall be added in fiscal year 

6 2012. 

7 (b) FUNCTIONS.—In increasing the number of em8 ployees pursuant to subsection (a), the Secretary shall 

9 focus on hiring employees to— 

10 (1) conduct data collection, analysis, and re11 porting; 

12 (2) develop, implement, and update information 

13 technology utilized by the Pipeline and Hazardous 

14 Materials Safety Administration; 

15 (3) implement the requirements of section 5117 

16 of title 49, United States Code; 

17 (4) conduct routine inspections and audits of 

18 persons who transport, cause to be transported, or 

19 offer for transportation hazardous material; 

20 (5) support hazardous material enforcement ac21 tivities of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials 

22 Safety Administration, including training of haz23 ardous material enforcement personnel; and 


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1 (6) support the overall hazardous material safe2 ty mission of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials 

3 Safety Administration. 

4 (c) SPECIFIC DUTIES.—Of the number of additional 

5 full-time employees added each fiscal year by subsection 

6 (a), not less than 10 of such employees each fiscal year 

7 shall be assigned to perform the function described in sub8 section (b)(4). 

9 TITLE IV—MISCELLANEOUS 

10 SEC. 401. SPECIAL PERMITS, APPROVALS, AND EXCLU11 SIONS. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 5117 is amended to read 

13 as follows: 

14 ‘‘§ 5117. Special permits, approvals, and exclusions 

15 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY TO ISSUE SPECIAL PERMITS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) CONDITIONS.—As provided under proce17 dures prescribed by regulation, the Secretary may 

18 issue, modify, or terminate a special permit author19 izing a variance from this chapter or a regulation 

20 prescribed under section 5103(b), 5104, 5110, or 

21 5112 to a person performing a function regulated by 

22 the Secretary under section 5103(b)(1) in a way 

23 that achieves a safety level— 

24 ‘‘(A) at least equal to the safety level re25 quired under this chapter; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) consistent with the public interest 

2 and this chapter, if a required safety level does 

3 not exist. 

4 ‘‘(2) FINDINGS REQUIRED.— 

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Prior to issuing, re6 newing, or modifying a special permit or grant7 ing party status to a special permit, the Sec8 retary shall determine that the person is fit, 

9 willing, and able to conduct the activity author10 ized by such permit in a manner that achieves 

11 the level of safety required under paragraph 

12 (1). 

13 ‘‘(B) CONSIDERATIONS.—In making the 

14 determination under subparagraph (A), the 

15 Secretary shall consider the person’s safety his16 tory (including prior compliance history), acci17 dent and incident history, and any other infor18 mation the Secretary considers appropriate to 

19 make such a determination. 

20 ‘‘(3) EFFECTIVE PERIOD.—A special permit 

21 issued under this section shall be effective for an ini22 tial period of not more than 2 years and may be re23 newed by the Secretary upon application for succes24 sive periods of not more than 4 years each or, in the 


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1 case of a special permit relating to section 5112, for 

2 an additional period of not more than 2 years. 

3 ‘‘(b) APPLICATIONS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) REQUIRED DOCUMENTATION.—When ap5 plying for a special permit or renewal or modifica6 tion of a special permit or requesting party status 

7 to a special permit under this section, the Secretary 

8 shall require the person to submit an application 

9 that contains, at a minimum, a detailed description 

10 of the person’s request, a listing of the person’s fa11 cilities and addresses where the special permit will 

12 be utilized, a safety analysis prescribed by the Sec13 retary that justifies the special permit, documenta14 tion to support the safety analysis, and, if applica15 ble, verification of registration as required by section 

16 5108. 

17 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC NOTICE.—The Secretary shall 

18 publish in the Federal Register notice that an appli19 cation for a special permit has been filed and shall 

20 provide the public an opportunity to inspect and 

21 comment on the application. 

22 ‘‘(3) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—This subsection does 

23 not require the release of information protected by 

24 law from public disclosure. 


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1 ‘‘(c) COORDINATION WITH MODAL CONTACT OFFI2 CIALS.— 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In evaluating applications 

4 under subsection (b) and making the findings and 

5 determinations under subsections (a), (e), and (h), 

6 the Administrator of the Pipeline and Hazardous 

7 Materials Safety Administration shall consult and 

8 coordinate with the modal contact official responsible 

9 for the mode of transportation that will be utilized 

10 under a special permit or approval prior to issuing, 

11 modifying, or renewing the special permit, granting 

12 party status to the special permit, or issuing or re13 newing the approval. 

14 ‘‘(2) DISPUTE RESOLUTION.—The Secretary 

15 shall develop a procedure for resolving a dispute be16 tween the Administrator and a modal contact official 

17 to ensure that any concern raised by such official is 

18 appropriately addressed and resolved. 

19 ‘‘(3) MODAL CONTACT OFFICIAL DEFINED.—In 

20 this section, the term ‘modal contact official’ 

21 means— 

22 ‘‘(A) the Administrator of the Federal 

23 Aviation Administration; 

24 ‘‘(B) the Administrator of the Federal 

25 Motor Carrier Safety Administration; 


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1 ‘‘(C) the Administrator of the Federal 

2 Railroad Administration; or 

3 ‘‘(D) the Commandant of the Coast Guard. 

4 ‘‘(d) APPLICATIONS TO BE DEALT WITH PROMPT5 LY.—The Secretary shall issue, modify, renew, or grant 

6 party status to a special permit for which a request was 

7 filed in accordance with this section, or deny such 

8 issuance, modification, renewal, or grant, on or before the 

9 last day of the 180-day period beginning on the first day 

10 of the month following the date of the filing of such re11 quest, or the Secretary shall publish a statement in the 

12 Federal Register of the reason why the Secretary’s deci13 sion on the special permit is delayed, along with an esti14 mate of the additional time necessary before the decision 

15 is made. 

16 ‘‘(e) EMERGENCY PROCESSING OF SPECIAL PER17 MITS.— 

18 ‘‘(1) FINDINGS REQUIRED.—The Secretary may 

19 grant a request for emergency processing of a spe20 cial permit only if the Secretary finds— 

21 ‘‘(A) it is necessary for immediate national 

22 security purposes; 

23 ‘‘(B) that processing on a routine basis 

24 under this section would result in significant in25 jury to persons or property; or 


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1 ‘‘(C) it is necessary to prevent significant 

2 economic loss that could not be prevented if the 

3 application were processed on a routine basis. 

4 ‘‘(2) WAIVER OF FITNESS TEST.—The Sec5 retary may waive the requirement under subsection 

6 (a)(2) for a request for which the Secretary makes 

7 a finding under paragraph (1)(A) or (1)(B). 

8 ‘‘(3) NOTIFICATION.—Not later than 90 days 

9 after the date of issuance of a special permit under 

10 this subsection, the Secretary shall publish in the 

11 Federal Register a notice of issuance with a state12 ment of the basis for the finding of emergency and 

13 the scope and duration of the special permit. 

14 ‘‘(4) EFFECTIVE PERIOD.—A special permit 

15 issued under this subsection shall be effective for a 

16 period of not to exceed 30 days. 

17 ‘‘(f) EXCLUSIONS.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall ex19 clude, in any part, from this chapter and regulations 

20 prescribed under this chapter— 

21 ‘‘(A) a public vessel (as defined in section 

22 2101 of title 46); 

23 ‘‘(B) a vessel exempted under section 3702 

24 of title 46 or from chapter 37 of title 46; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) a vessel to the extent it is regulated 

2 under the Ports and Waterways Safety Act of 

3 1972 (33 U.S.C. 1221 et seq.). 

4 ‘‘(2) FIREARMS.—This chapter and regulations 

5 prescribed under this chapter do not prohibit— 

6 ‘‘(A) or regulate transportation of a fire7 arm (as defined in section 232 of title 18), or 

8 ammunition for a firearm, by an individual for 

9 personal use; or 

10 ‘‘(B) transportation of a firearm or ammu11 nition in commerce. 

12 ‘‘(g) LIMITATION ON AUTHORITY.—Unless the Sec13 retary decides that an emergency exists, a special permit 

14 or renewal granted under this section is the only way a 

15 person subject to this chapter may be granted a variance 

16 from this chapter. 

17 ‘‘(h) APPROVALS.— 

18 ‘‘(1) FINDINGS REQUIRED.— 

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Prior to issuing an 

20 approval or granting renewal of an approval 

21 pursuant to part 107 of title 49, Code of Fed22 eral Regulations, the Secretary shall determine 

23 that the person is fit, willing, and able to con24 duct the activity authorized by the approval in 


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1 a manner that achieves the level of safety re2 quired under subsection (a)(1). 

3 ‘‘(B) CONSIDERATIONS.—In making the 

4 determination under subparagraph (A), the 

5 Secretary shall consider the person’s safety his6 tory (including prior compliance history), acci7 dent and incident history, and any other infor8 mation the Secretary considers appropriate to 

9 make such a determination. 

10 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC NOTICE.—The Secretary shall 

11 publish in the Federal Register notice that an appli12 cation for an approval or renewal of an approval has 

13 been filed and shall give the public an opportunity 

14 to inspect and comment on the application prior to 

15 issuance. 

16 ‘‘(3) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—This subsection does 

17 not require the release of information protected by 

18 law from public disclosure. 

19 ‘‘(i) NONCOMPLIANCE.—The Secretary shall imme20 diately modify, suspend, or terminate a special permit or 

21 approval if the Secretary finds that the person who was 

22 granted such special permit or approval has violated such 

23 special permit or approval or the regulations issued under 

24 this chapter in a manner demonstrating that the person 


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1 is not fit to conduct the activity authorized by the special 

2 permit or approval. 

3 ‘‘(j) PROCEDURES.—Not later than 120 days after 

4 the date of enactment of this subsection, the Secretary 

5 shall— 

6 ‘‘(1) develop and implement written standard 

7 operating procedures to support administration of 

8 the special permit and approval programs; 

9 ‘‘(2) update such procedures periodically; and 

10 ‘‘(3) make such procedures available to the pub11 lic on the Department of Transportation’s Internet 

12 Web site. 

13 ‘‘(k) FEES.— 

14 ‘‘(1) AUTHORIZATION.—The Secretary shall es15 tablish a reasonable fee for processing applications 

16 for, and ensuring compliance with the terms of, spe17 cial permits and approvals. 

18 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION ON COLLECTION.—No fee 

19 may be collected under this subsection unless the ex20 penditure of the fee to pay the costs of activities and 

21 services for which the fee is imposed is provided for 

22 in advance in an appropriations Act. 

23 ‘‘(3) FEES CREDITED AS OFFSETTING COLLEC24 TIONS.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding sec2 tion 3302 of title 31, any fee authorized to be 

3 collected under this subsection shall— 

4 ‘‘(i) be credited as offsetting collec5 tions to the account that finances the ac6 tivities and services for which the fee is im7 posed; 

8 ‘‘(ii) be available for expenditure only 

9 to pay the costs of activities and services 

10 for which the fee is imposed; and 

11 ‘‘(iii) remain available until expended. 

12 ‘‘(4) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 12 months 

13 after the date of enactment of this subsection, the 

14 Secretary, after providing notice and an opportunity 

15 for public comment, shall issue regulations to imple16 ment this subsection.’’. 

17 (b) RULEMAKING REQUIRED.—Not later than 6 

18 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec19 retary shall complete all actions necessary to adopt a regu20 lation to define the term ‘‘public interest’’ for the purposes 

21 of section 5117(a)(1)(B) of title 49, United States Code. 

22 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for chap23 ter 51 is amended by striking the item relating to section 

24 5117 and inserting the following: 

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


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1 SEC. 402. UNIFORM HAZARDOUS MATERIAL STATE REG2 ISTRATION AND PERMIT PROGRAM. 

3 (a) UNIFORM FORMS AND PROCEDURES.—Section 

4 5119 is amended to read as follows: 

5 ‘‘§ 5119. Uniform hazardous material State registra6 tion and permit program 

7 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT AND CONDUCT.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall estab9 lish and carry out a program to develop uniform 

10 forms and procedures for States to register, and 

11 issue permits to, persons who transport, or cause to 

12 be transported, hazardous material by motor vehicle 

13 in accordance with this chapter and the regulations 

14 issued to carry out this chapter. 

15 ‘‘(2) CONSIDERATION OF EXISTING STATE ALLI16 ANCE PROGRAM.—In establishing the program under 

17 this subsection, the Secretary shall consider the pro18 gram of uniform forms and procedures for reg19 istering and issuing permits to persons who trans20 port, or cause to be transported, hazardous material 

21 by motor vehicle developed by the alliance of States 

22 known as the ‘Alliance for Uniform Hazmat Trans23 portation Procedures’. 

24 ‘‘(b) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 6 years after 

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1 portation Safety Act of 2009, the Secretary shall issue 

2 regulations to carry out this section. 

3 ‘‘(c) FINANCIAL AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND

4 SUPPORT.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may provide 

6 planning and transition assistance to States in order 

7 to encourage State adoption of the program estab8 lished by the Secretary under this section. 

9 ‘‘(2) USE OF FUNDS.—Assistance awarded to a 

10 State under this subsection may be used only to as11 sist the State in transitioning the existing registra12 tion and permitting programs of the State to the 

13 program established under this section. 

14 ‘‘(d) RELATED EXPENSES.—For purposes of section 

15 5125(f)(1), expenses related to transporting hazardous 

16 material may include costs incurred in implementing and 

17 administering the program established by the Secretary 

18 under this section, including costs of establishing or modi19 fying forms, procedures, and systems. 

20 ‘‘(e) TRANSITION OF STATE PROGRAMS.—Beginning 

21 on the effective date of the regulations issued to carry out 

22 this section, a State may enforce registration and permit23 ting requirements for motor carriers that transport haz24 ardous material in commerce only in accordance with the 

25 program established by the Secretary under this section. 


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1 ‘‘(f) LIMITATION.—Nothing in this section or the reg2 ulations issued by the Secretary to carry out this section 

3 shall limit the amount of a fee a State may impose or 

4 collect for registering and issuing permits to persons who 

5 transport, or cause to be transported, hazardous material 

6 by motor vehicle. 

7 ‘‘(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Of the 

8 amounts made available by section 31104(i) of title 49, 

9 United States Code, a total of $1,000,000 shall be avail10 able to carry out subsection (b).’’. 

11 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for chap12 ter 51 is amended by striking the item relating to section 

13 5119 and inserting the following: 

‘‘5119. Uniform hazardous material State registration and permit program.’’. 

14 SEC. 403. REGULAR REPORTING ON USE OF FEES. 

15 Section 5125(f)(2) is amended by striking ‘‘, upon 

16 the Secretary’s request,’’ and inserting ‘‘biennially’’. 

17 SEC. 404. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE HAZARDOUS MATE18 RIAL SAFETY PERMIT PROGRAM. 

19 (a) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

20 of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall 

21 conduct a study, and transmit to the Committee on Trans22 portation and Infrastructure of the House of Representa23 tives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

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1 tion of the hazardous material safety permit program 

2 under section 5109 of title 49, United States Code. 

3 (b) MATTERS TO BE REVIEWED.—In conducting the 

4 study, the Comptroller General shall review, at a min5 imum— 

6 (1) the list of hazardous materials requiring a 

7 safety permit; 

8 (2) the number of permits that have been 

9 issued, denied, revoked, or suspended since inception 

10 of the program and the number of commercial motor 

11 carriers that have never had a permit denied, re12 voked, or suspended since inception of the program; 

13 (3) the reasons for such denials, revocations, or 

14 suspensions; 

15 (4) the criteria used by the Federal Motor Car16 rier Safety Administration to determine whether a 

17 hazardous material safety permit issued by a State 

18 is equivalent to the Federal permit; and 

19 (5) the Secretary’s actions to improve the per20 mit application process. 

21 (c) RECOMMENDATIONS.—The Comptroller General 

22 shall include in the report any recommendations the 

23 Comptroller General has for improving the hazardous ma24 terial safety permit program. 


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1 (d) TECHNICAL CORRECTION.—Section 5109(b)(1) is 

2 amended by striking ‘‘a class A or B explosive’’ and insert3 ing ‘‘a Division 1.1, 1.2, or 1.3 explosive’’. 

4 SEC. 405. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

5 Section 5129 (as redesignated by section 104 of this 

6 Act) is amended to read as follows: 

7 ‘‘§ 5129. Authorization of appropriations 

8 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In order to carry out this chap9 ter (except sections 5107(e), 5108(g)(2), 5113, 5115, 

10 5116, and 5119), the following amounts are authorized 

11 to be appropriated to the Secretary: 

12 ‘‘(1) For fiscal year 2010, $39,800,000. 

13 ‘‘(2) For fiscal year 2011, $51,296,000. 

14 ‘‘(3) For fiscal year 2012, $58,641,920. 

15 ‘‘(4) For fiscal year 2013, $61,414,758. 

16 ‘‘(5) For fiscal year 2014, $62,643,054. 

17 ‘‘(b) HAZARDOUS MATERIALS EMERGENCY PRE18 PAREDNESS FUND.—There shall be available to the Sec19 retary, from the account established pursuant to section 

20 5116(i), for each of fiscal years 2010 through 2014 the 

21 following: 

22 ‘‘(1) To carry out section 5115, $198,000. 

23 ‘‘(2) To carry out sections 5116(a) and 

24 5116(b), $21,800,000, except that no less than 


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49 

•HR 4016 IH

1 $13,650,000 shall be available to carry out section 

2 5116(b). 

3 ‘‘(3) To carry out section 5116(f), $150,000. 

4 ‘‘(4) To publish and distribute the Emergency 

5 Response Guidebook under section 5116(i)(3), 

6 $625,000. 

7 ‘‘(5) To carry out section 5116(j), $1,000,000. 

8 ‘‘(c) HAZMAT TRAINING GRANTS.—There shall be 

9 available to the Secretary, from the account established 

10 pursuant to section 5116(i), to carry out section 5107(e) 

11 $4,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2010 through 2014. 

12 ‘‘(d) CREDITS TO APPROPRIATIONS.—The Secretary 

13 may credit to any appropriation to carry out this chapter 

14 an amount received from a State, Indian tribe, or other 

15 public authority or private entity for expenses the Sec16 retary incurs in providing training to the State, authority, 

17 or entity. 

18 ‘‘(e) AVAILABILITY OF AMOUNTS.—Amounts made 

19 available by or under this section shall remain available 

20 until expended.’’. 

Æ 


smartinez on DSKB9S0YB1PROD with BILLS