I 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1013 
To direct the Secretary of Transportation to establish and carry out a 
hazardous materials cooperative research program. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 12, 2009 
Mr. CUMMINGS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Science and Technology 
A BILL 
To direct the Secretary of Transportation to establish and 
carry out a hazardous materials cooperative research pro-
gram. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Hazardous Materials 
Cooperative Research Act of 2009’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) There are more than 1,000,000 shipments 
per day in the United States of materials identified 
as hazardous by the Department of Transportation. 
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These 
shipments 
are 
estimated 
to 
total 
2,100,000,000 tons of hazardous cargo per year and 
to comprise more than 18 percent of the total 
freight tonnage moved in the United States annu-
ally. 
(2) Hazardous materials are shipped by all 
transportation modes, and it is estimated that there 
are currently 400,000 large trucks, 115,000 railroad 
tank cars, and 3,000 tank barges dedicated to the 
shipment of hazardous materials. 
(3) More than a dozen Federal agencies have 
regulatory, enforcement, and operational responsibil-
ities for ensuring the safety and security of haz-
ardous materials shipments. In addition, a variety of 
State and local agencies have responsibility for de-
veloping and enforcing State-level regulations and 
for responding to incidents involving hazardous ma-
terials. 
(4) Decisions regarding the packaging and 
routing of hazardous materials shipments, the devel-
opment and implementation of procedures to ensure 
both the safety and security of such shipments, and 
the regulation of hazardous materials shipments are 
made by industry groups and government entities at 
a variety of levels and in all modal administrations 
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of the Department of Transportation on a daily 
basis. 
(5) The Federal agencies involved in the regula-
tion and oversight of hazardous materials shipments, 
as well as State and local governments, carriers, 
shippers, and other groups, conduct on-going re-
search on the transportation of hazardous materials. 
However, much of this research is program or mode- 
specific and as such is focused on addressing only 
the regulatory, inspection, enforcement, or oper-
ational needs of the group undertaking the research. 
(6) There is a documented need for the estab-
lishment of a cooperative research program that will 
engage all modes and actors, both public and pri-
vate, involved in the transportation of hazardous 
materials in conducting cross-cutting assessments of 
hazardous materials transportation issues that are 
national and multi-modal in scope and application. 
SEC. 3. HAZARDOUS MATERIALS COOPERATIVE RESEARCH 
PROGRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transportation 
shall establish and carry out a hazardous materials coop-
erative research program in accordance with the require-
ments of this section. 
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(b) GOVERNING BOARD.—The Secretary shall estab-
lish an independent governing board to select projects and 
studies to be carried out under the hazardous materials 
cooperative research program. The governing board shall 
be comprised of one voting representative from each of the 
following: 
(1) The Federal Aviation Administration. 
(2) The Federal Motor Carrier Administration. 
(3) The Federal Transit Administration. 
(4) The Federal Railroad Administration. 
(5) The Maritime Administration. 
(6) The Research and Innovative Technology 
Administration. 
(7) The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials 
Safety Administration. 
(8) The Department of Homeland Security. 
(9) The Department of Energy. 
(10) The Environmental Protection Agency. 
(11) A State department of transportation. 
(12) A State emergency management agency. 
(13) A nonprofit organization representing 
emergency responders. 
(14) A hazmat employer. 
(15) A nonprofit organization representing 
hazmat employees. 
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(16) A labor union representing members in-
volved in shipping hazardous materials. 
(17) A hazardous materials manufacturer. 
(18) An organization representing the haz-
ardous materials manufacturing industry. 
(19) A research university or research institu-
tion. 
(20) Additional representatives as the Secretary 
considers appropriate. 
(c) RESEARCH STUDIES.—Under the cooperative re-
search program, the governing board shall select coopera-
tive research studies of hazardous materials transpor-
tation that are cross-cutting in nature and that consider 
issues not adequately addressed by existing Federal or pri-
vate sector research programs. Priority shall be given to 
research studies that will yield results immediately appli-
cable to risk analysis and mitigation or that will strength-
en the ability of first responders to respond to incidents 
and accidents involving transportation of hazardous mate-
rials. 
(d) IMPLEMENTATION.—The Secretary shall make 
grants to, and enter a cooperative agreement with, the Na-
tional Academy of Sciences to carry out projects and stud-
ies under the cooperative research program. 
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(e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the terms 
‘‘hazmat employer’’ and ‘‘hazmat employee’’ have the 
meanings given those terms in section 5102 of title 49, 
United States Code. 
(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 
authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 
$5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2010 through 2013. 
Such sums shall remain available until expended. 
Æ 
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