The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (“PHMSA”) is accepting comments through December 4, 2023 regarding forty-six (46) topics for proposed updates to the Hazardous Materials Regulations (the “HMR”) (88 FR 65148). PHMSA intends the modernization to improve hazardous material transportation efficiency, transparency, and stakeholder engagement. PHMSA also intends the modernization to better accommodate technological innovations, while maintaining or improving public safety and environmental impact (88 FR 43016).
PHMSA periodically revises the HMR to ensure regulations reflect stakeholder concerns and to keep pace with changing technology (88 FR 43016). In the past, PHMSA revised the HMR to address modal-specific issues, ensure alignment with international regulations and standards, and adopt provisions in widely used or longstanding special permits from other agencies (88 FR 43016). At this time, the forty-six (46) topics under review include: carrier maintenance of emergency response information; aerosol classification alignment with international standards; requirements for damaged, defective, or recalled lithium cells and batteries; applicability of oil spill response plans; the creation of definitions for basic descriptions and shipping descriptions of hazardous materials; and identification of freight containers in rail transportation (88 FR 43016). Interested parties may submit comments on these topics or any others listed through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at: https://www.regulations.gov. Comments must be received on or before December 4, 2023.
