Phmsas Process For Granting Special Permits And Approvals For Transporting Hazardous Materials Raises Safety Concerns

There are safety issues within the Pipeline and Haz. Materials Safety Admin.¿s (PHMSA) Special Permits and Approvals (SPA) Program. Special permits and approvals exempt their holders from certain Fed. reg¿s. governing the transport of haz. materials. This testimony focuses on these concerns: (1) shortcomings in the processes for reviewing and approving SPA; (2) concerns with PHMSA¿s oversight of permit holders¿ compliance with safety requirements; and (3) long-standing safety issues that remain unaddressed by PHMSA. It was found that PHMSA grants SPA without exercising its regulatory authority to review applicants¿ safety histories and without coordinating with partner safety agencies. Tables.

On September 10, 2009, the Inspector General testified before the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure regarding the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration's (PHMSA) Special Permits and Approvals Program. The Inspector General highlighted concerns with how PHMSA authorizes transport of hazardous materials under these regulatory exemptions across three areas: (1) PHMSA grants special permits and approvals without assessing applicants' prior incidents and enforcement violations or coordinating with other affected Operating Administrations. (2) PHMSA's risk-based oversight criteria do not target holders of special permits and approvals for compliance reviews. (3) PHMSA has not addressed longstanding safety issues raised by the OIG, FAA, and the NTSB. The Inspector General stated that these issues call into question the effectiveness of PHMSA's process for granting special permits and approvals. PHMSA recently developed an action plan to address these and other issues in response to the OIG's July 2009 management advisory and Departmental direction.

Hazardous Materials - Special Permit and Approvals Standard Operating Procedures and Evaluation Process (US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Regulation) (PHMSA) (2018 Edition) The Law Library presents the complete text of the Hazardous Materials - Special Permit and Approvals Standard Operating Procedures and Evaluation Process (US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Regulation) (PHMSA) (2018 Edition). Updated as of May 29, 2018 PHMSA is adopting regulations to include the standard operating procedures (SOPs) and criteria used to evaluate applications for special permits and approvals. This rulemaking addresses issues identified in the Hazardous Materials Transportation Safety Improvement Act of 2012 related to the Office of Hazardous Materials Safety's Approvals and Permits Division. In addition, this rulemaking also provides clarity regarding what conditions need to be satisfied to promote special permit application completeness. An application that contains the required information reduces processing delays by reducing the number of applications rejected due to incompleteness. Through public notice and comment, this final rule is required to establish SOPs to support the administration of the special permit and approval programs, and objective criteria to support the evaluation of special permit and approval applications. These amendments do not change previously established policies, to include but not limited to any inspection activities subsequent to issuance, modification or renewal of a special permit and approval. This book contains: - The complete text of the Hazardous Materials - Special Permit and Approvals Standard Operating Procedures and Evaluation Process (US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Regulation) (PHMSA) (2018 Edition) - A table of contents with the page number of each section

Hazardous Materials Transportation - Revisions of Special Permits Procedures (US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Regulation) (PHMSA) (2018 Edition) The Law Library presents the complete text of the Hazardous Materials Transportation - Revisions of Special Permits Procedures (US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Regulation) (PHMSA) (2018 Edition). Updated as of May 29, 2018 PHMSA is proposing to revise its procedures for applying for a special permit to require an applicant to provide sufficient information about its operations to enable the agency to evaluate the applicant's fitness and the safety impact of operations that would be authorized in the special permit. In addition, PHMSA is providing an on-line application option. This book contains: - The complete text of the Hazardous Materials Transportation - Revisions of Special Permits Procedures (US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Regulation) (PHMSA) (2018 Edition) - A table of contents with the page number of each section

Hazardous Materials - Incorporating Rail Special Permits into the Hazardous Materials Regulations (US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Regulation) (PHMSA) (2018 Edition) The Law Library presents the complete text of the Hazardous Materials - Incorporating Rail Special Permits into the Hazardous Materials Regulations (US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Regulation) (PHMSA) (2018 Edition). Updated as of May 29, 2018 The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration is amending the Hazardous Materials Regulations to incorporate provisions contained in certain widely used or longstanding rail special permits that have general applicability and established safety records. Special permits allow a company or an individual to package or ship a hazardous material in a manner that varies from the regulations provided an equivalent level of safety is maintained. Incorporating the special permits discussed in this rulemaking will provide users of the regulations with wider access to the regulatory flexibility offered in these special permits, eliminate the need for numerous renewal requests, reduce paperwork burdens, and facilitate commerce while maintaining an appropriate level of safety. This rulemaking will also respond to two petitions for rulemaking, P-1497, concerning the use of electronic shipping papers, and P-1567, concerning the removal of the Association of American Railroad's AAR-600 portable tank program for previously adopted standards that meet or exceed the AAR-600 requirements. This book contains: - The complete text of the Hazardous Materials - Incorporating Rail Special Permits into the Hazardous Materials Regulations (US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Regulation) (PHMSA) (2018 Edition) - A table of contents with the page number of each section

Hazardous Materials - Incorporation of Special Permits into Regulations (US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Regulation) (PHMSA) (2018 Edition) The Law Library presents the complete text of the Hazardous Materials - Incorporation of Special Permits into Regulations (US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Regulation) (PHMSA) (2018 Edition). Updated as of May 29, 2018 The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration is proposing to amend the Hazardous Materials Regulations to incorporate provisions contained in certain widely used or longstanding special permits that have an established safety record. Special permits allow a company or individual to package or ship a hazardous material in a manner that varies from the regulations so long as an equivalent level of safety is maintained. The proposed revisions are intended to provide wider access to the regulatory flexibility offered in special permits and eliminate the need for numerous renewal requests, thus reducing paperwork burdens and facilitating commerce while maintaining an appropriate level of safety. This book contains: - The complete text of the Hazardous Materials - Incorporation of Special Permits into Regulations (US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Regulation) (PHMSA) (2018 Edition) - A table of contents with the page number of each section

Hazardous Materials - Adoption of Special Permits (US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Regulation) (PHMSA) (2018 Edition) The Law Library presents the complete text of the Hazardous Materials - Adoption of Special Permits (US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Regulation) (PHMSA) (2018 Edition). Updated as of May 29, 2018 As required by the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act This book contains: - The complete text of the Hazardous Materials - Adoption of Special Permits (US Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Regulation) (PHMSA) (2018 Edition) - A table of contents with the page number of each section