Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration October 2009 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) initiates a rulemaking procedure to establish criteria for determining adequate state enforcement of pipeline damage prevention laws. Under the Pipeline Inspection, Protection, Safety, and Enforcement (PIPES) Act of 2006, establishment of these criteria is a prerequisite should PHMSA find it necessary to conduct an enforcement proceeding against an excavator for violation of one-call damage prevention laws in the absence of enforcement action by the state where the events occurred. This notice is issued to solicit feedback and comments regarding the criteria and procedures PHMSA should use to determine if a state's enforcement of its damage prevention laws is adequate. These procedures will encourage states to develop effective excavation damage prevention enforcement programs to protect gas and hazardous liquid pipelines, but also allow federal enforcement authority should any state fail to do so.

In accordance with the procedures governing the application for, and the processing of, special permits from the Department of Transportation's Hazardous Material Regulations (49 CFR part 107, subpart B), notice is hereby given that the Office of Hazardous Materials Safety has received the applications described herein. This notice is abbreviated to expedite docketing and public notice. Because the sections affected, modes of transportation, and the nature of application have been shown in earlier Federal Register publications, they are not repeated here. Requests for modification of special permits (e.g. to provide for additional hazardous materials, packaging design changes, additional mode of transportation, etc.) are described in footnotes to the application number. Application numbers with the suffix ``M'' denote a modification request. These applications have been separated from the new application for special permits to facilitate processing.

PHMSA is considering amending the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR) by incorporating various amendments to international standards and modal regulations, including changes to proper shipping names, hazard classes, packing groups, special provisions, and packaging authorizations. These amendments may be necessary to harmonize the HMR with revised editions of the United Nations Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods Model Regulations and Manual of Tests and Criteria, the International Maritime Organization's Dangerous Goods Code, the International Civil Aviation Organization's Technical Instructions for the Safe Transport of Dangerous Goods by Air and Transport Canada's Transport of Dangerous Goods Regulations. In this notice, we are soliciting public comment regarding the safety consequences, regulatory burden, and cost implications of some of the more significant amendments adopted or under consideration for adoption in these international standards.

In this final rule, PHMSA is amending the Hazardous Materials Regulations to clarify requirements governing emergency response information services provided by arrangement with hazardous materials offerors (shippers). In order to preserve the effectiveness of these arrangements for providing accurate and timely emergency response information, PHMSA is requiring basic identifying information (offeror name or contract number) to be included on shipping papers. This information will enable the emergency response information provider to identify the offeror on whose behalf it is accepting responsibility for providing emergency response information in the event of a hazardous materials incident and obtain additional information about the hazardous material as needed.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, PHMSA invites comments on an information collection under Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Control No. 2137-0584, titled ``Gas and Hazardous Liquid Pipeline Safety Program Certifications.'' PHMSA will request approval from OMB for a revision of the current information collection. That revision relates to the use of on-line certification media containing questions which will improve PHMSA's ability to efficiently allocate grant monies to State programs, resulting in the creation of additional incentives for pipeline safety under the State's jurisdiction.

The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) are alerting shippers and carriers to the importance of transporting lithium batteries safely. PHMSA and FAA are concerned that many persons who ship lithium batteries do not recognize the hazards posed by these batteries during transportation. We are issuing this advisory guidance to (1) Inform persons of recent aviation incidents involving fires aboard both passenger and cargo aircraft and the potential hazards that shipments of lithium batteries may present while in transportation, (2) provide information concerning the current requirements for the transportation of lithium batteries and (3) inform persons of the