Hazardous Materials: Reducing Recordkeeping Requirements for Domestic Carriers

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION <SUBAGY>Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration</SUBAGY> <CFR>49 CFR Part 107</CFR> <DEPDOC>[Docket No. PHMSA-2025-0097 (HM-268I)]</DEPDOC> <RIN>RIN 2137-AG11</RIN> <SUBJECT>Hazardous Materials: Reducing Recordkeeping Requirements for Domestic Carriers</SUBJECT> <HD SOURCE="HED">AGENCY:</HD> Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), Department of Transportation (DOT). <HD SOURCE="HED">ACTION:</HD> Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM). <SUM> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUMMARY:</HD> This NPRM proposes to revise the hazardous materials program procedures to allow motor and vessel carriers the option to carry their PHMSA certificate of registration in electronic form. </SUM> <EFFDATE> <HD SOURCE="HED">DATES:</HD> Comments must be received on or before September 2, 2025. </EFFDATE> <HD SOURCE="HED">ADDRESSES:</HD> You may submit comments identified by the Docket Number PHMSA-2025-0097 using any of the following methods: <E T="03">E-Gov Web: https://www.regulations.gov.</E> This site allows the public to enter comments on any <E T="04">Federal Register</E> notice issued by any agency. Follow the online instructions for submitting comments. <E T="03">Mail:</E> Docket Management System: U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001. <E T="03">Hand Delivery:</E> U.S. DOT Docket Management System: West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. <E T="03">Fax:</E> 1-202-493-2251. <E T="03">Instructions:</E> Please include the docket number PHMSA-2025-0097 at the beginning of your comments. If you submit your comments by mail, submit two copies. If you wish to receive confirmation that PHMSA received your comments, include a self-addressed stamped postcard. Internet users may submit comments at <E T="03">https://www.regulations.gov.</E> <NOTE> <HD SOURCE="HED">Note:</HD> Comments are posted without changes or edits to <E T="03">https://www.regulations.gov,</E> including any personal information provided. There is a privacy statement published on <E T="03">https://www.regulations.gov.</E> </NOTE> <E T="03">Privacy Act:</E> In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits comments from the public to inform its rulemaking process. DOT posts these comments, without edit, including any personal information the commenter provides, to <E T="03">https://www.regulations.gov,</E> as described in the system of records notice (DOT/ALL-14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at <E T="03">https://www.dot.gov/privacy.</E> <E T="03">Confidential Business Information:</E> Confidential Business Information (CBI) is commercial or financial information that is both customarily and actually treated as private by its owner. Under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA, 5 U.S.C. 552), CBI is exempt from public disclosure. It is important that you clearly designate the comments submitted as CBI if: your comments responsive to this document contain commercial or financial information that is customarily treated as private; you actually treat such information as private; and your comment is relevant or responsive to this notice. You may ask PHMSA to provide confidential treatment to information you give to the agency by taking the following steps: (1) mark each page of the original document submission containing CBI as “Confidential”; (2) send PHMSA, along with the original document, a second copy of the original document with the CBI deleted; and (3) explain why the information that you are submitting is CBI. Submissions containing CBI should be sent to Yul B. Baker Jr., Office of Hazardous Materials Safety, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), 2nd Floor, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590-0001, or by email at <E T="03">yul.baker@dot.gov.</E> Any materials PHMSA receives that is not specifically designated as CBI will be placed in the public docket. <E T="03">Docket:</E> For access to the docket to read background documents or comments received, go to <E T="03">http://www.regulations.gov.</E> Follow the online instructions for accessing the docket. Alternatively, you may review the documents in person at the street address listed above. <FURINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:</HD> Yul B. Baker Jr., Transportation Regulations Specialist, Standards Development Branch, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE Washington, DC 20590, 202-366-8553, <E T="03">yul.baker@dot.gov.</E> </FURINF> <SUPLINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:</HD> <HD SOURCE="HD1">I. General Discussion</HD> PHMSA proposes to revise certain outdated and unduly burdensome recordkeeping provisions for its registration program found at Title 49 Chapter I, Part 107 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). Currently, § 107.620 requires motor carriers and vessel carriers to carry a copy of their current PHMSA issued Certificate of Registration (“certificate”), or another document bearing the registration number identified as the “U.S. DOT Hazmat Reg. No.”, onboard each truck or vessel transporting hazardous materials. Carriers must also make the copy of their certificate or the document bearing the registration number available to enforcement personnel upon request. Historically, it had been understood that the documentation must be in hard copy paper form. On January 17, 2023, PHMSA issued an interpretation  <SU>1</SU> <FTREF/> explaining that Part 107, Subpart G does not require that a paper copy of the certificate or other document be carried onboard the motor vehicle when that vehicle transports hazardous materials. Rather, the requirements specify that a motor carrier must “carry a copy of its current Certificate of Registration issued by PHMSA or another document bearing the registration number identified as the `U.S. DOT Hazmat Reg. No.' onboard each truck and truck tractor.” That requirement, as PHMSA explained in the interpretation, can be satisfied by carrying the necessary documentation in electronic form. <FTNT> <SU>1</SU>  Letter of interpretation Ref. No. 22-0133 (Jan. 17, 2023). </FTNT> Consistent with that clarification, PHMSA proposes to revise paragraph (b) to explicitly state that a copy of the certificate or document bearing the registration number in either electronic or paper form is acceptable, provided the certificate can be made available upon request to authorized enforcement personnel. PHMSA is also proposing a similar revision for carriage by vessel in § 107.620(c) as well as revisions to paragraphs (a) and (d) to allow for the information pertaining to the registration to be in an electronic format. PHMSA does not expect that these proposed revisions will have any adverse impact on safety because current technology allows documents to be just as readily available to inspectors and first responders via electronic means as hard copy printed on paper. <HD SOURCE="HD1">II. Regulatory Analysis and Notices</HD> <HD SOURCE="HD2">A. Legal Authority</HD> This proposed rule is published under the authority of the Secretary of Transportation set forth in the Federal Hazardous Materials Transportation laws (49 U.S.C. 5101 <E T="03">et seq.</E> ) and delegated to the PHMSA Administrator pursuant to 49 CFR 1.97. <HD SOURCE="HD2">B. Executive Orders 12866; Regulatory Planning and Review</HD> Executive Order (E.O.) 12866 (“Regulatory Planning and Review”), <SU>2</SU> <FTREF/> as implemented by DOT Order 2100.6B (“Policies and Procedures for Rulemaking”), requires agencies to regulate in the “most cost-effective manner,” to make a “reasoned determination that the benefits of the intended regulation justify its costs,” and to develop regulations that “impose the least burden on society.” DOT Order 2100.6B specifies that regulations should generally “not be issued unless their benefits are expected to exceed their costs.” In arriving at those conclusions, E.O. 12866 requires that agencies should consider “both quantifiable measures . . . and qualitative measures of costs and benefits that are difficult to quantify” and “maximize net benefits . . . unless a statute requires another regulatory approach.” E.O. 12866 also requires that “agencies should assess all costs and benefits of available regulatory alternatives, including the alternative of not regulating.” DOT Order 2100.6B directs that PHMSA and other Operating Administrations must generally choose the “least costly regulatory alternative that achieves the relevant objectives” unless required by law or compelling safety need. <FTNT> <SU>2</SU>  58 FR 51735 (Oct. 4, 1993). </FTNT> E.O. 12866 and DOT Order 2100.6B also require that PHMSA submit “significant regulatory actions” to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) within the Executive Office of the President's Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. This proposed rule is a not significant regulatory action pursuant to E.O. 12866; it also has not designated this rule as a “major rule” as defined by the Congressional Review Act (5 U.S.C. 801 <E T="03">et seq.</E> ). PHMSA has complied with the requirements in E.O. 12866 as implemented by DOT Order 2100.6B and made a preliminary determination that the proposed revisions to allow carriage of a copy of the Certificate of Registration or other document bearing the registration number in electronic form will not generate significant economic costs, but they will enhance efficiency. PHMSA expects those cost savings will also result in reduced costs for the public to whom those entities generally transfer a portion of their compliance costs. <HD SOURCE="HD2">C. Executive Orders 14192 and 14219</HD> This proposed rule, if finalized as ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ Preview showing 10k of 25k characters. 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