Perhaps you haven’t heard of the Hazardous Materials Safety Permit Program before, and there’s a good reason for that if you are a shipper of hazardous materials and not a carrier.  The HMSP program is found not in the Hazardous Material Regulations of the PHMSA, but instead in the Regulations of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) at 49 CFR 385, Subpart E and apply to carriers who transport certain quantities of specified hazardous materials.

Why should the regulations of the FMCSA applicable to a carrier be a concern to you as a shipper of HazMat?  Because 49 CFR 173.22(b) documents one of a HazMat Shipper’s responsibilities as:

No person may offer a motor carrier any hazardous material specified in 49 CFR 385.403 unless that motor carrier holds a safety permit issued by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

So, the PHMSA, in referring to these regulations of the FMCSA places the responsibility on the shipper to ensure the carrier is in compliance with the applicable regulations prior to offering them a hazardous material for transportation.  Read on to learn what types of hazardous materials are “specified in 49 CFR 385.403”.   (more…)