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News Digest DOT 02-15

Friday, January 9, 2015

PHMSA Publishes Rulemaking to Adopt Harmonize Hazardous Materials Regulations with International Standards.  The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) published a final rule amending the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR) to maintain alignment with international standards by incorporating various amendments, including changes to proper shipping names, hazard classes, packing groups, special provisions, packaging authorizations, air transport quantity limitations, and vessel stowage requirements.  These revisions are necessary to harmonize the HMR with recent changes made to the International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code, the International Civil Aviation Organization’s Technical Instructions for the Safe Transport of Dangerous Goods by Air, and the United Nations Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods—Model Regulations.  Without harmonization, companies would be forced to comply with dual systems of regulations, and as a result would incur an estimated $87.9 million per year in costs. The final rule published on January 8, 2015 and becomes effective on January 1, 2015. For more information go to the Federal Register: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2015-01-08/pdf/2014-30462.pdf.  Contact for media:  Joe Delcambre:  (202) 493-0730.

Proposed Rule to Keep Vital Airspace at Peak Performance Levels.  DOT and the FAA have proposed a new rule to enhance current practices for landings and takeoffs during the busiest travel times at New York-area airports.  The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) is designed to maintain efficiency levels, better reflect accepted international practices, and promote fairness in airline competition.  A “slot” is a landing or takeoff assigned during a specific time of day to a designated carrier.  Slot controls are currently in place at four U.S. airports: LaGuardia, John F. Kennedy (JFK) , Newark Liberty, and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. The NPRM affects slot rules only at  the three New York City area airports.  Currently there are hourly slot limits established for each airport.  The proposed rule:

  • Maintains those hourly limits and would add daily limits for the period between 6 a.m. and 9:59 p.m. for JFK and Newark and to the slot-controlled hours at La Guardia;
  • Provides a system to ensure that carriers use each allocated slots at least 80 percent of the time or relinquish the slot;
  • Encourages airline competition by proposing five “secondary market” alternatives to allow selling, buying, trading, or leasing assigned slots;  and
  • Outlines proposed procedures to review slot transactions that involve potentially anti-competitive practices. 

The NPRM can be viewed at https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2015/01/08/2014-30378/laguardia-john-f-kennedy-international-and-newark-liberty-international-airports-slot-management-and.  Contact:  Hank Price:  (202) 267-3883.

DOT Calls for Innovative Research Proposals from Small Businesses.  The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) seeks innovative proposals from small businesses interested in conducting research needed by the Department’s agencies.  On January 6, 2015, DOT’s John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center released the first solicitation for Fiscal Year 2015 for the DOT Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program.  The solicitation contains a total of fifteen (15) research topic descriptions from four (4) DOT agencies: Federal Highway Administration, Federal Railroad Administration, Federal Transit Administration, and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.  A complete list of research topics can be found on the DOT’s SBIR website at http://www.volpe.dot.gov/sbir.  The solicitation includes topic descriptions and funding levels and invites small businesses to submit research proposals on these topics no later than March 9, 2015.  Contact:  Nancy Wilochka:  (202) 366-5128.

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