# Minnesota Department of Transportation — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation

**Citation:** 10-0051  
**Type / status:** guidance / guidance  
**Agency:** Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration  
**Effective:** Not stated  
**Published:** 2010-09-30

10-0051 response to Minnesota Department of Transportation concerning 171.8, 172.604.

## Document text

<<<PAGE 1>>>

U.S. Deportment ofTronsportotion Pipeline and Hazardous Materials
Safety Admip,i~tration
SEP 30 2010
1200 New Jersey Ave, SE
Washington, D.C. 20590
Mr. Michael Ritchie
Hazardous Materials Specialist
Minnesota Department of Transportation
Commercial Vehicle Operations
395 John Ireland Boulevard, MS 460
St. Paul, MN 55155
Reference No. 10-0051
Dear Mr. Ritchie:
This is in response to your e-mail and subsequent telephone conversations and faxes regarding
the HM-206F final rule, "Revision of Requirements for Emergency Response Telephone
Numbers" published on October 19,2009 in the Federal Register [74 FR 53413]. (A correction
to the final rule's effective date was published on October 22,2010 [74 FR 54489].)
Specifically, you state that trade associations, such as petroleum marketers, contract on behalf of
their members, with Emergency Response Information (ERI) providers to supply detailed
emergency and incident mitigation information as required by § 172.604(a)(2) of the Hazardous
Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180). You state the ERI providers are capable
of, and accept responsibility for, providing this information for individual trade association
members. You ask whether § 172.604 requires the name of the individual petroleum company
on the shipping paper, or would the contract number between the association and the ERI
provider meet the requirements. Under either condition, you further indicate that the name of the
association member is included on the shipping paper so an emergency responder can readily and
easily identify the individual hazardous materials shipper or carrier, and that the shippers or
carriers are transporting only the hazardous materials (i.e.; fuel oil and gasoline) for which the
association has provided the required emergency response information.
As specified under § 172.604(a), a person (see § 171.8 for the definition of "person") who offers
a hazardous material for transportation must provide an emergency response telephone number,
including the area code, or for telephone members outside of the United States, the international
access code or the "+" (plus) sign, country code, and city code, as appropriate, for use in the
event of an emergency involving the hazardous material.
Section 172.604(b) specifies that the telephone number required by § 172.604(a) must be either:
(1) the number of the person offering the hazardous material for transportation when that person
is also the ERI provider; or (2) the number of an agency or organization capable of, and
accepting responsibility for, providing the detailed information required by § 172.604(a)(2).

<<<PAGE 2>>>

The person who is registered with the ERI provider must ensUre that agency or organization has
received current information on the material, as required by § 172.604(a)(2), before it is offered
for transportation. The name of the person who is registered with the ERI provider must be
identified by name, or contract number or other unique identifier assigned by the ERI provider,
on the shipping paper immediately before, after, above, or below the emergency response
telephone number in a prominent, readily identifiable, and clearly visible manner that allows the
information to be easily and quickly found. The name of the person registered with the ERI
provider or an identifying number, such as a contract number, that identifies the name of the
registrant with the ERI provider, may be used to satisfy the requirement. Note that the name of
the person registered with the ERI provider (or the identifying number) is not required to be
entered on the shipping paper in association with the ER telephone number if the name of the
person is entered elsewhere on the shipping paper in a prominent, readily identifiable, and clearly
visible manner that allows the information to be easily and quickly found.
Therefore, provided the provisions in Subpart G of Part 172 are met, the association, as registrant
with the ERI provider, is the correct person to note, either by name or contract (identifying)
number on the shipping paper in association with the ER telephone number.
I hope this information is helpful. Please contact this office should you have additional
questions.
Sincerely,
r-7'r#~~
T. Glenn Foster,
Chief, Regulatory Review and Reinvention
Office ofHazardous Materials Standards

<<<PAGE 3>>>

Drakeford. Carolyn (PHMSA)
From: Mitchell. Hattie (PHMSA) Eme f9en~ ~e:::p:nse J.1m~y
Sent: Friday, March 05, 2010 3:15 PM
To: Drakeford. Carolyn (PHMSA) lO-W5i
Cc: Betts, Charles (PHMSA); susan.gorksky@dot.gov
Subject: RE: Request for interpretation HM-206F
Carolyn, please log in -to Joan.
From: Ritchie, Mike (DOT) [mailto:Michael.Ritchie@state.mn.us]
Sent: Friday, March 05, 2010 2:31 PM
To: Mitchell, Hattie (PHMSA)
Cc: Betts, Charles (PHMSA); susan.gorksky@dot.gov; Kudzia, Randal (DOn
Subject: Request for interpretation HM-206F
March 5,2010
Hattie Mitchell
Pipeline & Hazardous Materials
Safety Administration
Office of Standards-PHH-12
1200 New Jersey Avenue
Washington, DC 20590
Dear Ms. Mitchell}
On October 19, 2009} PHMSA issued HM-206F: Revision of the Requirements for Emergency Response Telephone
Numbers. This rulemaking addresses the use of Emergency Response Telephone Information Service Providers (ERI
providers), organizations that are capable of, and accept responsibility for} providing the detailed emergency and
incident mitigation information required by 49 CFR 172.604 (a) (2) for individual hazardous materials shippers or
carriers. The revised regulation requires the person registered with the ERI provider to be identified by name or contract
number on the shipping paper next to the required emergency contact telephone number if that person is not clearly
identified elsewhere on the shipping paper.
Trade associations, such as petroleum marketers} contract with ERI providers, to provide that service for their individual
member companies. The trade association provides all required emergency response information to the ERI provider.
The member companies deliver the same products, for example fuel oil and gasoline, every day} and carry a shipping
paper without change that identifies those products correctly} and retain records of those shipments as required in 49
CFR 177.817 (f). That "permanentll shipping paper prominently displays the emergency contact telephone numberofthe
service provider, but does not have the name of the individual petroleum dealer on it. It is carried in the truck} and
accessible as required in 49 CFR 177.817 (e).
The contract to provide emergency telephone information is between the trade association and ERI provider. Display of
a contract number next to the emergency contact telephone number on the shipping paper} would identify only the
trade association} not the specific hazmat shipper or carrier. The ERI provider does not have contact information for all
trade association members. Does the revised regulation require the name of the individual petroleum company to be
on the shipping paper} or would the contract number between the association and the ERI provider meet the
requirements?
Please contact me if you have any questions.
1

<<<PAGE 4>>>

Yours truly,
Michael Ritchie
Hazardous Materials Specialist
Minnesota Department of Transportation
Commercial Vehicle Operations
395 John Ireland Boulevard, MS 460
st. Paul, MN 55155
Michael.ritchie@state.mn.us
2

## Provenance

- Official: Yes
- Source: <https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/legacy/interpretations/Interpretations/2010/100051.pdf>
- Source ID: `phmsa`
- SHA-256: `ff8c9a51c83a259415769b7a24bb96f943f1d3cf562ba00f1f8ab007d262160f`
- Retrieved: 2026-08-20T00:59:31.977Z
- Exported: 2026-08-22T00:45:30.153Z
- Document slug: `phmsa-interpretation-10-0051`

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