# Mr. William J. Briner — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation

- **operation:** document
- **citation:** 08-0150
- **title:** Mr. William J. Briner — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation
- **source type:** guidance
- **agency:** Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration
- **status:** guidance
- **official:** true
- **published on:** 2009-03-06
- **effective on:** Not available
- **summary:** 08-0150 concerning 171.12, 171.22.
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- **app url:** https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-08-0150
- **source url:** https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/legacy/interpretations/Interpretation%20Files/2008/080150.pdf
**body:**

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U.S. Department of Transportation
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials
Safety Administration
1200 New Jersey Ave, S.E.
Washington, D.C. 20590
MAW 0 6 20@9
Mr. William J. Briner
1324 Westbend Drive
Dardenne Prairie, MO 63368
Ref. No. 08-0150
Dear Mr. Briner:
This is in response to your letter requesting clarification of the Hazardous Materials
Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 17 1 - 180) regarding the authorization and conditions for use
of international standards and regulations. Specifically, you ask for clarification of the
requirement to provide timely and complete written information to forwarding agents at the
place of entry into the United States for hazardous materials that are imported into the United
States. Your questions are paraphrased and answered as follows:
Q1. If the requirements in the International Civil Aviation Organization Technical
Instructions (ICAO TI) or the International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code (IMDG Code)
are met for a hazardous materials shipment transported into the United States and there are no
additional HMR requirements applicable to the shipment, must the requirement in $ 171.22(f)
for written information be met?
Al. Provided there are no additional conditions or requirements as provided in Part 17 1,
Subpart C, the answer is no. Except for shipments transported into the United States from
Canada that conform to $ 171.12 (see Cj 171.22(f)), the provision applies to HMR
requirements that are specified for a shipment in addition to the requirements of the
international standard or regulation being used.
Q2. For shipments that have additional HMR requirements, does the following statement meet
the written information requirement in $ 17 1.22(f)? "Compliance with all the provisions of
ICAOIIATA or the IMDG Code for this shipment will also comply with the U.S. DOT
Hazardous Materials Regulations with the following additional requirements (or exceptions)."
This statement would be followed by additional written information to the forwarding agent,
e.g., additional requirements for PIH materials, combustible liquids, RQs, placarding,
emergency response information, etc.
A2. The HMR does not require specific wording to be used to meet the requirement in
5 171.22(f). Therefore, your proposed wording is acceptable provide it is followed by
specific information concerning the applicable additional conditions or requirements imposed.

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Q3. If the additional HMR requirements are included in the ICAO TI under U.S. variations,
are the variations required to be included in the written information?
A3. No. U.S. variations included in the international standard or regulation being used are
covered by your statement in 42. It is not necessary to repeat the variations in the written
information applicable to the shipment.
I hope this information is helpful. If you have additional questions, please do not hesitate to
contact this office.
Sincerely, a
Hattie L. Mitchell, Chief
Regulatory Review and Reinvention
Office of Hazardous Materials Standards

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William J. Briner
1324 Westbend Drive
Dardenne Prairie, MO 63368
(636) 300- 173 1
May 15,2008
Mr. Edward Mazzullo, Director
Office of Hazardous Materials Standards
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, Attn: PHH-10
U.S. Department of Transportation, East Building
1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Washington, DC 20590-0001
Re: Request for Interpretation Regarding Importer Responsibilities
Dear Mr. Mazzullo:
I have several questions concerning compliance with 49 CFR 17 1.22(f), the requirement
for each person importing a hazardous material into the United States to provide the
forwarding agent with timely and complete written information as to the requirements of
the DOT Hazardous Materials Regulations applicable to the particular shipment.
Question 1 :
If the requirements of the ICAO Technical Instructions, for shipments via air, or the
requirements of the IMDG Code, for shipments via ocean, satisfy all of the DOT/HMR
requirements for a particular shipment with no additional DOT requirements, then is any
written information required under 49 CFR 17 1.22(f), or is this requirement no longer
applicable for this particular type of shipment?
Question 2:
If 49 CFR 1 71.22(f) still requires written information for the type of shipment described
in Question 1 above, then could this requirement be satisfied with a written statement
such as "Compliance with all the provisions of ICAOIIATA or the IMDG Code for this
shipment will also comply with the U.S. DOT Hazardous Materials Regulations."?
Question 3:
For some shipments which have additional DOT requirements, could the 49 CFR
17 1.22(f) requirement for written information be satisfied with a statement such as the
following?
"Compliance with all the provisions of ICAOIIATA or the IMDG Code for this shipment
will also comply with the U.S. DOT Hazardous Materials Regulations, with the following

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additional requirements (or exceptions): (followed by additional written information to
the forwarding agent, e.g., additional requirements for PIH materials, combustible
liquids, RQ's, placarding, emergency response information, etc.)."
Question 4:
If additional DOT requirements are already indicated in the ICAO Technical Instructions
under the USG State Variations (e-g., concerning RQ's, emergency response information,
emergency response telephone number), is the person importing the material into the
United States still required to provide specific written information concerning this
requirement to the forwarding agent?
Thank you in advance for your guidance.
Sincerely,
William J. Briner
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