{"operation":"document","citation":"25-0059","title":"Currie Associates — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation","source_type":"guidance","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"guidance","official":true,"published_on":"2026-03-12","effective_on":null,"summary":"25-0059 response to Currie Associates concerning 172.303.","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-25-0059.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-25-0059.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-25-0059","source_url":"https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/2026-03/25-0059.pdf","body":"<<<PAGE 1>>>\n\n1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE\nWashington, DC 20590\nU.S. Department\nof Transportation\nPipeline and Hazardous\nMaterials Safety\nAdministration\nMarch 12, 2026\nTom Ferguson\nChief Technical Officer\nCurrie Associates\n101 Ridge Street, Suite I\nGlens Falls, NY 12801\nReference No. 25-0059\nDear Mr. Ferguson:\nThis letter is in response to your March 26, 2025 email requesting clarification of the Hazardous\nMaterials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180) applicable to prohibited markings on\nhazardous materials packaging. Specifically, you request confirmation that the transportation of\ntotes or bins used for pharmaceutical products, which are marked with the limited quantity mark\nbut do not contain hazardous materials, is permitted by the HMR. You add that companies\ntransporting pharmaceutical products classified as hazardous materials often move them from\ndistribution facilities to stores in cases or large plastic bins or “masterpacks” in less-than-caseload\nquantities, which provide convenience in the distribution chain. You state that in some cases, these\nbins or “masterpacks” serve as the outer packaging, while in other situations they may be\nconsidered overpacks.\nYou ask whether it is acceptable to transport bins bearing the limited quantity marking, even when\nno hazardous materials are present during certain stages of the supply chain—specifically when the\nbins are loaded by the shipper and unloaded by the consignee without any involvement from the\ndriver and are not visible during transportation.\nYes. In accordance with § 172.303(b)(1), the prohibition on marking packages that do not contain\nhazardous materials does not apply when a package is transported in a transport vehicle or freight\ncontainer, is not visible during transportation, and is loaded by the shipper and unloaded by the\nshipper or consignee.\nI hope this information is helpful. Please contact us if we can be of further assistance.\nSincerely,\nAlexander Wolcott\nActing Chief, Regulatory Review and Reinvention Branch\nStandards and Rulemaking Division\n\n<<<PAGE 2>>>\n\nLarson, R.\n25-0059\nMr. Shane Kelley March 26, 2025\nDirector, Standards and Rulemaking Division\nPipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration\nAttn: PHH-10\nU.S. Department of Transportation\nEast Building, 1200 New Jersey Ave., SE\nWashington, D.C. 20590-0001\nSubmitted: Via Email\ncc: infocntr@dot.gov\nDear Mr. Kelley,\nCurrie Associates requests a formal letter of interpretation regarding the prohibited marking\nrequirements detailed in Title 49 CFR, Part 172, §172.303(b). Specifically, we are requesting\nconfirmation of our understanding that the movement of totes or bins used to transport\npharmaceutical products that are marked with the limited quantity mark but do not contain\nhazardous materials and are not visible during transport from the outside of the vehicle are\npermitted under the HMR.\nSection 172.303(a) states:\n(a) No person may offer for transportation or transport a package which is marked with\nthe proper shipping name, the identification number of a hazardous material or any\nother markings indicating that the material is hazardous (e.g. RQ, INHALATION\nHAZARD) unless the package contains the identified hazardous material or its\nresidue.\nHowever, paragraph (b) provides exceptions where such markings may be permitted:\n(b) This section does not apply to –\n1) Transportation of a package in a transport vehicle or freight container if the\npackage is not visible during transportation and is loaded by the shipper and\nunloaded by the shipper or consignee.\nMarkings on a package which are securely covered in transportation.\nThe marking of a shipping name on a package when the name describes a\nmaterial not regulated under this subchapter.\nIn 2015, PHMSA responded to a request for interpretation from Archema, Inc. In the request,\nthe author questioned whether each of the sub-paragraphs in §172.303(b) must be applied\ntogether, or whether each subparagraph were independent situations where marks may be\napplied yet the packaging contain no hazardous materials. In Interpretation Reference No. 15-\n0026, PHMSA confirmed that each of these subparagraphs are independent. Thus, only one of\nthe situations is required to be excepted from this section (§172.303). We therefore draw\nattention to paragraph (b)(1).\nIn practice, this was demonstrated by a second letter of interpretation. Also in 2015, Haxagon\nRegasco North America, Inc. questioned whether the responsibility for marking unused, empty\n2) 3) 101 Ridge Street Suite I, Glens Falls, NY 12801 | Phone: 1-518-761-0668 | mail@currieassociates.com\n\n<<<PAGE 3>>>\n\ngas cylinders fell to the manufacturer or the filler of the cylinders. In PHMSA’s response,\nInterpretation Reference No. 15-0010 indicates that propane cylinders that are marked and\nlabeled but do not contain propane may be loaded into a transport vehicle or freight container if\nthe provisions of §§ 172.303(b) and 172.401(d) are met.\nA cylinder containing propane may be considered analogous to a tote or bin that contains\npharmaceutical products offered as a limited quantity. Both propane and many pharmaceutical\nproducts are hazardous materials, and the cylinder and bin are both packaging designed to\ncontain the hazardous material. Based on these two interpretations, we believe the reader may\ninfer that a packaging (cylinder, drum, box, bin, etc.) that does not contain a hazardous material\nmay be marked as if it contains a hazardous material when one of the conditions in §\n172.303(b) are met (i.e. if the package is not visible in transportation from outside the vehicle\nand is loaded by the shipper and unloaded by the consignee).\nCurrie Associates requests confirmation that if a package is marked with the limited quantity\nmark as specified in §172.315 but does not contain hazardous material (packed per the limited\nquantity provisions or otherwise), that the mark is permitted to remain if:\n• the package is loaded by the shipper onto a vehicle operated by a contract carrier and\nunloaded by the shipper or consignee, and\n• the mark is not visible from outside the vehicle while in transport\nCompanies moving pharmaceutical products that meet the classification of a hazardous material\noften move from distribution facilities to stores in cases or in less-than-case loads. It is not\nuncommon for such movements to occur in large plastic bins or “masterpacks” that provide\nconvenience in the distribution chain. In some cases, these bins or masterpacks serve as the\nouter packaging, while in other situations may be considered overpacks. However, the\nmovement of the bins within the supply chain may result in certain bins having all hazardous\nmaterials removed from them prior to transport. The following are examples of such bins:\nThe bins are loaded by the shipper and unloaded by the consignee without any engagement\nfrom the driver and are not visible while in transport. When hazardous materials are present,\nthey are packed in accordance with the applicable limited quantity provisions and, therefore, are\nnot subject to shipping paper requirements for ground transport.\nBased on this information, we would like confirmation that packaging, such bins or masterpacks\nused to transport pharmaceutical products that do not contain a hazardous material in a limited\nquantity, are permitted to be transported by ground with the limited quantity mark applied when:\n\n<<<PAGE 4>>>\n\n• the package is loaded by the shipper and unloaded by the consignee,\n• transported by a contract carrier, and\n• the package is not visible from outside the vehicle while in transport.\nCurrie Associates appreciates your review of this interpretation request, and we look forward to\nyour response. Please contact us with any questions.\nSincerely,\nTom Ferguson, PG, CHMM, DGSA\nChief Technical Officer","truncated":false,"body_characters":7808}