[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2349 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







105th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2349

To authorize appropriations for the hazardous materials transportation 
                    program, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 23, 1998

  Mr. McCain introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
   referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To authorize appropriations for the hazardous materials transportation 
                    program, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Hazardous Materials Transportation 
Reauthorization Act of 1998''.

SEC. 2. AMENDMENT OF TITLE 49; TABLE OF SECTIONS.

    (a) Amendment of Title 49, United States Code.--Except as otherwise 
expressly provided, whenever in this title an amendment or repeal is 
expressed in terms of an amendment to, or a repeal of, a section or 
other provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to a 
section or other provision of title 49, United States Code.
    (b) Table of Sections.--The table of sections for this Act is as 
follows:

                              Sec. 1. Short title.
                              Sec. 2. Table of sections.
                              Sec. 3. Findings and purposes; 
                                        definitions.
                              Sec. 4. Handling criteria repeal.
                              Sec. 5. Hazmat employee training 
                                        requirements.
                              Sec. 6. Registration.
                              Sec. 7. Shipping paper retention.
                              Sec. 8. Public sector training 
                                        curriculum.
                              Sec. 9. Planning and training grants.
                              Sec. 10. Special permits, pilot programs, 
                                        and exclusions.
                              Sec. 11. Administration.
                              Sec. 12. Cooperative agreements.
                              Sec. 13. Enforcement.
                              Sec. 14. Penalties.
                              Sec. 15. Preemption.
                              Sec. 16. Judicial review.
                              Sec. 17. Hazardous materials 
                                        transportation reauthorization.
                              Sec. 18. Authorization of appropriations.

SEC. 3. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES; DEFINITIONS.

    (a) Findings and Purposes.--Section 5101 is amended to read as 
follows:
``Sec.  5101. Findings and purposes
    ``(a) Findings.--Congress finds with respect to hazardous materials 
transportation that--
            ``(1) approximately 4,000,000,000 tons of regulated 
        hazardous materials are transported each year and that 
        approximately 1,000,000 movements of hazardous materials occur 
        each day, according to Department of Transportation estimates;
            ``(2) accidents involving the release of hazardous 
        materials are a serious threat to public health and safety;
            ``(3) many States and localities have enacted laws and 
        regulations that vary from Federal laws and regulations 
        pertaining to the transportation of hazardous materials, 
        thereby creating the potential for unreasonable hazards in 
        other jurisdictions and confounding shippers and carriers that 
        attempt to comply with multiple and conflicting registration, 
        permitting, routings, notification, loading, unloading, 
        incidental storage, and other regulatory requirements;
            ``(4) because of the potential risks to life, property and 
        the environment posed by unintentional releases of hazardous 
        materials, consistency in laws and regulations governing the 
        transportation of hazardous materials, including loading, 
        unloading, and incidental storage, is necessary and desirable;
            ``(5) in order to achieve greater uniformity and to promote 
        the public health, welfare, and safety at all levels, Federal 
        standards for regulating the transportation of hazardous 
        materials in intrastate, interstate, and foreign commerce are 
        necessary and desirable;
            ``(6) in order to provide reasonable, adequate, and cost-
        effective protection from the risks posed by the transportation 
        of hazardous materials, a network of adequately trained State 
        and local emergency response personnel is required;
            ``(7) the movement of hazardous materials in commerce is 
        necessary and desirable to maintain economic vitality and meet 
        consumer demands, and shall be conducted in a safe and 
        efficient manner;
            ``(8) primary authority for the regulation of such 
        transportation should be consolidated in the Department of 
        Transportation to ensure the safe and efficient movement of 
        hazardous materials in commerce; and
            ``(9) emergency response personnel have a continuing need 
        for training on responses to releases of hazardous materials in 
        transportation and small businesses have a continuing need for 
        training on compliance with hazardous materials regulations.
    ``(b) Purposes.--The purposes of this chapter are--
            ``(1) to ensure the safe and efficient transportation of 
        hazardous materials in intrastate, interstate, and foreign 
        commerce, including the loading, unloading, and incidental 
storage of hazardous materials;
            ``(2) to provide the Secretary with preemption authority to 
        achieve uniform regulation of hazardous materials 
        transportation, to eliminate inconsistent rules that apply 
        differently from Federal rules, to ensure efficient movement of 
        hazardous materials in commerce, and to promote the national 
        health, welfare, and safety; and
            ``(3) to provide adequate training for public sector 
        emergency response teams to ensure safe responses to hazardous 
        materials transportation accidents and incidents.''.
    (b) Definitions.--Section 5102 is amended by--
            (1) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the following:
            ``(1) `commerce' means trade or transportation in the 
        jurisdiction of the United States--
                    ``(A) between a place in a State and a place 
                outside of the State;
                    ``(B) that affects trade or transportation between 
                a place in a State and a place outside of the State; or
                    ``(C) on a United States-registered aircraft.'';
            (2) by striking paragraphs (3) and (4) and inserting the 
        following:
            ``(3) `hazmat employee' means an individual who--
                    ``(A) is--
                            ``(i) employed by a hazmat employer,
                            ``(ii) self-employed, or
                            ``(iii) an owner-operator of a motor 
                        vehicle; and
                    ``(B) during the course of employment--
                            ``(i) loads, unloads, or handles hazardous 
                        materials;
                            ``(ii) manufactures, reconditions, or tests 
                        containers, drums, or other packagings 
                        represented as qualified for use in 
                        transporting hazardous materials;
                            ``(iii) performs any function pertaining to 
                        the offering of hazardous materials for 
                        transportation;
                            ``(iv) is responsible for the safety of 
                        transporting hazardous materials; or
                            ``(v) operates a vehicle used to transport 
                        hazardous materials.
            ``(4) `hazmat employer' means a person who--
                    ``(A) either--
                            ``(i) is self-employed,
                            ``(ii) is an owner-operator of a motor 
                        vehicle, or
                            ``(iii) has at least 1 employee; and
                    ``(B) performs a function, or uses at least 1 
                employee, in connection with--
                            ``(i) transporting hazardous materials in 
                        commerce;
                            ``(ii) causing hazardous materials to be 
                        transported in commerce, or
                            ``(iii) manufacturing, reconditioning, or 
                        testing containers, drums, or other packagings 
                        represented as qualified for use in 
                        transporting hazardous materials.'';
            (3) by striking ``title.'' in paragraph (7) and inserting 
        ``title, except that a freight forwarder is included only if 
        performing a function related to highway transportation.'';
            (4) by redesignating paragraphs (9) through (13) as 
        paragraphs (12) through (16), respectively;
            (5) by inserting after paragraph (8) the following:
            ``(9) `out-of-service order' means a mandate that an 
        aircraft, vessel, motor vehicle, train, other vehicle, or a 
        part of any of these, not be moved until specified conditions 
        have been met.
            ``(10) `package' or `outside package' means a packaging 
        plus its contents.
            ``(11) `packaging' means a receptacle and any other 
        components or materials necessary for the receptacle to perform 
        its containment function in conformance with the minimum 
        packaging requirements established by the Secretary of 
        Transportation.''; and
            (6) by striking `` or transporting hazardous materials to 
        further a commercial enterprise;'' in paragraph (12)(A), as 
        redesignated by paragraph (4) of this subsection, and inserting 
        ``, and transporting hazardous materials to further a 
        commercial enterprise, or manufacturing, reconditioning, or 
        testing containers, drums, or other packagings represented as 
        qualified for use in transporting hazardous materials;''.
    (c) Clerical Amendment.--The chapter analysis of chapter 51 is 
amended by striking the item relating to section 5101 and inserting the 
following:

``5101. Findings and purposes.''.

SEC. 4. HANDLING CRITERIA REPEAL.

    Section 5106 is repealed and the chapter analysis of chapter 51 is 
amended by striking the item relating to that section.

SEC. 5. HAZMAT EMPLOYEE TRAINING REQUIREMENTS.

    Section 5107(f)(2) is amended by striking ``and section 5106, and 
subsections (a) through (g)(1) and (h) of section 5108(a), and 5109 of 
this title''.

SEC. 6. REGISTRATION.

    Section 5108 is amended by--
            (1) by striking subsection (b)(1)(C) and inserting the 
        following:
                    ``(C) each State in which the person carries out 
                any of the activities.'';
            (2) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the following:
    ``(c) Filing Schedule.--Each person required to file a registration 
statement under subsection (a) of this section shall file that 
statement annually in accordance with regulations issued by the 
Secretary.'';
            (3) by striking ``552(f)'' in subsection (f) and inserting 
        ``552(b)'';
            (4) by striking ``may'' in subsection (g)(1) and inserting 
        ``shall''; and
            (5) by inserting ``or an Indian tribe,'' in subsection 
        (i)(2)(B) after ``State,''.

SEC. 7. SHIPPING PAPER RETENTION.

    Section 5110(e) is amended by striking the first sentence and 
inserting ``After expiration of the requirement in subsection (c), the 
person who provided the shipping paper and the carrier required to 
maintain it under subsection (a) shall retain the paper or an 
electronic image thereof, for a period of 1 year after the shipping 
paper was provided to the carrier, to be accessible through their 
respective principal places of business.''.

SEC. 8. PUBLIC SECTOR TRAINING CURRICULUM.

    Section 5115 is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a), by striking ``Development and 
        Updating.--Not later than November 16, 1992, in'' and inserting 
        ``Updating.--In'';
            (2) in the first sentence of subsection (a), by striking 
        ``develop and'';
            (3) in subsection (a), by striking the second sentence;
            (4) in the first sentence of subsection (b), by striking 
        ``developed'';
            (5) in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of subsection (b)(1), by 
        inserting ``or involving an alternative fuel vehicle'' after 
        ``material''; and
            (6) by striking subsection (d) and inserting the following:
    ``(d) Distribution and Publication.--With the national response 
team, the Secretary of Transportation may publish a list of programs 
that use a course developed under this section for training public 
sector employees to respond to an accident or incident involving the 
transportation of hazardous materials.''.

SEC. 9. PLANNING AND TRAINING GRANTS.

    Section 5116 is amended by--
            (1) by striking ``of'' in the second sentence of subsection 
        (e) and inserting ``received by'';
            (2) by striking subsection (f) and inserting the following:
    ``(f) Monitoring and Technical Assistance.--The Secretary of 
Transportation shall monitor public sector emergency response planning 
and training for an accident or incident involving hazardous materials. 
Considering the results of the monitoring, the Secretary shall provide 
technical assistance to a State, political subdivision of a State, or 
Indian tribe for carrying out emergency response training and planning 
for an accident or incident involving hazardous materials and shall 
coordinate the assistance using the existing coordinating mechanisms of 
the national response team for oil and hazardous substances and, for 
radioactive material, the Federal Radiological Preparedness 
Coordinating Committee.''; and
            (3) by adding at the end thereof the following:
    ``(l) Small Businesses.--The Secretary may authorize a State or 
Indian tribe receiving a grant under this section to use up to 25 
percent of the amount of the grant to assist small businesses in 
complying with regulations issued under this chapter.''.

SEC. 10. SPECIAL PERMITS, PILOT PROGRAMS, AND EXCLUSIONS.

    (a) Section 5117 is amended--
            (1) by striking the section heading and inserting the 
        following:
``Sec.  Sec. 5117. Special permits, pilot programs, exemptions, and 
              exclusions'' ;
            (2) by striking ``2 years'' in subsection (a)(2) and 
        inserting ``4 years'';
            (3) by redesignating subsection (e) as subsection (f); and
            (4) by inserting after subsection (d) the following:
    ``(e) Authority to Carry Out Pilot Programs.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary is authorized to carry out 
        pilot programs to examine innovative approaches or alternatives 
        to regulations issued under this chapter for private motor 
        carriage in intrastate transportation of an agricultural 
production material from--
                    ``(A) a source of supply to a farm;
                    ``(B) a farm to another farm;
                    ``(C) a field to another field on a farm; or
                    ``(D) a farm back to the source of supply.
            ``(2) Limitation.--The Secretary may not carry out a pilot 
        program under paragraph (1) if the Secretary determines that 
        the program would pose an undue risk to public health and 
        safety.
            ``(3) Safety levels.--In carrying out a pilot project under 
        this subsection, the Secretary shall require, as a condition of 
        approval of the project, that the safety measures in the 
        project are designed to achieve a level of safety that is 
        equivalent to, or greater than, the level of safety that would 
        otherwise be achieved through compliance with the standards 
        prescribed under this chapter.
            ``(4) Termination of project.--The Secretary shall 
        immediately terminate any project entered into under this 
        subsection if the motor carrier or other entity to which it 
        applies fails to comply with the terms and conditions of the 
        pilot project or the Secretary determines that the project has 
        resulted in a lower level of safety than was maintained before 
        the project was initiated.
            ``(5) Nonapplication.--This subsection does not apply to 
        the application of regulations issued under this chapter to 
        vessels or aircraft.''.
    (b) Section 5119(c) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(4) Pending promulgation of regulations under this 
        subsection, States may participate in a program of uniform 
        forms and procedures recommended by the working group under 
        subsection (b).''.
    (c) The chapter analysis for chapter 51 is amended by striking the 
item related to section 5117 and inserting the following:

``5117. Special permits, pilot programs, exemptions, and exclusions.''.

SEC. 11. ADMINISTRATION.

    (a) Section 5121 is amended by striking subsections (a), (b), and 
(c) and redesignating subsections (d) and (e) as subsections (a) and 
(b), respectively.
    (b) Section 5122 is amended by redesignating subsections (a), (b), 
and (c) as subsections (d), (e), and (f), and by inserting before 
subsection (d), as redesignated, the following:
    ``(a) General Authority.--To carry out this chapter, the Secretary 
of Transportation may investigate, make reports, issue subpoenas, 
conduct hearings, require the production of records and property, take 
depositions, and conduct research, development, demonstration, and 
training activities. After notice and an opportunity for a hearing, the 
Secretary may issue an order requiring compliance with this chapter or 
a regulation prescribed under this chapter.
    ``(b) Records, Reports, and Information.--A person subject to this 
chapter shall--
            ``(1) maintain records, make reports, and provide 
        information the Secretary by regulation or order requires; and
            ``(2) make the records, reports, and information available 
        when the Secretary requests.
    ``(c) Inspection.--
            ``(1) The Secretary may authorize an officer, employee, or 
        agent to inspect, at a reasonable time and in a reasonable way, 
        records and property related to--
                    ``(A) manufacturing, fabricating, marking, 
                maintaining, reconditioning, repairing, testing, or 
                distributing a packaging or a container for use by a 
                person in transporting hazardous materials in commerce; 
                or
                    ``(B) the transportation of hazardous materials in 
                commerce.
            ``(2) An officer, employee, or agent under this subsection 
        shall display proper credentials when requested.''.

SEC. 12. COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.

    Section 5121, as amended by section 11(a), is further amended by 
adding at the end thereof the following:
    ``(f) Authority for Cooperative Agreements.--To carry out this 
chapter, the Secretary may enter into grants, cooperative agreements, 
and other transactions with a person, agency or instrumentality of the 
United States, a unit of State or local government, an Indian tribe, a 
foreign government (in coordination with the State Department), an 
educational institution, or other entity to further the objectives of 
this chapter. The objectives of this chapter include the conduct of 
research, development, demonstration, risk assessment, emergency 
response planning and training activities.''.

SEC. 13. ENFORCEMENT.

    Section 5122, as amended by section 11(b), is further amended--
            (1) in the first sentence of subsection (a), by inserting 
        ``inspect,'' after ``may'';
            (2) by striking the last sentence of subsection (a) and 
        inserting: ``Except as provided in subsection (e) of this 
        section, the Secretary shall provide notice and an opportunity 
for a hearing prior to issuing an order requiring compliance with this 
chapter or a regulation, order, special permit, or approval issued 
under this chapter.''; and
            (3) by redesignating subsections (d), (e) and (f) as 
        subsections (f), (g) and (h), and inserting after subsection 
        (c) the following:
    ``(d) Other Authority.--
            ``(1) Inspection.--During inspections and investigations, 
        officers, employees, or agents of the Secretary may--
                    ``(A) open and examine the contents of a package 
                offered for, or in, transportation when--
                            ``(i) the package is marked, labeled, 
                        certified, placarded, or otherwise represented 
                        as containing a hazardous material, or
                            ``(ii) there is an objectively reasonable 
                        and articulable belief that the package may 
                        contain a hazardous material;
                    ``(B) take a sample, sufficient for analysis, of 
                material marked or represented as a hazardous material 
                or for which there is an objectively reasonable and 
                articulable belief that the material may be a hazardous 
                material, and analyze that material;
                    ``(C) when there is an objectively reasonable and 
                articulable belief that an imminent hazard may exist, 
                prevent the further transportation of the material 
                until the hazardous qualities of that material have 
                been determined; and
                    ``(D) when safety might otherwise be compromised, 
                authorize properly qualified personnel to conduct the 
                examination, sampling, or analysis of a material.
            ``(2) Notification.--No package opened pursuant to this 
        subsection shall continue its transportation until the officer, 
        employee, or agent of the Secretary--
                    ``(A) affixes a label to the package indicating 
                that the package was inspected pursuant to this 
                subsection; and
                    ``(B) notifies the shipper that the package was 
                opened for examination.
    ``(e) Emergency Orders.--
            ``(1) If, through testing, inspection, investigation, or 
        research carried out under this chapter, the Secretary decides 
        that an unsafe condition or practice, or a combination of them, 
        causes an emergency situation involving a hazard of death, 
        personal injury, or significant harm to the environment, the 
        Secretary may immediately issue or impose restrictions, 
        prohibitions, recalls, or out-of-service orders, without notice 
        or the opportunity for a hearing, that may be necessary to 
        abate the situation.
            ``(2) The Secretary's action under this subsection must be 
        in a written order describing the condition or practice, or 
        combination of them, that causes the emergency situation; 
        stating the restrictions, prohibitions, recalls, or out-of-
        service orders being issued or imposed; and prescribing 
        standards and procedures for obtaining relief from the order.
            ``(3) After taking action under this subsection, the 
        Secretary shall provide an opportunity for review of that 
        action under section 554 of title 5.
            ``(4) If a petition for review is filed and the review is 
        not completed by the end of the 30-day period beginning on the 
        date the petition was filed, the action will cease to be 
        effective at the end of that period unless the Secretary 
        determines in writing that the emergency situation still 
        exists.''.

SEC. 14. PENALTIES.

    (a) In General.--Section 5123(a)(1) is amended by striking the 
first sentence and inserting the following: ``A person that knowingly 
violates this chapter or a regulation, order, special permit, or 
approval issued under this chapter is liable to the United States 
Government for a civil penalty of at least $250 but not more than 
$27,500 for each violation.''.
    (b) Degree of Culpability.--Section 5123(c)(2) is amended to read 
as follows:
            ``(2) with respect to the violator, the degree of 
        culpability, any good-faith efforts to comply with the 
        applicable requirements, any history of prior violations, any 
        economic benefit resulting from the violation, the ability to 
        pay, and any effect on the ability to continue to do business; 
        and''.
    (c) Criminal Penalty.--Section 5124 is amended to read as follows:
``Sec.  Sec. 5124. Criminal penalty
    ``(a) In General.--A person knowingly violating section 5104(b) of 
this title or willfully violating this chapter or a regulation, order, 
special permit, or approval issued under this chapter, shall be fined 
under title 18, imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both.
    ``(b) Aggravated Violations.--A person knowingly violating section 
5104(b) of this title or willfully violating this chapter or a 
regulation, order, special permit, or approval issued under this 
chapter, and thereby causing the release of a hazardous materials, 
shall be fined under title 18, imprisoned for not more than 20 years, 
or both.''.

SEC. 15. PREEMPTION.

    (a) Requirements Contrary to Purposes of Chapter.--Section 
5125(a)(2) is amended by inserting ``, the purposes of this chapter,'' 
after ``this chapter'' the first place it appears.
    (b) Deadwood.--Section 5125(b)(2) is amended by striking 
``prescribes after November 16, 1990.'' and inserting ``prescribes.''.
    (c) Independent Application of Preemption Standards.--Section 5125 
is amended by adding at the end thereof the following:
    ``(h) Independent Application of Each Standard.--Each preemption 
standard in subsections (a), (b)(1), (c), and (g) of this section and 
section 5119(c)(2) is independent in its application to a requirement 
of any State, political subdivision of a State, or Indian tribe.''.

SEC. 16. JUDICIAL REVIEW.

    (a) In General.--Chapter 51 is amended by redesignating section 
5127 as section 5128, and by inserting after section 5126 the following 
new section:
``Sec.  Sec. 5127. Judicial review
    ``(a) Filing and Venue.--Except as provided in section 20114(c), a 
person disclosing a substantial interest in a final order issued, under 
the authority of section 5122 or 5123, by the Secretary of 
Transportation, the Administrators of the Research and Special Programs 
Administration, the Federal Aviation Administration, or the Federal 
Highway Administration, or the Commandant of the United States Coast 
Guard (`modal Administrator'), with respect to the duties and powers 
designated to be carried out by the Secretary under this chapter, may 
apply for review in the United States Court of Appeals for the District 
of Columbia or in the court of appeals for the United States for the 
circuit in which the person resides or has its principal place of 
business. The petition must be filed not more than 60 days after the 
order is issued. The court may allow the petition to be filed after the 
60th day only if there are reasonable grounds for not filing by the 
60th day.
    ``(b) Judicial Procedures.--When a petition is filed under 
subsection (a) of this section, the clerk of the court immediately 
shall send a copy of the petition to the Secretary or the modal 
Administrator, as appropriate. The Secretary or the modal Administrator 
shall file with the court a record of any proceeding in which the order 
was issued, as provided in section 2112 of title 28.
    ``(c) Authority of Court.--When the petition is sent to the 
Secretary or the modal Administrator, the court has exclusive 
jurisdiction to affirm, amend, modify, or set aside any part of the 
order and may order the Secretary or the modal Administrator to conduct 
further proceedings. After reasonable notice to the Secretary or the 
modal Administrator, the court may grant interim relief by staying the 
order or taking other appropriate action when good cause for its action 
exists. Findings of fact by the Secretary or the modal Administrator, 
if supported by substantial evidence, are conclusive.
    ``(d) Requirement for Prior Objection.--In reviewing a final order 
under this section, the court may consider an objection to a final 
order of the Secretary or the modal Administrator only if the objection 
was made in the course of a proceeding or review conducted by the 
Secretary, the modal Administrator, or an administrative law judge, or 
if there was a reasonable ground for not making the objection in the 
proceeding.
    ``(e) Supreme Court Review.--A decision by a court under this 
section may be reviewed only by the Supreme Court under section 1254 of 
title 28, United States Code.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The chapter analysis for chapter 51 is 
amended by striking the item related to section 5127 and inserting the 
following:

``5127. Judicial review.
``5128. Authorization of appropriations.''.

SEC. 17. HAZARDOUS MATERIALS TRANSPORTATION REAUTHORIZATION.

    (a) In General.--Chapter 51, as amended by section 16 of this Act, 
is amended by redesignating section 5128 as section 5129 and by 
inserting after section 5127 the following:
``Sec.  Sec. 5128. High risk hazardous materials and hazardous waste; 
              motor carrier safety study
    ``(a) Study.--The Secretary of Transportation shall conduct a 
study--
            ``(1) to determine the safety benefits and administrative 
        efficiency of implementing a Federal permit program for high 
        risk hazardous materials and hazardous waste carriers;
            ``(2) to identify and evaluate alternative regulatory 
        methods and procedures that may improve the safety of high risk 
        hazardous materials and hazardous waste carriers and shippers, 
        including evaluating whether an annual safety fitness 
        determination that is linked to permit renewals for hazardous 
        materials and hazardous waste carriers is warranted;
            ``(3) to examine the safety benefits of increased 
        monitoring of high risk hazardous materials and hazardous waste 
        carriers, and the costs, benefits, and procedures of existing 
        State permit programs;
            ``(4) to make such recommendations as may be appropriate 
        for the improvement of uniformity among existing State permit 
        programs; and
            ``(5) to assess the potential of advanced technologies for 
        improving the assessment of high risk hazardous materials and 
        hazardous waste carriers' compliance with motor carrier safety 
        regulations.
    ``(b) Timeframe.--The Secretary shall begin the study required by 
subsection (a) within 6 months after the date of enactment of the 
Hazardous Materials Transportation Reauthorization Act of 1998 and 
complete it within 30 months after the date of enactment of that Act.
    ``(c) Report.--The Secretary shall report the findings of the study 
required by subsection (a), together with such recommendations as may 
be appropriate, within 36 months after the date of enactment of the 
Hazardous Materials Transportation Reauthorization Act of 1998.''.
    (b) Section 5109 Regulations to Reflect Study Findings.--Section 
5109(h) is amended by striking ``not later than November 16, 1991.'' 
and inserting ``based upon the findings of the study required by 
section 5128(a).''.
    (c) Conforming Amendment.--The chapter analysis for chapter 51, as 
amended by section 16, is amended by striking the item relating to 
section 5128 and inserting the following:

``5128. High risk hazardous materials and hazardous waste; motor 
                            carrier safety study.
``5129. Authorization of appropriations.''.

SEC. 18. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    Section 5129, as redesignated, is amended--
            (1) by striking subsection (a) and inserting the following:
    ``(a) General.--There are authorized to be appropriated to the 
Secretary of Transportation to carry out this chapter (except sections 
5107(e), 5108(g)(2), 5113, 5115, and 5116) not more than--
            ``(1) $15,492,000 for fiscal year 1998;
            ``(2) $16,000,000 for fiscal year 1999;
            ``(3) $16,500,000 for fiscal year 2000;
            ``(4) $17,000,000 for fiscal year 2001;
            ``(5) $17,500,000 for fiscal year 2002; and
            ``(6) $18,000,000 for fiscal year 2003.''; and
            (2) by striking subsections (c) and (d) and inserting the 
        following:
    ``(c) Training Curriculum.--Not more than $200,000 is available to 
the Secretary of Transportation from the account established under 
section 5116(i) for each of the fiscal years ending September 30, 1999-
2003, to carry out section 5115.
    ``(d) Planning and Training.--
            ``(1) Not more than $2,444,000 is available to the 
        Secretary of Transportation from the account established under 
        section 5116(i) for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1998, 
        and such sums as may be necessary for fiscal years 1999-2003, 
        to carry out section 5116(a).
            ``(2) Not more than $3,666,000 is available to the 
        Secretary of Transportation from the account established under 
        section 5116(i) for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1998, 
        and such sums as may be necessary for fiscal years 1999-2003, 
        to carry out section 5116(b).
            ``(3) Not more than $600,000 is available to the Secretary 
        of Transportation from the account established under section 
        5116(i) for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1998, and such 
        sums as may be necessary for fiscal years 1999-2003, to carry 
        out section 5116(f).''.
                                 <all>