[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 80 (Wednesday, April 26, 2023)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 25335-25336]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-08724]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

49 CFR Parts 107, 171, 172, 173, 178, and 180

[Docket No. PHMSA-2020-0102 (HM-219D); Notice No. 2023-06]
RIN 2137-AF49


Hazardous Materials: Adoption of Miscellaneous Petitions and 
Updating Regulatory Requirements

AGENCY: Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), 
Department of Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Proposed rule; extension of comment period.

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SUMMARY: On March 3, 2023, PHMSA published a notice of proposed 
rulemaking (NPRM), entitled ``Hazardous Materials: Adoption of 
Miscellaneous Petitions and Updating Regulatory Requirements (HM-
219D),'' proposing changes to update, clarify, improve the safety of, 
or streamline various regulatory requirements. In response to a request 
for an extension of the comment period submitted by Worthington 
Industries, PHMSA is extending the comment period for the HM-219D NPRM 
for an additional 45 days. Comments to the HM-219D NPRM will now be due 
by June 16, 2023.

DATES: Comments should be received on or before June 16, 2023. To the 
extent possible, PHMSA will consider late-filed comments.

ADDRESSES: Comments should reference Docket No. PHMSA-2020-0102 (HM-
219D) and may be submitted in the following ways:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
     Mail: Dockets Management System, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, Dockets Operations, M-30, Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 
1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
     Hand Delivery: To the Docket Management System: Room W12-
140 on the ground floor of the West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue 
SE, Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, except federal holidays.
    Instructions: All submissions must include the Agency name and 
Docket Number (PHMSA-2020-0102) for this notice at the beginning of the 
comment. To avoid duplication, please use only one of these four 
methods. All comments received will be posted without change to the 
Federal Docket Management System (FDMS) and will include any personal 
information you provide.
    Docket: For access to the dockets to read associated documents or 
comments received, go to https://www.regulations.gov or DOT's Docket 
Operations Office (see ADDRESSES).
    Privacy Act: In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits 
comments from the public to better inform its process. DOT posts these 
comments without change, including any personal information the 
commenter provides, to https://www.regulations.gov, as described in the 
system of records notice (DOT/ALL-14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at 
https://www.dot.gov/privacy.
    Confidential Business Information: Confidential Business 
Information (CBI) is commercial or financial information that is both 
customarily and actually treated as private by its owner. Under the 
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA; 5 U.S.C. 552), CBI is exempt from 
public disclosure. If your comments responsive to this NPRM contain 
commercial or financial information that is customarily treated as 
private, that you actually treat as private, and that is relevant or 
responsive to this NPRM, it is important that you clearly designate the 
submitted comments as CBI. Please mark each page of your submission 
containing CBI as ``PROPIN'' for ``proprietary information.'' 
Submissions containing CBI should be sent to Steven Andrews, U.S. 
Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 
20590-0001. Any commentary that PHMSA receives that is not specifically 
designated as CBI will be placed in the public docket for this 
rulemaking.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Steven Andrews, Standards and 
Rulemaking Division, 202-366-8553, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials 
Safety Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590-0001.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    PHMSA published the HM-219D NPRM \1\ on March 3, 2023, in response 
to 18 petitions for rulemaking submitted by the regulated community 
between May 2018 and October 2020 that requested PHMSA address a 
variety of provisions, including but not limited to those pertaining to 
packaging, hazard communication, and the incorporation by reference of 
certain documents. These proposed revisions maintain or enhance the 
existing high level of safety under the Hazardous Materials Regulations 
while providing clarity and appropriate regulatory flexibility in the 
transport of hazardous materials. On April 6, 2023, PHMSA received a 
comment to the HM-219D NPRM docket submitted by Worthington Industries 
requesting that PHMSA rescind certain elements of the HM-219D NPRM or 
(in the alternative) extend the comment period for responding to the 
NPRM.
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    \1\ See Hazardous Materials: Adoption of Miscellaneous Petitions 
and Updating Regulatory Requirements NPRM [88 FR 13624] at https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/03/03/2023-03366/hazardous-materials-adoption-of-miscellaneous-petitions-and-updating-regulatory-requirements.
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II. Comment Period Extension

    PHMSA initially provided a 60-day comment period for the HM-219D 
NPRM, which closes on May 2, 2023. In response to a request to extend 
the comment period from Worthington Industries, PHMSA is extending the 
comment period for an additional 45 days. The comment period will now 
close on June 16, 2023. This extension provides the public with an 
additional 45 days and should provide adequate opportunity for the 
public to submit comments; however, PHMSA may at its discretion extend 
the comment period further if necessary. To the extent possible, PHMSA 
will also consider late-filed comments.


[[Page 25336]]


    Issued in Washington, DC, on April 20, 2023, under authority 
delegated in 49 CFR part 1.97.
William S. Schoonover,
Associate Administrator of Hazardous Materials Safety, Pipeline and 
Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.
[FR Doc. 2023-08724 Filed 4-25-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-60-P