[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 148 (Tuesday, August 4, 2026)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 49295-49298]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2026-15812]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration
49 CFR Part 107
[Docket No. PHMSA-2025-0096 (HM-268H)]
RIN 2137-AG10
Hazardous Materials: Modernizing Payments To and From America's
Bank Account
AGENCY: Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA),
Department of Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: This final rule modernizes the payment system for hazardous
materials transportation registration fees by eliminating the option to
pay by paper check and requiring electronic payment through the U.S.
Department of Transportation (Department or DOT) e-Commerce internet
site. This action improves processing efficiency, reduces
administrative burden, and aligns payment procedures with current
Government-wide electronic commerce practices.
DATES: This final rule is effective September 3, 2026.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Yul B. Baker Jr., Transportation
Regulations Specialist, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC
20590, 202-366-8553, [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. PHMSA Action
A. What action is PHMSA taking in this final rule?
PHMSA is revising 49 CFR 107.616 to eliminate the option to pay the
hazardous materials transportation registration fee by paper check and
require electronic payment.
B. Does this action apply to me?
Effective 30 days after publication of this final rule, persons
subject to the registration requirements in 49 CFR 107.601 must pay
registration fees electronically.
C. Why is PHMSA taking this action?
PHMSA is taking this action in response to commenter feedback and
to advance the goals of Executive Order (E.O.) 14247 (Modernizing
Payments To and From America's Bank Account).\1\ Executive Order 14247
directs that, as soon as practicable and to the extent permitted by
law, all payments to the Federal Government must be processed
electronically. The Order further requires the Secretary of the
Treasury to take appropriate action to eliminate the need for the
Department of the Treasury's (``Treasury'') physical lockbox services
and to expedite the receipt of Federal payments--including fees--
through electronic means.
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\1\ 90 FR 14001 (Mar. 25, 2025).
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II. Summary of Comments Received in Response to the Notice of Proposed
Rulemaking
PHMSA published a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM), cited as
HM-268H, to gather feedback on revising the hazardous materials
registration fee payment system.\2\ Please refer to the NPRM for
background and discussion of the proposed change.
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\2\ 90 FR 28528 (Jul. 1, 2025).
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The following table alphabetically lists commenters to the NPRM:
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Commenter name Docket No.
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Council on Safe Transportation of PHMSA-2025-0096-0003
Hazardous Articles, Inc.
(COSTHA).
Dangerous Goods Advisory Council. PHMSA-2025-0096-0005
Institute of Makers of Explosives PHMSA-2025-0096-0004
National Tank Truck Carriers..... PHMSA-2025-0096-0002
Nuclear Energy Institute......... PHMSA-2025-0097-0002
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All commenters supported the proposed amendment requiring
electronic-only payment of hazardous materials transportation
registration fees. COSTHA expressed support for the proposal but
requested clarification on whether members must use a credit card or
may continue to make electronic bank-to-bank or Automated Clearing
House (ACH) payments. COSTHA noted that many members use ACH payments
through the Department's e-Commerce
[[Page 49296]]
site and that some users find ACH payments more practical and cost-
effective than credit card transactions.
PHMSA is not removing the ability to make ACH payments. The
electronic-only payment system will rely exclusively on digital or
electronic methods for transactions related to hazardous materials
transportation registration fees. Funds may be transferred through
electronic networks using credit or debit cards, mobile wallets, direct
bank transfers, or other digital platforms--including use of ACH
payments.
III. Regulatory Analysis and Notices
A. Legal Authority
This final rule is published under the authority of the Secretary
of Transportation as set forth in the Federal Hazardous Materials
Transportation Laws (49 U.S.C. 5101 et seq.) and delegated to the PHMSA
Administrator pursuant to 49 CFR 1.97.
B. Executive Order 12866; Regulatory Planning and Review
Executive Order 12866 (Regulatory Planning and Review), as
implemented by 49 CFR part 5, subpart B, requires agencies to regulate
in the ``most cost-effective manner,'' to make a ``reasoned
determination that the benefits of the intended regulation justify its
costs,'' and to develop regulations that ``impose the least burden on
society.'' \3\ In arriving at those conclusions, E.O. 12866 requires
that agencies should consider ``both quantifiable measures . . . and
qualitative measures of costs and benefits that are difficult to
quantify'' and ``maximize net benefits . . . unless a statute requires
another regulatory approach.'' E.O. 12866 also requires that ``agencies
should assess all costs and benefits of available regulatory
alternatives, including the alternative of not regulating.'' Pursuant
to 49 CFR part 5, subpart B, PHMSA and other Operating Administrations
must generally choose the ``least costly regulatory alternative that
achieves the relevant objectives'' unless required by law or compelling
safety need. In addition, 49 CFR part 5, subpart B also specifies that
regulations should generally ``not be issued unless their benefits are
expected to exceed their costs.''
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\3\ 58 FR 51735 (Oct. 4, 1993); 91 FR 22431 (Apr. 27, 2026); DOT
Order 2100.7 (Ensuring Reliance Upon Sound Economic Analysis in
Department of Transportation Policies, Programs, and Activities);
see also DOT Order 2100.6B (Policies and Procedures for
Rulemakings).
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E.O. 12866 and 49 CFR part 5, subpart B also require that PHMSA
submit ``significant regulatory actions'' to the Office of Information
and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) within the Executive Office of the
President's Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. This
final rule is not a significant regulatory action pursuant to E.O.
12866 and has not been designated as a ``major rule'' as defined by the
Congressional Review Act (5 U.S.C. 801 et seq.).
PHMSA has complied with the requirements in E.O. 12866 as
implemented by 49 CFR part 5, subpart B. PHMSA has determined that this
final rule will impose negligible burdens for shippers and carriers who
will be newly required to comply with electronic registration
requirements because the means to make electronic payments have become
ubiquitous and easy to obtain. PHMSA estimates a small cost savings to
government focused on the reduction of processing paper forms and paper
checks. Based on an estimated reduction of 156 hours per year of
internal labor compensated at $49.31 per hour, PHMSA estimates an
internal cost savings of $7,691.87 per year in 2024 dollars, at both
three and seven percent discount rates.\4\ The change to accept
electronic-only payments aligns with the Treasury's initiative to
eliminate the need for physical lockbox services and expedite receipt
of payments through electronic means. This change will improve
government efficiency for American taxpayers and result in additional
unquantified cost savings accruing to the Treasury.\5\
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\4\ Quantified cost savings are based on General Schedule grade
GS-7 step 5 pay of $63,381 per year, with wages representing 61.8
percent of compensation for government workers. PHMSA estimated an
internal labor cost of three hours per week to process paper forms
and checks based on interviews with employees involved in the
process. See: OPM, General Schedule (GS) Salary Calculator,
available at: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries-wages/2024/general-schedule-gs-salary-calculator/; see also
BLS, Employer Costs for Employee Compensation Summary (Mar. 20,
2026), available at: https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.nr0.htm.
\5\ See E.O. 14247, Modernizing Payments To and From America's
Bank Account (Mar. 25, 2025), outlining the risks and costs of
maintaining paper-based payments to the Federal Government.
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C. Executive Orders 14192 and 14219
PHMSA has determined that this final rule is an E.O. 14192
(Unleashing Prosperity Through Deregulation) deregulatory action.\6\
PHMSA finds the total costs of the rule on the regulated community will
be less than zero. This final rule does not implicate any of the
factors identified in section 2(a) of E.O. 14219 (Ensuring Lawful
Governance) indicative of a regulation that is ``unlawful . . . [or]
that undermine[s] the national interest.'' \7\
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\6\ 90 FR 9065 (Feb. 6, 2025).
\7\ 90 FR 10583 (Feb. 25, 2025).
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D. Energy-Related Executive Orders 13211, 14154, and 14156
PHMSA has analyzed this final rule in accordance with the
principles and criteria contained in E.O. 14156 (Declaring a National
Energy Emergency) and E.O. 14154 (Unleashing American Energy).\8\ The
President has declared a national emergency to address America's
inadequate energy development production, transportation, refining, and
generation capacity and asserted a Federal policy to unleash American
energy by ensuring access to abundant supplies of reliable, affordable
energy from (inter alia) the removal of ``undue burden[s]'' on the
identification, development, or use of domestic energy resources. PHMSA
finds this final rule to be consistent with E.O. 14156 and E.O. 14154
because it will not hinder or unduly burden the transportation or
production of energy or energy-related products.
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\8\ 90 FR 8433 (Jan. 29, 2025); 90 FR 8353 (Jan. 29, 2025).
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In addition, this final rule is not a ``significant energy action''
under E.O. 13211 (Actions Concerning Regulations That Significantly
Affect Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use), which requires Federal
agencies to prepare a Statement of Energy Effects for any ``significant
energy action.'' \9\ Because this final rule is not a significant
action under E.O. 12866, it will not have a significant adverse effect
on supply, distribution, or energy use; accordingly, OIRA has not
designated this final rule as a significant energy action.
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\9\ 66 FR 28355 (May 22, 2001).
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E. Executive Order 13132: Federalism
PHMSA analyzed this final rule in accordance with the principles
and criteria contained in E.O. 13132 (Federalism) and the Presidential
Memorandum (Preemption) published in the Federal Register on May 22,
2009.\10\ E.O. 13132 requires agencies to assure meaningful and timely
input by State and local officials in the development of regulatory
policies that may have ``substantial direct effects on the States, on
the relationship between the National Government and the States, or on
the distribution of power and responsibilities among the various levels
of government.'' The Federal Hazardous Materials Transportation Laws
contain an express preemption provision at 49 U.S.C. 5125(b) that
[[Page 49297]]
preempts State, local, and Tribal requirements on certain covered
subjects, unless the non-Federal requirements are ``substantively the
same'' as the Federal requirements, including the following:
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\10\ 64 FR 43255 (Aug. 10, 1999); 74 FR 24693 (May 22, 2009).
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(1) The designation, description, and classification of hazardous
material;
(2) The packing, repacking, handling, labeling, marking, and
placarding of hazardous material;
(3) The preparation, execution, and use of shipping documents
related to hazardous material and requirements related to the number,
contents, and placement of those documents;
(4) The written notification, recording, and reporting of the
unintentional release in transportation of hazardous material; and
(5) The design, manufacture, fabrication, inspection, marking,
maintenance, recondition, repair, or testing of a packaging or
container represented, marked, certified, or sold as qualified for use
in transporting hazardous material in commerce.
This final rule does not address any of the covered subject items
listed above that would preempt State, local, and Tribal requirements
not meeting the ``substantively the same'' standard. Therefore, the
consultation and funding requirements of E.O. 13132 do not apply.
F. Regulatory Flexibility Act
The Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) requires
Federal agencies to conduct a Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis
(FRFA) for a final rule that has been subject to a notice-and-comment
rulemaking under the APA unless the agency head certifies that the
final rule in the rulemaking will not have a significant economic
impact on a substantial number of small entities. E.O. 13272 (Proper
Consideration of Small Entities in Agency Rulemaking) obliges agencies
to establish procedures promoting compliance with the Regulatory
Flexibility Act.\11\ DOT posts information on a dedicated web page to
help small businesses understand and navigate Federal regulatory
processes.\12\ PHMSA developed this final rule in accordance with E.O.
13272 and DOT implementing guidance to ensure compliance with the
Regulatory Flexibility Act. PHMSA has concluded that the incremental
costs of the final rule will be negligible and certifies that the final
rule will not have a significant impact on a substantial number of
small entities.
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\11\ 67 FR 53461 (Aug. 16, 2002).
\12\ DOT, Rulemaking Requirements Related to Small Entities
(last accessed Sept 3, 2024), available at: https://www.transportation.gov/regulations/rulemaking-requirements-concerning-small-entities.
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G. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995
The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA, 2 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.)
requires agencies to assess the effects of Federal regulatory actions
on State, local, and Tribal governments, and the private sector. For
any proposed or final rule that includes a Federal mandate that may
result in the expenditure by State, local, and Tribal governments, in
the aggregate of $100 million or more (in 1996 dollars) in any given
year, the agency must prepare, amongst other things, a written
statement that qualitatively and quantitatively assesses the costs and
benefits of the Federal mandate.
This final rule does not impose unfunded mandates under UMRA
because it does not result in costs of $100 million or more (in 1996
dollars) per year for either State, local, or Tribal governments, or to
the private sector.
H. National Environmental Policy Act
PHMSA has analyzed this rule pursuant to the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and has determined it is
categorically excluded under 23 CFR 771.117(c)(20), which applies to
the promulgation of rules, regulations, and directives. Under Section 9
of DOT Order 5610.1D, PHMSA may apply a categorical exclusion (CE)
established in another Operating Administration's procedures. PHMSA
followed the requirements outlined in DOT Order 5610.1D to apply the
Federal Highway Administration's CE to this deregulatory action. PHMSA
has determined no unusual circumstances are present under 23 CFR
771.117(b). PHMSA's Categorical Exclusion Determination memo for this
action is available on PHMSA's website.\13\
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\13\ DOT, PHMSA, Implementing Procedures (Aug. 28, 2025),
https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/planning-and-analytics/environmental-analysis-and-compliance/implementing-procedures.
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I. Executive Order 13175
PHMSA analyzed this final rule according to the principles and
criteria in E.O. 13175 (Consultation and Coordination with Indian
Tribal Governments) and DOT Order 5301.1A (Department of Transportation
Tribal Consultation Policies and Procedures).\14\ E.O. 13175 requires
agencies to assure meaningful and timely input from Tribal government
representatives in the development of rules that significantly or
uniquely affect Tribal communities by imposing ``substantial direct
compliance costs'' or ``substantial direct effects'' on such
communities or the relationship or distribution of power between the
Federal Government and Tribes.
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\14\ 65 FR 67249 (Nov. 9, 2000).
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PHMSA assessed the impact of the final rule and determined that it
will not significantly or uniquely affect Tribal communities or Indian
Tribal governments. The rulemaking's regulatory amendments have a
broad, national scope; therefore, this final rule will not
significantly or uniquely affect Tribal communities, much less impose
substantial compliance costs on Tribal governments or mandate Tribal
action. For these reasons, PHMSA has concluded that the funding and
consultation requirements of E.O. 13175 and DOT Order 5301.1A do not
apply.
J. Paperwork Reduction Act
The Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) and its
implementing regulations at 5 CFR 1320.8(d) require that PHMSA provide
interested members of the public and affected agencies with an
opportunity to comment on information collection and recordkeeping
requests. This rulemaking will not create, amend, or rescind any
existing information collections.
K. Executive Order 13609 and International Trade Analysis
E.O. 13609 (Promoting International Regulatory Cooperation)
requires agencies consider whether the impacts associated with
significant variations between domestic and international regulatory
approaches are unnecessary or may impair the ability of American
business to export and to compete internationally.\15\ In meeting
shared challenges involving health, safety, labor, security,
environmental, and other issues, international regulatory cooperation
can identify approaches that are at least as protective as those that
are or would be adopted in the absence of such cooperation.
International regulatory cooperation can also reduce, eliminate, or
prevent unnecessary differences in regulatory requirements.
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\15\ 77 FR 26413 (May 4, 2012).
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Similarly, the Trade Agreements Act of 1979 (Pub. L. 96-39), as
amended by the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (Pub. L. 103-465),
prohibits Federal agencies from establishing any standards or engaging
in related activities that create unnecessary obstacles to the foreign
commerce of the United States. For purposes of these requirements,
Federal agencies may
[[Page 49298]]
participate in the establishment of international standards, so long as
the standards have a legitimate domestic objective, such as providing
for safety, and do not operate to exclude imports that meet this
objective. The statute also requires consideration of international
standards and, where appropriate, that they be the basis for U.S.
standards.
PHMSA engages with international standards setting bodies to
protect the safety of the American public. PHMSA has assessed the
effects of this final rule and has determined that its regulatory
amendments will not cause unnecessary obstacles to foreign trade.
L. Cybersecurity and Executive Order 14028
Executive Order 14028 (Improving the Nation's Cybersecurity)
directed the Federal Government to improve its efforts to identify, to
deter, and to respond to ``persistent and increasingly sophisticated
malicious cyber campaigns.'' \16\ PHMSA has considered the effects of
the final rule and has determined that its regulatory amendments would
not materially affect the cybersecurity risk profile for affected
entities.
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\16\ 86 FR 26633 (May 17, 2021).
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M. Privacy Act Statement
In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits comments from the
public to better inform its rulemaking process. DOT posts these
comments, without edit, including any personal information the
commenter provides, to www.regulations.gov, as described in the system
of records notice (DOT/ALL-14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at http://www.dot.gov/privacy. DOT's complete Privacy Act Statement in the
Federal Register published on April 11, 2000, or on DOT's website at
http://www.dot.gov/privacy.
List of Subjects in 49 CFR Part 107
Administrative practice and procedure, Hazardous materials
transportation, Packaging and containers, Penalties, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements.
In consideration of the foregoing, PHMSA amends 49 CFR Chapter I as
follows:
PART 107--HAZARDOUS MATERIALS PROGRAM AND PROCEDURES
0
1. The authority citation for part 107 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 49 U.S.C. 5101-5128, 44701; Pub. L. 101-410 section
4; Pub. L. 104-121, Section 212-213; Pub. L. 104-134 Section 31001;
Pub. L. 114-74 Section 701 (28 U.S.C. 2461 note); 49 CFR 1.81 and
1.97; 33 U.S.C. 1321.
0
2. Revise Sec. 107.616 to read as follows:
Sec. 107.616 Payment procedures.
(a) Each person subject to the requirements of this subpart must
submit the registration statement and payment electronically in full
through the Department's e-Commerce internet site. Access to this
service is provided at: https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/registration/registration-overview. A registrant required to file an amended
registration statement under Sec. 107.608(c) of this subpart must
submit it through the same internet site.
(b) Payment must be made by completing an authorization for payment
by credit card or other electronic means of payment acceptable to the
U.S. Department of Transportation as part of an internet registration
as provided in paragraph (a) of this section.
(c) Payment must correspond to the total fees properly calculated
in the ``Amount Due'' block of DOT form F 5800.2. A person may elect to
register and pay the required fees for up to three registration years
by filing one complete and accurate registration statement.
Issued in Washington, DC, on July 31, 2026, under the authority
delegated in 49 CFR 1.97.
Paul J. Roberti
Administrator, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.
[FR Doc. 2026-15812 Filed 8-3-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-60-P