Interpretation Response #24-0101
Below is the interpretation response detail and a list of regulations sections applicable to this response.
Interpretation Response Details
Response Publish Date:
Company Name:
Individual Name: Adel G Hanna
Location State: OK Country: US
View the Interpretation Document
Response text:
March 26, 2025
Adel G Hanna
PO Box 271390
Oklahoma City, OK 73137
Reference No. 24-0101
Dear Ms. Hanna:
This letter is in response to your October 21, 2024, email requesting clarification of the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180) applicable to the shipper's certification shipping paper requirement. Specifically, must the "shipper's certification" section on a shipping paper be left blank if a shipment does not contain a regulated hazardous material?
No. The requirements of § 172.204 "Shipper's Certification" apply to offerors of hazardous materials in transportation, except as described in §§ 172.204(b) and (c). There is no requirement to sign the shipper's certification if the shipment that is offered contains no hazardous materials. Per § 171.1(b)(11), only the certification "that a hazardous material is in proper condition for transportation in conformance with the requirements of the HMR" is a regulated pre-transportation function. If no hazardous materials are present in the shipment, signature of a bill of lading or language matching the shipper's certification found in § 172.204 would not be a pre-transportation function as defined in the HMR and therefore not a violation of the HMR. Please note that including language matching the § 172.204 "Shipper's Certification" in the bill of lading for a non-hazardous shipment could result in frustration of your shipment.
I hope this information is helpful. Please contact us if we can be of further assistance.
Sincerely,
T. Glenn Foster
Chief, Regulatory Review and Reinvention Branch
Standards and Rulemaking Division
172.204, 172.204(b), 172.204 (c), 171.1(b)(11)