Interpretation Response #03-0328

Interpretation Response Details

Nov 20, 2003

Mr. Kraig R. Naasz, President                Reference No. 03-0328
The Fertilizer Institute
820 First Street, N.E., Suite 430
Washington, D.C. 20002

Dear Mr. Naasz:

This responds to an emailed inquiry from your organization concerning the applicability of the security plan requirements in Subpart I of Part 172 of the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180) to agricultural retailers. Specifically, you ask whether an agricultural retailer is required to verify that a customer has a security plan.

The security plan requirements in Subpart I of Part 172 apply to persons who offer for transportation or transport certain hazardous materials in commerce. An agricultural retailer who sells agricultural products such as fertilizer or pesticides to a farmer is an offeror for purposes of the HMR and, thus, must develop and implement a security plan if it sells hazardous materials in the types and amounts listed in § 172.800(b). In accordance with § 172.802, the security plan must address personnel security, unauthorized access, and en route security.

The regulations do not require an agricultural retailer to verify that its customers have a security plan nor do the regulations require the retailer to collect or review customer security plans. However, the retailer's security plan should indicate the measures it has taken to address en route security. For example, an agricultural retailer may want to suggest to his customers that they take certain precautions while transporting the hazardous materials from the retailer's facility to the customer's facility. Such precautions could include: (1) to the extent practical, minimizing transit time by going directly from the retailer to the destination; (2) to the extent practical, preventing unauthorized persons from gaining access to the shipment by monitoring the shipment during stops, locking the shipment inside the transport vehicle, securing the shipment to the transport vehicle, and/or securing closures on the container(s) or package(s); and (3) reporting suspicious incidents or events to local law enforcement officials and/or the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The Research and Special Programs Administration has developed a fact sheet and a sample security plan (copies enclosed) to assist farmers to comply with the security plan requirements in Subpart I of Part 172. To address security issues associated-with the transportation of 03-0333 products to the customer's facility, an agricultural retailer may want to provide the customer with copies of the fact sheet and the sample security plan.

I hope this information is helpful. If you have additional questions, please do not hesitate to contact this office.

Sincerely,

Robert A. McGuire
Associate Administrator for Hazardous Materials Safety

Enclosures

Regulation Sections