Interpretation Response #24-0071
Below is the interpretation response detail and a list of regulations sections applicable to this response.
Interpretation Response Details
Response Publish Date:
Company Name: AWM Associates, LLC
Individual Name: Mike Millard
Location State: NM Country: US
View the Interpretation Document
Response text:
October 17, 2024
Mike Millard
President/Chief Safety Officer
AWM Associates, LLC
7911 Morrow Ave NE
Albuquerque, NM 87110
Reference No. 24-0071
Dear Mr. Millard:
This letter is in response to your August 15, 2024, letter requesting clarification of the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180) applicable to cargo tank testing requirements. Specifically, you ask whether it is a violation of the HMR for a non-DOT specification cargo tank without a specification plate to be marked with a "V," indicating it has passed the external visual inspection in accordance with § 180.407. You state that it is your understanding that a cargo tank without a specification plate cannot be marked as passing the external visual test, and that this would be a violation of §§ 180.407(d)(2)(vi), 180.415(a), and 171.1(a). You have also attached two previously issued letters of interpretation (Reference Nos. 17-0026 and 10-0186) which discuss markings on non-specification packagings.
Your understanding is incorrect. The sections you reference do not require the presence of a specification plate as a condition of performing the testing you describe. As stated in PHMSA's previously issued letter of interpretation (Reference No. 17-0026), it is not a violation of the HMR for a cargo tank owner to voluntarily perform requalification tests on a non-DOT specification cargo tank and to mark the cargo tank as having passed those tests. However, by voluntarily applying those markings, the owner of the cargo tank is responsible for performing those tests in accordance with all HMR requirements.
I hope this information is helpful. Please contact us if we can be of further assistance.
Sincerely,
Alexander Wolcott
Acting Chief, Regulatory Review and Reinvention Branch
Standards and Rulemaking Division
171.1(a),180.407, 180.407(d)(2)(vi), 180.415(a)