Background The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has the authority to issue regulations governing the safe transportation of hazardous materials in intrastate, interstate and foreign commerce. This authority was granted in the Hazardous Materials Transportation Act, first adopted in 1974 and amended in November, 1990, as the Hazardous Materials Transportation Uniform Safety Act of 1990. The DOT’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) regulates the transport of hazardous materials through Title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Subchapter C, "Hazardous Materials Regulations." Parts 171-180 provide general information on hazardous materials and regulations for their packaging and their […]