Alliance for Uniform Hazmat Transportation Procedures (The Alliance)
Regular Meeting of the Alliance Governing Board In Conjunction with NCSTS
Indianapolis, Indiana
June 11-12, 2007
Meeting Summary
The Alliance for Uniform Hazmat Transportation Procedures consists of seven states that have implemented uniform forms and procedures for the permitting and registration of motor carriers of hazardous materials pursuant to 49 USC 5119. This approach, called the Uniform Program (UP), has been adopted by Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, Ohio, Oklahoma, and West Virginia. A governing board made up of member Alliance states oversees activities related to implementation and operation of the Uniform Program. The Alliance is governed by several documents including the final report of the Alliance working group to the U.S. Secretary of Transportation and the Uniform Program Administrator’s Manual. The Alliance is staffed by the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL).
Attending
Alliance Board Members:
- John Canty, Ohio
- Pierre Carpenter, Minnesota
- Donna Redman, Nevada
- Cindy Bahner, Illinois
- Sherri Twidwell, Oklahoma
- Larry AuBuchon, Michigan, by phone second day
Staff:
Guest:
- Chuck Gohring, Missouri Department of Transportation (MODOT)
Opening
Past Chair John Canty gaveled the meeting to order at 9:45 am.
The January 2007 meeting summary was reviewed and approved unanimously on motion by Donna Redman and second by Pierre Carpenter.
Progress on the On-Line Application
Greg Bosque and Noah Lazar of Saforian, Inc. called in to discuss progress concerning the on-line application. They had distributed several questions ahead of the meeting for consideration. The group walked through the following issues questions.
Hosting
- Saforian is capable of hosting the first version of the live site.
- The group discussed requirements/recommendations for the level of SSL security certificate purchased for the site. Internal security audit or code review was discussed.
- How law enforcement would use the site was discussed.
Pre-Launch
- Saforian requested that a few states find a couple volunteer carriers to "pilot" the site during a soft launch. Several agreed to do so. The carrier would fill out their annual application, and the alliance state would keep track of their progress and report back any usability or functional issues that pop up.
- Are form field or instruction changes anticipated that should be incorporated into the online application before launch? None were anticipated.
Post-Launch
- Who would administrative access to the site in each state was discussed.
- Privacy requirements for the data were discussed.
Future
- How to handle updates and new features being added to the system was also discussed.
- Online payment was brought up. States were asked to start thinking about what issues might arise in moving to this method of payment.
In addition, a task list was discussed. Items included:
Alliance Task List
- Determine a domain name(s) for the live application to use, like hazmatalliance.com or uniformhazmat.us. Saforian can register it/them once decided. You can search for available domains at http://www.netsol.com/.
- Write a Privacy Policy for the site. A draft version can be generated from: http://www.the-dma.org/privacy/creating.shtml.
- Write a Terms & Conditions, and/or other "disclaimer" pages if any states require them. A Terms & Conditions page should be read by carriers before starting an application to cover any legal issues.
- Once the next build is pushed to the web site, review the sidebar instructions for each application page. Make sure the content is correct and provide Saforian with additional links to forms, policies, requirements, external sites, etc.
- Once the next build is pushed to the web site, we need the alliance members to create fake carrier accounts and review the entire application thoroughly. Look for any problems with content and functionality, and try to "break" the site if possible. Particularly check for fields that should/shouldn't have a "Not Applicable" option, and the calculations for the fees table.
- Provide a specific list of people (full names, emails, and base state) that will need administrative access to the list of completed applications for their state. This access will allow them to mark applications as "received" or "approved" and therefore lock-down the carrier from making additional changes. Saforian will maintain this access list in the short term.
- Determine who will have rights within the system for content/updates etc. Will there be a need for individual states to have this access or will it be managed via NCSL?
Oklahoma Peer Review
Sherri Twidwell led the Board through the completed peer review checklist for Oklahoma.
The issue of what information is public in compiling information for registration was raised. Sherri Twidwell stated that Oklahoma treats MCMIS profiles as confidential based on the terms and conditions that must be agreed to in order to use the MCMIS data base. Others agreed. It was suggested to clarify this during the Administrator’s Manual update session.
It was agreed to leave only current carriers on the quarterly report, after discussion.
The issue of defining a more standard approach to desk audits came up. The Manual update group will examine this.
Sherri described a twice a month required safety workshop for new intrastate carriers to educate them on all aspects and requirements related to motor carrier safety. Other states were complimentary of the program.
She agreed to e-mail out the registration checklist that Oklahoma uses.
The board found Oklahoma in compliance with Alliance program expectations and made the following recommendations:
- Notify states of revoked/suspended carriers by e-mail and mail.
- Share the number of citations for haz waste violations and fines paid.
State Reports
Nevada: Donna Redman said she is working on 80 July renewals. 740 total carriers. Some companies need education concerning what the various certifications mean. Nevada will be conducting some mini audits to address this. Has recently revoked one permit. Has the opportunity to identify 10 carriers for CRs.
Illinois: Cindy Bahner reported that 95 companies are permitted by Illinois. 576 companies are doing special waste (non-hazardous) shipments that receive a separate credential, example dirty dirt.
Missouri: Chuck Gohring reported that MoDot was not able to get legislation submitted on the Hazmat Alliance as UCR took precedence. The prospects for next year are uncertain, though Chuck will be pushing it forward again.
Ohio: John Canty reported that the number of carriers has risen to over 2,500. He mentioned that Autumn Industries was in the process of being revoked, and instead went out of business. Autumn had also been in trouble in other states. He mentioned the new carrier data base created by Ohio and encouraged other states to use it.
Oklahoma: Sherri Twidwell said that Oklahoma now has 48 carriers registered, which is down. A new law requiring a $10,000 fee for hazmat cleanup companies may be driving a few companies out of business.
West Virginia: Alan Abbott sent a report stating that WV has renewed approximately 230 hazmat applicants. The renewal process is going smoothly.
Minnesota: Pending
Michigan: Larry AuBuchon reported that Michigan has an increase in the liquid industrial waste (LIW) to 350; there are 80 hazwaste carriers in the program. The hazwaste program remains the same, though changes are being considered in the LIW program. Used oil is a liquid industrial waste. Michigan is trying to ensure that companies involved in the clean up of meth labs are properly credentialed in the Uniform Program. He discussed the budget problems in Michigan and how he has had trouble getting authority to pay the Alliance dues.
Delinquent Dues
A discussion arose about the appropriateness of the board levying a penalty on states that are delinquent in prompt payment. Concern was expressed that if one state doesn’t pay, then others may do the same.
Cindy Bahner moved that a penalty be put in place for delinquent dues at a rate of 10 percent if past the 60 day payment, with another 5 percent penalty assessed based on the delinquent payment and the penalty. The penalty applies to the full amount due. It would be effective August 1, 2007. The motion was seconded by Donna Redman. It was approved by a unanimous vote. A letter will go out to all the states that are delinquent
Alliance Governing Board Meeting--Day Two, June 12, 2007
Future of the Alliance
Past Chair John Canty called the meeting to order at 8:30 am. Jim Reed went over a paper prepared by Matt Sundeen addressing questions about the future formalization of the Alliance.
The paper addressed the history of the formation of the International Fuel Tax Agreement (IFTA) and the International Registration Plan (IRP). Both of these entities started with a small number of states that grew to include all the contiguous states and the Canadian provinces. Key to the formalization of both of these agreements was the Congressional mandate for all states to join each group.
The paper concluded that the Alliance needs a formal agreement. It was recommended that a committee be formed to draft an agreement followed by the formation of a corporation to handle the business of the base state agreement.
Discussion ensued on creating a Board subcommittee to work on a draft base state agreement. The process would be to create a draft base state agreement that would be presented to the board. Attorneys in each state would then be asked to review the draft and provide comments. Jim Reed will draft a timeline for action. The subcommittee will consist of Jim Rhode, John Canty and Jim Reed.
Outreach
Donna Redman reported that the state of Washington contacted Jim Rhode with interest in the Alliance. The Board discussed sending a delegation to Washington. Jim Reed will contact Jim Rhode to inquire as to interest.
It was suggested that each Alliance state reach out to neighboring states to see if interest has been rekindled in the Uniform Program. Jim Reed will update the state outreach matrix and request a list of state directors of trucking association. It was suggested also to put articles into industry trade association magazines and other resources.
Greater involvement of the trucking industry was discussed. Defining the benefits to them is a driving force in their involvement.
The revised draft brochure was reviewed. It was suggested to create two brochures—one targeted to states and one for the industry. The industry brochure should include quotes from trucking companies on the benefits. Contact should be made with ATA and OOITA-Rick Craig. They have a radio program.
Resending of information concerning the incentive grants was discussed.
The online application was mentioned as a big selling point.
More outreach to CVSA was proposed.
RFP for Benefits Study
Jim Reed will send out the draft RFP for a benefits study again for further review to board members. The thought was to increase the size of the study up to $50,000. The dissemination was discussed and TRB was mentioned as an outlet. A target of August 1, 2007 for release was agreed to.
Associate Membership
Adding an associate membership would show progress on Alliance. States receiving incentive grants would be associate members. Associate members would be welcome at board meetings and have input into board decisions. Associate members would on the mailing list for receipt of Alliance materials. A potential on-site periodic review was proposed by Chuck Gohring.
Responsibilities of associate members would include giving a status report twice a year.
Cindy Bahner moved to create an associate membership, with a second from Donna Redman. It passed unanimously and will be added to the Administrator’s Manual.
Data Reporting Frequency
Cindy Bahner proposed a monthly update of the carriers list rather than quarterly. All agreed. Sending the data in the correct format is vital. John Canty will compile. Submission date is the first working day of the month.
Review To Do List from January
The items from January were reviewed and reminders were issued for those items left undone.
Next Meeting
The next meeting of the Alliance Governing Board is January 22-23, 2008 in Savannah, Georgia in conjunction with COHMED. Nevada will be peer reviewed at this meeting.
Adjournment
Having completed the business at hand, the governing board adjourned.
To Do List from June 2007 Meeting
- Answer pending questions for Saforian regarding launch of the on-line application.
- Complete the 7-item Alliance Task List compiled by Saforian.
- Send letter to Oklahoma finding it in compliance with Uniform program standards after its peer review--Rhode, Reed.
- Add the new delinquent dues policy to the Administrator's Manual --Reed
- Begin work on the base state agreement--Subcommittee of Canty, Rhode, and Reed.
- Plan outreach trip to Washington--Rhode, Reed.
- Update outreach matrix--Reed.
- Outreach brochure; create one for new states, one for industry--Reed, with Alliance review.
- More, better outreach to CVSA.
- Add associate membership to Administrator's Manual, include as part of outreach brochure--Reed.
Reporting of carriers will now occur on a monthly basis-Canty, Schenk, AuBu
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