Skolnik

Working within the jurisdictions of the DOT, the Research and Special Programs Administration (RSPA) wants to expands it‘s authority to investigate in-transit shipments of dangerous goods. Specifically, RSPA has introduced Bill-1072 to Congress proposing amendments to the Federal haz-mat Transportation Law that would: 1) allow DOT inspectors to open and examine a package if they believe it contains hazardous materials; 2) allow the DOT inspectors to remove a package from transport if they believe it would pose some risk; 3) allow the DOT inspector to collect information from the shipper, package manufacturer or others, to verify the nature of the haz-mat contents and their integrity; 4) allow the DOT inspector to call for a package in transport to be analyzed; and 5) provide qualified individuals to aid in the opening and examination of packagings in question. As of yet, the outcome of the Amendment is uncertain.