The FRA renewed its monetary threshold number requiring railroads to report accidents above that specification in terms of fiscal outlay for repairs. The 2018 rate remains $10,700, matching the 2017 rate. Amtrak Midwest train 391 crosses the 16th street interlocking in Chicago at 9:29 AM on Sunday, March 4th, 2018. A brand new Siemens SC-44 Charger passenger locomotive leads the way. Photo © 3/2018 by Nikki Burgess; all rights reserved.

March roars in like a lion and minces out like a lamb—so the old chestnut goes.  In regulatory terms, however, March seems lamb-like from the get-go, continuing the recent trend of minimal activity.  A revised hazardous waste manifest form livens things up a bit, however, if you are a CERCLA waste generator.  Here’s all the latest:

OSHA

The agency renewed an Information Collection Request regarding powered industrial trucks. OSHA uses such information to determine the course of future rulemaking activity.  See the ICR here

FRA

• The agency has a new administrator.  Railroad veteran Ronald Batory was confirmed by the Senate and takes the reins, bringing a wealth of operating experience in the industry to the seat.  See FRA’s announcement here
• FRA also renewed its threshold limit for when an accident on the railroad must be reported due to monetary value.  The number remains at the 2017 level of $10,700 USD.  See the notice here

EPA

In a bit of a stunner, the EPA announced that effective 6/30/2018, a new 5-part hazardous waste manifest form will be required for users of paper manifests.  Use of the old form will not be authorized on or after that date.  Similarly, the new form may not be used before that date.  That’s right—as of right now, no transition period has been authorized.  Labelmaster will have the new forms in stock in plenty of time for the new deadline.  Find out more about the change here—see in particular FAQ #21 in this link:

We’ll also be blogging more extensively about this change and what it means, so watch our forum for more information in the near future.

Labelmaster is a full service provider of products, shipping and training software, and professional consulting services to assist the DG and HS&E professional to comply with national and international regulations.  See our full line of solutions at www.labelmaster.com.