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April 29, 1999 3:56 PM, EDT

The federal fee for hazardous materials transport registration would take a big jump for a relatively small number of larger carriers and shippers under a proposal advanced by a cash-hungry Research and Special Programs Administration.

Also, many other businesses would have to register and pay the hazmat fee for the first time.

RSPA collects roughly half of the $12.8 million that Congress authorized to run the hazardous material transportation program each year. To close the gap, the agency wants to broaden the base to include any business shipping or hauling a load that must have a hazardous materials. That would add an estimated 15,000 to 18,000 registrants, according to RSPA.

It proposes a two-tiered fee structure that differentiates between small and large businesses. The majority of trucking operations would qualify as small businesses. Farmers would be exempt.

The current hazmat fee is $300, regardless of company’s size or the number of its shipments. In the new structure, companies that qualify as a small business under Small Business Administration standards would continue to pay $300. Larger companies would pay $2,000 a year.

RSPA estimates that 3% of companies would pay the higher fee.

For the full story, see the April 26 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.