83 FR 1189 - Hazardous, Restricted, and Perishable Mail (Publication 52); Incorporation by Reference

POSTAL SERVICE

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 7 (January 10, 2018)

The Postal Service announces the issuance of Hazardous, Restricted, and Perishable Mail (Publication 52) dated August 2017, and its incorporation by reference in the Code of Federal Regulations.

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 7 (Wednesday, January 10, 2018)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 1189-1190]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2018-00266]


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POSTAL SERVICE

39 CFR Part 113


Hazardous, Restricted, and Perishable Mail (Publication 52); 
Incorporation by Reference

AGENCY: Postal ServiceTM.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Postal Service announces the issuance of Hazardous, 
Restricted, and Perishable Mail (Publication 52) dated August 2017, and 
its incorporation by reference in the Code of Federal Regulations.

DATES: This final rule is effective on January 10, 2018. The 
incorporation by reference of certain publications listed in the rule 
is approved by the Director of the Federal Register as of January 10, 
2018.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lizbeth Dobbins (202) 268-3789.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The most recent issue of Hazardous, 
Restricted, and Perishable Mail (Publication 52) is dated August 2017. 
This issue of Publication 52 contains Postal Service mailing standards 
relating to the shipment of hazardous, restricted, and perishable 
materials. Publication 52 provides a complete and comprehensive source 
for users to find information necessary to properly prepare mailings of 
hazardous, restricted, and perishable materials, and limits the need 
for users to consult other information sources when preparing such 
mailings.
    Publication 52 is available, in a read-only format, to the mailing 
industry and general public via the Postal Explorer[supreg] website at 
http://pe.usps.com. The Postal Explorer application can be accessed 
directly at any time. In addition, links to Postal Explorer are 
provided on:
     The landing page of USPS.com, the Postal Service's primary 
customer-facing website; and
     The USPS application Postal Pro, an online informational 
source available to both mailing industry members and Postal customers, 
intended to eventually replace RIBBS.
    New editions of Publication 52 will be published at regular 
intervals, generally no less frequently than once each calendar year. 
Changes to mailing standards applicable to hazardous, restricted, and 
perishable materials will be made as necessary, and incorporated into 
each successive edition of Publication 52. The incorporation by 
reference of each edition of Publication 52 will be announced through 
publication in the Federal Register. Details of the revisions to 
Publication 52 will be published in the Postal Bulletin, available at 
https://about.usps.com/postal-bulletin/welcome.htm.
    Prior to July, 2014, the Postal Service maintained standards for 
the mailing of hazardous, restricted, and perishable mail in both the 
Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail 
Manual (DMM) and Publication 52. On July 28, 2014, as part of a 
continuing initiative to reduce the size of the DMM, the Postal Service 
removed from that publication the detailed mailing standards relating 
to hazardous, restricted, and perishable materials. In place of these 
detailed provisions, revised DMM 601.8.0 advised that mailing standards 
specific to hazardous, restricted, and perishable mail would be 
incorporated into Publication 52, and could be found on the Postal 
Explorer website at pe.usps.com.
    Based on its experience applying the mailing standards for 
hazardous, restricted and perishable mail since July 28, 2014, the 
Postal Service believes that these mailing standards were more visible 
to the mailing community when they were included in the DMM, which

[[Page 1190]]

is incorporated by reference in the Code of Federal Regulations, and 
thus more effective in supporting USPS efforts related to compliance 
and enforcement. The Postal Service expects that incorporation by 
reference of Publication 52 in the Code of Federal Regulations, will 
increase the visibility of the mailing standards contained in 
Publication 52 and thereby maximize their effectiveness and usefulness.
    Since their removal from the DMM, the mailing standards provided in 
Publication 52 have undergone few changes of significance; indeed, 
several of those changes have expanded the options available to HAZMAT 
mailers. With regard to changes having a wider impact on mailers, such 
as those required to conform Publication 52 to the revised standards 
for the shipment of lithium batteries established by the Pipeline and 
Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) and the International 
Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the Postal Service has been careful 
to provide advance notice to interested parties, with an opportunity to 
comment, and to shape the final standards in response to the comments 
received. See, e.g. 82 FR 11372 (February 22, 2017), and 82 FR 34712 
(July 26, 2017). Relating to violations of mailing standards for 
hazardous materials, the Postal Service currently has civil enforcement 
authority granted by the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act of 
2006, and authority to assess criminal penalties under 18 U.S.C. 1716. 
As a result, the Postal Service believes that the incorporation by 
reference of Publication 52 should have little or no impact on mailers 
of hazardous, restricted, or perishable materials, and the Postal 
Service would expect few comments in response to a proposed rule. 
Accordingly, the Postal Service has chosen to publish only a final rule 
in support of this action.
    The Postal Service further believes that incorporation by reference 
of Publication 52 is justified in view of the unique qualities of the 
publication, including its length, the detailed description of 
conditions relating to the mailing of hazardous, restricted, or 
perishable materials, and the presence of numerous color figures and 
images in the document. In addition, the potential for serious injury 
to Postal Service employees and the general public, as well as the 
potential for damage to USPS equipment and other assets resulting from 
improperly prepared, packaged, or marked hazardous materials, provide 
support for the incorporation by reference of a separate publication 
dealing specifically with such matters.

List of Subjects in 39 CFR Part 113

    Hazardous, restricted, and perishable mail, Incorporation by 
reference.

0
In consideration of the matters discussed above, the Postal Service 
adds new 39 CFR part 113 as follows:

PART 113--HAZARDOUS, RESTRICTED, AND PERISHABLE MAIL

Sec.
113.1 Scope and purpose.
113.2 Incorporation by reference.

    Authority: 5 U.S.C. 552(a); 13 U.S.C. 301-307; 18 U.S.C. 1692-
1737; 39 U.S.C. 101, 401, 403, 404, 414, 416, 3001-3011, 3201-3219, 
3403-3406, 3621, 3622, 3626, 3632, 3633, and 5001.


Sec.  113.1  Scope and purpose.

    This part applies to the mailing and shipment of hazardous, 
restricted, and perishable materials. In order to mail hazardous, 
restricted, and perishable materials, mailers must properly prepare 
their mailings in accordance with the standards contained in USPS 
Publication 52 (incorporated by reference, see Sec.  113.2).


Sec.  113.2  Incorporation by reference.

    (a) Certain material is incorporated by reference into this part 
with the approval of the Director of the Federal Register under 5 
U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. All approved material is available for 
inspection by appointment only, during normal hours of operation, at 
the U.S. Postal Service Library, 475 L'Enfant Plaza West SW, 
Washington, DC 20260-1641 (call 202-268-2906), and is available from 
the sources listed below. It is also available for inspection at the 
National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). For information on 
the availability of this material at NARA, call 202-741-6030 or go to 
www.archives.gov/federal-register/cfr/ibr-locations.html.
    (b) United States Postal Service, Product Classification Office, 
USPS Headquarters, 475 L'Enfant Plaza SW, Room 4446, Washington, DC 
20260-5013: http://pe.usps.com/text/pub52/welcome.htm.
    (1) Publication 52, Hazardous, Restricted and Perishable Mail, 
dated August 2017, IBR approved for Sec.  113.1.
    (2) [Reserved]

Stanley F. Mires,
Attorney, Federal Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2018-00266 Filed 1-9-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7710-12-P