Senator Boxer Calls on GAO to Review TSA Standards for Granting Licenses to Truckers Transporting Hazardous Materials

May 18, 2007 -- Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, today called on the GAO to review TSA's standards for granting "Hazardous Materials Endorsements," which allow truckers to transport hazardous materials.

The letter comes in the wake of the recent highway interchange collapse near Oakland, CA, which occurred when the driver of a tanker containing thousands of gallons of gasoline crashed. Since the incident, news reporters have shown that the driver had a long criminal history, and the tanker and its drivers had been cited for safety violations 27 times since 2004.

Following please find Senator Boxer's letter to the GAO:

May 17, 2007

Mr. David M. Walker
Comptroller General
U.S. General Accountability Office
Washington, D.C. 20548

Dear Mr. Walker:

I write in the wake of the recent highway interchange collapse near Oakland, CA, caused by a driver crashing a tanker containing 8,600 gallons of gasoline to ask that the General Accountability Office (GAO) to undertake a review of the Transportation Security Administration's standards for granting "Hazardous Materials Endorsements," which allow individuals to transport hazardous materials by truck.

News reports indicate that the driver had a long criminal history, including a 1996 conviction for heroin possession, resulting in a prison term of two years and eight months. News reports also indicate that according to documents obtained from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, the tanker or its drivers were cited 27 times since 2004 for violations such as unsafe brakes and carrying too much gasoline. Nonetheless, this individual received a Hazardous Materials Endorsement last year from the TSA, allowing him to drive the gasoline tanker truck.

Fortunately, the accident occurred in the early hours of the morning and no one was killed in this normally high-traffic area of intersecting interstate highways. If this accident had occurred during rush hour, the results would have been catastrophic.

I have spoken to Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and he believes that a GAO investigation would be a reasonable next step to take as we review the granting of these "endorsements." In light of this, I ask that the GAO evaluate the current Hazardous Materials Endorsement standards to help me determine if they sufficiently protect the public.

Thank you for your attention to this crucial issue, which I hope you can address within the next 90 days.

Sincerely,

Barbara Boxer
United States Senator

Source: Senator Barbara Boxer

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