The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Pipeline Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) has the responsibility for issuance of Special Permits* (DOT-SP), Competent Authority Approvals* (CAA), and Authority for the classification, or reclassification of certain reactive hazardous material articles. A DOT-SP or CAA approval is a document that authorizes a person, company, or operator to perform a Hazardous Materials function that is not permitted under the provisions of the HMR.

Federal Hazardous Materials Transportation Law 49 U.S.C. §5117 (PDF) authorizes PHMSA to issue DOT-SPs and CAAs in a way that reaches a safety level that is equal to the safety level required by the HMR or is consistent with the public interest if a required safety level does not exist.

For information regarding the DOT-SP and CAA approvals process, please visit the PHMSA Approvals and Permits webpage.

*Special permit means a document issued by the Associate Administrator, the Associate Administrator's designee, or as otherwise prescribed in the HMR, under the authority of 49 U.S.C. 5117 permitting a person to perform a function that is not otherwise permitted under subchapters A or C of this chapter, or other regulations issued under 49 U.S.C. 5101 et seq. (e.g., Federal Motor Carrier Safety routing requirements).

*Competent Authority Approval (CAA) means an approval by the competent authority that is required under an international standard (for example, the ICAO Technical Instructions for the Safe Transport of Dangerous Goods by Air and the International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code).