Shipping Description for Batteries
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration · Jan 11, 2002 · Reference No. 01-0306
Interprets: 49 CFR § 172.101
Reggie’s quick take
A company asked whether the shipping description "Batteries, wet, filled with alkali, electric storage, 8, UN 2795" is allowed under the federal Hazardous Materials Regulations. The agency said yes. A 2001 final rule accidentally dropped that description from the § 172.101 Hazardous Materials Table, but the rule's compliance date is October 1, 2002, and the agency plans to fix the error in a future rulemaking.
Written by AI (Claude) on Oct 22, 2026. Robots make mistakes and leave things out, so the letter below is what counts. Not legal advice.
This is in response to your letter dated December 4, 2001. Specifically, you ask if the description "Batteries, wet, filled with alkali, electric storage, 8, UN 2795" is an authorized description under the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180).
The answer is yes. A final rule under Docket HM-215D [66 FR 33316; 06/21/2001] revised the § 172.101 Hazardous Materials Table (§ 172.101 HMT). In this final rule, the description "Batteries, wet, filled with alkali, electric storage, 8, UN 2795" was inadvertently removed from the § 172.101 HMT. However, this final rule has a delayed compliance date of October 1, 2002. RSPA will correct this discrepancy in a future rulemaking.
A letter of interpretation applies the regulations to the facts the requester described. It isn’t a regulation and isn’t legal advice. The agency’s copy.