AJ's HazMat Time
Topic 5684 | Page 2
I'm moving on with my HazMat endorsement during my transition week.
So, let's see if I have this correct.
I go to HazPrints.com and get the background stuff out of the way with Homeland Security where I pay around $80.
Then I go to a specific branch for fingerprinting, etc.
I see TWIC mentioned in this process. Will this Hazmat endorsement automatically get me a TWIC card or is this something extra. I also thought I heard at one point that the TWIC card is the one to get , vs another card that I don't remember the name of.
Any guidance through this pinnacle of bureaucracy would be greatly appreciated. :)
I can only speak for Texas, but here you have to take the Hazmat Exam at the DMV 1st, then once you pass they give you a document to take to a local identogo office for background and prints. Typically they will tell you it could take up to 60-90 days to get your Hazmat granted. This is where my TWIC card came in handy. Since I already had my TWIC a large portion of the Federal Background check was already done and TSA/FBI used the info from my TWIC to speed up the process. My Background check passed and the DMV office got my clearance in one week and mailed my new CDL with the new endorsement and received it in about 8-9 days. So I got lucky and the total time from testing to hazmat in hand was only 2 weeks.
I now have ALL endorsements, TWIC and Passport just so it would make me more marketable and hopefully open up more opportunities.
Thanks for the input, Sly....
All the input helps me understand the process more.
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
HAZMAT:
Hazardous Materials
Explosive, flammable, poisonous or otherwise potentially dangerous cargo. Large amounts of especially hazardous cargo are required to be placarded under HAZMAT regulations
Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.DMV:
Department of Motor Vehicles, Bureau of Motor Vehicles
The state agency that handles everything related to your driver's licences, including testing, issuance, transfers, and revocation.
TWIC:
Transportation Worker Identification Credential
Truck drivers who regularly pick up from or deliver to the shipping ports will often be required to carry a TWIC card.
Your TWIC is a tamper-resistant biometric card which acts as both your identification in secure areas, as well as an indicator of you having passed the necessary security clearance. TWIC cards are valid for five years. The issuance of TWIC cards is overseen by the Transportation Security Administration and the Department of Homeland Security.
This comment is not meant to answer any questions, just wanted to say "hey" to a fellow Cookevillian, or someone in this area.
Sorry if this is frowned upon here. :)
-David A.
A friendly "hello" is never frowned upon here. It's all good.
-mountain girl
"Thanks for the input, Sly....
All the input helps me understand the process more."
No Prob.....It amazes me how something that's federally regulated is so different from state to state in terms of the order of things.
AJ, after you get your fingerprints done and have been cleared to test, you will have 90 days to do so or you will have to start over. (I did like a dummy). They won't even begin to clear you until they get your prints.
OK ... I better make sure my timing is together then. It will be a bit tricky with training coming up.
I made my TSA visit a walk-in instead of giving a date... I'm not sure when I'll get there. I think that reservation # is good for 90 days also.
It takes quite a while to hear back from the clearance / fingerprint stage, I hear. I wonder if the 90 days starts AFTER that.
Yep, it starts the day you are cleared. They send your info the the DMV database so wherever you go in TN to take your test they will have you ready. It took about three weeks for mine to come back which is really not bad.
Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.DMV:
Department of Motor Vehicles, Bureau of Motor Vehicles
The state agency that handles everything related to your driver's licences, including testing, issuance, transfers, and revocation.
This comment is not meant to answer any questions, just wanted to say "hey" to a fellow Cookevillian, or someone in this area.
Sorry if this is frowned upon here. :)
-David A.
A friendly "hello" is never frowned upon here. It's all good.
-mountain girl
Like Mountain Girl said, it is definitely not frowned upon, especially from a fellow Tennessean...
This comment is not meant to answer any questions, just wanted to say "hey" to a fellow Cookevillian, or someone in this area.
Sorry if this is frowned upon here. :)
-David A.
A friendly "hello" is never frowned upon here. It's all good.
-mountain girl
Like Mountain Girl said, it is definitely not frowned upon, especially from a fellow Tennessean...
Thanks you two.
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OK ... I better make sure my timing is together then. It will be a bit tricky with training coming up.
I made my TSA visit a walk-in instead of giving a date... I'm not sure when I'll get there. I think that reservation # is good for 90 days also.
It takes quite a while to hear back from the clearance / fingerprint stage, I hear. I wonder if the 90 days starts AFTER that.