WASHINGTON – Lawmakers urging tighter standards for drivers transporting hazardous materials were told by federal officials Wednesday that tougher rules are on the way.

Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ernest Hollings, D-S.C., said lawmakers were considering new standards for licensing and criminal background checks for all applicants.

And Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, said the background checks ought to be required now. “There are some things that ought to be done immediately, especially when we’re talking about transporting hazardous materials,” Snowe said at a Senate hearing on truck and bus security in the aftermath of last month’s terrorist attacks.