Stakeholders: An Obama Order On Fed Worker Exposure Levels Could Push PEL Issue Forward

Occupational health stakeholders suggest an executive order by President Obama to tighten chemical exposure levels for federal workers and on-site contractors -- as sought by a group of OSHA advisors -- could create momentum for OSHA to update permissible exposure limits (PELs) across the private sector. The call for the executive order comes as OSHA plans to publish a request for information (RFI) as early as August seeking advice from stakeholders on how to update decades-old PELs covering the private sector. OSHA's fledgling effort to update PELs -- now a central priority for agency chief D