Daily News

An OSHA-organized work group has added a metric for percent of enforcement presence across industries as a key new indicator of state OSHA plan effectiveness and is also seeking more data on whistleblower cases falling under the OSH Act 11(c) clause. OSHA's move to formalize a set of state performance indicators follows a nearly two-year effort by the working group to come up with standard effectiveness measures in light of a Labor Office Of Inspector General (OIG) report raising concerns about OSHA's ability to monitor state programs.

EPA is weighing its authority under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide & Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) to ensure that hydraulic fracturing is adequately regulated, prompting new industry concerns that it could open the door to increased enforcement under a law that does not provide exemptions for drilling operations like several other environmental laws. The move comes as OSHA faces increasing pressure to address potential worker safety and health concerns in the fast-growing fracking industry.

New requirements for federal agencies to report worker injury data through electronic portals could help make it easier for OSHA to target federal work site inspections, officials said Thursday (Oct. 18). An OSHA official noted that  the agency currently targets federal work site inspections differently than private sector inspections because the feds don't track injury and illness data in the same way they do for private employers that fall under site-specific targeting.

The Labor Department will soon reveal whether it will ask President Obama to issue an executive order updating permissible exposure limits (PELs) at federal work sites. An advisory group to DOL on federal worker safety and health issues has sought such an executive order, which is seen by some OSHA stakeholders as potentially pushing forward the issue of updating PELs in the private sector.

The Labor Department Inspector General charges that OSHA's site-specific targeting program left out 26 percent of worksites with reported severe injuries and illnesses, but OSHA is pushing back against the OIG's call for major changes to the scope of data the agency uses to target work sites. The agency told the OIG the changes would require a major policy shift outside the agency's regulatory control and could ultimately limit the agency's access to data.

Industry advocates say OSHA's recent launch of a revised web page dedicated to tackling combustible dust hazards represents an effort to bolster recognized-hazard cases brought against employers in the absence of a specific standard on the contentious issue. The agency says it has revised the page on its site to become more user-friendly, arrange information in a logical order and provide links to reports from NIOSH and the Chemical Safety Board.

The Environmental Protection Agency has laid out plans to develop a rule that would ensure safe disposal of hazardous waste pharmaceuticals (HWP) under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), in lieu of adding the provisions to its universal waste rule as previously proposed, following concerns raised by the agency's Office of Inspector General (IG) earlier this year that EPA has fallen short on its responsibility to regulate the waste.

Regulatory experts don't expect the White House reg shop to move OSHA rules any faster following the departure of Cass Sunstein, the Obama administration's regulatory czar who faced criticism from worker advocates for his cost-benefit emphasis, especially with an upcoming election and a permanent replacement for Sunstein not expected to be tapped before at least then. They offer mixed reviews on how Sunstein's cost-benefit stance affected OSHA rules the agency hoped to move substantially in the first term.

OSHA observers see wide-ranging impacts from the automatic, government-wide sequestration that could hit agencies early next year if lawmakers and the White House fail to reach an alternative deficit reduction plan. The Obama administration has already estimated that OSHA's budget would be cut by $46 million in January under the policy.

Industry may push back against efforts by a NIOSH scientific advisory panel to learn more about the government's latest occupational research on ergonomics, which business advocates see as a potential catalyst for new regulatory efforts. One industry source tells Inside OSHA Online that NIOSH has already clearly demonstrated its conclusions on the controversial subject.

Occupational safety and health advocates are increasing pressure on the Agriculture Department to drop a hotly contested rulemaking that would effectively speed up poultry plant inspection lines, saying the rule would result in ergonomic, laceration and amputation hazards. But industry says the line speeds under the proposed rule have been shown to be safe for workers in the broiler chicken industry.

OSHA is generating praise from both industry and whistleblower advocates for rolling out a pilot program in two regions that will set up an alternative dispute resolution system to resolve whistleblower complaints outside the traditional process of investigation, hearing and appeal at the Labor Department. Sources say the tentative program -- to be tried out in the OSHA regions anchored by Chicago and San Francisco -- will provide new opportunities to avoid costly and lengthy legal battles over whistleblower complaints.

Both industry and organized labor are urging the Obama administration to publish a final rule setting safety requirements for electric power transmission and distribution, saying the rule would clear up confusion that arises from existing standards. Sources tell Inside OSHA Online that stakeholders also are pressing OSHA to write the upcoming rule so it comports with National Electrical Safety Code (NESC) consensus standards in two areas -- regulations on flame-resistant clothing and minimum approach distances.

Whistleblower advocacy groups are urging the Senate when it returns from recess to approve a sweeping measure to enhance anti-retaliation protections for federal workers after the House passed the bill by unanimous consent last week. The legislation, spearheaded by a bipartisan group of lawmakers, is moving through Congress as OSHA works to revamp its Office of Whistleblower Protection Programs (OWPP) to more effectively enforce a host of whistleblower statutes.

A new report by a nonpartisan roundtable -- including environmentalists and chemical industry officials -- outlines a consensus on steps agencies should take to bolster the integrity of agency scientific advisory panels, such as adopting measures to avoid bias by panel members and requiring public notice of all panel meetings.

OSHA has begun publishing data online on regulatory variances it has approved and denied – a move that's generating praise from industry advocates but also criticism from some who argue that the numbers demonstrate an inflexible approach to variances by the agency. The newly posted data show that the majority of variance requests have been denied, and those granted related mostly to use of a rope-guided hoist system as an alternative to fully enclosed hoist towers for work on chimneys.

A group of House Republicans has launched a bid to pressure the Obama administration into explaining why it has still not published a unified regulatory agenda that was due this spring, citing “uncertainty” about regulations that the lawmakers say drags down the economy. The representatives do not cite OSHA rules specifically but did copy Labor Secretary Hilda Solis on at least one letter to the Office of Management and Budget complaining about the delays.

OSHA has rolled out a new policy that effectively centralizes decision-making authority for whistleblower appeals under the OSH Act 11(c) under the national office -- a move that whistleblower advocates laud as a welcome step for reforming how the feds handle anti-retaliation cases, especially in worker safety and health.

Top officials overseeing EPA's Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) program say they are planning additional changes to the controversial chemical hazard assessment program, including gathering public input before assessments are drafted and generating new data for analyses -- both changes which have been sought by industry critics. The planned changes come as OSHA continues exploring ways to assess hazards from chemical exposures in the workplace and update OSHA permissible exposure limits.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is proposing that NIOSH conduct an exposure assessment and epidemiological study of U.S. workers exposed to carbon nanotubes (CNT) and carbon nanofibers (CNF). The move comes as regulatory agencies continue to explore the potential need for research on worker exposure impacts in the fast-growing nanotechnology field.