Daily News

Business groups are protesting any efforts on OSHA's part to issue a wide-ranging injury and illness prevention program rule (I2P2) as the agency develops an early draft proposal expected to be available for public review in the next few months, expressing renewed concern about the scope of the rulemaking. But labor organizations suggested that their industry adversaries are trying to use the issue to drum up broader opposition to workplace regulation.

Comprehensive OSHA reform filed again this year could potentially be broken into pieces, such as tougher whistleblower protections, to make it easier for crucial provisions to pass the newly divided Congress, a key Democratic lawmaker said. Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-CA) recently introduced a more stringent version of the Protecting America's Workers Act (PAWA) that beefs up agency enforcement powers, but acknowledged in an exclusive interview with Inside OSHA Online that the revised bill faces even higher hurdles in a Republican-dominated House.

OSHA's newly issued final rule on procedures for handling whistleblower retaliation complaints under the Energy Reorganization Act and six environmental statutes will make it easier for complainants to get their cases filed but also toughen their burden of proof to appeal an administrative law judge's decision, experts say.

OSHA and two other federal agencies are in the midst of compiling lists of significant violations on which to train inspectors from all three agencies as part of an information-sharing program involving OSHA, the Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, according to an FDA official. A training program is expected to be launched within the next few months, the official said.

A House bill that would require affirmative congressional approval of major new executive branch regulations faces opposition on many fronts from a group of legal experts who argue that the legislation would allow Congress to arbitrate rules when it lacks technical expertise; is undemocratic and allows Congress to evade responsibility for laws it passes; and tinkers with a regulatory system that may be flawed but has produced much public good over the years.

A Texan House Democrat has resumed his long-standing push to compel OSHA to issue a rule that could require site-controlling employers to keep records of incidents even if they don't directly employ the workers. Rep. Gene Green, who is from a Houston district where there are numerous petrochemical facilities and other employers with multiple site contractors – told Inside OSHA Online that he refiled his bill to keep the issue in the spotlight and hopes it will eventually be melded into OSHA reform legislation.

House Republicans and some business groups are eyeing drastic changes to the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), the landmark law that governs how OSHA and other agencies conduct rulemakings, including setting a stricter legal standard for agency rulemakings and requiring greater use of "formal hearings" in the regulatory process.

U.S Chemical Safety Board officials worry that potential funding reductions over the next year could cause the board to cut back on investigations, a move CSB has so far avoided despite new investigative responsibilities linked to the British Petroleum incidents.

A key safety organization, the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE), is calling on OSHA to develop a National Emphasis Program (NEP) on noise controls, saying the move would also allow the agency to collect data on workplace hearing loss to bolster support for greater reliance on engineering and administrative controls. The group is also suggesting NIOSH help collect noise exposure data. OSHA recently backed away from a planned reinterpretation of noise control policy that would have resulted in greater reliance on engineering and noise controls after employers cried foul.

The U.S Chemical Safety Board (CSB) may have to deal with funding reductions in the next year, depending on how federal budget talks transpire, though a top agency official noted that the short-term continuing resolution (CR) passed by the House and Senate this week maintains 2010 funding levels.

NIOSH's top supporters are gearing up for a budget battle over both the remainder of fiscal year 2011 and the annual appropriations starting in fiscal 2012, as the research agency faces both proposed deep funding cuts from the administration and a tougher stance on spending issues on Capitol Hill. NIOSH will likely have to deal with an immediate budget crunch, sources say, and possibly the termination of some programs starting next year.

OSHA's planned rulemaking to establish new standards limiting crystalline silica exposure -- a proposal the agency just recently sent to the White House for preliminary review -- will almost certainly lead to lengthy legal challenges, whether from industries concerned about the new restrictions or from labor unions contending that the agency has not afforded a high enough level of protection, sources in both camps told Inside OSHA Online.

A long-running controversy over whether OSHA protections should cover flight attendants has re-emerged in this year's Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization bill, with the issue one of the likely sticking points between House and Senate negotiators.

OSHA's top officials have yet to outline specific administrative changes that could be under way as a result of a broad internal review of the whistleblower protection program (WPP), even as the agency reveals plans to revamp the beleaguered effort through a dedicated line item within its budget in the next fiscal year and to direct millions of dollars more to WPP enforcement.

OSHA’s “top-to-bottom” review of its whistleblower program offers a slew of recommendations designed to improve the program, but many of the agency's proposals do not directly address issues raised by the Government Accountability Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General. However, the Obama administration, in its fiscal 2012 budget request for OSHA, proposes $21 million specifically for the whistleblower program, which includes $6 million in new funding and 45 whistleblower investigators, but is vague on how the extra money would be spent.

OSHA's internal union has raised legal concerns about the agency's proposal to rely heavily on the expertise of outside contractors in order to expedite development of workplace safety and health standards, possibly reigniting a controversy first sparked by a Bush administration move to mete out tasks to private companies instead of federal employees.

A nearly 18 percent cut in OSHA's budget for the remainder of fiscal year 2011 as proposed by the Republican House majority would block the agency's efforts to issue new health and safety regulations in the short term, Labor Secretary Hilda Solis told lawmakers, as she also warned of a steep drop in OSHA inspections and a spike in workplace injuries as probable results if the House-passed continuing resolution becomes law. The agency could be forced to cut perhaps 415 new hires, which would include 200 inspectors and 17 whistleblower investigators, Solis said.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) intends to introduce next week a one month continuing resolution to fund the government at fiscal 2010 levels through the end of March, while the GOP-led House passed a long-term spending bill that would cut OSHA's budget by 18 percent through September.

A bill filed by House Democrats to mandate that OSHA issue stopgap combustible dust workplace safety regulations -- then proceed with a final rulemaking to address the issue -- mirrors legislation that got through the chamber nearly three years ago but stalled in the Senate. The proposal’s strongest backers in the labor community acknowledge that it faces an uphill climb this time around in the GOP-led House.

A key industrial hygiene group has come out in support of a controversial noise control policy that was recently withdrawn by OSHA after employers complained it would force them to institute costly engineering and administrative controls. The American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) has pledged to offer additional technical information as the agency agrees to hear more from stakeholders on the issue.