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OSHA is receiving conflicting comments on part of a proposed rule that seeks to expand when the agency's safety standard applies to power equipment that is shut off during repair work, with industry groups arguing the change fails to follow proper procedure and labor advocates charging it is needed to restore the intent of the rule and protect workers.

Nanomaterial producers are eyeing a strategy for challenging EPA's reporting rule that is expected to inform future EPA and OSHA policies governing their products, claiming that EPA failed to seek public input on certain information in the final rule, and that the Trump administration could scale it back if a federal court agrees that the new data should have been issued for comment.

OSHA has bolstered language in a recently-issued guide for protecting whistleblowers from employer retaliation after OSHA advisors faulted the agency's 2015 draft version, putting greater emphasis on assertions that company programs for preventing retaliation against employees who raise safety concerns benefit employers.

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A recent federal appeals court decision backing industry arguments that OSHA is limited to a six-month statute of limitations for issuing certain citations could prompt EPA to take on a greater role in enforcing industrial facility process safety, usurping OSHA's traditional lead role in such enforcement and increasing fines, an industry attorney says.

Industry attorneys expect that the Trump administration will likely scale back many Obama-era OSHA policies and focus on compliance assistance rather than the current “all-out” focus on enforcement, but they suggest a wholesale rollback of regulation is neither likely nor ideal for companies, which need some consistency for planning.

The Obama administration has issued a long-awaited rule requiring manufacturers and processors of certain nanomaterials to report some data on the materials to the government, reporting that is expected to yield data to inform future regulatory and other policies of OSHA, EPA and other agencies.

OSHA has granted a petition from nursing and other labor groups seeking a federal standard for preventing workplace violence in the healthcare and social service sectors, and agency officials are expressing optimism that recent progress toward a standard will likely continue into the Trump administration.

During a Jan. 10 public meeting, OSHA chief David Michaels announced there is sufficient evidence that workplace violence is a significant problem in healthcare, and that OSHA will pursue a standard for preventing future incidents.

Groups representing various industries are weighing options for reversing EPA's recent revisions to its Risk Management Program (RMP) facility safety rule, including a possible push for lawmakers to undo the changes through a Congressional Review Act (CRA) disapproval resolution or through a legal challenge to the final rule.

OSHA has issued a final rule strengthening limits for workers' exposure to beryllium and expanding proposed protections for general industry to also cover the shipyard and construction sectors as consumer and health advocates requested, though the final rule also includes a new provision to give employers flexibility in assessing exposures.

Environmental justice advocates are pushing back against expectations that the incoming Trump administration will seek to roll back EPA's recently-announced final rule overhauling the agency's facility safety program with new hazard analysis and auditing requirements, but acknowledge that the rule's industry opponents have various tools to undercut it.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit has backed a controversial 2012 ruling that many industry attorneys believe limited the statute of limitations for certain OSHA citations, a move that will likely complicate the agency's defense of its recent rule that sought to tag certain record-keeping violations as “continuing” and subject to a much longer limitation.

The Obama administration is asking a federal appellate court to reverse a lower court ruling that blocked OSHA and other agencies from implementing an executive order requiring consideration of safety and other labor law violations in federal procurement decisions and suggested that the policy may rest on shaky legal ground.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has denied OSHA’s requests to rehear its recent ruling vacating the agency's 2015 policy narrowing an exemption from its process safety management (PSM) standard for retailers, a ruling that industry officials have said may have far-reaching consequences for agency enforcement.

The Obama administration's decision to deny a petition seeking stronger protections for first responders and other workers from exposure to corrosive dust is dividing industry representatives and the whistleblower group that petitioned for the stronger protections, according to recently filed comments.

State regulators and a farm group are asking the Obama administration to delay by one year an upcoming deadline for implementing a rule toughening standards for protecting workers from pesticide exposures, arguing the agency violated federal law requiring congressional review of the final version prior to publication and failed to properly prepare states.

Environmentalists and industry officials are issuing competing criticism of EPA's final rule overhauling its facility accident prevention regulation, with advocates saying the rule brings only “very modest improvements” in safety, while an industry group says the rule will likely impede rather than improve safety and bring new burdens.

But the two sides agree that EPA paid short shrift to public input provided during the rulemaking process.

EPA's final rule strengthening its facility safety program includes new requirements for hazard analysis, auditing and information sharing, though the agency eased some proposed provisions to address concerns from industry and state officials, including those raised by President-elect Donald Trump's intended nominee to run the agency, though it is not clear if the changes will satisfy critics' calls to block or kill the measure.

OSHA in a new white paper is urging companies to incorporate worker safety and health into their sustainability plans generally aimed at reducing environmental harms, arguing workplace safety is a forgotten aspect of sustainability, a call that could provide a road map for the incoming Trump administration to improve worker safety through voluntary means.

An OSHA advisory panel is urging the agency to develop a rule setting safety standards for emergency response and preparedness operations based on language crafted by stakeholder groups, including representatives of national firefighter organizations, through a seldom-used process that allows regulated entities to craft draft measures.

OSHA has issued a final rule clarifying that companies have a “continuing obligation” to record their employees' injuries and illnesses, a change in its record-keeping regulations that industry critics say unlawfully circumvents an appellate ruling limiting the statute of limitations, and which OSHA acknowledges will spur another round of litigation.