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OSHA Regulatory Agenda�2024

Joel Batiz

Area Director, Birmingham Area Office�Occupational Safety and Health Administration

HR, Safety, and Environmental Conference

Birmingham, Alabama

November 14, 2024

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New OSHA regional offices

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What is the Regulatory Agenda?

Regulatory Agenda informs public of federal agencies’ regulatory priorities

Published twice a year in Spring and Fall in Reginfo.gov

Regulatory Plan (published as part of Fall Agenda) has more details about the most significant regulatory actions

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Regulatory Agenda Components

Current Regulatory Agenda

Pre-Rule Actions
Proposed Rules
Final Rules

Long-Term Actions

Items for which agency does not expect to have regulatory action within a year
Appears on separate list in Reginfo.gov

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Regulatory Agenda Entry Example�

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Completed OSHA Rules:�Rules That Became Final

Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses issued July 21, 2023; effective January 1, 2024.

Finalized rule retained the requirement for all establishments with 250+ employees to submit Form 300A summary data and updated the classification system used to determine the list of covered industries in Appendix A with a Total Case Rate of 3.5 or higher OR a DART rate of 2.25 or higher OR a fatality rate of 5.7 or higher (additional criteria resulted in the addition of 6 industries).

Worker Walkaround Representative Designation Process issued April 1, 2024; effective May 31, 2024.

Clarification of a worker’s and certified bargaining unit’s right to specify a worker or union representative to accompany an OSHA inspector regardless of whether the representative is an employee of the employer.

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Final Rule Stage

Update to the Hazard Communication Standard
Personal Protective Equipment in Construction
Powered Industrial Trucks Design Standard Update
Procedures for Handling Retaliation Complaints under the:

Whistleblower Protection Statutes
Anti-Money Laundering Act
Criminal Antitrust Anti-Retaliation Act

Occupational Exposure to COVID-19 in Healthcare Settings
Procedures for the Use of Administrative Subpoenas

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Hazard Communication

This rulemaking sought to:

Harmonize the HCS to the seventh edition of the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS), and
Codify enforcement policies OSHA has issued since the 2012 standard.

Final Rule was expected in July 2024 but issued on May 20,2024 and became effective July 16, 2024.

OSHA and other U.S. agencies have been involved in a long-term project to negotiate a globally harmonized approach to classifying chemical hazards and providing labels and safety data sheets for hazardous chemicals. The result is the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS). The GHS was adopted by the United Nations, with an international goal of as many countries as possible adopting it by 2008.
OSHA incorporated the GHS into the Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) in March 2012 to specify requirements for hazard classification and to standardize label components and information on safety data sheets, which will improve employee protection and facilitate international trade. However, the GHS is a living document and has been updated several times since OSHA’s rulemaking.
While OSHA's HCS 2012 was based on the third edition of the GHS, OSHA’s current rulemaking is to harmonize the HCS to the seventh edition of the GHS, improve harmonization with international trading partners such as Canada, and to codify a number of enforcement policies that have been issued since the 2012 standard.
Note that this rulemaking will adopt the seventh edition; however, the UN is already up to the nineth.
Hazcom rule was expected in July 2024 but was issued May 20, 2024 with an effective date of July 16, 2024. Reference the final rule and OSHA’s related webpage.

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PPE in Construction

Proposal to clarify requirements for the fit of PPE in construction.

Final Rule expected in September 2024.

On October 4, 2016, OSHA issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) pursuant to its Standards Improvement Project-IV, which aimed to reduce regulatory burdens while maintaining or enhancing worker safety and health.
The NPRM proposed to add an explicit requirement for PPE used in construction to fit. The proposed regulatory text was similar to existing language in general industry and maritime PPE standards, and OSHA has always had an implicit requirement that PPE in construction must fit to be “adequate” and of “safe design.”
After OSHA received comments that this item required a rulemaking with a larger scope than SIP-IV; the agency withdrew the proposed language to propose it in a separate, new NPRM.
OSHA issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking issued July 20, 2023 with comments period through September 18^th, 2023.

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Powered Industrial Trucks – Design Standard Update

Proposal to update the reference in the powered industrial trucks standard (1910.178) to consensus standard provisions related to the design and construction of powered industrial trucks.
Continuation of an on-going effort to update references to consensus standards.
Final Rule expected in August 2024.

OSHA is proposing to update its reference to the ANSI B56.1-1969 Safety Standard for Powered Industrial Trucks found in its powered industrial truck standards to also include the latest version of ANSI/ITSDF B56.1a-2018, Safety Standard for Low Lift and High Lift Trucks.
This rulemaking will incorporate by reference the consensus standard provisions related to the design and construction of powered industrial trucks.
This rulemaking is a continuation of OSHA’s ongoing effort to update references to consensus standards published by standards-developing organizations.
OSHA aims to improve worker safety and health by ensuring that consensus standards referenced in OSHA rules address current industry practice and state-of-the-art technology.
In a separate action (RIN 1218-AC99), OSHA is collecting information to evaluate the need to update requirements related to the maintenance and use of powered industrial trucks and training of operators.

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Retaliation Complaints Under Whistleblower Protection Statutes

Updating procedures to handle and investigate retaliation complaints under several whistleblower protection statutes to ensure consistency and provide uniform standards for procedural issues.

Interim Final Rule expected in January 2025.

OSHA is promulgating an interim final rule to update the procedures for handling and investigation of retaliation complaints under several whistleblower protection statutes.
The updates would make the investigation procedures consistent among the statutes and make the process accessible for employers and employees by providing uniform standards for various procedural issues including the sharing of the information between the parties during the investigation and the ability of the agency to serve findings by electronic means.
Recent changes to the Pipeline Safety Improvement Act (PSIA) and the Wendell H. Ford Aviation Investment and Reform Act for the 21st Century (AIR21) resulting from the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 will also be addressed.
Promulgation of this procedural rule will aid OSHA’s efficient processing of complaints under the whistleblower statutes.

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Retaliation Complaints Under the Anti-Money Laundering Act

Publishing procedures to handle and investigate complaints under the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA) of 2020, which prohibits employers from retaliating against certain whistleblowers who report potential money laundering-related violations or assist in investigations.

Interim Final Rule expected in January 2025.

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Retaliation Complaints Under Criminal Antitrust Anti-Retaliation Act

Publishing procedures to handle and investigate complaints under the Criminal Antitrust Anti-Retaliation Act (CAARA) of 2019, which prohibits employers from retaliating against certain whistleblowers who report criminal antitrust violations or assist in investigations.

Final Rule expected in March 2025.

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Occupational Exposure to COVID-19 in Healthcare Settings

In June 2021, OSHA issued an emergency temporary standard (ETS) to address the grave danger of COVID-19 in healthcare workplaces.
OSHA continues to work expeditiously to issue a final standard that will protect workers from COVID-19.
Final Rule expected in December 2024.

In accordance with President Biden’s Executive Order 13999 on Protecting Worker Health and Safety (January 21, 2021), on June 21, 2021, OSHA issued a COVID-19 emergency temporary standard to protect healthcare and healthcare support service workers from occupational exposure to COVID-19 in settings where people with COVID-19 are reasonably expected to be present. More information is available at https://www.osha.gov/coronavirus/ets.
This standard contains provisions necessary to ensure the health and safety of workers. The agency believes the danger faced by healthcare workers continues to be of the highest concern and measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 are still needed to protect them. OSHA announced on December 27, 2021 that it intended to continue to work expeditiously to issue a final standard that will protect healthcare workers from COVID-19 hazards.
ETSs are, by design, temporary in nature. Under section 6(c)(3), an ETS serves as a proposal for a permanent standard in accordance with section 6(b) of the OSH Act (permanent standards), and the Act calls for the permanent standard to be finalized within six months after publication of the ETS.

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Procedures for the Use of Administrative Subpoenas

OSHA will publish a rule on the use of subpoenas during investigations to provide clarity on the process and promote transparency and uniform practices across the agency.

Interim Final Rule expected in November 2024.

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Proposed Rule Stage

Infectious Diseases
Cranes and Derricks in Construction Amendments
Process Safety Management
Shipyard Fall Protection
Communication Towers
Emergency Response
Lock-out/Tag-out Update
Tree Care
Prevention Workplace Violence in Health Care and Social Assistance
Welding in Construction Confined Spaces
Walking Working Surfaces
Silica- Revisions to Medical Surveillance Provisions for Removal Protection
Heat Illness Prevention
Rapid REDON Fit- Testing Protocol

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Infectious Diseases

Employees in health care and other high-risk environments face long-standing infectious disease hazards
OSHA is examining regulatory alternatives for control measures to protect employees in certain workplaces from infectious disease exposures to pathogens that can cause significant disease.
Proposed Rule expected in November 2024.

Employees in health care and other high-risk environments face long-standing infectious disease hazards such as tuberculosis (TB), varicella disease (chickenpox, shingles), and measles, as well as new and emerging infectious disease threats, such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19), and pandemic influenza. Health care workers and workers in related occupations, or who are exposed in other high-risk environments, are at increased risk of contracting TB, SARS, Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA), COVID-19, and other infectious diseases that can be transmitted through a variety of exposure routes.
OSHA is examining regulatory alternatives for control measures to protect employees from infectious disease exposures to pathogens that can cause significant disease.
Workplaces where such control measures might be necessary include: health care, emergency response, correctional facilities, homeless shelters, drug treatment programs, and other occupational settings where employees can be at increased risk of exposure to potentially infectious people.
A standard could also apply to laboratories, which handle materials that may be a source of pathogens, and to pathologists, coroners' offices, medical examiners, and mortuaries.

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Cranes and Derricks in Construction Amendments

Proposing various corrections and amendments to the cranes and derricks standard issued in 2010.

Proposed Rule expected in February 2025.

OSHA is proposing corrections and amendments to the final standard for cranes and derricks published in August 2010.
The standard has a large number of provisions designed to improve crane safety and reduce worker injury and fatality.
The proposed amendments:

correct references to power line voltage for direct current (DC) voltages as well as alternating current (AC) voltages;
broaden the exclusion for forklifts carrying loads under the forks from "winch or hook" to a "winch and boom";
clarify an exclusion for work activities by articulating cranes;
provide four definitions inadvertently omitted in the final standard;
replace "minimum approach distance" with "minimum clearance distance" throughout to remove ambiguity;
clarify the use of demarcated boundaries for work near power lines;
correct an error permitting body belts to be used as a personal fall arrest system rather than a personal fall restraint system;
replace the verb "must" with "may" used in error in several provisions;
correct an error in a caption on standard hand signals; and
resolve an issue of "NRTL-approved" safety equipment (e.g., proximity alarms and insulating devices) that is required by the final standard, but is not yet available.

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Process Safety Management (PSM)

Issued a Request for Information (RFI) in 2013 identifying issues related to modernizing PSM (29 CFR 1910.119) and related standards to prevent major chemical accidents.
Completed the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) process in August 2016 and a Stakeholder Meeting in October 2022.
OSHA is expected to analyze public comments by September 2024.

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Shipyard Fall Protection

Existing 29 CFR 1915, Subpart E: Scaffolds, Ladders and Other Working Surfaces, is not comprehensive and does not reflect national consensus standards

Proposed Rule expected in May 2025.

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Communication Towers

The communication tower industry has a high fatality rate, and construction activity in this industry is increasing.
Communication tower construction and maintenance activities may not be adequately covered by current OSHA fall protection and personnel hoisting standards.
OSHA completed the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) process in October 2018.
Proposed Rule expected in February 2025.

While the number of employees engaged in the communication tower industry remains small, the fatality rate is very high. Over the past 20 years, this industry has experienced an average fatality rate that greatly exceeds that of the construction industry.
Due to recent FCC spectrum auctions and innovations in cellular technology, there will be a very high level of construction activity taking place on communication towers over the next few years. A similar increase in the number of construction projects needed to support cellular phone coverage triggered a spike in fatality and injury rates years ago.
Based on information collected from an April 2016 Request for Information (RFI), OSHA concluded that current OSHA requirements such as those for fall protection and personnel hoisting, may not adequately cover all hazards of communication tower construction and maintenance activities.
OSHA will use information collected from the October 2018 Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness At (SBREFA) panel to identify effective work practices and advances in engineering technology that would best address industry safety and health concerns. The Panel carefully considered the issue of the expansion of the rule beyond just communication towers. OSHA will continue to consider also covering structures that have telecommunications equipment on or attached to them (e.g., buildings, rooftops, water towers, billboards, etc.).

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Emergency Response

Existing OSHA standards do not:

Address the full range of hazards or concerns facing emergency responders,
Reflect major developments in safety and health practices incorporated into industry consensus standards.
Reflect major changes in performance specifications for protective clothing and equipment.

Proposed rule issued February 5, 2024; OSHA expects to analyze public comments by September 2024.

OSHA currently regulates aspects of emergency response and preparedness; some of these standards were promulgated decades ago, and none were designed as comprehensive emergency response standards. Consequently, they do not address the full range of hazards or concerns currently facing emergency responders, and other workers providing skilled support, nor do they reflect major changes in performance specifications for protective clothing and equipment.
The agency acknowledges that current OSHA standards also do not reflect all the major developments in safety and health practices that have already been accepted by the emergency response community and incorporated into industry consensus standards.
OSHA is considering updating these standards with information gathered through an RFI and public meetings.
OSHA held stakeholder meetings in July 2014 and convened a NACOSH working group in 2015-2016.
OSHA initiated the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) process in August 2021 and completed it in December 2021.
Comment deadline was extended through July 22, 2024. See https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/eAgendaViewRule?pubId=202404&RIN=1218-AC91 for more details.

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Lock-Out/Tag-Out

Technological advancements using computer-based controls of hazardous energy (e.g., mechanical, electrical, etc.,) are more prevalent and conflict with the current standard.
Computer-based controls are accepted internationally and harmonized through consensus standards.
OSHA issued a request for information (RFI) in May 2019 to understand the strengths and limitations of this new technology, and potential hazards to workers.
Proposed Rule expected in December 2024.

Recent technological advancements that employ computer-based controls of hazardous energy (e.g., mechanical, electrical, pneumatic, chemical, and radiation) conflict with OSHA's existing lock-out/tag-out standard. (29 CFR 1910.147)
The use of these computer-based controls has become more prevalent as equipment manufactures modernize their designs.
Additionally, there are national consensus standards and international standards harmonization that govern the design and use of computer-based controls: this approach of controlling hazardous energy is more accepted in other nations, which raises issues of needing to harmonize U.S. standards with those of other countries.
The agency has recently seen an increase in requests for variances for these devices. OSHA issued a Request for Information (RFI) in May 2019 to understand the strengths and limitations of this new technology, as well as potential hazards to workers.

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Tree Care Standard

No OSHA standard for this high-hazard industry; use multiple standards to address serious hazards.
Tree care industry previously petitioned the agency for rulemaking.
OSHA issued an advanced notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) in September 2008 and completed a Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) panel in May 2020.
Proposed Rule expected in December 2024.

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Workplace Violence in Health Care and Social Assistance

Issued a request for information (RFI) in December 2016 outlining OSHA’s history with the issue and requesting information from the health care community about the impact of workplace violence and prevention strategies.
Petitioned by labor unions to issue a standard, which OSHA granted in January 2017.
OSHA completed the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) process on May 1, 2023.
Proposed Rule expected in December 2024.

OSHA issued a Request for Information on December 7, 2016 (81 FR 88147) that provides OSHA's history with the issue of workplace violence in health care and social assistance, including a discussion of the Guidelines that were initially published in 1996, a 2014 update to the Guidelines, the agency's use of 5(a)(1) in enforcement cases in health care. The RFI solicited information primarily from health care employers, workers and other subject matter experts on impacts of violence, prevention strategies, and other information that will be useful to the agency.
OSHA was petitioned for a standard preventing workplace violence in health care by a broad coalition of labor unions, and in a separate petition by the National Nurses United. On January 10, 2017, OSHA granted the petitions.
OSHA convened the the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) panel on March 1, 2023; the report was issued May 1, 2023.

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Welding in Construction Confined Spaces

Proposing to amend the Welding and Cutting Standard in construction to eliminate any perceived ambiguity about the definition of "confined space" for welding activities in construction.
Proposed Rule expected in February 2025.

OSHA is proposing to amend the Welding and Cutting Standard in construction to eliminate any perceived ambiguity about the definition of "confined space" that applies to welding activities in construction.
When OSHA published the final rule for Confined Spaces in Construction (May 4, 2015), a new subpart was added to provide protections to employees working in confined spaces in construction. This new subpart replaced OSHA's one training requirement for confined space work with a comprehensive standard that includes a permit program designed to protect employees from exposure to many hazards associated with work in confined spaces, including atmospheric and physical hazards.
The explanation of the final rule also discusses in detail how the Welding and Cutting Standard in Construction works together with the confined spaces standard regarding the application of their respective requirements. Although the confined spaces standard states that it encompasses welding activities, the welding standard itself does not expressly identify a definition of "confined space".
OSHA will conduct a rulemaking to eliminate any perceived ambiguity about the definition of confined space that applies to welding activities in construction.

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Walking-Working Surfaces

In response to feedback that some provisions of the 2016 final rule are unclear, OSHA plans to:

Correct a formatting error in Table D-2 (Stairway Handrail Requirements), and
Revise language on stair rail systems requirements to make them clearer and reflect OSHA’s original intent.

OSHA issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in 2021 and expects to reopen the rulemaking record in July 2024.

OSHA has received feedback from stakeholders indicating that several regulatory provisions of the 2016 final rule on Walking-Working Surfaces (81 FR 82494; November 18, 2016) are unclear.
The agency plans to correct a formatting error in Table D-2 (Stairway Handrail Requirements) and also revise the language of the requirements for stair rail systems to make them clearer and reflect OSHA's original intent.
The 2016 rule updated and revised the outdated general industry WWS and Personal Protective Equipment (Fall Protection Systems) standards on slip, trip, and fall hazards (29 CFR part 1910, subparts D and I). OSHA adopted the existing standards in 1971 and had not updated them since. The final rule also added new requirements on personal fall protection systems (29 CFR part 1910, subpart I).
OSHA issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in 2021 and expects to reopen the rulemaking record in July 2024.

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Silica - Medical Removal Protection

OSHA’s silica standards (construction and general industry/maritime) do not provide for medical removal protection.
Industry and labor petitioned for review.
A federal court concluded OSHA did not adequately explain the omission and sent it back to OSHA for consideration.
Proposed Rule expected in October 2024.

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Heat Illness Prevention

OSHA relies on the General Duty Clause (OSH Act Section 5(a)(1)) to protect workers from heat hazards; several states have issued heat protection rules.

Petitioned multiple times for standard between 2011 and 2021.

OSHA concluded the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) process on November 3, 2023.
Proposed Rule expected August 2024.
OSHA posted an unofficial version on July 2, 2024. Federal Register publication is pending, and public comments will be accepted for 120 days from publication date.

Heat is the leading weather-related killer, and it is becoming more dangerous as 18 of the last 19 years were the hottest on record.
Excessive heat can cause heat stroke and even death if not treated properly. It also exacerbates existing health problems like asthma, kidney failure, and heart disease.
Workers in agriculture and construction are at highest risk, but the problem affects all workers exposed to heat, including indoor workers without climate-controlled environments. Essential jobs where employees are exposed to high levels of heat are disproportionately held by Black and Brown workers.
OSHA currently relies on the general duty clause (OSH Act Section 5(a))(1)) to protect workers from this hazard. To date, California, Washington, Minnesota, and the US military have issued heat protections.
OSHA was petitioned by Public Citizen for a heat stress standard in 2011. The Agency denied this petition in 2012, but was once again petitioned by Public Citizen, on behalf of approximately 130 organizations, for a heat stress standard in 2018 and 2019. Most recently in 2021, Public Citizen petitioned OSHA to issue an emergency temporary standard on heat stress. OSHA is still considering these petitions and has neither granted nor denied to date. In 2019 and 2021, some members of the Senate also urged OSHA to initiate rulemaking to address heat stress.
OSHA issued an Advanced Noticed of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) on October 27, 2021.
In accordance with the requirements of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA), OSHA convened an SBAR Panel on August 25, 2023. The SBAR Panel concluded November 3, 2023.
OSHA expects to publish the proposed rule in August 2024. On July 2, OSHA announced it would shortly issue the proposed rule and published an unofficial copy on its website for public review. (See OSHA News Release (https://www.osha.gov/news/newsreleases/national/07022024)
The news release and a fact sheet on the rulemaking are both available in English and Spanish on OSHA’s website at https://www.osha.gov/heat-exposure/rulemaking

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Rapid REDON Fit-Testing Protocol

OSHA determining whether to approve a new quantitative fit-testing protocol pursuant to procedure in Appendix A of the Respiratory Protection Standard (1910.134).

Proposed Rule expected in December 2024.

Pursuant to the procedure for adding new fit-testing protocols in Appendix A of OSHA's Respiratory Protection Standard, 29 CFR 1910.134, OHD, LLLP (OHD) submitted an application requesting that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) approve a new quantitative fit-testing protocol.
The proposed Rapid REDON protocol is a modified version of the existing REDON protocol that would eliminate the 30-second durations for two of the fit test exercises (facing forward and bending over), and also remove the second re-donning of the respirator, thereby reducing the total duration of time required to conduct the fit test. OHD has requested that the submitted protocol be evaluated for approval both with and without removal of the second re-donning.

OSHA believes that the information submitted by OHD in support of the Rapid REDON protocol meets the criteria in Appendix A of its Respiratory Protection Standard (Part II) for determining when OSHA will publish a fit-testing protocol for notice-and-comment rulemaking.

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OSHA: Pre-Rule Stage

Blood Lead Level for Medical Removal

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Blood Lead Level for Medical Removal

Issued an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) in June 2022 on reducing the Blood Lead Level (BLL) triggers in the medical surveillance and removal protection provisions and modifying other requirements.

Recent medical findings indicate that BLL lower than the current triggers in adults can result in adverse health effects.

OSHA is expected to analyze public comments by December 2024.

OSHA is considering rulemaking to revise its standards for occupational exposure to lead. OSHA lead standards provide medical removal levels of 60 µg/dL in general industry, 50 µg/dL in construction and the return of the employee to former job status at a blood lead level (BLL) below 40 µg/dL.
Recent medical findings indicate that lower blood lead levels in adults can result in adverse health effects including hypertension, cognitive dysfunction, and effects on renal function and reproductive systems.
OSHA is seeking input on reducing the current BLL triggers in the medical surveillance and medical removal protection provisions of the general industry and construction standards for lead, and about how current ancillary provisions in the lead standards can be modified to reduce worker BLLs in industries and occupations where elevated exposure to lead continues to occur. OSHA is seeking this input from the public to help the agency identify possible areas of the lead standards for revision to improve protection of workers in industries and occupations where preventable exposure to lead continues to occur.
ANPRM issued June 28, 2022 (87 FR 38343) and extended the comment period through October 2022.
As of July 2024, OSHA is analyzing public comments.

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OSHA: Long-Term Actions

Injury and Illness Recordkeeping

OSHA proposed to restore the Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSD) column to the OSHA 300 log.

Mechanical Power Presses

OSHA’s current standard is 40 years old and does not address technological changes or the use of hydraulic or pneumatic power presses.

Powered Industrial Trucks

OSHA issued a Request for Information (RFI) on March 11, 2019 regarding PIT locations of use, maintenance, training, and operation.

This slide lists regulatory actions classified as “long-term.” This generally means that any OSHA action is more than one year away.

Injury and Illness Recordkeeping

OSHA proposed to restore the Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSD) column to the OSHA 300 log.

Mechanical Power Presses

The current OSHA standard on mechanical power presses (29 CFR 1910.217) is approximately 40 years old and does not address technological changes or the use of hydraulic or pneumatic power presses.
OSHA previously published an ANPRM on Mechanical Power Presses (June 2007) in which it identified several options for updating this standard.
The agency issued a Request for Information on July 28, 2021 (86 FR 40651) seeking information regarding whether it should update the standard, mechanical, if so, how closely the standard should follow the current ANSI B11.1 standard. OSHA also sought information on the types of presses that should be covered, the use and certification of equipment, and other topics such as presence-sensing device initiation (PSDI) systems, and requirements for press modifications, training, and injury reporting.

Powered Industrial Trucks

OSHA issued a Request for Information (RFI) on March 11, 2019 (84 FR 8633), to determine whether changes need to be made to locations of use, maintenance, training, and operation of powered industrial trucks. This is a separate activity from the Powered Industrial Trucks Design Standard Update, discussed on a previous slide.

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OSHA: Long-Term Actions

Silica in Construction- Table 1

OSHA is evaluating whether revisions to Table 1 of the silica standard for construction may be appropriate.

COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing Emergency Temporary Standard

OSHA withdrew this ETS as an enforceable standard; however, it serves as a proposed rule while OSHA evaluates next steps.

This slide continues the list of regulatory actions classified as “long-term.” This generally means that any OSHA action is more than one year away.

Silica in Construction- Table 1

Employers that follow Table 1 are not required to measure workers’ silica exposure and are not subject to the PEL.
OSHA is interested in information on the effectiveness of control measures not currently included for tasks and tools listed in Table 1, as well as tasks and tools involving exposure to respirable crystalline silica that are not currently listed in Table 1, along with information on the effectiveness of dust control methods in limiting worker exposure to respirable crystalline silica when performing those operations.
OSHA is evaluating whether revisions to Table 1 of the silica standard for construction may be appropriate.
Employers that follow Table 1 are not required to measure workers’ silica exposure and are not subject to the PEL.

COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing Emergency Temporary Standard

OSHA published an emergency temporary standard to protect workers from the grave danger of COVID-19 transmission in the workplace. The standard required all covered employers to develop and implement a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy, with an exception for employers that instead adopt a policy requiring employees to elect either to get vaccinated or to undergo regular COVID-19 testing and wear a face covering at work.
On January 13, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court stayed the Vaccination and Testing ETS, finding that challengers were likely to prevail on their claims. After evaluating the Court's decision, OSHA withdrew the Vaccination and Testing ETS as an enforceable emergency temporary standard. OSHA did not withdraw the ETS to the extent that it serves as a proposed rule while OSHA continues to evaluate comments and the Court’s decision.
OSHA anticipated a final rule could not be completed in a timeframe approaching the one contemplated by the OSH Act, the agency has stopped enforcing the non-recordkeeping provisions. OSHA has continued to work expeditiously to issue a final standard that will protect workers from COVID-19.

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OSHA

www.osha.gov

800-321-OSHA (6742)