Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health (ACCSH)
Minutes of December 15-16, 2011 Meeting

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The meeting of the Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health (ACCSH) was called to order by the Chairman, Erich J. (Pete) Stafford, at 8:00 a.m. on Thursday, December 15, 2011. The following members and representatives were present and introduced:

Ben Bare, Designated Federal Official, provided the committee an update on the status of the following approved motions and action items from the July 28, 2011 ACCSH meeting.

• Combine the Prevention through Design and Green Jobs committees into one work group.

• Status: Completed - These work groups have been combined.

• Set up a backing operations hazards page on the OSHA website.

• Status: In progress - DOC is working on the website page and has asked the work groups for their input.

• Translate residential construction fall protection guidance documents into Spanish.

• Status: Continuous - The residential fall protection PowerPoint presentation and 5 of the 12 animated construction videos are now available in Spanish. The remaining documents will be translated on a continuous basis.

• Translate general guidance documents into Spanish.

• Status: Continuous - this recommendation relates to the one referenced above. The main guidance document for residential construction has been translated into Spanish and is on OSHA's website.

• Conduct a direct final rule to update the construction PPE standards to mirror the general industry PPE requirements.

• Status: In progress - OSHA is working on the first installment, head protection, through a proposed direct final rule..

• Use the Women in Construction Fact Sheet developed by the Diversity, Women in Construction and Multilingual Issues Work Group as an official OSHA publication on the OSHA website.

• Status: In progress - OSHA is continuing to research this issue to develop a safety-related fact sheet.

• Gather information for I2P2 rulemaking by holding stakeholder meetings with VPP and SHARP members to discuss developing and implementing an effective I2P2.

• Status: In progress - DOC is considering inviting a couple of state plan state representatives with regulations on the books requiring employers to implement safety and health programs. Then DOC plans on getting a construction VPP participant to provide input and information on implementing and managing a safety and health program in the construction sector.

• Initiate rulemaking on reinforcing steel and post tensioning.

• Status: In progress - An official OSHA request for information (RFI) went to OMB on November 3 for review.

Diversity, Women in Construction and Multilingual Issues Work Group Report
Co-Chairs: Jewel Elizabeth (Liz) Arioto and Laurie A. Shadrick

Ms. Arioto and Ms. Shadrick provided a summary of the issues and discussions that took place during their workgroup meeting. Highlights of the meeting centered on the 12 new animated construction safety videos, sanitation concerns for women working in construction, and an OSHA Women in Construction webpage. The work group presented the following motions to ACCSH for consideration:

Mike Thibodeaux moved that ACCSH approve the Diversity, Women in Construction and Multilingual Issues Work Group report from the December 14, 2011 meeting. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

Liz Arioto moved that ACCSH recommend that OSHA develop construction sanitation guidelines that incorporate the language on separate toilet facilities for men and women contained in the CalOSHA sanitation standard. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

For a full account of the Diversity, Women in Construction and Multilingual Issues work group activities and minutes, refer to Exhibit 3, and page 23 (Line 6) of the December 15, 2011 meeting transcript, in Docket No. OSHA-2011-0124 at http://www.regulations.gov.

Emerging Issues and Construction Health Hazards Work Group Report
Co-Chairs: Matt Gillen and Gary L. Batykefer

Matt Gillen provided a summary of the issues and discussions that took place during their work group meeting. The meeting focused on three main areas: a "Silica Safe" website, bathtub refinishing hazards, and decompression illness during tunneling operations.

Eileen Betit, with the CPWR: Center for Construction Research and Training, described plans underway for a new website to be called "Silica Safe." The purpose is to provide a one stop user friendly website with information on silica exposures and controls in construction. The primary audience would be contractors and construction workers.

Jerry Houvener of OSHA's Directorate of Construction and David Valiante of OSHA's Directorate of Standards and Guidance described recent cases of fatalities associated with over-exposure to methylene chloride during bathtub refinishing operations. The presenters announced that OSHA and NIOSH are planning to jointly develop and distribute a hazard alert on bathtub refinishing hazards.

Dean McKenzie of OSHA's Directorate of Construction provided an introduction to tunneling operations and health effects related to decompression. Handouts developed by Dr. Nicholas Reul were provided to the full ACCSH and meeting attendees. At issue are the health effects related to the relationship between pressure and dissolved gases in the blood, and how decompression causes gases to come out of solutions and form bubbles, which in turn can cause a variety of potentially serious illnesses unless controlled.

Gerry Ryan moved that ACCSH approve the Emerging Issues and Health Hazards in Construction Work Group report from the December 13, 2011 meeting. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

For a full account of the Emerging Issues and Construction Health Hazards work group activities and minutes, refer to Exhibit 4, and page 33 (Line 1) of the December 15, 2011 meeting transcript, in Docket No. OSHA-2011-0124 at http://www.regulations.gov.

DOC Regulatory Update
Jim Maddux, Director, OSHA's Directorate of Construction

Mr. Maddux provided an update on OSHA's standards activities, enforcement, guidance documents, and outreach efforts underway by the Directorate of Construction.

For a full account of Mr. Maddux's DOC Regulatory Update presentation refer to Exhibit 5, and page 46 (Line 14) of the December 15, 2011 meeting transcript, in Docket No. OSHA-2011-0124 at http://www.regulations.gov.

Presentation by Assistant Secretary Dr. David Michaels:

Dr. Michaels began his presentation by expressing his appreciation of the tremendous job ACCSH does in helping the Agency shape construction safety and health activities. He then briefed the Committee on the following activities:

• Inspections - OSHA is doing the same number of inspections as last year. However, the percentage of construction inspections as a percentage of all inspections has gone down slightly, from 60 percent to 56 percent. That is in part a reflection of some of OSHA's emphasis programs in other sectors, as well as more inspections in response to complaints.
• Penalty Calculation Restructuring - Last year OSHA changed the way it calculates penalties. As a result, the average penalty has more or less doubled in size, although penalties are still quite low. OSHA gives out citations and penalties not because a person died, but because there were violations of the OSHA law. Dr. Michaels stressed that OSHA has to maximize the impact of our penalties because we're trying to focus not just on the employer to whom we issued the citation, but also the whole industry.
• Significant Cases - The number of significant cases increased last year. This was probably the result of the change OSHA made in the way it calculates penalties, and not the result of more enforcement. The threshold for significant cases is the $100,000 level of penalties.
• Egregious Cases - The number of egregious cases went down from fiscal year 2010 to 2011. Egregious cases are those cases where we see the employers had really wanton disregard of the health and safety of their employees. The number of egregious cases is driven not only by our penalty structure or by our enforcement of policies, but what we find in the field. Last year we found fewer of those cases than we did the year before.
• Injury and Illness Prevention Programs - OSHA continues to work very hard on the Injury and Illness Prevention Programs initiative (I2P2). Dr. Michaels thanked ACCSH for its contribution and help with the initiative, and reported that OSHA is using its webpage to get information out to industry about the initiative. OSHA is preparing to move toward a standard, but we know that takes a long time. What we are doing is working with employers, encouraging them to see this as something that can be done now; there is no reason to wait for OSHA to issue a standard. The evidence is very clear. We know that numerous states have experienced success in mandating some form of an injury and illness prevention program.
• Residential Fall Protection Program - Over the last year, OSHA changed its enforcement directive for fall protection in residential construction. It has tried to phase in enforcement activities and has also provided a tremendous amount of educational and guidance material. OSHA has met with many trade associations, employer groups, unions, and other stakeholder groups, particularly in home building and roofing. OSHA's goal has been to help them understand what's going on and how to protect workers under the residential fall protection rule. Currently, OSHA doesn't have its policy fully in effect. Until March 15, 2012, if OSHA finds a residential home builder is violating the fall protection standard but didn't understand the changes that were necessary or didn't know about the rule and was acting in good faith, OSHA will give the employer an additional 10 percent reduction in penalty. OSHA also will not cite the employer for the same violation on other sites within a 30-day period if it sees the same hazard. OSHA is making a good faith effort to allow the employer to come into compliance after the new rule has been pointed out to them. OSHA's impression is, and we hear this all around the country, the contractors are coming around. They see they can do this. It's not stopping their work. It's relatively inexpensive. It's doable.
• Noise - OSHA sponsored a stakeholder meeting on the topic of noise and hearing loss where we explained the OSHA policy, which wasn't well understood in most industries. I think it was a very successful meeting. There was unanimity among the attendees from trade associations, unions, professional, academic and the technical communities, with all recognizing this as an area where we can work together, and there was agreement we need to drive down noise exposure, which continues to be unacceptably high. Again, this is an area where ACCSH has been very helpful.
• Heat Campaign - Every summer dozens of workers die of heat-related illnesses, and construction workers make up a large portion of that group. OSHA initiated a national campaign to get the message out. We focused on a very simple fix: "Water, Rest and Shade." The Secretary of Labor, Hilda Solis, took this on personally and hosted large public meetings in Florida, California, Nevada and Arizona. OSHA developed a smartphone app and distributed lots of great awareness materials in English and Spanish. OSHA partnered with the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Weather Service to give people information about what to do at different levels of heat. Every time they put out an extreme heat warning, they actually included a message from OSHA urging people to be careful and to reschedule work if necessary. It was a great campaign. We're very proud of it. We actually were given a major award from the Association of Marketing and Communications Professionals. We got the Platinum Award, the highest award for public awareness campaign.

For a full account of Dr. Michaels' presentation, refer to Exhibit 6, and page 56 (Line 4) of the December 15, 2011 meeting transcript, in Docket No. OSHA-2011-0124 at http://www.regulations.gov.

Seattle Tunnel and Rail Team (START) Presentation
Ms. Anita Johnson, Mr. Lee Dutcher and Mr. Steve Stier

Basically, what we are trying to accomplish here today is to create some awareness on decompression, hyperbaric operations, discuss tunnel advances, and come up with some innovative solutions of how we can effect some change. 1926.803 A, the appendix for the decompression tables, has not been changed since original development. Even though there have been changes in tunneling operations and standards since 1926.800, there haven't been any changes to the decompression tables and some of the compressed air work. We want to highlight there is some new medical evidence available that dates the OSHA tables from the 1970s, and to also point out there are differences of opinion now on how to better decompress workers.

For a full account of the START presentation, refer to Exhibit 7, and page 111 (Line 10) of the December 15, 2011 meeting transcript, in Docket No. OSHA-2011-0124 at http://www.regulations.gov.

NIOSH Update
Dr. Christine Branch and Mr. Matt Gillen

Integrating Safety and Health into Green Construction
Matt Gillen, NIOSH

Mr. Gillen provided a recap on the case for integrating safety and health into green construction, as part of his update on activities of the NORA Construction Section Council. He reported the reason for doing this is because green building practices are on the increase, and there are now some 25 different rating systems across the world. Safety and health is not included in the definition of sustainability right now in most definitions and practices. NIOSH and NORA feel a strong case can be made that worker risks are not being routinely considered when green practices and products are developed. There really should be this logical overlap between environmental and occupational best practices instead of a disconnect, or even going in different directions, which is kind of what the situation is now. That is why we are pursuing this.

For a full account of the Integrating Safety and Health into Green Construction presentation, refer to Exhibit 10, and page 174 (Line 4) of the December 15, 2011 meeting transcript, in Docket No. OSHA-2011-0124 at http://www.regulations.gov.

Preventing Falls in Construction: Planning a National Campaign
Dr. Christine Branche, NIOSH

Dr Branche briefed the committee on the planning effort for a national campaign to prevent falls and fatalities among construction workers. Why do we focus on falls? First, falls from roofs, scaffolds, and ladders account for roughly two-thirds of all fatal falls in construction, and they represent very different problems. For example, in roofing, the key problem is not having or not using fall protection. For ladders, we have problems that include using the wrong ladder, using a defective ladder, or not using the ladder correctly. For scaffolds, the issues include incorrect assembly, use, and disassembly.

Also, when you look at the most frequently cited serious violations in construction, fall-related issues are where you see a large number of citations, so we have data to support a focus on falls.

We used several work groups and a social marketing group to help identify target behaviors that need attention and also our target audiences. We engaged as many subject matter experts as we possibly could to examine relevant data, identified existing materials, including existing campaigns, regardless of whether they were local or regional in nature. We also involved subject matter experts from organizations, whether it was union groups, trade associations, or employer groups.

Our social marketing group completed 11 focus groups in three cities. The primary target audience was small construction contractors, primarily residential. Secondarily, our targets are supervisors and foremen. The tertiary audience is workers, including Spanish speakers. They identified attitudes and concerns in the focus groups. They tested out themes and materials, and one of the key aims was to learn what channels were best for people to learn the information or to absorb information, and then to help us focus on messages that would be appropriate for changing behavior. The coordinating committee will work with the social marketing expert and OSHA to draft the materials to be presented to them.

What we are looking at producing is a campaign that is national in scope with a launch on Workers' Memorial Day next year. It will cover the spring and summer of 2012. A goal of the campaign will be reducing injuries and fatalities from falls in construction, and we are looking at roofs, scaffolds and ladders as the fall issues to be addressed. Aside from informing you of our activities, I want to make certain that you understand that as members of ACCSH, we would want you and the organizations you represent to help us prepare for the launch. We want you to get the word out just as so many of you did for the heat stress campaign last year. We would want that same arsenal of effort for this particular activity and hopefully keep the message going after the launch.

For a full account of the Preventing Falls in Construction: Planning a National Campaign presentation, refer to Exhibit 11, and page 187 (Line 21) of the December 15, 2011 meeting transcript, in Docket No. OSHA-2011-0124 at http://www.regulations.gov.

Injury & Illness Prevention Program Work Group Report
Co-Chairs Matt Gillen and Letitia Davis

Ms. Davis provided a summary of the issues and discussions that took place during their work group meeting. The work group heard presentations from Mr. Steve Rank about the CAL OSHA illness and injury prevention program standard, and Ms. Victoria Bor, an attorney for the Building and Construction Trades Department.

Mr. Rank reported that the CAL OSHA rule went into effect in 1991. It requires all employers to develop and maintain an effective illness and injury prevention program and list key employee health and safety responsibilities. Mr. Rank reported that the experience in California has been very positive. The rule is simple and straightforward; it is well received by employers; and it has been effective in getting everyone on the same page. It is also a good proactive tool and has been useful to employers in demonstrating good faith to OSHA. It is also being used in the bidding process where contractors are asked to submit copies of their written programs. The rule applies to all employers regardless of employer size, and CAL OSHA has done much to assist small employers. It has a well received website with information and model illness and injury prevention program templates.

Ms. Bor reported that her organization has been focusing on the issue of how to implement effective health and safety programs on multi-employer construction sites. They believe it is not sufficient to simply have the overall contractor checking to see if subcontractors have programs. It is critical to address the dynamics of the construction industry in developing a program standard. She offered a set of guiding principles to inform development of a program standard. She stressed that health and safety programs must operate on two levels, employer based and site-wide; they must be responsive to the dynamic nature of the work site, i.e., involve hazard analysis as part of pre-job planning and on an ongoing basis to identify new hazards as work progresses; and they must include systems for clear, open and consistent communication.

The Work Group presented the following motions to ACCSH for consideration:

Bill Hering moved that ACCSH approve the Injury & Illness Prevention Program Work Group report from the December 14, 2011, meeting. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

Matt Gillen moved that ACCSH recommend that OSHA consider three basic principles for developing an I2P2 proposal to effectively address multi-employer construction workplaces:

1. Safety and health programs must be able to operate at two levels: employer-based and site-wide;
2. Safety and health programs must be responsive to the dynamic nature of the construction worksite; and
3. Safety and health programs must include systems for clear, open and consistent communication.

The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

For a full account of the Injury & Illness Prevention Program Work Group activities and minutes, refer to Exhibit 12, and page 213 (Line 19) of the December 15, 2011 meeting transcript, in Docket No. OSHA-2011-0124 at http://www.regulations.gov.

Prevention through Design Work Group Report
Co-Chairs Mr. Walter Jones and Mr. Mike Thibodeaux

Mr. Jones provided a summary of the issues and discussions that took place during their work group meeting. There was a presentation on the meaning of prevention through design by Mr. Jones and a presentation on the Alliance Program by Mr. Eric Lahaie of OSHA's Directorate of Cooperative and State Programs.

Mr. Jones' presentation highlighted that studies have shown that 20-40 percent of construction fatalities can be attributed to design. It also shows that the best opportunity to apply the full weight of the hierarchy of controls is at the front end during the design phase.

Next, Mr. Lahaie made a presentation on the Alliance Program, construction roundtable development, and the design for safety fact sheets developed. OSHA established the alliance construction roundtable to have participants develop and share compliance assistance tools and other resources for workers and employees. The roundtable has been working on addressing some of the biggest hazards in construction through the development of fact sheets.

The Work Group presented the following motions to ACCSH for consideration:

Mike Thibodeaux moved that ACCSH approve the Prevention Through Design Work Group report from the December 13, 2011, meeting. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

Walter Jones moved that ACCSH recommend that OSHA post the Alliance Roundtable Fact Sheets on OSHA's webpage or create a link to those documents. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

Walter Jones moved that ACCSH recommend that OSHA's Directorate of Construction work with the Alliance Roundtable to develop an outreach program and dissemination plan for getting the Roundtable Fact Sheets and other products to the design community, owners and the public. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

For a full account of the Prevention Through Design work group activities and minutes, refer to Exhibit 13, and page 225 (Line 1) of the December 15, 2011 meeting transcript, in Docket No. OSHA-2011-0124 at http://www.regulations.gov.

Update on the Direct Final Rule on Head Protection
Mr. Paul Bolon and Mr. Vernon Preston, OSHA's Directorate of Construction, Office of Construction Standards and Guidance, and Mr. Ted Twardowski, OSHA's Directorate of Standards and Guidance

OSHA is proposing to issue a direct final rule which will update its head protection standards for construction from the 1969 ANSI standard to the three most recent ones. It also updates the ANSI standard for all other industries as well. We are proposing to issue a direct final rule and at the same time issue an accompanying proposal. The direct final rule will become a final rule if the Agency doesn't receive any significant adverse comment. If we do, we will withdraw it and issue the proposal and go through whatever rulemaking steps we have to, to take that proposal to final.

ACCSH presented the following motions to OSHA for consideration:

Gerry Ryan moved that ACCSH recommend that OSHA proceed with the direct final rule/proposed rule to revise OSHA's Head Protection Standard for the construction industry. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

For a full account of the Update on the Direct Final Rule on Head Protection presentation, refer to Exhibit 14, and page 237 (Line 4) of the December 15, 2011 meeting transcript, in Docket No. OSHA-2011-0124 at http://www.regulations.gov.

Sewage Treatment Plant Failure in Gatlinburg, TN presentation
Mr. Mohammad Ayub, OSHA's Directorate of Construction, Office of Engineering Services

Mr. Ayub presented the results of an investigation his office conducted on the flow equalization basin wall collapse at a Wastewater Treatment Plant in Gatlinburg, TN.

For a full account of the Sewage Treatment Plant Failure in Gatlinburg, TN Presentation, refer to Exhibit 15, and page 247 (Line 1) of the December 15, 2011 meeting transcript, in Docket No. OSHA-2011-0124 at http://www.regulations.gov.

December 16, 2011

The meeting of the Advisory Committee on Construction and Health (ACCSH) was reconvened and called to order by the Chairman, Erich J. (Pete) Stafford, at 8:00 a.m. on Friday, December 16, 2011

Mr. Stafford provided handouts, including a construction fatality map, which depicted real time construction fatalities for 2011 during his opening remarks. The plan is to establish a fatality map website at CPWR. When launched anyone can access it, and we're asking for people to submit information, so we can continue real-time tracking of construction fatalities.

For a full account of the opening remarks and the Construction Fatalities map and Construction Fatalities by Exposure or Event handouts, refer to Exhibit 16 and 17, and page 6 (Line 16) of the December 16, 2011 meeting transcript, in Docket No. OSHA-2011-0124 at http://www.regulations.gov.

Reinforced Concrete Work Group Report
Co-Chairs Mr. Daniel Zarletti and Mr. Gerald Ryan

Mr. Ryan provided a summary of the issues and discussions that took place during their work group meeting. OSHA has submitted an RFI to the OMB to collect information in this area. It was recommended that ACCSH consider setting this work group aside until OSHA hears back from the OMB on the proposed rule-making and agrees to proceed to the rule-making process. This would allow for the redirection of assets to other topics and work groups, until this subject is ready for additional oversight from ACCSH.

The Work Group presented the following motions to ACCSH for consideration:

Bill Hering moved that ACCSH approve the Reinforced Concrete in Construction Work Group report from the December 14, 2011 meeting. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

Gerry Ryan moved that ACCSH recommend that OSHA suspend work on the Reinforced Concrete Work Group until after OSHA's Request for Information is published and the Agency determines whether to proceed with rulemaking. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

For a full account of the Reinforced Concrete Work Group activities and minutes, refer to Exhibit 18, and page 12 (Line 2) of the December 16, 2011 meeting transcript, in Docket No. OSHA-2011-0124 at http://www.regulations.gov.

Directorate of Technical Support and Emergency Management (DTSEM) Update
Ms. MaryAnn Garrahan, Acting Director, and Dr. Minda Nieblas

DTSEM provides technical support to our field offices and also outreach to our various stakeholders. We have a number of technical disciplines: engineers, industrial hygienists, ergonomists, toxicologists, physicists, occupational health nurses, and occupational physicians. Ms. Garrahan and Dr. Nieblas provided the committee an overview of many of the programs and products that DTSEM manages on a daily basis.

For a full account of the Directorate of Technical Support and Emergency Management Update Presentation, refer to Exhibit 20, and page 35 (Line 3) of the December 16, 2011 meeting transcript, in Docket No. OSHA-2011-0124 at http://www.regulations.gov.

Reverse Signal Operations Safety Requirements for Vehicles, Machinery and Equipment in General Industry and the Construction Industry Presentation
Mr. Jay Withrow, Director of the Division of Legal Support, Virginia OSHA

Mr. Withrow briefed the committee that without exception, every reverse signal operation fatality in Virginia involved the driver either not knowing anyone was in the backup zone and running them over, or losing sight of someone he knew was in the backup zone and proceeding anyway. Virginia and the State of Washington are two state plans that have regulations that address backup alarms. Washington's standard is construction only, while Virginia's is in both construction and general industry. In the 3 years leading up to our regulatory adoption process, I believe it was 2005, 2006, 2007, and maybe even into 2008, which was in the middle of our process, we were averaging three fatal accidents a year, which was basically about six or seven percent of our fatalities. So that was one of the reasons that we looked closely at it. It seemed to be, instead of having one a year, maybe here or there, fatalities were starting to increase: Two and then three.

For a full account of the Reverse Signal Operations Safety Requirements for Vehicles, Machinery and Equipment in General Industry and the Construction Industry Presentation, refer to Exhibit 22, and page 69 (Line 16) of the December 16, 2011 meeting transcript, in Docket No. OSHA-2011-0124 at http://www.regulations.gov.

Backing Operations Work Group Report
Co-Chairs Mr. Steven Hawkins and Mr. Charles Stribling

Mr. Hawkins provided a summary of the issues and discussions that took place during their work group meeting. Mr. Maddux, Director of DOC, addressed the group. He advised that OSHA is looking for direction on the backing operations web page - not just the standard, but the web page also. Mr. Bolon briefed on the research performed by Mrs. Smith regarding hand signals, OSHA's request for information (RFI), and the work on the OSHA backing web page. Work group members discussed examining standardized hand signals used by other agencies or organizations such as the FAA, the FRA, other states, and the crane standard. Next step for the work group is to invite Dave Fosbroke from NIOSH to speak about this issue and show OSHA-backing operations video during the next work group meeting.

The Work Group presented the following motions to ACCSH for consideration:

Letitia Davis moved that ACCSH approve the Backing Operations Work Group report from the December 13, 2011 meeting. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

Steve Hawkins moved that ACCSH recommend that OSHA:

1. Enlarge the scope of the Backing Operations webpage to address operating equipment with an obstructed view in any direction of travel;
2. Develop separate tracks on the Backing Operations webpage to differentiate between backing operations in construction and in general industry; and
3. Follow the recognized hierarchy of controls in listing feasible controls on the Backing Operations webpage.

The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

For a full account of the Backing Operations Work Group activities and minutes, refer to Exhibit 23, and page 120 (Line 16) of the December 16, 2011 meeting transcript, in Docket No. OSHA-2011-0124 at http://www.regulations.gov.

Standards Improvement Projects (SIPs) IV Discussion
Mr. Paul Bolon and Mr. Dayton Eckerson, OSHA's Directorate of Construction, Office of Construction Standards and Guidance,

Mr. Bolon briefed the committee on the purpose of SIPs, which is to improve confusing, outdated, duplicative, or inconsistent requirements in its standards. This will help employers better understand their obligations, which will lead to increased compliance, insure greater safety and health for employees, and reduce compliance costs. This will be the first SIP that will focus on construction. Mr. Bolon provided a handout on SIP III to help clarify how the SIP process worked. We already have a draft RFI that should go into clearance in January. The purpose of the RFI is get industry feedback on which standards should be included in the process.

ACCSH presented the following motions to OSHA for consideration:

Steve Hawkins moved that ACCSH recommend that OSHA include proper fit of PPE in the SIP IV rulemaking. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

Charles Stribling moved that ACCSH recommend that OSHA consider including the chimney variance in the SIP IV rulemaking. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

For a full account of the Standards Improvement Project IV presentation, refer to Exhibit 24, and page 120 (Line 16) of the December 16, 2011 meeting transcript, in Docket No. OSHA-2011-0124 at http://www.regulations.gov.

Committee Members Open Forum
ACCSH

Mr. Stafford led a discussion on possible work groups to support future ACCSH meetings. At the conclusion of the discussion it was agreed that the following ACCSH Work Groups will remain active:

1. Diversity
2. Health Hazards/Emerging Issues
3. Injury and Illness Prevention Programs
4. Backing Operations

Further discussions took place and addressed the following areas for possible future work groups:

• Scaffolding
• Combined Fall Protection and Scaffolding
• Training Delivery
• Surveillance and Evaluation Targeting

For a full account of the Committee Members Open Forum, refer to page 154 (Line 15) of the December 16, 2011 meeting transcript, in Docket No. OSHA-2011-0124 at http://www.regulations.gov.

There were no public comments.

The meeting was adjourned at 12 p.m.

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Certification

I have reviewed the minutes of the December 15-16, 2011 meeting of the Advisory Committee on Construction, Safety and Health and do certify they are true and correct and may be entered into the record.

Ben Bare
Designated Federal Official