[Federal Register: September 8, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 173)][Notices] [Page 53385-53386]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr08se05-78]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Office of the Secretary
Submission for OMB Review: Comment Request
August 30, 2005.
The Department of Labor (DOL) has submitted the following public
information collection requests (ICRs) to the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13, 44 U.S.C. chapter 35). A copy of
each ICR, with applicable supporting documentation, may be obtained by
contacting Darrin King on 202-693-4129 (this is not a toll-free number)
or e-mail: king.darrin@dol.gov.
Comments should be sent to Office of Information and Regulatory
Affairs, Attn: OMB Desk Officer for the Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA), Office of Management and Budget, Room 10235,
Washington, DC 20503, 202-395-7316 (this is not a toll-free number),
within 30 days from the date of this publication in the Federal
Register.
The OMB is particularly interested in comments which:
Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency,
including whether the information will have practical utility;
Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the
burden of the proposed collection of information, including the
validity of the methodology and assumptions used;
Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and
Minimize the burden of the collection of information on
those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection
techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting
electronic submission of responses.
Agency: Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
Type of Review: Extension of currently approved collection.
Title: Onsite Consultation Agreements (29 CFR Part 1908).
OMB Number: 1218-0110.
Frequency: On occasion; Quarterly; Biennially; and Annually.
Type of Response: Reporting; Recordkeeping; and Third party
disclosure.
Affected Public: State, Local, or Tribal Government; Business or
other for-profit; Not-for-profit institutions; and Federal Government.
Number of Respondents: 31,048.
Number of Annual Responses: 31,000.
Estimated Time Per Response: Varies from 3 minutes for an employer
or plant manager to sign a safety and health achievement recognition
program application to 32 hours for an onsite consultation program
manager to submit an agreement once per year.
Total Burden Hours: 21,771.
Total Annualized capital/startup costs: $0.
Total Annual Costs (operating/maintaining systems or purchasing
services): $0.
Description: The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (the
Act) (29 U.S.C. 651 et seq.) authorizes information collection by
employers as necessary or appropriate for enforcement of the Act or for
developing information regarding the causes and prevention of
occupational injuries, illnesses, and accidents (29 U.S.C. 657).
Section 7(c)(1) of the Act authorizes the Secretary of Labor to,
``with the consent of any State or political subdivision thereof,
accept and use the services, facilities, and personnel of any agency of
such State or subdivision with reimbursement.'' Section 21(C) of the
Act authorizes the Secretary of Labor (Secretary) to, ``consult with
and advise employers and employees * * * as to effective means of
preventing occupational illnesses and injuries.''
Additionally, Section 21(d) of the Act instructs the Secretary to
``establish and support cooperative agreements with the States under
which employers subject to the Act may consult with State personnel
with respect to the application of occupational safety and health
requirements under the Act or under State plans approved under section
18 of the Act.'' This gives the Secretary authority to enter into
agreements with the States to provide onsite consultation services, and
established rules under which employers may qualify for an inspection
exemption. To satisfy the intent of these and other sections of the
Act, OSHA codified the terms that govern cooperative agreements between
OSHA and State governments whereby State agencies provide onsite
consultation services to private employers to assist them in complying
with the requirements of the OSH Act. The terms were codified as the
Consultation Program regulations (29 CFR part 1908).
The Consultation Program regulations specify services to be
provided, and practices and procedures to be followed by the State
Onsite Consultation Programs. Information collection requirements set
forth in the Onsite Consultation Program regulations are in two
categories: State Responsibilities and Employer Responsibilities. Eight
regulatory provisions require information collection activities by the
State. The Federal government provides 90 percent of funds for onsite
consultation services delivered by the States, which result in the
information collection. Four requirements apply to employers and
specify conditions for receiving the free consultation services.
Agency: Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
Type of Review: New collection of Information.
Title: Survey of Automatic External Defibrillator use in
Occupational Setting.
OMB Number: 1218-0NEW.
Frequency: One time.
Type of Response: Reporting.
Affected Public: Business or other for-profit; Not-for-profit
institutions; Federal Government; and State, Local, or Tribal
Government.
Number of Respondents: 4,000.
Number of Annual Responses: 5,036.
Estimated Time Per Response: 10 to 15 minutes.
Total Burden Hours: 551.
Total Annualized capital/startup costs: $0.
Total Annual Costs (operating/maintaining systems or purchasing
services): $0.
Description: The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has
requested that OSHA conduct a comprehensive study of the usefulness and
efficacy of Automatic External Defibrillator (AEDs) in occupational
settings. To gather more information about AED use in occupational
settings, OSHA will conduct a statistical survey of selected
establishments in OSHA-regulated industrial sectors to develop
statistically accurate estimates of the current prevalence of AED
programs in various industrial sectors. OHSA will also develop
estimates of the percentages of establishments that have considered,
but not implemented such programs. Additionally, OSHA will collect
information on the characteristics of AED programs and establishments
(e.g., size, industry, workforce age distribution, etc.) that
may correlate with the presence or lack of an AED program. Finally,
OSHA plans to supplement the statistical survey with extended case
study interviews with selected respondents from the statistical survey.
These interviews will provide in-depth, albeit qualitative, information
about various factors that influence decisions on whether to implement
AED programs, as well as about the circumstances that underlie the cost
and effectiveness of such programs.
OSHA has conducted a thorough search and review of existing studies
and other literature about AED use. Only limited information is
available about AED use in occupational settings, although substantial
literature exists addressing AED use in public settings. In addition,
OSHA found little direct evidence about AED cost-effectiveness in the
workplace. Collection of information sought by OSHA from establishments
concerning the use of automatic external defibrillators in occupational
settings will include:
1. Profile information, including industry, type of operation,
number of employees, age distribution of employees, presence of safety
or health professionals on staff, and experience with sudden cardiac
events.
2. Characteristics of AED programs in place, including number of
units, number of employees trained, type and frequency of training, and
percentage of workforce protected by AEDs.
3. Factors influencing decisions whether to invest in AED equipment
or implement an AED program, including experience with sudden cardiac
events, role of marketing by AED manufacturers, costs of AED equipment,
costs of training, cost of maintenance, and liability concerns.
4. Frequency of use of AED units and their effectiveness in cases
of employee heart attacks or other sudden cardiac events.
5. In-depth interviews on issues identified with respect to Topics
2, 3, and 4 will be conducted during post-survey case study interviews.
OHSA plans to use this information, first, to identify the
occupational settings in which AEDs are most cost-effective. Second,
OSHA will use the survey results to identify barriers to expanding AED
use and to help design effective outreach programs to encourage
establishments to install AED equipment. Without this survey, OSHA will
lack information about the current prevalence of AED programs in
occupational settings. The Agency will also lack information on the
characteristics of establishments with and without AED programs and
about the factors that have influenced establishments' decisions
whether to implement AED programs. Without this knowledge, OSHA will
have difficulty determining the efficacy of different strategies that
might be used to encourage the implementation of workplace AED programs
such as developing outreach and promotion programs.
The proposed collection of information consists of a two-stage
statistical survey of at least 1,000 establishments in OSHA-regulated
industries that have 100 or more employees. In the first stage, OSHA
will survey establishments from the universe population to gather
baseline profile information and to screen for establishments that
either (1) have an AED program in place, or (2) have considered
implementing an AED program but have not done so. In the second stage,
screened respondents will be asked questions specific to which group
their establishment belongs (i.e., currently has an AED program or
considered but has not implemented such a program).
As an adjunct to the statistical survey, OSHA plans to conduct as
many as 36 in-depth case study interviews with selected volunteers
among respondents in both the groups that do and do not have AED
programs. These open-ended interviews will permit OSHA to gather
detailed qualitative information about key issues pertaining to the
implementation, cost, and effectiveness of AED programs and factors
deterring implementation of such programs.
Ira L. Mills,
Departmental Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 05-17783 Filed 9-7-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-26-P
