[Federal Register: July 8, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 131)][Notices] [Page 39049-39050]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr08jy08-110]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
[Docket No. OSHA-2008-0017]
Electrical Standards for Construction and General Industry;
Extension of the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) Approval of
the Information Collection (Paperwork) Requirements
AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Labor.
ACTION: Request for public comment.
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SUMMARY: OSHA solicits comments concerning its request for an extension
of the information collection requirements contained in the Electrical
Standards for Construction (29 CFR part 1926, subpart K) and for
General Industry (29 CFR part 1910, subpart S). The Standards address
safety procedures for installation and maintenance of electric
utilization equipment that prevent death and serious injuries among
construction and general industry employees in the workplace caused by
electrical hazards.
DATES: Comments must be submitted (postmarked, sent, or received) by
September 8, 2008.
ADDRESSES:
Electronically: You may submit comments and attachments
electronically at http://www.regulations.gov, which is the Federal
eRulemaking Portal. Follow the instructions online for submitting
comments.
Facsimile: If your comments, including attachments, are not longer
than 10 pages, you may fax them to the OSHA Docket Office at (202) 693-
1648.
Mail, hand delivery, express mail, messenger, or courier service:
When using this method, you must submit three copies of your comments
and attachments to the OSHA Docket Office, Docket No. OSHA-2008-0017,
U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health
Administration, Room N-2625, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington,
DC 20210. Deliveries (hand, express mail, messenger, and courier
service) are accepted during the Department of Labor's and Docket
Office's normal business hours, 8:15 a.m. to 4:45 p.m., e.t.
Instructions: All submissions must include the Agency name and OSHA
docket number for the ICR (OSHA-2008-0017). All comments, including any
personal information you provide, are placed in the public docket
without change, and may be made available online at http://
www.regulations.gov. For further information on submitting comments see
the "Public Participation" heading in the section of this notice
titled SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
Docket: To read or download comments or other material in the
docket, go to http://www.regulations.gov or the OSHA Docket Office at
the address above. All documents in the docket (including this Federal
Register notice) are listed in the http://www.regulations.gov index;
however, some information (e.g., copyrighted material) is not publicly
available to read or download through the Web site. All submissions,
including copyrighted material, are available for inspection and
copying at the OSHA Docket Office. You may also contact Theda Kenney at
the address below to obtain a copy of the ICR.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Theda Kenney or Todd Owen, Directorate
of Standards and Guidance, OSHA, U.S. Department of Labor, Room N-3609,
200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20210; telephone (202)
693-2222.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to reduce
paperwork and respondent (i.e., employer) burden, conducts a
preclearance consultation program to provide the public with an
opportunity to comment on proposed and continuing information
collection requirements in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act
of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)). This program ensures that
information is in the desired format, reporting burden (time and costs)
is minimal, collection instruments are clearly understood, and OSHA's
estimate of the information collection burden is accurate. The
Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (the OSH 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). The OSH Act also requires
that OSHA obtain such information with minimum burden upon employers,
especially those operating small businesses, and to reduce to the
maximum extent feasible unnecessary duplication of efforts in obtaining
information (29 U.S.C. 657).
The information collection requirements specified by the Electrical
Standards for Construction and General Industry alert employees to the
presence and types of electrical hazards in the workplace, thereby
preventing serious injury and death by electrocution. The information
collection requirements in the standards involve the following: The
employer using electrical equipment that is marked with the
manufacturer's name, trademark, or other descriptive markings that
identify the producer of the equipment, and marking the equipment with
the voltage, current, wattage, or other ratings necessary; requiring
each disconnecting means for motors and appliances to be marked legibly
to indicate its purpose, unless located and arranged so the purpose is
evident; requiring the entrances to rooms and other guarded locations
containing exposed live parts to be marked with conspicuous warning
signs forbidding unqualified persons from entering; and, for
construction employers only, establishing and implementing the assured
equipment grounding conductor program instead of using ground-fault
circuit interrupters.
II. Special Issues for Comment
OSHA has a particular interest in comments on the following issues:
Whether the proposed information collection requirements
are necessary for the proper performance of the Agency's functions,
including whether the information is useful;
The accuracy of OSHA's estimate of the burden (time and
cost) of the information collection requirements, including the
validity of the methodology and assumptions used;
The quality, utility, and clarity of the information
collected; and
Ways to minimize the burden on employers who must comply;
for example, by using automated or other technological information
collection and transmission techniques.
III. Proposed Actions
OSHA is proposing to combine the information collection
requirements contained in the Design Safety Systems for Electrical
Systems (29 CFR 1910.302-.308 and 1910.399 (OMB Control No. 1218-0256)
with the information collection requirements contained in the
Electrical Standards for Construction (29 CFR part 1926, subpart K) and
for General Industry (29 CFR part 1910, subpart S) (OMB Control No.
1218-0130). In doing so, the Agency is proposing to adjust the total
burden hours of these subparts from 92,644 hours to 151,172 hours; a
total increase of 58,528 hours. The burden hours have increased
primarily due to an increase in the total number of jobsites for
construction from 42,750 to 45,000. The Agency will summarize the comments
submitted in response to this notice, and will include this summary in the
request to OMB to extend the approval of the information collection
requirements contained in the standards.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.
Title: Electrical Standards for Construction (29 CFR part 1926,
subpart K) and General Industry (29 CFR part 1910, subpart S).
OMB Number: 1218-0130.
Affected Public: Business or other for-profit; not-for-profit
institutions; Federal Government; State, local, or tribal governments.
Number of Respondents: 500,000.
Frequency of Response: Occasionally.
Total Responses: 2,331,135.
Average Time per Response: Varies from three minutes (.08 hour) to
post and construct each sign to four hours to document a hazardous
classified location by a certified electrical engineer.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 151,172.
Estimated Cost (Operation and Maintenance): $7,500.
IV. Public Participation--Submission of Comments on this Notice and
Internet Access to Comments and Submissions
You may submit comments in response to this document as follows:
(1) Electronically at http://www.regulations.gov, which is the Federal
eRulemaking Portal; (2) by facsimile (FAX); or (3) by hard copy. All
comments, attachments, and other material must identify the Agency name
and the OSHA docket number for the ICR (Docket No. OSHA-2008-0017). You
may supplement electronic submissions by uploading document files
electronically. If you wish to mail additional materials in reference
to an electronic or facsimile submission, you must submit them to the
OSHA Docket Office (see the section of this notice titled ADDRESSES).
The additional materials must clearly identify your electronic comments
by your name, date, and the docket number so the Agency can attach them
to your comments.
Because of security procedures, the use of regular mail may cause a
significant delay in the receipt of comments. For information about
security procedures concerning the delivery of materials by hand,
express delivery, messenger, or courier service, please contact the
OSHA Docket Office at (202) 693-2350 (TTY (877) 889-5627).
Comments and submissions are posted without change at http://
www.regulations.gov. Therefore, OSHA cautions commenters about
submitting personal information such as social security numbers and
date of birth. Although all submissions are listed in the http://
www.regulations.gov index, some information (e.g., copyrighted
material) is not publicly available to read or download through this
website. All submissions, including copyrighted material, are available
for inspection and copying at the OSHA Docket Office. Information on
using the http://www.regulations.gov Web site to submit comments and
access the docket is available at the Web site's "User Tips" link.
Contact the OSHA Docket Office for information about materials not
available through the website, and for assistance in using the Internet
to locate docket submissions.
V. Authority and Signature
Edwin G. Foulke, Jr., Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational
Safety and Health, directed the preparation of this notice. The
authority for this notice is the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44
U.S.C. 3506 et seq.) and Secretary of Labor's Order No. 5-2007 (72 FR
31159).
Signed at Washington, DC, on July 1, 2008.
Edwin G. Foulke, Jr.,
Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health.
[FR Doc. E8-15392 Filed 7-7-08; 8:45 am]
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