[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 120 (Thursday, June 21, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28868-28869]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-13324]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
[Docket No. OSHA-2018-0006]
Information Collection Requirements for OSHA's Alliance Program;
Submission for Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) Approval of
Information Collection (Paperwork) Requirements
AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Labor.
ACTION: Request for public comments.
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SUMMARY: OSHA solicits public comments concerning its proposal to
obtain OMB approval of the information collection requirements
specified by OSHA's Alliance Program.
DATES: Comments must be submitted (postmarked, sent, or received) by
August 20, 2018.
ADDRESSES:
Electronically: You may submit comments and attachments
electronically at https://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 a copy of your comments and
attachments to the OSHA Docket Office, Docket No. OSHA-2018-0006,
Occupational Safety and Health Administration, U.S. Department of
Labor, Room N-3653, 200 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20210.
Deliveries (hand, express mail, messenger, and courier service) are
accepted during the Docket Office's normal business hours, 10:00 a.m.
to 3:00 p.m., ET.
Instructions: All submissions must include the Agency name and the
OSHA docket number (OSHA-2018-0006) for the Information Collection
Request (ICR). All comments, including any personal information you
provide, are placed in the public docket without change, and may be
made available online at https://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 https://www.regulations.gov or the OSHA Docket Office at
the above address. All documents in the docket (including this Federal
Register notice) are listed in the https://www.regulations.gov index;
however, some information (e.g., copyrighted material) is not publicly
available to read or download from the website. All submissions,
including copyrighted material, are available for inspection and
copying at the OSHA Docket Office. You may also contact Christie Garner
at the number below to obtain a copy of the ICR.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tom Mockler or Christie Garner,
Directorate of Standards and Guidance, OSHA, U.S. Department of Labor,
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 accord with the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995 (PRA) (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 OSH Act or for developing
information regarding the causes and prevention of occupational
injuries, illnesses, and accidents (see 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 said information (29 U.S.C. 657).
OSHA created the Alliance Program in 2002 as a structure for
working with groups that are committed to worker safety and health. The
program enables OSHA to enter into a voluntary, cooperative
relationship at the national, regional, or area office level with
industry, labor, and other groups to improve workplace safety and
health; prevent workplace fatalities, injuries, and illnesses; and
reach employers and workers that OSHA may not otherwise reach through
its traditional methods. These groups include trade or professional
organizations, businesses, unions, consulates, faith- and community-
based organizations, and educational institutions. OSHA and the groups
work together to share workplace safety and health information with
workers and employers, encourage participation in OSHA initiatives,
develop compliance assistance tools and resources, and educate workers
and employers about their rights and responsibilities. Alliance Program
participants do not receive exemptions from OSHA inspections or any
other enforcement benefits.
OSHA collects information from organizations that are signatories
to an Alliance agreement, known hereafter as ``alliance participants.''
Information is collected from the participants through meetings,
informal conversations, and data forms to develop Alliance agreements,
and to develop annual as well as program-wide reports.
Alliance participants work with OSHA to develop agreements with
well-defined goals and specific objectives and activities. Agreements
commonly identify specific hazard(s), operations, or other areas of
concern; the targeted segment within the workforce; and the planned
activities to meet the agreement's overarching goals and objectives.
OSHA provides templates for Alliance agreements OSHA uses the
information from the forms (national Alliance) and collaborative data
gathering (Regional and Area Offices) to compile annual reports for
individual Alliances and assess the effectiveness of the individual
Alliance in meeting agreement goals and objectives. OSHA uses aggregate
data from all active Alliances to assess the impact of the program as a
whole in meeting the Agency's strategic plan goals and strategies
related to outreach and communication.
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
costs) 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
This is an existing collection of information in use without an OMB
number. The proposed ICR includes collection of information
requirements for: (1) Alliance agreement development, (2) the biannual
Alliance Data Reporting Form, and (3) annual reports. The burden hours
for the information collection requirements contained in the proposed
ICR would result in a total initial burden hour estimate of 2,210
hours.
The Agency will summarize the comments submitted in response to
this notice and will include this summary in the request to OMB to
approve these information collection requirements, and the associated
templates and forms.
Type of Review: Existing collection in use without an OMB control
number.
Title: Information Collection Requirements for OSHA's Alliance
Program.
OMB Control Number: 1218--0NEW.
Affected Public: Businesses or other for-profits.
Number of Respondents: 250
Frequency: Once, On occasion, Semi-annually, Annually.
Average Time per Response: Various.
Total Number of Responses: 690.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 2,210.
Estimated Cost (Operation and Maintenance): $0.
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 https://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-2018-0006). 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 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 https://www.regulations.gov. Therefore, OSHA cautions commenters about
submitting personal information such as their social security number
and date of birth. Although all submissions are listed in the https://www.regulations.gov index, some information (e.g., copyrighted
material) is not publicly available to read or download from this
website. All submissions, including copyrighted material, are available
for inspection and copying at the OSHA Docket Office.
Information on using the https://www.regulations.gov website to
submit comments and access the docket is available at the website's
``User Tips'' link. Contact the OSHA Docket Office for information
about materials not available from the website, and for assistance in
using the internet to locate docket submissions.
V. Authority and Signature
Loren Sweatt, Deputy 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. 1-2012 (77 FR
3912).
Signed at Washington, DC, on June 18, 2018.
Loren Sweatt,
Deputy Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health.
[FR Doc. 2018-13324 Filed 6-20-18; 8:45 am]
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