[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 208 (Friday, October 26, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54145-54147]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-23419]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
[Docket No. OSHA-2011-0059]
The Occupational Exposure to Hazardous Chemicals in Laboratories
Standard; Extension of the 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 the proposal to
extend OMB approval of the information collection requirements
contained in the Occupational Exposure to Hazardous Chemicals in
Laboratories.
DATES: Comments must be submitted (postmarked, sent, or received) by
December 26, 2018.
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. The OSHA Docket Office is located in N-3508.
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-2011-0059,
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 OSHA 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-2011-0059) 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 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 above address. 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 website. All submissions,
including copyrighted material, are available for inspection and
copying at the OSHA Docket Office. You may also contact Theda Kenney at
(202) 693-2222 to obtain a copy of the ICR.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Seleda Perryman or Theda Kenney,
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 process 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 (PRA 95) (44
U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)). This program ensures that information is in the
desired format, the reporting burden (time and costs) is minimal, the
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 OSHA to obtain
such information with a minimum burden upon employers, especially those
operating small businesses, and to reduce to the maximum extent
feasible unnecessary duplication of effort in obtaining said
information (see 29 U.S.C. 657).
The Standard entitled ``Occupational Exposure to Hazardous
Chemicals in Laboratories'' (29 CFR 1910.1450; the ``Standard'')
applies to laboratories that use hazardous chemicals in accordance with
the Standard's definitions for ``laboratory use of hazardous
chemicals'' and ``laboratory scale.'' The Standard requires these
laboratories to maintain worker exposures at or below the permissible
exposure limits specified for the hazardous chemicals in 29 CFR part
1910, subpart Z. The laboratories do so by developing a written
Chemical Hygiene Plan (CHP) that describes the following: Standard
operating procedures for using hazardous chemicals; hazard-control
techniques; equipment-reliability measures; worker information and
training programs; conditions under which the employer must approve
operations, procedures, and activities before implementation; and
medical consultations and examinations. The CHP also designates
personnel responsible for implementing the CHP, and specifies the
procedures to be used to provide additional protection to workers
exposed to particularly hazardous chemicals.
Other information collection requirements of the Standard include:
Documenting exposure monitoring results; notifying workers in writing
of these results; presenting specified information and training to
workers; establishing a medical surveillance program for overexposed
workers; providing required information to the physician; obtaining the
physician's written opinion on using proper respiratory equipment; and
establishing, maintaining, transferring, and disclosing exposure
monitoring and medical records. This collection of information
requirements, including the CHP, control worker overexposure to
hazardous laboratory chemicals, thereby preventing serious illnesses
and death among workers exposed to such chemicals.
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.
OSHA is requesting an adjustment increase in the existing burden
hour estimate for the collection of information requirements in the
Standard. In this regard, the agency is requesting to increase the
current burden hour estimate from 332,350 to 695,105 hours, a total
adjustment of 362,755 hours. The increase is due to an increase in the
worker and establishment estimates and underestimation of data during
the prior ICR.
OSHA will summarize the comments submitted in response to this
notice, and will include this summary in its request to OMB to extend
the approval of the information collection requirements contained in
the Occupational Exposure to Hazardous Chemicals in Laboratories
Standard.
III. Proposed Actions
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.
Title: Occupational Exposure to Hazardous Chemicals in Laboratories
(29 CFR 1910.1450).
OMB Control Number: 1218-0131.
Affected Public: Business or other for-profits.
Number of Respondents: 140,956.
Frequency: Annually; monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, on
occasion.
Average Time per Response: Varies from 3 minutes to replace the
safe practice manual to 1 hour to develop a new manual.
Estimated Number of Responses: 1,782,322.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 695,105.
Estimated Cost (Operation and Maintenance): $79,770,481.
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 (Docket No. OSHA-2011-0059) for the ICR. 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 that 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
dates 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 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 through 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 October 19, 2018.
Loren Sweatt,
Deputy Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health.
[FR Doc. 2018-23419 Filed 10-25-18; 8:45 am]
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