[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 124 (Friday, June 26, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38391-38393]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-13821]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
[Docket No. OSHA-2017-0005]
Electric Power Generation, Transmission, and Distribution
Standards for Construction and General Industry and Electrical
Protective Equipment Standards for Construction and General Industry;
Extension of the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) Approval of
Collection of Information
AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Labor.
ACTION: Request for public comments.
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SUMMARY: OSHA solicits public comments concerning the request for an
extension of the collection of information specified in the standards
on the Electric Power Generation, Transmission, and Distribution for
Construction and General Industry and Electrical Protective Equipment
Standards for Construction and General Industry.
DATES: Comments must be submitted (postmarked, sent, or received) by
August 25, 2020.
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-2017-0005, U.S.
Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration,
Room N3625, 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 OSHA
docket number (OSHA-2017-0005) for the Information Collection Request
(ICR). All comments, including any personal information you provide,
such as social security numbers and date of birth, 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 through the website. All submissions,
including copyrighted material, are available for inspection and
copying at the OSHA Docket Office. You may contact Theda Kenney at the
below address to obtain a copy of the ICR.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Theda Kenney or Seleda Perrymen,
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 the 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 collection of
information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (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 (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 Electrical Protective Equipment Standard (29 CFR 1926.97 and 29
CFR 1910.137) and the Electric Power Generation, Transmission, and
Distribution Standard (29 CFR part 1926 and 29 CFR 1910.269) specify
several collection of information. The following describes the
collection of information contained in the standards and addresses who
will use the information.
Electrical Protective Equipment Standard (Sec. Sec. 1926.97 and
1910.137)
Testing Certification (Sec. Sec. 1926.97(c)(2)(xii) and
1910.137(c)(2)(xii)).
Employers must certify that the electrical protective equipment
used by their workers have passed the tests specified in paragraphs
(c)(2)(vii)(D), (c)(2)(viii), and (c)(2)(ix) and (xi) of the Standards.
The certification must identify the equipment that passed the tests and
the dates of the tests. The two standards require testing: Periodically
(generally, every 6 months for rubber insulating gloves and every 12
months for most other types of rubber insulating equipment); after any
repairs; and before the equipment is returned to service after any
inspection finds certain defects. In addition, the employer must test
rubber insulating gloves before reuse after employees use them without
protector gloves and must certify that testing. These performance-based
standards ensure that employers maintain the most recent test records
for equipment that passes the required tests without specifying
precisely how the employer must maintain those records.
Electric Power Generation, Transmission, and Distribution Standard
(Part 1926 and Sec. 1910.269)
For host employer responsibilities Sec. Sec. 1910.269(a)(3)(i) and
1926.950(c)(1) for construction and general industry, before work
begins, the host employer must inform the contract employers of: The
characteristics of the host employer's installation listed; conditions
listed in paragraphs of this section that are known to the host
employer; information about the design and operation of the host
employer's installation that the contract employer needs to make the
assessments required by this section; and any other information about
the design and operation of the host employer's installation that is
known by the host employer, that the contract employer requests, and
that is related to the protection of the contract employer's employees.
For contract employer responsibilities Sec. Sec.
1910.269(a)(3)(ii) and 1926.950(c)(2) for construction and general
industry, contract employers must ensure that each of the employees is
instructed in the hazardous conditions relevant to the employee's work
that the contract employer is aware of as a result of information
communicated to the contract employer by the host employer; before work
begins, the contract employer must advise the host employer of any
unique hazardous conditions presented by the contract employer's work;
and the contract employer must advise the host employer of any
unanticipated hazardous conditions found during the contract employer's
work that the host employer did not mention. The contract employer
shall provide this information to the host employer within 2 working
days after discovering the hazardous condition.
In job briefing the information provided by the employer in
Sec. Sec. 1910.269(c)(1)(i) and 1926.952(a)(1) for construction and
general industry, in assigning an employee or a group of employees to
perform a job, the employer must provide the employee in charge of the
job with all available information that relates to the determination of
existing characteristics and conditions required.
For the engineering analyses to determine maximum anticipated per
unit transient overvoltage in Sec. Sec. 1910.269(l)(3)(ii) and
1926.960(c)(1)(ii) for construction and general industry, the employer
must determine the maximum anticipated per-unit transient overvoltage,
phase-to-ground, through an engineering analysis or assume a maximum
anticipated per-unit transient overvoltage, phase-to-ground, in
accordance with the tables listed. When the employer uses portable
protective gaps to control the maximum transient overvoltage, the value
of the maximum anticipated per-unit transient overvoltage, phase-to-
ground, must provide for five standard deviations between the
statistical sparkover voltage of the gap and the statistical withstand
voltage corresponding to the electrical component of the minimum
approach distance. The employer must make any engineering analysis
conducted to determine maximum anticipated per-unit transient
overvoltage available upon request to employees and to the Assistant
Secretary or designee for examination and copying.
II. Special Issues for Comment
OSHA has a particular interest in comments on the following issues:
Whether the proposed collection of information 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 collection of information, 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 requesting that OMB extends the approval of the collection
of information contained in the Standards on Electric Power Generation,
Transmission, and Distribution for Construction and General Industry
(29 CFR part 1926, subpart V, and 29 CFR 1910.269) and the Electrical
Protective Equipment Standards for Construction and General Industry
(29 CFR 1926.97 and 29 CFR 1910.137). The agency is requesting an
adjustment increase in the burden hours from 365,094 hours to 380,735
hours, a difference of 15,641 burden hours. This increase in burden is
due to an increase in the number of projects and an increase in the
number of establishments. The agency will summarize any comments
submitted in response to this notice, and will include this summary in
the request to OMB.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved information
collection.
Title: Electric Power Generation, Transmission, and Distribution
Standards for Construction and General Industry and Electrical
Protective Equipment for Construction and General.
OMB Control Number: 1218-0253.
Affected Public: Business or other for-profits.
Number of Respondents: 20,593.
Total Responses: 1,992,283
Frequency of Responses: On occasion; Semi-annually; Annually.
Average Time per Response: Varies
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 380,735.
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-2017-0005). 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 https://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 https://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 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 through the website, and for assistance in using the internet
to locate docket submissions.
V. Authority and Signature
Loren Sweatt, Principal 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 22, 2020.
Loren Sweatt,
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety
and Health.
[FR Doc. 2020-13821 Filed 6-25-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-26-P
