[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 160 (Friday, August 19, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-20379]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: August 19, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

29 CFR Parts 1910, 1917, and 1918

[Docket No. S-025]

 

Longshoring and Marine Terminals

AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Labor.

ACTION: Proposed rule; notice of informal public hearings.

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SUMMARY: The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) 
proposed on June 2, 1994 (59 FR 28594) to revise its Safety and Health 
Regulations for Longshoring and, to a far lesser extent, to amend its 
Safety and Health Regulations for Marine Terminals. The proposed rule 
covers cargo handling and related activities conducted aboard vessels 
and at Marine Terminals. The proposed amendments to the Marine 
Terminals standard are intended primarily to provide regulatory 
consistency with the proposed Longshoring ship-board rules.
    The June 2, 1994 notice and subsequent correction notice on June 
13, 1994 (59 FR 30389) announced the cities and dates for three 
informal rulemaking hearings that will be held on all issues raised by 
the proposal. The dates of these hearings have been changed. This 
notice sets the new dates and specific locations of the informal public 
hearings to be held as part of the rulemaking process. In addition, it 
extends the original date for the submission of Notices of Intention to 
Appear by three weeks and reduces the time frame for the submission of 
documentary evidence and the text of lengthy testimony from 21 days to 
14 days prior to the date of the hearing where the evidence will be 
presented.

DATES: Written comments on the standard must be postmarked on or before 
September 23, 1994.
    Notices of intention to appear at the informal public hearings must 
be postmarked by September 14, 1994.
    The hearings will begin at 9:30 a.m. and be held in the following 
cities, beginning on the following dates:
    Charleston, South Carolina on October 4, 5 and 6, 1994.
    Seattle, Washington on October 19, 20 and 21, 1994.
    New Orleans, Louisiana on November 15, 16 and 17, 1994.
    Parties who request more than 10 minutes for their presentation at 
the informal public hearing and parties who will submit documentary 
evidence at the hearing must submit the full text of their testimony 
and all documentary evidence prior to the date of the hearing to be 
attended as follows:
    Charleston, South Carolina: postmarked by September 20, 1994;
    Seattle, Washington: postmarked by October 5, 1994; and
    New Orleans, Louisiana: postmarked by November 1, 1994.

ADDRESSES: The Charleston hearings will be held at the SHERATON INN 
CHARLESTON, 170 Lockwood Drive, Charleston, South Carolina. The 
telephone number (803) 723-3000.
    The Seattle hearings will be held at the HOLIDAY INN CROWNE PLAZA, 
1113 6th Avenue, Seattle, Washington. The telephone number is (206) 
464-1980.
    The New Orleans hearings will be held at THE INN ON BOURBON, 541 
Bourbon Street, New Orleans, Louisiana. The telephone number is (504) 
524-7611.
    Written comments should be submitted to the Docket Office, Docket 
S-025, room N-2625, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and 
Health Administration, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 
20210. Telephone: (202) 219-7894. Comments of 10 pages or less may be 
faxed to the Docket Office, if followed by a hard copy. The OSHA Docket 
Office fax number is (202) 219-5046.
    Notices of intention to appear, testimony and documentary evidence 
to be submitted at the hearing are to be sent to Mr. Thomas Hall, OSHA 
Division of Consumer Affairs, Docket No. S-025, room N-3647, U.S. 
Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20210, 
telephone (202) 219-8615.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. James F. Foster, Director, Office 
of Information and Consumer Affairs, OSHA, U.S. Department of Labor, 
room N-3647, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20210. 
Telephone (202) 219-8148.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Notice of Intention to Appear at the Informal Hearing

    Persons desiring to participate at the informal public hearing must 
file a notice of intention to appear by September 14, 1994. The notice 
of intention to appear must contain the following information:
    A. The name, address, and telephone number of each person to 
appear;
    B. The capacity in which the person will appear;
    C. The approximate amount of time required for the presentation;
    D. The issues that will be addressed;
    E. A brief statement of the position that will be taken with 
respect to each issue; and
    F. Whether the party intends to submit documentary evidence and, if 
so, a brief summary of it.
    The notice of intention to appear shall be mailed to Mr. Thomas 
Hall, OSHA Division of Consumer Affairs, Docket No. S-025, U.S. 
Department of Labor, room N-3647, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20210, Telephone (202) 219-8615.
    A notice of intention to appear also may be transmitted by 
facsimile to (202) 219-5986, by the same date, provided the original 
and 3 copies are sent to the same address and postmarked no later than 
3 days later.
    Individuals with disabilities wishing to attend the hearings should 
contact the hearing management officer, Mr. Thomas Hall, to obtain 
appropriate accommodations at the hearing.

Filing of Testimony and Evidence Before the Hearing

    Any party requesting more than ten (10) minutes for presentation at 
the informal public hearing, or who intends to submit documentary 
evidence, must provide in quadruplicate the testimony and evidence to 
be presented at the informal public hearing. One copy must be suitable 
for copying and shall not be stapled or bound. These materials must be 
provided to Mr. Thomas Hall, OSHA Division of Consumer Affairs at the 
address above and be postmarked no later than 14 days prior to the date 
of the hearing.
    Each submission will be reviewed in light of the amount of time 
requested in the notice of intention to appear. In instances where the 
information contained in the submission does not justify the amount of 
time requested, a more appropriate amount of time will be allocated and 
the participant will be notified of that fact prior to the informal 
hearing.
    Any party who has not substantially complied with the above 
requirement may be limited to a ten-minute presentation and may be 
requested to return for questioning at a later time.
    Any party who has not filed a notice of intention to appear may be 
allowed to testify for no more than 10 minutes as time permits, at the 
discretion of the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ), but will not be 
allowed to question witnesses.
    Notices of intention to appear, testimony and evidence will be 
available for inspection and copying at the Docket Office at the 
address above.

Conduct and Nature of Hearing

    The hearing will commence at 9:30 a.m. on the first day. At that 
time, any procedural matters relating to the proceeding will be 
resolved.
    The nature of an informal rulemaking hearing is established in the 
legislative history of section 6 of the OSH Act and is reflected by 
OSHA's rules of procedure for hearings (29 CFR 1911.15(a)). Although 
the presiding officer is an Administrative Law Judge and questioning by 
interested persons is allowed on crucial issues, the proceeding is 
informal and legislative in type. The Agency's intent is to provide 
interested persons with an opportunity to make effective oral 
presentations which can proceed expeditiously in the absence of 
procedural restraints which might impede or protract the rulemaking 
process.
    Additionally, since the hearing is primarily for information 
gathering and clarification, it is an informal administrative 
proceeding rather than an adjudicative one. The technical rules of 
evidence, for example, do not apply. The regulations that govern 
hearings, and the pre-hearing guidelines which the ALJ will issue for 
this hearing, will ensure fairness and due process and also facilitate 
the development of a clear, accurate and complete record. Those rules 
and guidelines will be interpreted in a manner that furthers that 
development. Thus, questions of relevance, procedure and participation 
generally will be decided so as to favor development of the record.
    The hearing will be conducted in accordance with 29 CFR part 1911. 
It should be noted that Sec. 1911.4 allows the Assistant Secretary, 
upon reasonable notice, to issue alternative procedures to expedite 
proceedings or for other good cause.
    The hearing will be presided over by an Administrative Law Judge 
who makes no decision or recommendation on the merits of OSHA's 
proposal. The responsibility of the Administrative Law Judge is to 
ensure that the hearing proceeds at a reasonable pace and in an orderly 
manner. The Administrative Law Judge, therefore, will have all the 
powers necessary and appropriate to conduct a full and fair informal 
hearing as provided in 29 CFR part 1911, including the powers:
    A. To regulate the course of the proceedings;
    B. To dispose of procedural requests, objections and comparable 
matters;
    C. To confine the presentations to the matters pertinent to the 
issues raised;
    E. To regulate the conduct of those present at the hearing by 
appropriate means;
    F. In the Judge's discretion, to question and permit the 
questioning of any witnesses and to limit the time for questioning; and
    G. In the Judge's discretion, to keep the record open for a 
reasonable, stated time (known as the post-hearing comment period) to 
receive written information and additional data, views and arguments 
from any person who has participated in the oral proceedings.
    OSHA recognizes that there may be interested persons or 
organizations who, through their knowledge of the subject matter or 
their experience in the field, would wish to endorse or support the 
whole proposal or certain provisions of the proposal. OSHA welcomes 
such supportive comments, including any pertinent data and cost 
information which may be available, in order that the record of this 
rulemaking will present a balanced picture of public response on the 
issues involved.
    This document was prepared under the direction of Joseph A. Dear, 
Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health, U.S. 
Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 
20210. It is issued under section 6(b) of the OSH Act (29 U.S.C. 655); 
Sec. 41, Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act (33 U.S.C. 
941); and 29 CFR part 1911.

    Signed at Washington, DC, this 11th day of August, 1994.
Joseph A. Dear,
Assistant Secretary of Labor.
[FR Doc. 94-20379 Filed 8-18-94; 8:45 am]
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