[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 170 (Friday, August 30, 1996)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 45923-45925]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-22225]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

29 CFR Part 1915

[Docket No. S-051]
RIN 1218-AB51


Safety Standards for Fire Protection for Shipyard Employment

AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), U.s. 
Department of Labor.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting; appointment of members to Advisory 
Committee; and notice of organizational meeting of Advisory Committee.

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SUMMARY: The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is 
announcing that a meeting of all parties interested in the Fire 
Protection for Shipyard Employment Negotiated Rulemaking Advisory 
Committee will be held to provide information, to promote an 
understanding of the negotiated rulemaking process, and to present the 
Committee members. Nominees for membership, who have been drawn from 
shipyard operators, labor, professional associations, and government 
agencies, have been selected to serve on the Committee. The nominees, 
along with their affiliations are listed in this notice. The members of 
the Committee will represent the interests of all groups interested in, 
or significantly affected by, the outcome of the rulemaking.
    Immediately following the informational meeting, an organizational 
meeting of the advisory committee will take place. The committee will 
be charged with its duties and will address certain procedural matters. 
These meetings will be open to the public.

DATES: The public meetings will be held on October 15, 16, and 17, 
1996. The informational meeting will begin at 9:00 a.m. on October 15, 
1996, and the organizational meeting of the Committee will begin at 
1:00 p.m. on October 15, 1996 and will run until approximately 5:00 
p.m. The meetings October 16 and 17, 1996 will begin at 9:00 a.m. and 
run until approximately 5:00 p.m. each day.

ADDRESSES: The public meetings will be held at the Port of Portland 
Building, 700 N.E. Multnomah, 13th Floor, Room 13A, Portland, Oregon, 
97208. Any written comments in response to this notice should be sent, 
in quadruplicate, to the following address: Docket Office, Docket S-
051, Room N-2625, 200 Constitution Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20210; 
Telephone (202) 219-7894.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Ann Cyr, Acting Director; OSHA, U.S. Department of Labor, Office of 
Information and Consumer Affairs, Room N-3647, 200 Constitution Avenue, 
N.W., Washington, D.C. 20210; Telephone: (202) 219-8151.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    Fire protection in shipyard employment has been regulated by OSHA's 
general industry standards for fire protection, 29 CFR 1910.155 through 
1910.165, Subpart L. In enforcement activities, OSHA has also used 
Section (5)(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety Health Act (``the Act''), 
the General Duty Clause, which requires each employer to, furnish to 
each of his employees employment and a place of employment which are 
free from recognized hazards causing or likely to cause death or 
serious physical harm.
    The general industry standards, which address fire brigades, 
portable fire extinguishers, standpipe and hose systems, automatic 
sprinkler systems, fixed extinguishing systems, fire standpipe and hose 
systems, automatic sprinkler systems, fixed extinguishing systems, fire 
detection systems, and employee alarm systems, cover primarily landside 
shipyard operations. Fire hazards on board vessels are not covered by 
the general industry standards. Moreover, the general industry 
standards are in need of review and revision and do not completely 
address hazards that are unique to shipyard employment. The Agency 
believes a standard promulgated under Sec. 6(b) of the Act will more 
effectively reduce the risks of fire in the shipyard and on board 
vessels.
    OSHA has decided to use the negotiated rulemaking (Neg/Reg) process 
to develop a proposed standard for fire protection covering all 
shipyard employment. The most important reason for using Neg/Reg is 
that the shipyard stakeholders from all sectors strongly support 
consensual rulemaking efforts like negotiated rulemaking. OSHA believes 
this process will result in a proposed standard whose provisions will 
effectively protect employees working throughout the shipyard. (See 
OSHA's Notice of Intent to Form a Negotiated Rulemaking Committee to 
Develop a Proposed Rule on Fire Protection in Shipyard Employment, 61 
FR 28824, June 6, 1996, for a detailed explanation of why OSHA is using 
negotiated rulemaking to develop its proposed standard and for general 
information on the negotiated rulemaking process).

II. Some Key Issues for Negotiation

    OSHA expects that key issues to be addressed as part of these 
negotiations will include:
    1. Scope and Application. Should Subpart P apply to all shipyard 
employment? How will the standard affect out-of-yard/plant firefighters 
such as those employed by a municipal fire department?
    2. Controls and Work Practices. What controls and work practices 
will provide adequate protection for employees? Should OSHA require hot 
work permits? Should OSHA require training for all fire fighters? 
Should OSHA incorporate U.S. Coast Guard regulations in this standard? 
Is there any difference in controls and work practices on landside vs. 
onboard vessels and vessel sections? Should OSHA require the employer 
to secure (deactivate) all fire fighting systems onboard vessels when 
they arrive in the yard?
    3. Fire Brigades. Should OSHA require each shipyard to have an in-
yard/plant fire brigade?
    4. Written Fire Plans. Should OSHA require written fire plans for 
landside and onboard vessels? If so, what provisions need to be 
included in the plans? Should OSHA include a requirement for de-
watering (removal of firefighting water from the vessel) of vessels 
when fighting a fire on board a vessel?
    5. Technological Advances. What advances in fire technology have 
occurred since OSHA's general industry standards were promulgated? 
Which of

[[Page 45924]]

these advances should be incorporated into the shipyard standard?
    6. Costs of Fire Protection. What costs would be incurred by 
shipyards in meeting the various provisions of a new standard? 
Calculations should include costs of acquiring new equipment, 
instituting new engineering controls and work practices, and costs of 
training employees. Are there cost savings or other benefits that could 
be expected with the promulgation of identical rules for all of 
shipyard employment? If so, what would be the magnitude of savings?
    7. Appendices. Should OSHA include technical information in an 
appendix or appendices? If so, should it (they) be mandatory?

III. Agenda for the Public Meeting

    Following registration and assembly, the Facilitator for the 
Committee will offer an overview of negotiated rulemaking (Neg/Reg). 
Interest-based negotiation will be contrasted with the usual 
development of a proposed rule. The advantages of using Neg/Reg, where 
practical decision making results in a rule that can be more stringent, 
but, at the same time, easier and less expensive to implement, will be 
discussed. Other topics addressed will be working with caucuses and the 
``Wedge'' concept, where the member at the table represents a much 
broader constituency and is expected to funnel information to the 
Committee and back to the interests he or she represents. The very 
important role of workgroups, composed of both members and other 
interested parties, working out technical problems and performing 
drafting and analysis tasks will be discussed. It should be noted that 
workgroups, while reflecting the deliberations of the Committee, do not 
make policy decisions. During the meeting the Facilitator may provide 
opportunities for questions and caucus meetings.
    The Facilitator will also announce the selection of the Committee. 
He will discuss: the variety of interests and the potential 
representatives of those interests; the difficulty in selecting the 
Committee members and the basis for these selections; and the criteria 
used in assessing whether to go forward with a Neg/Reg in Fire 
Protection for Shipyard Employment.
    The Facilitator will address the matters that must be resolved by 
the Committee at its first meeting, including the ``Ground Rules.'' 
These are the procedural rules that the Committee will adopt at its 
first meeting. The Agency will distribute proposed Ground Rules that 
address: the composition of the Committee, the use of alternates, and 
the essential commitment of the members to attend the meetings and 
participate meaningfully. The Ground Rules emphasize the importance of 
the members' communication with their constituencies including keeping 
them abreast of the negotiations, thereby limiting surprises. The goal 
of this negotiated rulemaking is a proposed rule and supporting 
documentation that all members will support. The Ground Rules will 
address ``bargaining'' in good faith to reach the goal.
    The Facilitator will also identify and discuss the substantive 
issues to be resolved by this Committee. Here, the Facilitator is 
relying on the information presented to him by OSHA as well as the 
considerable input from the various interests during convening efforts. 
The time needed for the resolution of these issues and the order of 
their consideration is integrally related to the development of a 
tentative schedule. OSHA requests that all interested parties bring 
their calendars to facilitate the development of a tentative schedule 
of committee meetings, site visits and workgroup meetings.
    Interactivde training sessions, under the direction of the 
Facilitator, will constitute the final portion of this public meeting. 
Topics for these training sessions will include the following: a 
discussion on interest based negotiations; a session illustrating how 
to participate in a Neg/Reg; and an explanation of how the electronic 
bulletin board system will aid the negotiation process. Other training 
activities may be added at the time of the meeting.

IV. Committee Membership

    Appointees to the Committee include representatives from labor, 
industry, public interests and government agencies. The appointees also 
represent groups interested in, or affected by, the outcome of the 
rulemaking. Following is a list of members and the affiliations they 
represent:

Labor

Richard M. Duffy: Director, Department of Occupational Health and 
Safety, International Association of Fire Fighters, AFL-CIO, CLC
Ted Pederson: Seattle Fire Department Union, Metal Trades, 
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers
Michael M.X. Buchet: United Brotherhood of Carpenters

Management

E.P. ``Rick'' Kaiser: South Tidewater Association of Ship Repairers, 
Inc.
George Broussard: American Waterways Shipyard Conference
J.D. Paulson: National Steel and Shipbuilding Company (NASSCO)

Firefighters

Russ Sill: Portland Fire Bureau
Donald R. Mozick: Atlantic Marine, Inc. and Atlantic Dry Dock, Corp.

Safety Professionals

Guy Colonna: National Fire Protection Association
Glenn Harris: Ship Production Panel-5 of the Society of Naval 
Architects and Marine Engineers

Government

George F. Hurley, III: Fire Chief, Norfolk Naval Shipyard
Morgan J. Hurley: Fire Protection Engineer, DOT, Coast Guard
Paul Jensen (Ted Pettit--alternate): National Institute for 
Occupational Safety and Health
Joseph V. Daddura (Frank Strasheim--alternate): Occupational Safety and 
Health Administration

State Government

Peter Schmidt: State Department of Labor and Industry, Seattle, 
Washington

V. Agenda for the Organizational Meeting of the Fire Protection in 
Shipyard Employment Negotiated Rulemaking Advisory Committee

    The meeting will be called to order. The Secretary of Labor, or his 
designee, will charge the Committee with its duties and goals. The 
Facilitator will assume the Chair and the procedural issues will be 
addressed by the Committee. These will include the adoption of the 
Ground Rules which are the procedural rules that the Committee will 
follow. The substantive matters must be considered in the development 
of a tentative schedule of committee meetings, site visits and 
workgroup meetings. The Committee will have to identify and discuss 
these matters to be resolved and determine the proper sequence of 
consideration as well as the location of the future meetings. OSHA will 
have provided proposed Ground Rules, issues, agendas (sequence of 
consideration), and meeting locations to the nominees of the committee 
prior to this meeting.

VI. Public Participation

    All interested parties are invited to attend this public meeting at 
the time and place indicated above. No advanced registration is 
required. Seating will be available to the public on a first-come, 
first-served basis. Individuals with disabilities wishing to attend 
should contact Ms. Theda Kenney at (202) 219-

[[Page 45925]]

8061 to obtain appropriate accommodations no later than October 1, 
1996. The opening public meeting is expected to last 2 and one half 
days.
    In addition, members of the general public may request an 
opportunity to make oral presentations to the Committee. The 
Facilitator of the Committee has the authority to decide to what extent 
oral presentations by members of the public may be permitted at the 
meeting. Oral presentations will be limited to statements of fact and 
views, and shall not include any questioning of the committee members 
or other participants unless these questions have been specifically 
approved by the Facilitator.
    Part 1912 of Title 29 of the Code of Federal Regulations will apply 
generally. The reporting requirements of Sec. 1912.33 have been changed 
pursuant to Sec. 1912.42 to help meet the special needs of this 
Committee. Specifically, Sec. 1912.33 requires that verbatim 
transcripts be kept of all advisory committee meetings. Producing a 
coherent transcript requires a certain degree of formality. The 
Assistant Secretary therefore has determined pursuant to Sec. 1912.42 
that such formality might interfere with the free exchange of 
information and ideas during the negotiations, and that the OSH Act 
would be better served by simply requiring detailed minutes of the 
proceedings without a formal transcript.
    Minutes of the meetings and materials prepared for the Committee 
will be available for public inspection at the OSHA Docket Office, N-
2625, 200 Constitution Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20210; Telephone 
(202) 219-7894.
    Any written comments should be directed to Docket No. S-051, and 
sent in quadruplicate to the following address: OSHA Docket Office, 
U.S. Department of Labor, Room N-2625, 200 Constitution Ave., N.W., 
Washington, D.C. 20210; Telephone (202) 219-7894.

VII. Authority

    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, N.W., Washington, D.C. 
20210, pursuant to section 3 of the Negotiated Rulemaking Act of 1990, 
104 Stat. 4969, Title 5 U.S.C. 561 et seq.; and Section 7(b) of the 
Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, 84 Stat. 1597, Title 29 
U.S.C. 656.

    Signed at Washington, D.C., this 22nd day of August, 1996.
Joseph A. Dear,
Assistant Secretary of Labor.
[FR Doc. 96-22225 Filed 8-29-96; 8:45 am]
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