[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 62 (Thursday, March 30, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Page 16967]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-7785]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

[Docket No. ICR-1218-0126(2000)]


Acrylonitrile (AN) Standard (29 CFR 1910.1045); Extension of the 
Office of Management of Budget's (OMB) Approval of Information 
Collection (Paperwork) Requirements

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

ACTION:  Notice of an opportunity for public comment.

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SUMMARY:  OSHA solicits comments concerning the extension of the 
information collection requirements contained in the Acrylonitrile 
Standard (the ``AN'' Standard) (29 CFR 1910.1045).
    Request for Comment: The Agency has a particular interest in 
comments on the following issues:
     Whether the information collection requirements are 
necessary for the proper performance of the Agency's functions, 
including whether the information is useful;
     The accuracy of the Agency'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 clarify 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.

DATES:  Submit written comments on or before May 30, 2000.

ADDRESSES:  Submit written comments to the Docket Office, Docket No. 
ICR-1218-0126(2000), Occupational Safety and Health Administration, 
U.S. Department of Labor, Room N2625, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW, 
Washington, DC 20210; telephone: (202) 693-2350. Commenters may 
transmit written comments of 10 pages or less in length by facsimile to 
(202) 693-1648.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Todd R. Owen, Directorate of Policy, 
Occupational Safety and Health Administration, U.S. Department of 
Labor, Room N-3641, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20210; 
telephone: (202) 693-2444. A copy of the Agency's Information-
Collection Request (ICR) supporting the need for the information 
collection requirements in the AN Standard is available for inspection 
and copying in the Docket Office, or you may request a mailed copy by 
telephoning Todd R. Owen at (202) 693-2444. For electronic copies of 
the ICR on the AN Standard, OSHA on the Internet at http://www.osha.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to reduce 
paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a preclearance consultation 
program to provide the general public and Federal agencies 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, reporting burden (time and costs) 
is minimal, collection instruments clearly understood, and OSHA's 
estimate of the information burden is correct. The Occupational Safety 
and Health Act of 1970 (the Act) authorizes information collection by 
employers as necessary or appropriate for enforcement of the Act or for 
developing information regarding the causes and prevention of 
occupational injuries, illnesses, and accidents (29 U.S.C. 657).
    The information-collection requirements specified in the AN 
Standard protect employees from the adverse health effects that may 
result from their exposure to AN. The major information-collection 
requirements of the AN Standard include notifying employees of their AN 
exposures, implementing a written compliance program, providing 
examining physicians with specific information, ensuring that employees 
receive a copy of their medical-examination results, maintaining 
employees' exposure-monitoring and medical records for specific 
periods, and providing access to these records by OSHA, the National 
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, the affected employees, 
and designated representatives.

II. Proposed Actions

    OSHA proposes to reduce the existing burden hour estimate, and to 
extend OMB's approval, of the collection of information (paperwork) 
requirements contained in the AN Standard. The Agency is reducing its 
previous estimate, 6,857 hours, by 2,719 hours as a result of lowering 
the number of establishments affected by the paperwork requirements. 
OSHA will summarize the comments submitted in response to this notice, 
and will include this summary in the request to OMB to extend the 
approval of the information-collection requirements contained in the AN 
Standard.
    Type of Review: Extension of currently approved information-
collection requirements.
    Title: Acrylonitrile Standards (29 CFR 1910.1045).
    OMB Number: 1218-0126.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profit; Federal government; 
state, local or tribal government.
    Number of Respondents: 23.
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Total Responses: 18,838.
    Average Time per Response: Varies from 5 minutes to provide 
information to the examining physician to 2 hours for employers to 
provide OSHA area offices with information about AN emergencies.
    Estimated Total Burden Hours: 4,138.
    Estimated Cost (Operations and Maintenance): $189,835.

III. Authority and Signature

    Charles N. Jeffress, 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) and Secretary of Labor's Order No. 6-96 (62 FR 111).

    Signed at Washington, DC, on March 24, 2000.
Charles N. Jeffress,
Assistant Secretary of Labor.
[FR Doc. 00-7785 Filed 3-30-00; 8:45 am]
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