[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 71 (Tuesday, April 13, 2004)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 19361-19363]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-8301]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

29 CFR Parts 1917 and 1918

[Docket No. S-025A]
RIN 1218-AA56


Longshoring and Marine Terminals; Vertical Tandem Lifts

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

ACTION: Proposed rule; notice of hearing.

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SUMMARY: OSHA is convening an informal public hearing to receive 
testimony and documentary evidence on Vertical Tandem Lifts.

DATES: Informal public hearing. The Agency will hold the informal 
public hearing in Washington, DC beginning July 29, 2004. The hearing 
will commence at 10 a.m. on the first day, and at 9 a.m. on the second 
and subsequent days, which will be scheduled, if necessary.
    Notice of Intention to Appear to provide testimony at the informal 
public hearing. Parties who intend to present testimony at the informal 
public hearing must notify OSHA in writing of their intention to do so 
no later than May 13, 2004.
    Hearing testimony and documentary evidence. Parties who are 
requesting more than 10 minutes to present their testimony, or who will 
be submitting documentary evidence at the hearing, must provide the 
Agency with copies of their full testimony and all documentary evidence 
they plan to present by June 14, 2004.

ADDRESSES: Informal public hearing. The informal public hearing will be 
held in the Auditorium on the plaza level of the Frances Perkins 
Building, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC.
    Notice of Intention to Appear at the hearing. Notices of Intention 
to Appear at the informal public hearing should be submitted in 
triplicate (3 copies) to the Docket Office, Docket No. S-025A, Room N-
2625, OSHA, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20210. These notices also may be faxed to the Docket 
Office at (202) 693-1648, or submitted electronically at http://ecomments.osha.gov. OSHA Docket Office and Department of Labor hours of 
operation are 8:15 a.m. to 4:45 p.m.
    Hearing testimony and documentary evidence. Testimony and 
documentary evidence must be submitted in triplicate (3 copies) to the 
Docket Office at the above address. Testimony and documentary evidence 
totaling 10 or fewer pages may be faxed to the Docket Office at (202) 
693-1648. Materials such as studies or journal articles may not be 
attached to faxed testimony or documentary evidence; instead, three 
copies of this material must be mailed to the Docket Office at the 
above address. Such material must identify clearly the name of the 
individual who is testifying, date, docket number, and subject so that 
OSHA can attach it to the appropriate faxed documents.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For general information and press 
inquiries, contact Ms. Layne Lathram, Office of Communications, Room N-
3647, OSHA, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20210 (telephone: (202) 693-1999). For technical 
inquiries, contact Mr. Paul Rossi, Office of Maritime, Room N-3609, 
OSHA, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20210 (telephone: (202) 693-2086; fax: (202) 693-1663). 
For hearing information, contact Ms. Veneta Chatmon, Office of 
Communications, OSHA, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution 
Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20210 (telephone: (202) 693-1999). For 
additional copies of this Federal Register notice, contact the Office 
of Publications, Room N-3103, OSHA, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 
Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20210 (telephone: (202) 693-
1888). Electronic copies of this Federal Register notice, as well as 
news releases and other relevant documents, are available at OSHA's 
homepage at http://www.osha.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: OSHA published a proposed standard for 
Longshoring and Marine Terminals;

[[Page 19362]]

Vertical Tandem Lifts, in the Federal Register on September 16, 2003 
(68 FR 54297). On December 10, 2003 (68 FR 68804), OSHA published a 
notice providing an additional sixty (60) days for the submission of 
comments and hearing requests, extending the comment period to February 
13, 2004. During the comment period, OSHA received two requests for a 
public hearing (Exs. 40-13 and 43-1). OSHA is granting these requests. 
The Agency is placing the Notices of Intention to Appear, hearing 
testimony, and documentary evidence in the rulemaking docket, which 
will be available for inspection and copying at the OSHA Docket Office.

Public Participation--Comments and Hearings

    OSHA encourages members of the public to participate in this 
rulemaking by providing oral testimony and documentary evidence at the 
informal public hearing. Accordingly, the Agency invites interested 
parties having knowledge of, or experience with, the issues raised in 
the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to participate in this 
process, and welcomes any pertinent data that will provide the Agency 
with the best available evidence to use in developing the final rule. 
This section describes the procedures the public must use to schedule 
an opportunity to deliver oral testimony and to provide documentary 
evidence at the informal public hearing.
    Hearing arrangements. Pursuant to section 6(b)(3) of the 
Occupational Safety and Health Act (``the Act''; 29 U.S.C. 655), 
members of the public must have an opportunity at the informal public 
hearing to provide oral testimony concerning the issues raised in the 
NPRM. An administrative law judge will preside over the hearing, and 
will resolve any procedural matters relating to the hearing on the 
first day.
    Purpose of the hearing. The legislative history of Section 6 of the 
Act, as well as the Agency's regulation governing public hearings (29 
CFR 1911.15), establish the purpose and procedures of informal public 
hearings. Although the presiding officer of the hearing is a judge and 
questions by interested parties are allowed on pertinent issues, the 
hearing is informal and legislative in purpose. Therefore, the hearing 
provides interested parties with an opportunity to make effective and 
expeditious oral presentations in the absence of procedural restraints 
that could impede or protract the rulemaking process. The hearing is 
not an adjudicative proceeding subject to the technical rules of 
evidence; instead, it is an informal administrative proceeding convened 
for the purpose of gathering and clarifying information. The 
regulations that govern the hearing, and the pre-hearing guidelines 
issued for the hearing, will ensure that participants are treated 
fairly and have due process; this approach will facilitate the 
development of a clear, accurate, and complete record. Accordingly, 
application of these rules and guidelines will be such that questions 
of relevance, procedures, and participation will be decided in favor of 
developing a complete record.
    Conduct of the hearing. Conduct of the hearing will conform to the 
provisions of 29 CFR part 1911 (``Rules of Procedure for Promulgating, 
Modifying, or Revoking Occupational Safety and Health Standards''). 
Although the judge who presides over the hearing makes no decision or 
recommendation on the merits of the NPRM or the final rule, the judge 
has the responsibility and authority to ensure that the hearing 
progresses at a reasonable pace and in an orderly manner. To ensure 
that interested parties receive a full and fair informal hearing, the 
judge has the authority and power to: Regulate the course of the 
proceedings; dispose of procedural requests, objections, and similar 
matters; confine the presentations to matters pertinent to the issues 
raised; use appropriate means to regulate the conduct of the parties 
who are present at the hearing; question witnesses, and permit others 
to question witnesses; and limit the time for such questions. At the 
close of the hearing, the judge will establish a post-hearing comment 
period for parties who participated in the hearing. During the first 
part of this period, the participants may submit additional data and 
information to OSHA, and during the second part of this period, they 
may submit briefs, arguments, and summations.
    Notice of Intention to Appear to provide testimony at the informal 
public hearings. Hearing participants must file a Notice of Intention 
to Appear that provides the following information: The name, address, 
and telephone number of each individual who will provide testimony; the 
capacity (e.g., name of the establishment/organization the individual 
is representing; the individual's occupational title and position) in 
which the individual will testify; approximate amount of time requested 
for the individual's testimony; specific issues the individual will 
address, including a brief description of the position that the 
individual will take with respect to each of these issues; and any 
documentary evidence the individual will present, including a brief 
summary of the evidence.
    OSHA emphasizes that, while the hearing is open to the public and 
interested parties are welcome to attend, only a party who files a 
proper Notice of Intention to Appear may ask questions and participate 
fully in the hearing. A party who did not file a Notice of Intention to 
Appear may be allowed to testify at the hearing if time permits, but 
this determination is at the discretion of the presiding judge.
    Hearing testimony and documentary evidence. The Agency will review 
each submission and determine if the information it contains warrants 
the amount of time requested. OSHA then will allocate an appropriate 
amount of time to each presentation, and will notify the participants 
of the time allotted to their presentations. Prior to the hearing, the 
Agency will notify the participant if the allotted time is less than 
the requested time, and will provide the reasons for this action. OSHA 
may limit to 10 minutes the presentation of any participant who fails 
to comply substantially with these procedural requirements. The Agency 
may also request a participant to return for questions at a later time.
    Certification of the record and final determination after the 
informal public hearing. Following the close of the hearing and post-
hearing comment period, the judge will certify the record to the 
Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health. This 
record will consist of all of the written comments, oral testimony, 
documentary evidence, and other material received during the hearing. 
Following certification of the record, OSHA will review the proposed 
provisions in light of all the evidence received as part of the record, 
and then will issue the final determinations based on the entire 
record.

Authority

    John L. Henshaw, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational 
Safety and Health, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, 
NW., Washington, DC 20210, directed the preparation of this document. 
It is issued under sections 4, 6, and 8 of the Occupational Safety and 
Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 653, 655, 657), Section 41 of the 
Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act (33 U.S.C. 941), 
Secretary's Order 5-2002 (67 FR 65008), and 29 CFR part 1911.


[[Page 19363]]


    Signed at Washington, DC on April 6, 2004.
John L. Henshaw,
Assistant Secretary of Labor.
[FR Doc. 04-8301 Filed 4-12-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-26-M