[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 98 (Monday, May 23, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29536-29537]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-10186]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

[Docket No. ICR-1218-0128(2005)]


Coke Oven Emissions Standard; Extension of the Office of 
Management and Budget's (OMB) Approval of Information Collection 
(Paperwork) Requirements

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

ACTION: Request for public comment.

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SUMMARY: OSHA solicits public comment concerning its request for an 
extension of the information collection requirements contained in the 
Coke Oven Emissions Standard (29 CFR 1910.1029).

DATES: Comments must be submitted by the following dates:
    Hard copy: Your comments must be submitted (postmarked or received) 
by July 22, 2005.
    Facsimile and electronic transmission: Your comments must be 
received by July 22, 2005.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by OSHA Docket No. ICR-
1218-0128(2005), by any of the following methods:
    Regular mail, express delivery, hand delivery, and messenger 
service: Submit your comments and attachments to the OSHA Docket 
Office, Room N-2625, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, 
NW., Washington, DC 20210; telephone (202) 693-2350 (OSHA's TTY number 
is (877) 889-5627). OSHA Docket Office and Department of Labor hours 
are 8:15 a.m. to 4:45 p.m., ET.
    Facsimile: If your comments are 10 pages or fewer in length, 
including attachments, you may fax them to the OSHA Docket Office at 
(202) 693-1648.
    Electronic: You may submit comments through the Internet at http://ecomments.osha.gov. Follow instructions on the OSHA Webpage for 
submitting comments.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read or download comments or 
background materials, such as the complete Information Collection 
Request (ICR) (containing the Supporting Statement, OMB-83-I Form, and 
attachments), go to OSHA's Webpage at http://www.OSHA.gov. In addition, 
the ICR, comments and submissions are available for inspection and 
copying the OSHA Docket Office at the address above. You may also 
contact Todd Owen at the address below to obtain a copy of the ICR. For 
additional information on submitting comments, please see the ``Public 
Participation'' heading in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of 
this document.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Todd Owen, Directorate of Standard and 
Guidance, OSHA, Room N-3609, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, 
DC 20210, telephone: (202) 693-2222.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    The Department of Labor, as part of its 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 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 
are clearly understood, and OSHA's estimate of the information 
collection burden is accurate. The Occupational Safety and Health Act 
of 1970 (the Act) (29 U.S.C. 651 et seq.) 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).
    On January 5, 2005, OSHA published the Standards Improvement 
Project--Phase II, Final rule (70 FR 1112). The final rule removed and 
revised provisions of standards that were outdated, duplicative, 
unnecessary, or inconsistent and clarified or simplified regulatory 
language. The final rule contained several revisions to collections of 
information contained in the Coke Oven Emissions Standard.\1\ These 
revisions included reducing the frequency with which employers must 
update their compliance plans and allowing employers the option to post 
employee exposure-monitoring results instead of requiring individual 
notification. In addition, the final rule reduced the frequency of 
medical examinations including, the urinary cytology examination; from 
semi-annually to annually. Those changes reduced paperwork burden hours 
while maintaining worker protection and improving consistently among 
standards.
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    \1\ The Office of Management and Budget approved the reduction 
of 4,426 burden hours after reviewing the Information Collection 
Request for the Standards Improvement Project--Phase II Notice of 
Proposed Rulemaking Making, published October 31, 2002 (67 FR 
66494).
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    The information collection requirements in the Coke Oven Emissions 
Standard provide protection for employees from the adverse health 
effects associated with exposure to coke oven emissions. In this 
regard, the Coke Oven Emissions Standard requires employers to monitor 
employees' exposure to coke oven emissions, monitor employee health, 
and provide employees with information about their exposures and the 
health effects of exposures to coke oven emissions.

II. Special Issues for Comment

    OSHA has a particular interest in comments on the following issues:
     Whether the proposed information collection requirements 
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

[[Page 29537]]

information collection requirements, 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 proposes to extend the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) 
approval of the collection of information (paperwork) requirements 
necessitated by the Coke Oven Emissions Standard (29 CFR 1910.1029). 
The Agency is requesting a reduction in burden hours from 56,238 hours 
to 51,756 hours. The 4,482 hour reduction is necessary to reflect the 
January 5th final rule that reduced the frequency with which employers 
must provide urinary cytology examinations to their employees from 
every six months to annually.
    The Agency will include this summary in its request to OMB to 
extend the approval of these collection of information requirements.
    Type of Review: Extension of currently approved information 
collection requirements.
    Title: Coke Oven Emissions Standard.
    OMB Number: 1218-0128.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profits; Federal Government; 
State, Local or Tribal Government.
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Average Time Per Response: Varies from 5 minutes (.08 hour) for a 
secretary to maintain record to 4 hours to complete a medical 
examination.
    Estimated Total Burden Hours: 51, 756.
    Estimated Cost (Operation and Maintenance): $933,064.

IV. Public Participation--Submission of Comments on This Notice and 
Internet Access to Comments and Submissions

    You may submit comments and supporting materials in response to 
this notice by (1) hard copy, (2) FAX transmission (facsimile), or (3) 
electronically through the OSHA Webpage. Because of security-related 
problems, there may be a significant delay in the receipt of comments 
by regular mail. Please contact the OSHA Docket Office at (202) 693-
2350 (TTY (877) 889-5627) for information about security procedures 
concerning the delivery of submissions by express delivery, hand 
delivery and courier service.
    All comments, submissions and background documents are available 
for inspection and copying at the OSHA Docket Office at the above 
address. Comments and submissions posted on OSHA's Webpage are 
available at http://www.OSHA.gov. Contact the OSHA Docket Office for 
information about materials not available through the OSHA Webpage and 
for assistance using the Webpage to locate docket submissions.
    Electronic copies of this Federal Register notice as well as other 
relevant documents are available on OSHA's Webpage. Since all 
submissions become public, private information such as social security 
numbers should not be submitted.

V. Authority and Signature

    Jonathan L. Snare, Acting 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. 5-
2002 (67 FR 65008).

    Signed at Washington, DC, on May 10, 2005.
Jonathan L. Snare,
Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor.
[FR Doc. 05-10186 Filed 5-20-05; 8:45 am]
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