[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 111 (Friday, June 10, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33926-33927]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-11579]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

[Docket No. ICR-1218-0010(2005)]


Standard on Vinyl Chloride; 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 29 
CFR 1910.1017.

DATES: Comments must be submitted by the following dates:
    Hard copy: Your comments must be submitted (postmarked or received) 
by August 9, 2005.
    Facsimile and electronic transmission: Your comments must be 
received by August 9, 2005.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by OSHA Docket No. ICR-
1218-0010(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 Web page 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 Web page at http://www.OSHA.gov. In 
addition, the ICR, comments and submissions are available for 
inspection and copying at 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 Standards 
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 efforts 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)).
    The 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 Improvements 
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 in the Vinyl Chloride Standard.\1\ These revisions 
included: Reducing the frequency of

[[Page 33927]]

exposure monitoring, employee medical examinations, and updating 
compliance plans; allowing employers the option to post employee 
exposure-monitoring results instead of requiring individual 
notification; eliminating the need for employers to report emergencies 
to OSHA and to notify OSHA when establishing a regulated area. Those 
changes reduced paperwork burden hours while maintaining worker 
protection and improving consistency among standards. The following is 
a brief description of the current collection of information 
requirements contained in the Vinyl Chloride Standard.
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    \1\ The Office of Management and Budget approved the reduction 
of 1,938 burden hours after reviewing the Information Collection 
Request for the Standards Improvements Project--Phase II Notice of 
Proposed Rulemaking, published October 31, 2002 (67 FR 66494). On 
January 5, 2005, when the final rule was published (70 FR 1112) 
documentation was submitted to OMB revising the reduction of 1,938 
hours to 1,220 hours to reflect the increase in time to conduct 
exposure monitoring.
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(A) Exposure Monitoring (Sec.  1910.1017(d))

    Paragraph 1910.1017(d)(2) requires employers to conduct exposure 
monitoring at least quarterly if the results show that employee 
exposures are above the permissible exposure limit (PEL), while those 
exposed at or above the Action Level (AL) must be monitored no less 
than semiannually. Paragraph (d)(3) requires that employers must 
perform additional monitoring with samples to be taken whenever there 
has been a change in VC production, process or control that may result 
in an increase in the release of VC.

(B) Written Compliance Plan (Sec.  1910.1017(f)(2) and (f)(3))

    Paragraph (f)(2) requires employers who cannot use engineering and 
work-practice controls immediately to reduce employee VC exposures to a 
level at or below the PEL to develop and implement a plan for doing so. 
Paragraph (f)(3) requires employers to develop this written plan and 
provide it upon request for examination and copying to OSHA. These 
plans must be updated annually.

(C) Medical Surveillance (Sec.  1910.1017(k))

    Paragraph (k) requires employers to develop a medical surveillance 
program for employees exposed to VC in excess of the action level. 
Examinations must be provided in accordance with this paragraph at 
least annually. Employers must also obtain, and provide to each 
employee, a copy of a physician's statement regarding the employee's 
suitability for continued exposure to VC, including use of protective 
equipment and respirators if appropriate.

(D) Recordkeeping (Sec.  1910.1017(m))

    Employers must maintain employee exposure and medical records. The 
VC standard requires that employers make available monitoring, 
measuring, and medical records at the request of the Assistant 
Secretary (usually an OSHA compliance officer).

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 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 collections of information (paperwork) requirements 
necessitated by the Standard on Vinyl Chloride (29 CFR 1910.1017). The 
Agency will summarize the comments submitted in response to this notice 
and include this summary in its request to OMB to extend the approval 
of these collections of information requirements contained in the 
standards.
    Type of Review: Extension of currently approved information 
collection requirements.
    Title: Vinyl Chloride (29 CFR 1910.1017).
    OMB Number: 1218-0010.
    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 
employers to maintain records to 12 hours for employers to update their 
compliance plans.
    Estimated Total Burden Hours: 1,758.
    Estimated Cost (Operation and Maintenance): $113,862.

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 Web page. 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 Web page are 
available at http://www.OSHA.gov. Contact the OSHA Docket Office for 
information about materials not available through the OSHA Web page and 
for assistance in using the Web page to locate docket submissions.
    Electronic copies of this Federal Register notice as well as other 
relevant documents are available on OSHA's Web page. 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 in Washington, DC, on June 3, 2005.
Jonathan L. Snare,
Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor.
[FR Doc. 05-11579 Filed 6-9-05; 8:45 am]
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