[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 204 (Tuesday, October 23, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 60028-60029]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-20805]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

[Docket No. OSHA-2007-0077]


Proposed Information Collection Request Submitted for Public 
Comment and Recommendations; Recording and Reporting Occupational 
Injuries and Illnesses

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

ACTION: Request for public comment.

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SUMMARY: OSHA solicits public comment concerning its proposal to extend 
the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) approval of the information 
collection requirements contained in 29 CFR part 1904, Recording and 
Reporting Occupational Injuries and Illnesses.

DATES: Comments must be submitted (postmarked, sent, or received) by 
December 24, 2007.

ADDRESSES: 
    Electronically: You may submit comments and attachments 
electronically at http://www.regulations.gov, which is the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal. Follow the instructions online for submitting 
comments.
    Facsimile: If your comments, including attachments, are not longer 
than 10 pages, you may fax them to the OSHA Docket Office at (202) 693-
1648.
    Mail, hand delivery, express mail, messenger, or courier service: 
When using this method, you must submit three copies of your comments 
and attachments to the OSHA Docket Office, Docket No. OSHA-2007-0077, 
U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health 
Administration, Room N-2625, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, 
DC 20210. Deliveries (hand, express mail, messenger, and courier 
service) are accepted during the Department of Labor's and Docket 
Office's normal business hours, 8:15 a.m. to 4:45 p.m., e.t.
    Instructions: All submissions must include the Agency name and OSHA 
docket number for the ICR (OSHA-2007-0077). All comments, including any 
personal information you provide, are placed in the public docket 
without change, and may be made available online at http://www.regulations.gov. For further information on submitting comments see 
the ``Public Participation'' heading in the section of this notice 
titled SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
    Docket: To read or download comments or other material in the 
docket, go to http://www.regulations.gov or the OSHA Docket Office at 
the address above. All documents in the docket (including this Federal 
Register notice) are listed in the http://www.regulations.gov index; 
however, some information (e.g., copyrighted material) is not publicly 
available to read or download through the Web site. All submissions, 
including copyrighted material, are available for inspection and 
copying at the OSHA Docket Office. You may also contact Rex Tingle at 
the address below to obtain a copy of the ICR.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rex Tingle at the Office of 
Statistical Analysis, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, 
U.S. Department of Labor, Room N3507, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20210, telephone: (202) 693-1926 or Todd Owen, 
Directorate of Standards and Guidance, OSHA, U.S. Department of Labor, 
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 (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 OSH Act) (29 U.S.C. 
651, et seq.) authorizes information collection by employers as 
necessary or appropriate for enforcement of the OSH Act and requires 
that OSHA obtain such information with minimum burden upon employers, 
especially those operating small businesses, and to reduce to the 
maximum extent feasible unnecessary duplication of efforts in obtaining 
information (29 U.S.C. 657).
    The OSH Act and 29 CFR part 1904 prescribe that certain employers 
maintain records of work-related injuries and illnesses. The injury and 
illness records are intended to have multiple purposes. One purpose is 
to provide data needed by OSHA to carry out enforcement and 
intervention

[[Page 60029]]

activities to provide employees a safe and healthy work environment. 
The data are also needed by the Bureau of Labor Statistics to report on 
the number and rate of occupational injuries and illnesses in the 
country. The data also provides information to employers and employees 
on the kinds of injuries and illnesses occurring in the workplace and 
their related hazards. Increased employer awareness should result in 
the identification and voluntary correction of hazardous workplace 
conditions. Likewise, employees who are provided information on 
injuries and illnesses will be more likely to follow safe work 
practices and report workplace hazards. This would generally raise the 
overall level of safety and health in the workplace. OSHA currently has 
approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for information 
collection requirements contained in 29 CFR 1904. That approval will 
expire on February 29, 2008, unless OSHA applies for an extension of 
the OMB approval. This notice initiates the process for OSHA to request 
an extension of the current OMB approval. This notice also solicits 
public comment on OSHA's existing paperwork burden estimates from those 
interested parties and seeks public response to several questions 
related to the development of OSHA's estimation. Interested parties are 
requested to review OSHA's estimates, which are based upon the most 
current data available, and to comment on their accuracy or 
appropriateness in today's workplace situation.

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 is requesting that OMB extend its approval of the information 
collection requirements contained in the Standard 29 CFR Part 1904, 
Recording and Reporting Occupational Injuries and Illnesses.
    The Agency is requesting to reduce its current burden hour estimate 
associated with this Standard from 3,306,650 to 3,072,980 hours for a 
total reduction of 233,670 hours. The Agency will summarize the 
comments submitted in response to this notice and will include this 
summary in the request to OMB.
    Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.
    Title: 29 CFR part 1904, Recording and Reporting Occupational 
Injuries and Illnesses.
    OMB Number: 1218-0176.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profit; farms; not-for-
profit institutions; State and local government.
    Cite/Reference/Form/etc.: 29 CFR part 1904; OSHA Form 300; OSHA 
Form 300A; OSHA Form 301.
    Number of Respondents: 1,541,900.
    Frequency: On occasion; annually.
    Average Time per Response: 2 hours to complete forms based on the 
information required.
    Estimated Total Burden Hours: 3,072,980.
    Estimated Cost (Operation and Maintenance): $0.

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

    You may submit comments in response to this document as follows: 
(1) Electronically at http://www.regulations.gov, which is the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal; (2) by facsimile (FAX); or (3) by hard copy. All 
comments, attachments, and other material must identify the Agency name 
and the OSHA docket number for the ICR (Docket No. OSHA-2007-0077). You 
may supplement electronic submissions by uploading document files 
electronically. If you wish to mail additional materials in reference 
to an electronic or facsimile submission, you must submit them to the 
OSHA Docket Office (see the section of this notice titled ADDRESSES). 
The additional materials must clearly identify your electronic comments 
by your name, date, and the docket number so the Agency can attach them 
to your comments.
    Because of security procedures, the use of regular mail may cause a 
significant delay in the receipt of comments. For information about 
security procedures concerning the delivery of materials by hand, 
express delivery, messenger, or courier service, please contact the 
OSHA Docket Office at (202) 693-2350 (TTY (877) 889-5627).
    Comments and submissions are posted without change at http://www.regulations.gov. Therefore, OSHA cautions commenters about 
submitting personal information such as social security numbers and 
date of birth. Although all submissions are listed in the http://www.regulations.gov index, some information (e.g., copyrighted 
material) is not publicly available to read or download through this 
Web site. All submissions, including copyrighted material, are 
available for inspection and copying at the OSHA Docket Office. 
Information on using the http://www.regulations.gov Web site to submit 
comments and access the docket is available at the Web site's ``User 
Tips'' link. Contact the OSHA Docket Office for information about 
materials not available through the Web site, and for assistance in 
using the Internet to locate docket submissions.

V. Authority and Signature

    Edwin G. Foulke, Jr., 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. 5-2007 (72 FR 
31159).

    Signed at Washington, DC, on October 18, 2007.
Edwin G. Foulke, Jr.,
Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health.
[FR Doc. E7-20805 Filed 10-22-07; 8:45 am]
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