[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 46 (Friday, March 7, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12468-12470]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-4478]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

[Docket No. OSHA-2008-0003]


Powered Industrial Trucks 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 comments concerning its proposal to extend OMB 
approval of the information collection requirements contained in the 
Powered Industrial Truck Standard (29 CFR 1910.178). The information 
collection requirements addresses truck design, construction, and 
modification, as well as certification of training and evaluation for 
truck operators.

DATES: Comments must be submitted (postmarked, sent, or received) by 
May 6, 2008.

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-2008-0003, 
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-2008-0003). 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 Theda Kenney at 
the address below to obtain a copy of the ICR.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Theda Kenney 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 Act or for developing information 
regarding the causes and prevention of occupational injuries, 
illnesses, and accidents (29 U.S.C. 657). The OSH Act also 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).
    Paragraph (a)(4) requires that employers obtain the manufacturer's 
written approval before modifying a truck in a manner that affects its 
capacity and safe operation; if the manufacturer grants such approval, 
the employer must revise capacity, operation, and maintenance 
instruction plates, tags, and decals accordingly. For front-end 
attachments not installed by the manufacturer, paragraph (a)(5) 
mandates that employers provide a marker on the trucks that identifies 
the attachment, as well as the weight of both the truck and the 
attachment when the attachment is at maximum elevation with a laterally 
centered load. Paragraph (a)(6) specifies that employers must ensure 
that the markers required by paragraphs (a)(3) through (a)(5) remain 
affixed to trucks and are legible.
    Paragraphs (l)(1) through (l)(6) of the Standard contain the 
paperwork requirements necessary to certify the training provided to 
powered industrial truck operators. Accordingly, these paragraphs 
specify the following requirements for employers:

[[Page 12469]]

     Paragraph (l)(1)--Ensure that trainees successfully 
complete the training and evaluation requirements of paragraph (l) 
prior to operating a truck without direct supervision.
     Paragraph (l)(2)--Allow trainees to operate a truck only 
under the direct supervision of an individual with the knowledge, 
training, and experience to train operators and to evaluate their 
performance, and under conditions that do not endanger other employees. 
The training program must consist of formal instruction, practical 
training, and evaluation of the trainee's performance in the workplace.
     Paragraph (l)(3)--Provide the trainees with initial 
training on each of 22 specified topics, except on topics that the 
employer demonstrates do not apply to the safe operation of the 
truck(s) in the employer's workplace.
     Paragraphs (l)(4)(i) and (l)(4)(ii)--Administer refresher 
training and evaluation on relevant topics to operators found by 
observation or formal evaluation to operate a truck unsafely, involved 
in an accident or near-miss incident, or assigned to operate another 
type of truck, or if the employer identifies a workplace condition that 
could affect safe truck operation.
     Paragraph (l)(4)(iii)--Evaluate each operator's 
performance at least once every three years.
     Paragraph (l)(5)--Train rehires only in specific topics 
that they performed unsuccessfully during an evaluation and that are 
appropriate to the employer's truck(s) and workplace conditions.
     Paragraph (l)(6)--Certify that each operator meets the 
training and evaluation requirements specified by paragraph (l). This 
certification must include the operator's name, the training date, the 
evaluation date, and the identity of the individual(s) who performed 
the training and evaluation.
    Requiring labels (markings) of modified equipment notifies 
employees of the conditions under which they can safely operate powered 
industrial trucks, thereby preventing such hazards as fires and 
explosions caused by poorly designed electrical systems, rollovers/
tipovers that result from exceeding a truck's stability 
characteristics, and falling loads that occur when loads exceed the 
lifting capacities of attachments. Certification of training and 
evaluation provides a means of informing employers that their employees 
received the training, and demonstrated the performance necessary to 
operate a truck within its capacity and control limitations. Therefore, 
by ensuring that employees operate only trucks that are in proper 
working order, and do so safely, employers prevent severe injury and 
death to truck operators and other employees who are in the vicinity of 
the trucks. Finally, these paperwork requirements are the most 
efficient means for an OSHA compliance officer to determine that an 
employer properly notified employees regarding the design and 
construction of, and modifications made to, the trucks they are 
operating, and that an employer provided them with the required 
training.

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 on Powered Industrial 
Trucks (29 CFR 1910.178). The Agency is requesting to increase its 
current burden hour estimate associated with this Standard from 773,205 
hours to 848,539 hours, a total increase of 75,534 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: Powered Industrial Trucks (29 CFR 1910.178).
    OMB Number: 1218-0242.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profit.
    Number of Respondents: 1,134,699.
    Frequency: On occasion; annually; triennially.
    Average Time Per Response: Ranges from two minutes (.03 hour) to 
mark an approved truck to 6.50 hours to train new truck operators.
    Estimated Total Burden Hours: 848,539.
    Estimated Cost (Operation and Maintenance): $238,245.

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-2008-0003). 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

[[Page 12470]]

et seq.) and Secretary of Labor's Order No. 5-2007 (72 FR 31159).

    Signed at Washington, DC, on February 29, 2008.
Edwin G. Foulke, Jr.
Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health.
[FR Doc. E8-4478 Filed 3-6-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-26-P