[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 81 (Thursday, April 26, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 24992-24993]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-10056]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

[Docket No. OSHA-2011-0861]


OSHA Strategic Partnership Program for Worker Safety and Health 
(OSPP); 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 comments.

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SUMMARY: OSHA solicits public comments concerning its proposal to 
extend OMB approval of the information collection requirements 
specified in the OSHAs Strategic Partnership Program for Worker Safety 
and Health (OSPP).

DATES: Comments must be submitted (postmarked, sent, or received) by 
June 25, 2012.

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 your comments and attachments 
to the OSHA Docket Office, Docket No. OSHA-2011-0861, Occupational 
Safety and Health Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, 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 (OSHA-2011-0861) for the Information Collection Request 
(ICR). 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 from 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 accord 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 the 1970 (the OSH Act) authorizes 
information collection by employers as necessary or appropriate for 
enforcement of the OSH Act or for developing information regarding the 
causes and prevention of occupational injuries, illnesses, and 
accidents (29 U.S.C. 657). The OSHA 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).
    The OSHA Strategic Partnership Program (OSPP) allows OSHA to enter 
into an extended, voluntary, cooperative relationship with groups of 
employers, workers, and representatives (sometimes including other 
stakeholders, and sometimes involving only one employer) to encourage, 
assist and recognize their efforts to eliminate serious hazards and 
achieve a high level of worker safety and health that goes beyond what 
historically has been achieved through traditional enforcement methods. 
Each OSHA Strategic Partnership (OSP) determines which information will 
be needed, determining the best collection method, and clarifying how 
the information will be used. At a minimum, each OSP must identify 
baseline illness and injury data corresponding to all summary line 
items on the OSHA 200/300 logs, and must track changes at either the 
worksite level or participant-aggregate level. An OSP may also include 
other measures of success, such as training activity, self inspections, 
and/or workers' compensation data.
    In this regard, the information collection requirements for the 
OSPP are used by the Agency to gauge the effectiveness of its programs, 
identify needed improvements, and ensure that its resources are being 
used for good and effective purposes.

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 function to 
protect workers, 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 employees who must comply; 
for example, by using automated or other technological information 
collection and transmission techniques.

III. Proposed Actions

    The Agency is requesting that OMB extend the approval of the 
collection of

[[Page 24993]]

information (paperwork) requirements outlined by OSHA's Strategic 
Partnership Program. In addition, the Agency proposes to use a blanket 
approval, eliminating the need for the Agency to submit the collection 
of information requirements for each individual partnership to OMB for 
approval. The Agency also proposes to decrease the existing burden hour 
estimate from 361,416 to 108,702 as a result of a decrease in the 
number of partnerships. OSHA will summarize the comments submitted in 
response to this notice, and will include this summary in its request 
to OMB to extend the approval of the collection of information 
requirements.
    Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.
    Title: OSHA Strategic Partnership Program for Worker Safety and 
Health (OSPP).
    OMB Control Number: 1218-0244.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profits.
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Total Responses: 18,144.
    Average Time per Response: Eleven (11) hours to develop the 
partnership requirements, craft agreement language, and conduct an 
internal review process.
    Estimated Total Burden Hours: 108,702.
    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 this ICR (Docket No. OSHA-2011-0861). 
You may supplement electronic submissions by uploading document files 
electronically. If you wish to mail additional materials in reference 
to an electronic or a 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 
dates 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

    David Michaels, Ph.D., MPH, 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. 1-2012 
(77 FR 3912).

    Signed at Washington, DC, on April 20, 2012.
David Michaels,
Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health.
[FR Doc. 2012-10056 Filed 4-25-12; 8:45 am]
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