[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 190 (Tuesday, October 1, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52144-52146]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-21234]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

[Docket No. OSHA-2019-0002]


Respirable Crystalline Silica Standards for General Industry, 
Maritime and Construction; 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 the proposal to 
extend OMB approval of the information collection requirements 
specified in the Respirable Crystalline Silica Standards for General 
Industry, Maritime, and Construction.

DATES: Comments must be submitted (postmarked, sent, or received) by 
December 2, 2019.

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 a copy of your comments and 
attachments to the OSHA Docket Office, Docket No. OSHA-2019-0002, 
Occupational Safety and Health Administration, U.S. Department of 
Labor, Room N-3653, 200 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20210. 
Deliveries (hand, express mail, messenger, and courier service) are 
accepted during the OSHA Docket Office's normal business hours, 10:00 
a.m. to 3:00 p.m., ET.
    Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name and the 
OSHA docket number (OSHA-2019-0002) 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 above address. 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 website. All submissions, 
including copyrighted material, are available for inspection and 
copying at the OSHA Docket Office. You may also contact Theda Kenney at 
(202) 693-2222 to obtain a copy of the ICR.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Seleda Perryman or Theda Kenney, 
Directorate of Standards and Guidance, OSHA, U.S. Department of Labor, 
telephone (202) 693-2222.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    The Department of Labor, as part of a continuing effort to reduce 
paperwork and respondent (i.e., employer) burden, conducts a 
preclearance process 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) (44 U.S.C. 
3506(c)(2)(A)). This program ensures that information is in the desired 
format, the reporting burden (time and costs) is minimal, the 
collection instruments are clearly understood, and OSHA's estimate of 
the information collection burden is accurate. The Occupational Safety 
and

[[Page 52145]]

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 or for developing information regarding the 
causes and prevention of occupational injuries, illnesses, and 
accidents (see 29 U.S.C. 657). The OSH Act also requires OSHA to obtain 
such information with a minimum burden upon employers, especially those 
operating small businesses, and to reduce to the maximum extent 
feasible unnecessary duplication of effort in obtaining said 
information (see 29 U.S.C. 657).
    The Respirable Crystalline Silica Standards for general industry 
and maritime (29 CFR 1910.1053) and construction (29 CFR 1926.1053) 
contain the following information collection requirements: Conducting 
worker exposure assessments and notifying workers of the assessment 
results and any corrective actions being taken; establishing, 
implementing, reviewing, evaluating, and updating a written exposure 
control plan and making the plan available to workers and designated 
representatives; creating and submitting air quality permit 
notifications; establishing a respiratory protection program; providing 
qualitative fit-testing and maintaining records; providing medical 
surveillance to workers; providing the physician or other licensed 
health care provider (PLHCP), or the specialist, with specific 
information; ensuring that the PLHCP, or specialist, explains the 
results of the medical examination to the employee and provides each 
employee with a copy of their written medical report; obtaining a 
written medical opinion from the PLHCP, or specialist, and ensuring 
that each employee receives a copy of the opinion; and making and 
maintaining air monitoring data, objective data, and medical 
surveillance records; and providing workers and designated 
representatives with access to these records. The records are used by 
workers, employers, and OSHA to determine the effectiveness of the 
employer's compliance efforts.

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 Respirable Crystalline Silica 
Standards for General Industry, Maritime and Construction. The agency 
requests approval for an adjustment increase of 347,653 burden hours 
(from 12,118,364 to 12,466,017). The requested adjustment increase is 
associated with the agency's correction of several administrative 
errors in the previous ICR. Specifically, the adjustment would include 
additional burden hours for the development and updating of the written 
exposure control plan associated with medium-sized general industry 
establishments. In addition, the adjustment would add additional burden 
hours for employers to provide information to a physician or other 
licensed health care professional in association with employee periodic 
medical examinations. These burden hours were displayed in the previous 
ICR spreadsheets as costs incurred after the initial year of standard 
implementation, but were not included in the burden hour totals in the 
previous ICR. The adjustment also would add additional burden hours for 
managers to ensure worker receipt of the PLHCP and specialist's written 
medical report and distribute the PLHCP and specialist's written 
medical opinion to workers and the employer in association with 
employee initial, periodic, and additional medical examinations. The 
request seeks approval to maintain all other previously approved burden 
hours.
    The agency also requests approval to maintain the previously 
approved operation and maintenance costs of $393,789,901.
    Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.
    Title: Respirable Crystalline Silica Standards for General Industry 
and Maritime (29 CFR 1910.1053) and Construction (29 CFR 1926.1053).
    OMB Control Number: 1218-0266.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profits.
    Number of Respondents: 682,581.
    Frequency: Biennially, Once, On occasion, Quarterly, Semi-annually, 
Annually.
    Average Time per Response: Various.
    Estimated Number of Responses: 8,170,908.
    Estimated Total Burden Hours: 12,466,017.
    Estimated Cost (Operation and Maintenance): $393,789,901.

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 materials must identify the agency 
name and the OSHA docket number (Docket No. OSHA-2019-0002) for the 
ICR. 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 electronic 
comments by your name, date, and the docket number so that 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 
website. All submissions, including copyrighted material, are available 
for inspection and copying at the OSHA Docket Office. Information on 
using the http://www.regulations.gov website to submit comments and 
access the docket is available at the website's ``User Tips'' link.
    Contact the OSHA Docket Office for information about materials not 
available through the website, and for assistance in using the internet 
to locate docket submissions.

[[Page 52146]]

V. Authority and Signature

    Loren Sweatt, Principal Deputy 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 September 25, 2019.
Loren Sweatt,
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety 
and Health.
[FR Doc. 2019-21234 Filed 9-30-19; 8:45 am]
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