[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 156 (Monday, August 15, 2022)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 50025-50027]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-17507]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

29 CFR Part 1952

[Docket No. OSHA-2021-0012]
RIN 1218-AD43


Arizona State Plan for Occupational Safety and Health; Proposed 
Reconsideration and Revocation; Reopening of Comment Period; 
Postponement of Public Hearing

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

ACTION: Notification of limited reopening of rulemaking record; 
notification of postponement of public hearing.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: OSHA is reopening the comment period for an additional 60 days 
to allow for additional public comment on specific topics. 
Additionally, OSHA is postponing the tentatively scheduled informal 
public hearing. Before making any decisions about future proceedings, 
OSHA will review all of the comments on the proposal, including any 
comments submitted during the reopening of the comment period. Thus, 
any further decisions about the scheduling of a hearing are in abeyance 
until that time. Announcements about any future hearing dates will be 
published by notice in the Federal Register.

DATES: Written comments in response to OSHA's reopening of the comment 
period must be submitted to Docket No. OSHA-2021-0012 by October 14, 
2022.

ADDRESSES: 
    Written comments: You may submit comments and attachments 
electronically at www.regulations.gov, which is the Federal e-
Rulemaking Portal. Follow the instructions on-line for making 
electronic submissions.
    Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name and 
docket number for this rulemaking (Docket No. OSHA-2021-0012). All 
submissions, including any personal information, are placed in the 
public docket without change and may be available online at 
www.regulations.gov. Therefore, OSHA cautions you about submitting 
certain personal information, such as social security numbers and 
birthdates.
    Docket: To read or download comments and materials submitted in 
response to this Federal Register notice, go to Docket No. OSHA-2021-
0012 at www.regulations.gov. All comments and submissions are listed in 
the www.regulations.gov index; however, some information (e.g., 
copyrighted material) is not publicly available to read or download 
through that website. All comments and submissions are available for 
inspection and, where permissible, copying at the OSHA Docket Office, 
U.S. Department of Labor; telephone: (202) 693-2350 (TTY number: (877) 
889-5627).
    Documents submitted to the docket by OSHA or stakeholders are 
assigned document identification numbers (Document ID) for easy 
identification and retrieval. The full Document ID is the docket number 
plus a unique four-digit code. For example, the full Document ID number 
for the comment submitted by the Industrial Commission of Arizona (ICA) 
and the Arizona Division of Occupational Safety and Health (ADOSH), 
which is discussed in more detail below, is Document ID OSHA-2021-0012-
0228. OSHA will identify this comment, and other comments in the 
rulemaking, by the term ``Document ID'' followed by the comment's 
unique four-digit code.
    Electronic copies of this Federal Register document are available 
at www.regulations.gov. This document, as well as news releases and 
other relevant information, is also available at OSHA's website at 
www.osha.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 
    For press inquiries: Contact Frank Meilinger, OSHA Office of 
Communications, U.S. Department of Labor; telephone (202) 693-1999; 
email [email protected].
    For general and technical information: Contact Douglas J. 
Kalinowski, Director, OSHA Directorate of Cooperative and State 
Programs, U.S. Department of Labor; telephone (202) 693-2200; email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On April 21, 2022, OSHA published a Notice 
of Proposed Reconsideration and Revocation of Final Approval of the 
Arizona State Plan for Occupational Safety and Health (Notice) (87 FR 
23783). Comments were initially due on May 26, 2022. In response to 
requests from the public, OSHA extended the comment period to July 5, 
2022 (87 FR 31442). OSHA received 197 comments concerning the proposal 
during the comment period. The April 21, 2022 document tentatively 
scheduled an informal public hearing on the proposal to begin on August 
16, 2022.

I. Additional Information and Request for Comment

    On July 5, 2022, the last day of the comment period, the Industrial 
Commission of Arizona (ICA) and its sub-agency, the Arizona Division of 
Occupational Safety and Health (ADOSH), submitted a comment on the 
proposal (Document ID 0228). Therein, the ICA and ADOSH stated that 
Arizona has completed a number of measures to address the concerns OSHA 
identified

[[Page 50026]]

in the proposal. Among other things, ICA and ADOSH stated that:
     Arizona has updated all of its State Plan Application 
(``SPA'') portal entries to accurately reflect adoption dates for 
National Emphasis Programs (NEPs) and final rules.
     Arizona is in the final stage of the rulemaking process to 
adopt the following final rules: Standards Improvement Project Phase-IV 
(``SIP-IV''); Beryllium in Construction and Shipyards; and Cranes and 
Derricks in Construction: Railroad Roadway Work.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ OSHA's records reflect that Arizona has now completed this 
process. Consequently, it has adopted all three of these final 
rules.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

     The ICA adopted an increase to the minimum penalties for 
serious and non-serious violations to match OSHA minimums on October 
21, 2021.
     On June 23, 2022, the Arizona Legislature passed House 
Bill (``HB'') 2120, amending A.R.S. Sec.  23-418 to tie the statutory 
ADOSH maximum penalties (and minimum penalties for willful/repeat 
violations) to the corresponding OSHA maximum and minimum penalty 
levels, with annual adjustments for inflation.\2\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \2\ Arizona's governor signed H.B. 2120 into law on July 6, 2022 
(see https://apps.azleg.gov/BillStatus/BillOverview/76526).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

     HB 2120 also amended A.R.S. Sec.  23-414 to authorize 
adoption of an Emergency Temporary Standard (``ETS'') when either the 
ICA OR OSHA deems the grave danger criteria met.
     Arizona adopted the recordkeeping and COVID-19 log 
requirements in OSHA's COVID-19 Healthcare ETS as a permanent standard 
on February 17, 2022.

(Document ID 0228, pp. 2-3).
    Additionally, ICA and ADOSH clarified that Arizona had adopted the 
two NEPs that OSHA had specifically identified as not yet adopted by 
the State Plan in the proposal, i.e., the NEP on Amputations in 
Manufacturing Industries, CPL 03-00-022 (adoption due June 10, 2020), 
and the NEP on Respirable Crystalline Silica, CPL 03-00-023 (adoption 
due August 4, 2020) (Document ID 0228, pp. 29-30). As to the NEP on 
Amputations in Manufacturing Industries, ICA and ADOSH stated that 
Arizona adopted the updated NEP on April 20, 2022 (Document ID 0228, p. 
30). And, as to the NEP on Respirable Crystalline Silica, ICA and ADOSH 
stated that Arizona did not send the NEP implementation documentation 
to OSHA until April 20, 2022, but actual adoption was accomplished in 
June 2020 (Document ID 0228, p. 28).
    Further, ICA and ADOSH responded to OSHA's concerns regarding 
Arizona's failure to provide OSHA with the required documentation of 
adoption of certain measures, as required by statute and regulations. 
For example, although ICA and ADOSH do not appear to dispute that 
Arizona failed to timely provide OSHA with documentation of adoption of 
the NEP on Trenching and Excavation, they asserted that Arizona began 
conducting inspections under the NEP on Trenching and Excavation as 
early as May 7, 2019, indicating that the NEP had, in fact, been 
adopted and implemented shortly after the adoption deadline (Document 
ID 0228, pp. 29-30). OSHA has reviewed its records alongside ICA and 
ADOSH's comment and finds that (with one minor exception) all of the 
ICA and ADOSH assertions described in this Notice are accurate.\3\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ OSHA's records reflect that Arizona sent documentation of 
the adoption of the NEP on Respirable Crystalline Silica on May 26, 
2022, not April 20, 2022.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    As noted above, ICA and ADOSH submitted their comment on the last 
day of the comment period. Moreover, as noted above, HB 2120, the bill 
that addressed issues related to maximum penalties and Arizona's 
authority to adopt an ETS, was not signed into law until July 6, 2022, 
the day after the comment period closed. Because the information 
provided in the ICA and ADOSH comment suggests that Arizona has taken 
steps to address items that were fundamental to OSHA's decision to 
propose revocation of Arizona's final approval (87 FR 23785-87), OSHA 
is reopening the comment period on a limited basis to allow 
stakeholders to submit additional comments. Specifically, OSHA invites 
stakeholders to submit comments on the actions referenced in ICA and 
ADOSH's July 5, 2022, comment and any impact those actions should have 
on OSHA's proposed revocation of the State Plan's final approval. In 
particular, stakeholders who previously submitted comments should note 
in any new comments whether they wish to revise or withdraw any portion 
of their previously-submitted comments. Following the reopened comment 
period, OSHA will consider any supplemental comments received, in 
addition to comments already received, as it makes decisions regarding 
future proceedings and whether to finalize its proposal to revoke final 
approval of the Arizona State Plan.

II. Postponement of Informal Hearing

    In its April 21, 2022, publication, OSHA explained that any 
interested person could request an informal hearing concerning the 
proposed revocation (87 FR at 23783). OSHA indicated it would hold such 
a hearing if the Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety 
and Health (Assistant Secretary) found that substantial objections had 
been filed (Id.). To allow for this possibility, the agency tentatively 
scheduled an informal public hearing on the proposal, beginning August 
16, 2022 (Id.).
    In light of the reopening of the comment period, OSHA is postponing 
the public hearing scheduled to begin on August 16. Before making any 
decisions about future proceedings, OSHA will review all of the 
comments on the proposal, including any comments submitted during the 
reopening of the comment period. Thus, any further decisions about the 
scheduling of a hearing are in abeyance until that time. Announcements 
about any future hearing dates will be published by notice in the 
Federal Register.

III. Public Participation

    The Assistant Secretary's decision whether to continue or revoke 
the Arizona State Plan's final approval will be made after careful 
consideration of all relevant information presented in this rulemaking 
(29 CFR 1902.52(a)). To aid the Assistant Secretary in making this 
decision, OSHA is soliciting public participation in this process. 
Interested parties are encouraged to submit comments on the actions 
referenced in ICA's July 5, 2022, comment and any impact those actions 
should have on OSHA's proposed revocation of the State Plan's final 
approval.
    Notice in the State of Arizona: Arizona is required to publish 
reasonable notice of the contents of this Federal Register notice 
within the State no later than 10 days following the date of 
publication of this notice (29 CFR 1902.49(a)).
    Written comments: OSHA invites interested persons to submit written 
data, views, and comments with respect to the topics identified above. 
When submitting comments, persons must follow the procedures specified 
above in the sections titled DATES and ADDRESSES. Submissions must 
clearly identify the issues addressed and the positions taken. 
Stakeholders that previously submitted comments should note in any new 
comments whether they wish to revise or withdraw any portion of their 
previously submitted comments as the agency makes decisions regarding 
future proceedings and whether to finalize its proposal to revoke the 
Arizona State Plan's final approval. Comments received by the end of 
the specified

[[Page 50027]]

comment period will become part of the record and will be available for 
public inspection and, where permissible, copying at the OSHA Docket 
Office, as well as online at www.regulations.gov (Docket Number OSHA-
2021-0012).

Authority and Signature

    Douglas L. Parker, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational 
Safety and Health, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue 
NW, Washington, DC authorized the preparation of this document under 
the authority specified by Section 18 of the Occupational Safety and 
Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 667), Secretary of Labor's Order No. 8-
2020 (85 FR 58393 (Sept. 18, 2020)), and 29 CFR parts 1902, 1952, 1953, 
1954, and 1955.

    Signed at Washington, DC.
Douglas L. Parker,
Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health.
[FR Doc. 2022-17507 Filed 8-11-22; 11:15 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-26-P