The government’s regulatory road is long, with many a winding curve – as shown anew in the fall regulatory agenda released last week by the Obama administration. Many of the regulations included have been in the works for years due to a variety of factors: a lengthy rule-making process, industry opposition, and, in some cases, delays by the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
The federal government is statutorily required to release its rule-making plans for the upcoming 12 months every spring and fall.
Among the agenda items:
The Injury and Illness Prevention Program (I2P2) OSHA has been promoting for several years now has a notice-of-proposed-rulemaking date: September of 2014. The rule would require employers to implement a program that involves planning, implementing, evaluating, and improving processes and activities that protect employee safety and health. I2P2 would build on the voluntary Safety and Health Program Management Guidelines (54 FR 3904 to 3916) which were published in 1989.
The agency's standard-in-progress to limit workers’ exposure to combustible dust, which has been in the works since 2009, will now be the subject of an April panel that will explore the rule’s potential impact on small businesses.
A Food and Drug Administration (FDA) bid to claim the authority to regulate cigars and e-cigarettes the same way it oversees conventional cigarettes has been pushed to December. The proposal was originally going to be issued in April.
An FDA rule that will require chain restaurants and vending machines to post the number of calories in their foods – one mandated by the Affordable Care Act – was moved from September to February.
In the pre-rule stage for OSHA:
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Bloodborne Pathogens |
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Infectious Diseases |
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Reinforced Concrete in Construction and |
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Standards Improvement Project IV |
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Review/Lookback of OSHA Chemical Standards |
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Process Safety Management and |
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Definition and Requirements for a Nationally |
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Subpart E Scaffolds, Ladders and Other Working Surfaces |
In the proposed rule stage for OSHA:
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Occupational Exposure to Crystalline Silica |
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Occupational Exposure to Beryllium |
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Combustible Dust |
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Injury and Illness Prevention Program |
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Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses |
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Approved State Plans for Occupational Safety and Health |
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Amendments to the Cranes and Derricks in |
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Clarification of Employer's Continuing |
In the final rule stage for OSHA:
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Cranes and Derricks in Construction: Operator Certification |
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Updating OSHA Standards Based on National Consensus |
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Confined Spaces in Construction |
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Electric Power Transmission and Distribution; Electrical |
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Walking Working Surfaces and Personal Fall Protection |
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Procedures for Handling Employee Retaliation Complaints |
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Occupational Injury and Illness Recording and Reporting |
In the pre-rule stage for the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA):
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Refuge Alternatives for Underground Coal Mines |
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Regulatory Actions in Response to Recommendations |
In the proposed-rule stage for MSHA:
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Respirable Crystalline Silica |
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Criteria and Procedures for Proposed Assessment of Civil Penalties |
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Proximity Detection Systems for Mobile Machines in Underground Mines |
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Fees for Testing, Evaluation and Approval of Mining Products |
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Refuge Alternatives for Underground Coal Mines; |
In the final-rule stage for MSHA:
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Lowering Miners' Exposure to Respirable Coal Mine Dust, |
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Proximity Detection Systems for Continuous Mining Machines |
In the final rule stage for the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Workers’ Compensation Program:
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Black Lung Benefits Act: Standards for Chest Radiographs |
