OSHA is accepting proposals for approximately $6.9 million in new grants to nonprofit organizations for safety and health training and educational programs under its Susan Harwood Training Grants program. An additional $3.3 million will be used to fund renewal grants for groups that have received the training grants in the past.

Nonprofit organizations, including community-based and faith-based groups, are eligible to apply for the new grants. The grants are targeted to organizations that propose to conduct training programs or to develop training materials to educate Hispanic and other non-English speaking workers, employers in small businesses, and workers who are employed in high-hazard industries and industries with high fatality rates.

The call for grant applications appears to signify that the program will not be cut despite being defunded in appropriations proposals made earlier this year.

OSHA will be accepting new applications for two categories of Susan Harwood grants:

Targeted Topic Training Grants will support training for two occupational safety and health topic areas — construction hazards and general industry hazards. Approximately $2.9 million is available for this grant category. Grants will be awarded for 12 months with an average award of $150,000.

OSHA Training Materials Development Grants will support the development, evaluation and validation of training materials for five occupational safety and health topic areas: construction hazards, general industry hazards, respiratory diseases, transportation and an "other topic" area that will address several broad topics. About $4 million is available for this grant category. Grants will be awarded for 12 months with an average award of $200,000.

Details about the grants and the application process will be available in the June 21, 2005, Federal Register.

The training grants are named in honor of the late Susan Harwood, a former director of the Office of Risk Assessment in OSHA's Health Standards Directorate, who died in 1996.