[Federal Register: November 14, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 221)][Notices] [Page 67546-67548]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr14no08-122]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
[Docket No. OSHA-2008-0041]
OSHA Strategic Partnership Program for Worker Safety and Health
(OSPP)
AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Labor.
ACTION: Request for public comment.
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SUMMARY: OSHA solicits public comment concerning its proposal to extend
the Office of Management Budget's (OMB) approval of the information
collection requirements specified in the OSHA Strategic Partnership
Program for Worker Safety and Health (OSPP).
DATES: Comments must be submitted (postmarked, sent, or received) by
January 13, 2009.
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 three copies of your comments
and attachments to the OSHA Docket Office, Docket No. OSHA-2008-0041,
U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health
Administration, 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 for the Information Collection Request (ICR) (OSHA-2008-
0041). All documents, 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 through the Web site. All submissions,
including copyrighted material, are available for inspection and
copying at the OSHA Docket Office. You may also contact Cathy Oliver at
the address below to obtain a copy of the ICR.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cathy Oliver, Office of Partnerships
and Recognition, Directorate of Cooperative and State Programs,
Occupational Safety and Health Administration, U.S. Department of
Labor, Room N-3700, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20210,
(202) 693-2208.
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 accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act
of 1995 (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 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 (29 U.S.C. 657). The OSH 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 OSPP allows OSHA to enter into an extended, voluntary,
cooperative relationship with groups of employers, employees, and
representatives (sometimes including other stakeholders, and sometimes
involving only one employer) to encourage, assist and recognize their
efforts to eliminate serious hazards and to achieve a high level of
employee 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, selects
the best collection method, and specifies 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 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 is used by the Agency to gauge the
effectiveness of its programs, identify needed improvements, and ensure
that its resources are being used to 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 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 proposing to extend the information collection requirements
contained in the Strategic Partnership Program for Worker Safety and
Health (OSPP) (5 CFR 1320.5). The Agency is requesting to increase its
current burden hour total from 57,923 to 361,416 hours for a total
increase of 303,493 hours. The increase is a result of a growth in the
number of partnerships and in accounting burden hours for individual
employers in partnerships. The Agency will summarize the comments
submitted in response to this notice and will include this summary in
the request to OMB.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.
Title: OSHA Strategic Partnership Program for Worker Safety and
Health (OSPP).
OMB Number: 1218-0244.
Affected Public: Business or other for-profits; Federal Government;
State, Local or Tribal Government.
Number of Respondents: 32,586.
Frequency: On occasion.
Average Time Per Response: Eleven (11) hours to develop the
partnership requirements, draft agreement language, and conduct an
internal review process.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 361,416.
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 the ICR (Docket No. OSHA-2008-0041). 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 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
date 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
Edwin G. Foulke, Jr., 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. 5-2007 (72 FR
31159).
Signed at Washington, DC, on November 6, 2008.
Edwin G. Foulke, Jr.,
Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health.
[FR Doc. E8-26981 Filed 11-13-08; 8:45 am]
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