[Federal Register: July 22, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 140)]
[Notices]               
[Page 42389-42390]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr22jy05-96]                         
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

[Docket No. ICR-1218-0104(2005)]

 
Inorganic Arsenic Standard; 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 comment.

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SUMMARY: OSHA solicits public comment concerning its request for an 
extension of the information collection requirements contained in the 
Inorganic Arsenic Standard.

DATES: Comments must be submitted by the following dates:
    Hard copy: Your comments must be submitted (postmarked or received) 
by September 20, 2005.
    Facsimile and electronic transmission: Your comments must be 
received by September 20, 2005.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by OSHA Docket No. ICR-
1218-0104(2005), by any of the following methods:
    Regular mail, express delivery, hand delivery, and messenger 
service: Submit your comments and attachments to the OSHA Docket 
Office, Room N-2625, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, 
NW., Washington, DC 20210; telephone (202) 693-2350 (OSHA's TTY number 
is (877) 889-5627). OSHA Docket Office and Department of Labor hours 
are 8:15 a.m. to 4:45 p.m., ET.
    Facsimile: If your comments are 10 pages or fewer in length, 
including attachments, you may fax them to the OSHA Docket Office at 
(202) 693-1648.
    Electronic: You may submit comments through the Internet at http://ecomments.osha.gov.
 Follow instructions on the OSHA Web page for submitting comments.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read or download comments or 
background materials, such as the complete Information Collection 
Request (ICR) (containing the Supporting Statement, OMB-83-I Form, and 
attachments), go to OSHA's Web page at http://www.OSHA.gov. In 

addition, the ICR, comments and submissions are available for 
inspection and copying at the OSHA Docket Office at the address above. 
You may also contact Todd Owen at the address below to obtain a copy of 
the ICR. For additional information on submitting comments, please see 
the ``Public Participation'' heading in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION 
section of this document.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Todd Owen, Directorate of Standards 
and Guidance, OSHA, Room N-3609, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20210, telephone: (202) 693-2222.

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 (PRA-95) (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 Act) (29 U.S.C. 651 et seq.) authorizes information 
collection by employers as necessary or appropriate for enforcement of 
the Act or for developing information regarding the causes and 
prevention of occupational injuries, illnesses, and accidents (29 
U.S.C. 657).
    On January 5, 2005, OSHA published the Standards Improvement 
Project--Phase II, Final rule (70 FR 1112). The final rule removed and 
revised provisions of standards that were outdated, duplicative, 
unnecessary, or inconsistent and clarified or simplified regulatory 
language. The final rule contained several revisions to collections of 
information contained in the Inorganic Arsenic (IA) Standard, 29 CFR 
1910.1018. These revisions included: reducing the frequency of medical 
examinations and updating compliance plans; allowing employers the 
option to post employee exposure-monitoring results instead of 
requiring individual notification; and eliminating the need for 
employers to report emergencies to OSHA and to notify OSHA when 
establishing a regulated area. Those changes reduced paperwork burden 
hours while maintaining worker protection and improving consistency 
among standards. This burden reduction was taken on an earlier ICR.
    The information collection requirements remaining in the IA 
Standard protect employees from the adverse health effects that may 
result from their exposure to IA. The IA Standard requires employers 
to: monitor employees' exposure to inorganic arsenic; monitor employee 
health; develop and maintain employee exposure-monitoring and medical 
records; and provide employees with information about their exposures 
and the adverse health effects of exposure to inorganic arsenic.

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 proposes to extend the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) 
approval of these collections of information (paperwork) requirements 
necessitated by the IA Standard. The Agency will include this summary 
in its request to OMB to extend the approval of these collections of 
information requirements.
    Type of Review: Extension of currently approved information 
collection requirements.
    Title: Inorganic Arsenic Standard.
    OMB Number: 1218-0104.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profits; Federal Government; 
State, Local or Tribal Government.
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Average Time Per Response: Varies from 5 minutes (.08 hour) to 
maintain records to 1.67 hours to complete a medical examination.
    Estimated Total Burden Hours: 4,861.
    Estimated Cost (Operation and Maintenance): $396,322.

IV. Public Participation--Submission of Comments on This Notice and 
Internet Access to Comments and Submissions

    You may submit comments and supporting materials in response to 
this notice by (1) hard copy, (2) FAX transmission (facsimile), or (3) 
electronically through the OSHA Web page. Because of security-related 
problems, there may be a significant delay in the receipt of comments by 
regular mail. Please contact the OSHA Docket Office at (202) 693-2350 
(TTY (877) 889-5627) for information about security procedures concerning 
the delivery of submissions by express delivery, hand delivery and courier service.
    All comments, submissions and background documents are available 
for inspection and copying at the OSHA Docket Office at the above 
address. Comments and submissions posted on OSHA's Web page are 
available at http://www.OSHA.gov. Contact the OSHA Docket Office for 
information about materials not available through the OSHA Web page and 
for assistance using the Web page to locate docket submissions.
    Electronic copies of this Federal Register notice as well as other 
relevant documents are available on OSHA's Web page. Since all 
submissions become public, private information such as social security 
numbers should not be submitted.

V. Authority and Signature

    Jonathan L. Snare, Acting Assistant Secretary 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. 5-2002 (67 FR 
65008).

    Signed at Washington, DC, on July 19, 2005.
Jonathan L. Snare,
Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor.
[FR Doc. 05-14537 Filed 7-21-05; 8:45 am]

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