DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

29 CFR Part 1926

Steel Erection Negotiated Rulemaking Advisory Committee

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

ACTION: Notice of Committee meeting.

DATES: The meeting is scheduled for September 19-21, 1995. The meeting will begin at 10:00 a.m. on September 19th.

ADDRESSES: U.S. Department of Labor, DOL Academy, Room C-5321, Seminar Room 4, 200 Constitution Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20210.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anne Cyr, Acting Director, Office of Information and Consumer Affairs, OSHA, U.S. Department of Labor, Room N-3647, 200 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20210; telephone (202) 219-8151.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On May 11, 1994, OSHA announced that it had established the Steel Erection Negotiated Rulemaking Advisory Committee (SENRAC) (59 FR 24389) in accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), the Negotiated Rulemaking Act of 1990 (NRA) and section 7(b) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act) to resolve issues associated with the development of a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Steel Erection. Appointees to the Committee include representatives from labor, industry, public interests and government agencies.

SENRAC began negotiations in mid-June, 1994, and has met nine times since. Initial meetings dealt with procedural matters, including schedules, agendas and the establishment of workgroups. The Committee established workgroups to address issues on Fall Protection, Construction Specifications and Scope. During subsequent meetings, foundations for negotiations were established and additional workgroups were formed to address more specific issues and develop a draft revision of subpart R.

The Committee last met on June 27-29 where consensus was expected to be reached on a proposed revision of subpart R. The Committee did reach agreement on major issues and most of the elements of the draft revision; however, after much deliberation, they could not come to an agreement on fall protection. OSHA determined that since the Committee made significant progress on the fall protection issue and agreed to other very important improvements to the existing standard, it would allow the Committee to convene a workgroup to resolve the fall protection issue. On July 26, a workgroup met in Philadelphia and tentatively agreed on fall protection requirements for steel erection. This recommendation will be presented to the full SENRAC Committee at the September meeting where it is expected that consensus will be reached on the complete draft proposal. OSHA will then complete the preamble and prepare the document in the proper Federal Register format for publication as a proposed rule.

All interested parties are invited to attend the Committee meetings at the time and place indicated above. No advanced registration is required. Seating will be available to the public on a first-come-first-served basis. Persons with disabilities, who need special accomodations, should contact the Facilitator by September 12, 1995. During the meeting, members of the general public may informally request permission to address the Committee.

Minutes of the meetings and materials prepared for the Committee will be available for public inspection at the OSHA Docket Office, N-2625, 200 Constitution Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20210; telephone (202) 219-7894. Copies of these materials may be obtained by sending a written request to the Facilitator.

The Facilitator, Philip J. Harter, can be reached at Suite 404, 2301 M Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20037; telephone (202) 887-1033, FAX (202) 887-1036.

For an electronic copy of this Federal Register notice, contact the Labor News Bulletin Board, (202) 219-4784 (callers must pay any toll-call charges. 300, 1200, 2400, 9600 or 14,400 BAUD; Parity: None; Data Bits = 8; Stop Bit = 1. Voice phone (202) 219-8831); or OSHA's Webpage on Internet at http://www.osha.gov/ and http://www.osha-slc.gov/. For news releases, fact sheets, and other documents, contact OSHA FAX at (900) 555-3400 at $ 1.50 per minute.

Authority: This document was prepared under the direction of Joseph A. Dear, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20210, pursuant to section 3 of the Negotiated Rulemaking Act of 1990, 104 Stat. 4969, Title 5 U.S.C. 561 et seq.; and Section 7(b) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, 84 Stat. 1597, Title 29 U.S.C. 656

Signed at Washington, D.C., this 24th day of August, 1995.

Joseph A. Dear,
Assistant Secretary of Labor.

[FR Doc. 95-21460 Filed 8-29-95; 8:45 am]