Frn (vc) 2024

Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 100 / Wednesday, May 22, 2024 / Notices
V. Authority and Signature
James S. Frederick, Deputy 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. 8–2020 (85 FR 58393).
Signed at Washington, DC, on May 17,
2024.
James S. Frederick,
Deputy Assistant Secretary of Labor for
Occupational Safety and Health.
[FR Doc. 2024–11203 Filed 5–21–24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510–26–P

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Occupational Safety and Health
Administration

Seleda Perryman, Directorate of
Standards and Guidance, OSHA, U.S.
Department of Labor; telephone (202)
693–2222.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

[Docket No. OSHA–2011–0196]

I. Background

Vinyl Chloride Standard; Extension of
the Office of Management and
Budget’s (OMB) Approval of
Information Collection (Paperwork)
Requirements

The Department of Labor, as part of
the 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)
(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, the collection
instruments are clearly understood, and
OSHA’s estimate of the information
collection burden is accurate. The
Occupational Safety and Health Act of
1970 (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 effort in obtaining
information (29 U.S.C. 657).
The following sections describe who
uses the information collected under
each requirement, as well as how they
use it.

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA), Labor.
ACTION: Request for public comments.
AGENCY:

OSHA solicits public
comments concerning the proposal to
extend the Office of Management and
Budget’s (OMB) approval of the
information collection requirements
specified in the Vinyl Chloride
Standard.
DATES: Comments must be submitted
(postmarked, sent, or received) by July
22, 2024.
ADDRESSES:
Electronically: You may submit
comments and attachments
electronically at https://
www.regulations.gov, which is the
Federal eRulemaking Portal. Follow the
instructions online for submitting
comments.
Docket: To read or download
comments or other material in the
docket, go to https://
www.regulations.gov. Documents in the
docket are listed in the https://
www.regulations.gov index; however,
some information (e.g., copyrighted
material) is not publicly available to
read or download through the websites.
All submissions, including copyrighted
material, are available for inspection
through the OSHA Docket Office.
Contact the OSHA Docket Office at (202)
693–2350 (TTY (877) 889–5627) for
assistance in locating docket
submissions.
SUMMARY:

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Instructions: All submissions must
include the agency name and OSHA
docket number (OSHA–2011–0196) for
the Information Collection Request
(ICR). OSHA will place all comments,
including any personal information, in
the public docket, which may be made
available online. Therefore, OSHA
cautions interested parties about
submitting personal information such as
social security numbers and birthdates.
For further information on submitting
comments, see the ‘‘Public
Participation’’ heading in the section of
this notice titled SUPPLEMENTARY
INFORMATION.

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(A) Exposure Monitoring
(§ 1910.1017(d)) and (§ 1910.1017(n))
Paragraph 1910.1017(d)(2) requires
employers to conduct exposure
monitoring at least quarterly if the
results show that worker exposures are

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above the permissible exposure limit
(PEL), while those exposed at or above
the Action Level (AL) must be
monitored no less than semiannually.
Paragraph (d)(3) requires that employers
perform additional monitoring
whenever there has been a change in VC
production, process, or control that may
result in an increase in the release of
VC.
(B) Written Compliance Plan
(§§ 1910.1017(f)(2) and (f)(3))
Paragraph (f)(2) requires employers
whose engineering and work practice
controls cannot sufficiently reduce
worker VC exposures to a level at or
below the PEL to develop and
implement a plan for doing so.
Paragraph (f)(3) requires employers to
develop this written plan and provide it
upon request to OSHA for examination
and copying. These plans must be
updated annually.
(C) Respirator Program
(§ 1910.1017(g)(2))
When respirators are required, the
employer must establish a respiratory
protection program in accordance with
§ 1910.134, paragraphs (b) through (d)
(except (d)(1)(iii) and (d)(3)(iii)(B)(1)
and (2)) and (f) through (m). Paragraph
1910.134(c) requires the employer to
develop and implement a written
respiratory protection program with
worksite-specific procedures and
elements for required respirator use.
The purpose of these requirements is to
ensure that employers establish a
standardized procedure for selecting,
using, and maintaining respirators for
each workplace where respirators will
be used. Developing written procedures
ensures that employers develop a
respirator program that meets the needs
of their workers.
(D) Emergency Plan (§ 1910.1017(i))
Employers must develop a written
operational plan for dealing with
emergencies; the plan must address the
storage, handling, and use of VC as a
liquid or compressed gas. In the event
of an emergency, appropriate elements
of the plan must be implemented.
Emergency plans must maximize
workers’ personal protection and
minimize the hazards of an emergency.
(E) Medical Surveillance
(§ 1910.1017(k))
Paragraph (k) requires employers to
develop a medical surveillance program
for workers exposed to VC in excess of
the action level. Examinations must be
provided in accordance with this
paragraph at least annually. Employers
must also obtain, and provide to each

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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 100 / Wednesday, May 22, 2024 / Notices

worker, a copy of a physician’s
statement regarding the worker’s
suitability for continued exposure to
VC, including use of protective
equipment and respirators, if
appropriate.
(F) Communication of VC Hazards
(§ 1910.1017(l))
Under paragraph 1910.1017(l)(1),
Hazard Communication, the employer
shall ensure that at least the following
hazards are addressed: cancer; central
nervous system effects; liver effects;
blood effects; and flammability. Under
paragraph 1910.1017(l)(1)(iii), the
employer shall include vinyl chloride
and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) in the
program established to comply with the
Hazard Communication Standard (HCS)
(§ 1910.1200). The employer shall
ensure that each employee has access to
labels on containers of chemicals and
substances associated with vinyl and
polyvinyl chloride and to safety data
sheets and is trained in accordance with
the provisions of HCS and the paragraph
(j) of this section.

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(G) Recordkeeping (§ 1910.1017(m))
Employers must maintain worker
exposure and medical records. Medical
and monitoring records are maintained
principally for worker access but are
designed to provide valuable
information to both workers and
employers. The medical and monitoring
records required by this standard will
aid workers and their physicians in
determining whether or not treatment or
other interventions are needed for VC
exposure. The information also will
enable employers to ensure that workers
are not being overexposed; such
information may alert the employer that
steps must be taken to reduce VC
exposures.
Exposure records must be maintained
for at least 30 years, and medical
records must be kept for the duration of
employment plus 20 years, or for a total
of 30 years, whichever is longer.
Records must be kept for extended
periods because of the long latency
period associated with VC-related
carcinogenesis (i.e., cancer). Cancer
often cannot be detected until 20 or
more years after the first exposure to
VC.
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 to protect workers,
including whether the information is
useful;

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• 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, and
transmission techniques.
III. Proposed Actions
OSHA is requesting that OMB extend
the approval of the information
collection requirements contained in the
Vinyl Chloride Standard. The agency is
requesting an adjustment decrease in
the burden hours amount from 602
hours to 592 hours, a difference of 10
hours.
OSHA will summarize the comments
submitted in response to this notice and
will include this summary in the
request to OMB to extend the approval
of the information collection
requirements.
Type of Review: Extension of a
currently approved collection.
Title: Vinyl Chloride Standard.
OMB Control Number: 1218–0010.
Affected Public: Business or other forprofits.
Number of Respondents: 29.
Number of Responses: 869.
Frequency of Responses: On occasion.
Average Time per Response: Varies.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 592.
Estimated Cost (Operation and
Maintenance): $32,193.
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 https://
www.regulations.gov, which is the
Federal eRulemaking Portal; or (2) by
facsimile (fax), if your comments,
including attachments, are not longer
than 10 pages you may fax them to the
OSHA Docket Office at (202) 693–1648.
All comments, attachments, and other
material must identify the agency name
and the OSHA docket number for the
ICR (OSHA–2011–0196). You may
supplement electronic submission by
uploading document files electronically.
Comments and submissions are
posted without change at https://
www.regulations.gov. Therefore, OSHA
cautions commenters about submitting
personal information such as social
security numbers and dates of birth.
Although all submissions are listed in
the https://www.regulations.gov index,
some information (e.g., copyrighted

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material) is not publicly available to
read or download from this website. All
submissions, including copyrighted
material, are available for inspection
and copying at the OSHA Docket Office.
Information on using the https://
www.regulations.gov website to submit
comments and access the docket is
available at the website’s ‘‘User Tips’’
link. Contact the OSHA Docket Office at
(202) 693–2350, (TTY (877) 889–5627)
for information about materials not
available from the website, and for
assistance in using the internet to locate
docket submissions.
V. Authority and Signature
James S. Frederick, Deputy 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. 8–2020 (85 FR 58393).
Signed at Washington, DC, on May 15,
2024.
James S. Frederick,
Deputy Assistant Secretary of Labor for
Occupational Safety and Health.
[FR Doc. 2024–11173 Filed 5–21–24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510–26–P

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Occupational Safety and Health
Administration
[Docket No. OSHA–2011–0035]

Subpart A (General Provisions) and
Subpart B (Confined and Enclosed
Spaces and other Dangerous
Atmospheres in Shipyard
Employment); Extension of the Office
of Management and Budget’s (OMB)
Approval of Information Collection
(Paperwork) Requirements
Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA), Labor.
ACTION: Request for public comments.
AGENCY:

OSHA solicits public
comments concerning the proposal to
extend the Office of Management and
Budget’s (OMB) approval of the
information collection requirements
specified in the subpart A (General
Provisions) and subpart B (Confined and
Enclosed Spaces and other Dangerous
Atmospheres in Shipyard Employment).
DATES: Comments must be submitted
(postmarked, sent, or received) by July
22, 2024.
ADDRESSES:
Electronically: You may submit
comments and attachments
SUMMARY:

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