03-6712. Standard on Benzene; 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 comment.

SUMMARY:

OSHA solicits comments concerning its proposal to extend OMB approval of the information-collection requirements contained in its Benzene Standard (29 CFR 1910.1028). The standard protects employees from adverse health effects from occupational exposure to Benzene.

DATES:

Comments must be submitted by the following dates:

Hard Copy: Your comments must be submitted (postmarked or received) by May 19, 2003.

Facsimile and electronic transmission: Your comments must be received by May 19, 2003.

ADDRESSES:

1. Submission of Comments

Regular mail, express delivery, hand-delivery, and messenger service: Submit your comments and attachments to the OSHA Docket Office, Docket No. ICR 1218-0129(2003), Room N-2625, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20210. OSHA Docket Office and Department of Labor hours of operation are 8:15 a.m. to 4:45 p.m., e.s.t.

Facsimile: If your comments, including any attachments, are 10 pages or fewer, you may fax them to the OSHA Docket Office at [phone]. You must include the docket number of this document, Docket No. ICR 1218-0129(2003), in your comments.

Electronic: You may submit comments, but not attachments, through the Internet at http://ecomments.osha.gov/​.

II. Obtaining Copies of Supporting Statement for the Information Collection

The Supporting Statement for the Information Collection is available for downloading from OSHA's Web site at www.osha.gov. The supporting statement is available for inspection and copying in the OSHA Docket Office, at the address listed above. A printed copy of the supporting statement can be obtained by contacting Todd Owen at [phone].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Todd Owen, Directorate of Standards and Guidance, OSHA, U.S. Department of Labor, Room N-3609, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW. Washington, DC 20210; telephone [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Submission of Comments on this Notice and Internet Access to Comments and Submissions

You may submit comments in response to this document by (1) hard copy, (2) FAX transmission (facsimile), or (3) electronically through the OSHA webpage. Please note you cannot attach materials such as studies or journal articles to electronic comments. If you have additional materials, you must submit three copies of them to the OSHA Docket Office at the address above. The additional materials must clearly identify your electronic comments by name, date, subject and docket number so we can attach them to your comments. Because of security-related problem there may be a significant delay in the receipt of comments by regular mail. Please contact the OSHA Docket Office at [phone] for information about security procedures concerning the delivery of materials by express delivery, hand delivery and messenger service.

II. Background

The Depart 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 correct. The Occupational Safety and Health Act of the 1970 (the Act) 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). In this regard, the information collection requirements in the Benzene Standard provide protection for employees from the adverse health effects associated with exposure to Benzene.

III. 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) for 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.

IV. Proposed Actions

OSHA is proposing to extend the information-collection requirements specified in the Benzene Standard. The information-collection requirements specified in the Benzene Standard protect employees from the adverse health effects that may result from occupational exposure to benzene. The major information-collection requirements in the Standard include conducting employee exposure monitoring, notifying employees of their benzene exposures, implementing a written compliance program, implementing medical surveillance of employees, providing examining physicians with specific information, ensuring that employees receive a copy of their medical-surveillance results, maintaining employees' exposure-monitoring and medical-surveillance records for specific periods, and providing access to these records by OSHA, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, the employee who is the subject of the records, the employee's representative, and other designated parties.

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 in the Benzene Standard (29 CFR 1910.1028).

Type of Review: Extension of a currently-approved information-collection requirement.

Title: Benzene Standard (29 CFR 1910.1028).

OMB Number: 1218-0129.

Affected Public: Business or other for-profit.

Number of Respondents: 13,498.

Frequency: On occasion.

Total Responses: 265,428.

Average Time Per Response: Time per response ranges from 5 minutes to maintain records to 2 hours to complete a referral medical examination.

Estimated Total Burden Hours: 125,195.

Estimated Cost (Operation and Maintenance): $8,179,933.

III. Authority and Signature

John L. Henshaw, 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), and Secretary of Labor's Order No. 5-2002 (67 FR 65008).

Signed in Washington, DC on March 14, 2003.

John L. Henshaw,

Assistant Secretary of Labor.