05-10823. Forging Machines; 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.

SUMMARY:

OSHA solicits public comment concerning its request for an extension of the information collection requirements contained in its standard on Forging Machines (29 CFR 1910.218).

DATES:

Comments must be submitted by the following dates:

Hard copy: Your comments must be submitted (postmarked or received) by August 1, 2005.

Facsimile and electronic transmission: Your comments must be received by August 1, 2005.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments, identified by OSHA Docket No. ICR-1218-0228(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 [phone] (OSHA's TTY number is [phone]). 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 [phone].

Electronic: You may submit comments through the Internet at http://ecomments.osha.gov. Follow the 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 also may contact Theda Kenney 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:

Theda Kenney or Todd Owen, Directorate of Standards and Guidance, OSHA, Room N-3609, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20210, telephone: [phone].

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 preclearnace 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).

The Standard on Forging Machines (29 CFR 1910.218) (the Standard) specifies several paperwork requirements. The following sections describe who uses the information collected under each requirement, as well as how they use it. The purpose these requirements is to reduce employees' risk of death or serious injury by ensuring that forging machines used by them are in safe operating condition, and that they are able to clearly and properly identify manually operated valves and switches.

Inspection of Forging Machines, Guards, and Point-of-Operation Protection Devices (paragraphs (a)(2)(i) and (a)(2)(ii)). Paragraph (a)(2)(i) requires employers to establish periodic and regular maintenance safety checks, and to develop and keep a certification record of each inspection. The certification record must include the date of inspection, the signature of the person who performed the inspection, and the serial number (or other identifier) of the forging machine inspected. Under paragraph (a)(2)(ii), employers are to schedule regular and frequent inspections of guards and point-of-operation protection devices, and prepare a certification record of each inspection that contains the date of the inspection, the signature of the person who performed the inspection, and the serial number (or other identifier) of the equipment inspected. These inspection certification records provide assurance to employers, employees, and OSHA compliance officers that forging machines, guards, and point-of-operation protection devices have been inspected, assuring that they will operate properly and safely, thereby preventing impact injury and death to employees during forging operations. These records also provide the most efficient means for the compliance officers to determine that an employer is complying with the Standard.

Identification of Manually Controlled Valves and Switches (paragraphs (c), (h)(3), (i)(1) and (i)(2)). These paragraphs require proper and clear identification of manually operated valves and switches on presses, upsetters, boltheading equipment, and rivet-making machines, respectively. Marking valves and switches provide information to employees to ensure that they operate the forging machines correctly and safely.

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 the collection of information (paperwork) requirements necessitated by the Standard on Forging Machines (29 CFR 1910.218). In its extension request, OSHA also is proposing to reduce the total burden hours for these requirements from 244,868 hours to 187,264 hours. The Agency will include this summary in its request to OMB to extend the approval of the collection of information requirements.

Type of Review: Extension of currently approved information collection requirements.

Title: Forging Machines (29 CFR 1910.218).

OMB Number: 1218-0228.

Affected Public: Business or other for-profits; Not-for-profit organizations; Federal Government; State, Local, or Tribal Government.

Number of Respondents: 27,700.

Frequency of Response: Bi-weekly.

Average Time Per Response: Varies from 2 minutes (.03 hour) for an employer to disclose certification records to 8 minutes (.13 hour) for a manufacturing worker to conduct an inspection of each forging machine and guard or point-of-operation protection device bi-weekly.

Estimated Total Burden Hours: 187,264.

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 and supporting materials in response to this notice by (1) hard copy, (2) fax transmission (facsimile), or (3) electronically through the OSHA Webpage. Because of security-related problems, a significant delay may occur in the receipt of comments by regular mail. Please contact the OSHA Docket Office at [phone] (TTY [phone]) 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 Webpage are available at http://www.OSHA.gov. Contact the OSHA Docket Office for information about materials not available through the OSHA Webpage and for assistance using the Webpage to locate docket submissions.

Electronic copies of this Federal Register notice as well as other relevant documents are available on OSHA's Webpage. 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 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. 5-2002 (67 FR 65008).

Signed at Washington, DC, on May 24, 2005.

Jonathan L. Snare,

Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor.