Occupational Safety and Health Investigations of Places of Employment Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Direct Final Rule

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has amended its regulations pertaining to occupational safety and health investigations of places of employment conducted by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to update outdated terminology and strike references to obsolete government offices or divisions. These proposed changes do not affect current practices.

The purpose of this notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) and direct final rule (DFR) was to make minor technical changes to HHS regulations in 42 CFR part 85a, pertaining to occupational safety and health investigations of places of employment. Amendments to the existing rule included striking references to obsolete government offices or agencies, updating the proper NIOSH office from which to request specific reports of investigations, and correcting outdated terms such as ”motion pictures.” Obsolete terms and outdated language in Part 85a were identified during the agency’s retrospective analysis of existing regulations, in accordance with Executive Order 13563.

To view the notice and related material visit http://www.regulations.gov, enter CDC-2014-0001 in the search field, then click “Search” .

Background Information

Rules – Occupational Safety and Health Investigations of Place of Employment: Technical Amendments

Proposed Rules – Occupational Safety and Health Investigations of Places of Employment: Technical Amendments

Amendments: The provisions in Part 85a govern procedures NIOSH follows in conducting safety and health investigations at places of employment. The amendments described above were all non-substantive and have no practical effect on NIOSH procedures or practices, but were proposed in accordance with Executive Order 13563, section 6, which requires that Federal agencies conduct retrospective analyses of existing rules. In conducting the analysis, NIOSH discovered that certain terms and references in Part 85a were outdated.