[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 124 (Friday, June 26, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38391-38393]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-13821]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

[Docket No. OSHA-2017-0005]


Electric Power Generation, Transmission, and Distribution 
Standards for Construction and General Industry and Electrical 
Protective Equipment Standards for Construction and General Industry; 
Extension of the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) Approval of 
Collection of Information

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

ACTION: Request for public comments.

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SUMMARY: OSHA solicits public comments concerning the request for an 
extension of the collection of information specified in the standards 
on the Electric Power Generation, Transmission, and Distribution for 
Construction and General Industry and Electrical Protective Equipment 
Standards for Construction and General Industry.

DATES: Comments must be submitted (postmarked, sent, or received) by 
August 25, 2020.

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.
    Facsimile: If your comments, including attachments, are not longer 
than 10 pages, you may fax them to the OSHA Docket Office at (202) 693-
1648.
    Mail, hand delivery, express mail, messenger, or courier service: 
When using this method, you must submit a copy of your comments and 
attachments to the OSHA Docket Office, Docket No. OSHA-2017-0005, U.S. 
Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, 
Room N3625, 200 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20210. 
Deliveries (hand, express mail, messenger, and courier service) are 
accepted during the Docket Office's normal business hours, 10:00 a.m. 
to 3:00 p.m., ET.
    Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name and OSHA 
docket number (OSHA-2017-0005) for the Information Collection Request 
(ICR). All comments, including any personal information you provide, 
such as social security numbers and date of birth, are placed in the 
public docket without change, and may be made available online at 
https://www.regulations.gov. For further information on submitting 
comments see the ``Public Participation'' heading in the section of 
this notice titled SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
    Docket: To read or download comments or other material in the 
docket, go to https://www.regulations.gov or the OSHA Docket Office at 
the above address. All documents in the docket (including this Federal 
Register notice) 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 website. All submissions, 
including copyrighted material, are available for inspection and 
copying at the OSHA Docket Office. You may contact Theda Kenney at the 
below address to obtain a copy of the ICR.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Theda Kenney or Seleda Perrymen, 
Directorate of Standards and Guidance, OSHA, U.S. Department of Labor; 
telephone (202) 693-2222.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    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 collection of 
information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (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 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 efforts in obtaining information 
(29 U.S.C. 657).
    The Electrical Protective Equipment Standard (29 CFR 1926.97 and 29 
CFR 1910.137) and the Electric Power Generation, Transmission, and

[[Page 38392]]

Distribution Standard (29 CFR part 1926 and 29 CFR 1910.269) specify 
several collection of information. The following describes the 
collection of information contained in the standards and addresses who 
will use the information.

Electrical Protective Equipment Standard (Sec. Sec.  1926.97 and 
1910.137)

Testing Certification (Sec. Sec.  1926.97(c)(2)(xii) and 
1910.137(c)(2)(xii)).
    Employers must certify that the electrical protective equipment 
used by their workers have passed the tests specified in paragraphs 
(c)(2)(vii)(D), (c)(2)(viii), and (c)(2)(ix) and (xi) of the Standards. 
The certification must identify the equipment that passed the tests and 
the dates of the tests. The two standards require testing: Periodically 
(generally, every 6 months for rubber insulating gloves and every 12 
months for most other types of rubber insulating equipment); after any 
repairs; and before the equipment is returned to service after any 
inspection finds certain defects. In addition, the employer must test 
rubber insulating gloves before reuse after employees use them without 
protector gloves and must certify that testing. These performance-based 
standards ensure that employers maintain the most recent test records 
for equipment that passes the required tests without specifying 
precisely how the employer must maintain those records.

Electric Power Generation, Transmission, and Distribution Standard 
(Part 1926 and Sec.  1910.269)

    For host employer responsibilities Sec. Sec.  1910.269(a)(3)(i) and 
1926.950(c)(1) for construction and general industry, before work 
begins, the host employer must inform the contract employers of: The 
characteristics of the host employer's installation listed; conditions 
listed in paragraphs of this section that are known to the host 
employer; information about the design and operation of the host 
employer's installation that the contract employer needs to make the 
assessments required by this section; and any other information about 
the design and operation of the host employer's installation that is 
known by the host employer, that the contract employer requests, and 
that is related to the protection of the contract employer's employees.
    For contract employer responsibilities Sec. Sec.  
1910.269(a)(3)(ii) and 1926.950(c)(2) for construction and general 
industry, contract employers must ensure that each of the employees is 
instructed in the hazardous conditions relevant to the employee's work 
that the contract employer is aware of as a result of information 
communicated to the contract employer by the host employer; before work 
begins, the contract employer must advise the host employer of any 
unique hazardous conditions presented by the contract employer's work; 
and the contract employer must advise the host employer of any 
unanticipated hazardous conditions found during the contract employer's 
work that the host employer did not mention. The contract employer 
shall provide this information to the host employer within 2 working 
days after discovering the hazardous condition.
    In job briefing the information provided by the employer in 
Sec. Sec.  1910.269(c)(1)(i) and 1926.952(a)(1) for construction and 
general industry, in assigning an employee or a group of employees to 
perform a job, the employer must provide the employee in charge of the 
job with all available information that relates to the determination of 
existing characteristics and conditions required.
    For the engineering analyses to determine maximum anticipated per 
unit transient overvoltage in Sec. Sec.  1910.269(l)(3)(ii) and 
1926.960(c)(1)(ii) for construction and general industry, the employer 
must determine the maximum anticipated per-unit transient overvoltage, 
phase-to-ground, through an engineering analysis or assume a maximum 
anticipated per-unit transient overvoltage, phase-to-ground, in 
accordance with the tables listed. When the employer uses portable 
protective gaps to control the maximum transient overvoltage, the value 
of the maximum anticipated per-unit transient overvoltage, phase-to-
ground, must provide for five standard deviations between the 
statistical sparkover voltage of the gap and the statistical withstand 
voltage corresponding to the electrical component of the minimum 
approach distance. The employer must make any engineering analysis 
conducted to determine maximum anticipated per-unit transient 
overvoltage available upon request to employees and to the Assistant 
Secretary or designee for examination and copying.

II. Special Issues for Comment

    OSHA has a particular interest in comments on the following issues:
     Whether the proposed collection of information 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 collection of information, 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 is requesting that OMB extends the approval of the collection 
of information contained in the Standards on Electric Power Generation, 
Transmission, and Distribution for Construction and General Industry 
(29 CFR part 1926, subpart V, and 29 CFR 1910.269) and the Electrical 
Protective Equipment Standards for Construction and General Industry 
(29 CFR 1926.97 and 29 CFR 1910.137). The agency is requesting an 
adjustment increase in the burden hours from 365,094 hours to 380,735 
hours, a difference of 15,641 burden hours. This increase in burden is 
due to an increase in the number of projects and an increase in the 
number of establishments. The agency will summarize any comments 
submitted in response to this notice, and will include this summary in 
the request to OMB.
    Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved information 
collection.
    Title: Electric Power Generation, Transmission, and Distribution 
Standards for Construction and General Industry and Electrical 
Protective Equipment for Construction and General.
    OMB Control Number: 1218-0253.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profits.
    Number of Respondents: 20,593.
    Total Responses: 1,992,283
    Frequency of Responses: On occasion; Semi-annually; Annually.
    Average Time per Response: Varies
    Estimated Total Burden Hours: 380,735.
    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 in response to this document as follows: 
(1) Electronically at https://www.regulations.gov, which is the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal; (2) by facsimile (fax); or (3) by hard copy. All 
comments, attachments, and other material must identify the agency name 
and the OSHA docket number for the ICR (Docket No. OSHA-2017-0005). You 
may supplement electronic submissions by uploading document

[[Page 38393]]

files electronically. If you wish to mail additional materials in 
reference to an electronic or facsimile submission, you must submit 
them to the OSHA Docket Office (see the section of this notice titled 
ADDRESSES). The additional materials must clearly identify your 
electronic comments by your name, date, and the docket number so the 
agency can attach them to your comments.
    Because of security procedures, the use of regular mail may cause a 
significant delay in the receipt of comments. For information about 
security procedures concerning the delivery of materials by hand, 
express delivery, messenger, or courier service, please contact the 
OSHA Docket Office at (202) 693-2350, (TTY (877) 889-5627).
    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 
material) is not publicly available to read or download through 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 for information about materials not 
available through the website, and for assistance in using the internet 
to locate docket submissions.

V. Authority and Signature

    Loren Sweatt, Principal 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. 1-2012 
(77 FR 3912).

    Signed at Washington, DC, on June 22, 2020.
Loren Sweatt,
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety 
and Health.
[FR Doc. 2020-13821 Filed 6-25-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-26-P


