[occ-env-med-l] A Bill to Ammend OSHA to Expand Coverage Under the Act

[Guest guest]

Yesterday, in both Houses of Congress, legislation was introduced

which would substantially amend the Occupational Safety & Health Act

of 1970.

On the Senate side, Kennedy introduced S1244:

S.1244

Title: A bill to amend the Occupational Safety and Health Act of

1970

to expand coverage under the Act, to increase protections for

whistleblowers, to increase penalties for certain violators, and for

other purposes.

Sponsor: Sen Kennedy, M. [MA] (introduced 4/26/2007)

Cosponsors (20)

Latest Major Action: 4/26/2007 Referred to Senate committee. Status:

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education,

Labor,

and Pensions.

On the House side, Lynn Woolsey introduced HR2049:

H.R.2049

Title: To amend the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 to

expand coverage under the Act, to increase protections for

whistleblowers, to increase penalties for certai! n violators, and

for

other purposes.

Sponsor: Rep Woolsey, Lynn C. [CA-6] (http://tinyurl. com/3de477)

(introduced 4/26/2007)

Cosponsors (12) http://tinyurl. com/yqadvr

Rep Doyle, F. [PA-14] - 4/26/2007

Rep Engel, Eliot L. [NY-17] - 4/26/2007

Rep Hare, Phil [iL-17] - 4/26/2007

Rep Holt, Rush D. [NJ-12] - 4/26/2007

Rep Kildee, Dale E. [MI-5] - 4/26/2007

Rep Loebsack, [iA-2] - 4/26/2007

Rep McDermott, Jim [WA-7] - 4/26/2007

Rep , [CA-7] - 4/26/2007

Rep Payne, M. [NJ-10] - 4/26/2007

Rep , T. [CA-39] - 4/26/2007

Rep Shea-Porter, Carol [NH-1] - 4/26/2007

Rep Tierney, F. [MA-6] - 4/26/2007

Latest Major Action: 4/26/2007 Referred to House committee. Status:

Referred to the House Committee on Education and Labor.

While the Senate version has yet to! be printed by the GPO, the

House

version has and is attached for your convenience. We understand that

the bills are identical.

In sum, the effect of this legislation is as follows:

>>Covers more workers - Over 8.5 million American workers are not

covered by OSHA's protections, meager as they may be. These include

federal, state, and local public employees, and some private sector

employees. The bill provides OSHA protections to these workers,

which

include flight attendants, state correctional officers and workers

in

government agencies.

>> Increases penalties for those who break the law - Under current

law, an employer may be charged - at most - with a misdemeanor when

a

willful violation of OSHA leads to a worker's death. The bill makes

felony charges available for an employer's repeated and willful

violations of OSHA that result in a worker's death or serious

injury.

The bill also updates OSHA civil penalties, which been unchanged

since 1990, and sets a m! inimum penalty of $50,000 for a worker's

death caused by a willful violation.

>> Protects workers who blow the whistle on unsafe conditions in the

workplace - OSHA whistleblower provisions have not been updated

since

their adoption in 1970. The bill updates those whistleblower

protections by incorporating successful administrative procedures

adopted in other laws, like the Surface Transportation Act.

>> Enhances the public's right to know about safety violations - The

bill improves public accountability and transparency by mandating

the

Department of Labor (DOL) to investigate all cases of death or

serious incidents of injury; giving workers and their families the

right to meet with DOL investigators; and requiring employers to

inform workers of their OSHA rights.

>> Clarifies an employer's duty to provide safety equipment - The

bill clarifies that employers are required to provide the nec!

essary

safety equipment to their workers, such as personal protect ive

equipment.

Chances of a speedy passage are considered quite good.

The chances of president Bush signing the legislation into law are

considered quite bad.

What remains to be seen, is what sort of import the majority party

will attach to this legislation, and thus what sort of effort might

be invested in going for an override of Bush's almost certain

veto.