[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 226 (Wednesday, November 24, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68404-68405]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-26044]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

[Docket No. ICR 1218-0075(2005)]


Fire Brigades Standard; 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.

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SUMMARY: OSHA solicits public comment concerning its request for an 
extension of the information collection requirements contained in the 
Fire Brigades Standard (29 CFR 1910.156).

DATES: Comments must be submitted by the following dates:
    Hard Copy: Your comments must be submitted (postmarked or received) 
by January 24, 2005.
    Facsimile and electronic transmission: Your comments must be 
received by January 24, 2005.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by OSHA Docket No. ICR-
1218-0075(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 (202) 693-2350 (OSHA's TTY number 
is (877) 889-5627). OSHA Docket Office and Department of Labor hours 
are 8:15 a.m. to 4:45 p.m., e.t.
    Facsimile: If your comments are 10 pages or fewer in length, 
including attachments, you may fax them to the OSHA Docket Office at 
(202) 693-1648.
    Electronic: You may submit comments through the Internet at http://ecomments.osha.gov. Follow 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, comments, submissions and the ICR are available for 
inspection and copying at the OSHA Docket Office at the address above. 
You may also 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, Directorate of Standards 
and Guidance, OSHA, Room N-3609, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20210, telephone: (202) 693-2222.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. 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 Web page. Because of security related 
problems, there may be a significant delay in the receipt of comments 
by regular mail. Please contact the OSHA Docket Office at (202) 693-
2350 (TTY (877) 889-5627) 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 Web page are 
available at http://www.OSHA.gov. Contact the OSHA Docket Office for 
information about materials not available through the OSHA Web page and 
for assistance using the Web page to locate docket submissions.
    Electronic copies of this Federal Register notice as well as other 
relevant documents are available on OSHA's Web page.

II. Background

    The Department 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 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).
    Although OSHA does not mandate that employers establish fire 
brigades, if they do so, they must comply with the provisions of the 
Standard. The provisions of the Standard, including the paperwork 
requirements, apply to fire brigades, industrial fire departments, and 
private or contract fire departments, but not to airport crash-rescue 
units or forest fire-fighting operations. Paragraphs (b)(1), (b)(2), 
(c)(2), and (c)(4) contain the paperwork requirements of the Standard.

[[Page 68405]]

    Under paragraph (b)(1) of the Standard, employers must develop and 
maintain an organizational statement that establishes the: Existence of 
a fire brigade; the basic organizational structure of the brigade; 
type, amount, and frequency of training provided to brigade members; 
expected number of members in the brigade; and functions that the 
brigade is to perform. This paragraph also specifies that the 
organizational statement must be available for review by employees, 
their designated representatives, and OSHA compliance officers. The 
organizational statement delineates the functions performed by the 
brigade members and, therefore, determines the level of training and 
type of personal protective equipment (PPE) necessary for these members 
to perform their assigned functions safely. Making the statement 
available to employees, their designated representatives, and OSHA 
compliance officers ensures that the elements of the statement are 
consistent with the functions performed by the brigade members and the 
occupational hazards they experience, and that employers are providing 
training and PPE appropriate to these functions and hazards.
    To permit an employee with known heart disease, epilepsy, or 
emphysema to participate in fire brigade emergency activities, 
paragraph (b)(2) of the Standard requires employers to obtain a 
physician's certificate of the employee's fitness to do so. This 
provision provides employers with a direct and efficient means of 
ascertaining whether or not they can safely expose employees with these 
medical conditions to the hazards of fire-fighting operations.
    Paragraph (c)(1) of the Standard requires employers to provide 
training and education for fire brigade members commensurate with the 
duties and functions they perform, with brigade leaders and training 
instructors receiving more comprehensive training and education than 
employers provide to the general membership. Under paragraph (c)(2) of 
the Standard, employers must conduct training and education frequently 
enough, but at least annually, to assure that brigade members are able 
to perform their assigned duties and functions satisfactorily and 
safely; employers must provide members who perform interior structural 
fire-fighting with educational and training sessions at least 
quarterly. In addition, paragraph (c)(4) specifies that employers must: 
Inform brigade members about special hazards such as storage and use of 
flammable liquids and gases, toxic chemicals, radioactive sources, and 
water-reactive substances that may be present during fires and other 
emergencies; advise brigade members of changes in the special hazards; 
and develop written procedures that describe the actions brigade 
members must take when special hazards are present, and make these 
procedures available in the education and training program and for 
review by the brigade members.
    Providing appropriate training to brigade members at the specified 
frequencies, informing them about special hazards, developing written 
procedures on how to respond to special hazards, and making these 
procedures available for training purposes and review by the members 
enables them to use operational procedures and equipment in a safe 
manner to avoid or control dangerous exposures to fire-related hazards. 
Therefore, the training and information requirements specified by 
paragraphs (c)(1), (c)(2), and (c)(4) of the Standard prevent serious 
injuries and death among members of fire brigades.

III. Special Issues for Comment

    OSHA has a particular interest in comments on the following issues:
    <bullet> Whether the proposed information collection requirements 
are necessary for the proper performance of the Agency's functions, 
including whether the information is useful;
    <bullet> 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;
    <bullet> The quality, utility, and clarity of the information 
collected; and
    <bullet> 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 proposes to extend the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) 
approval of the collection of information (paperwork) requirements in 
the Fire Brigades Standard (29 CFR 1910.156). The Agency will include 
this summary in its request to OMB to extend the approval of these 
collection of information requirements.
    Type of Review: Extension of currently approved information 
collection requirements.
    Title: Fire Brigades (29 CFR 1910.156).
    OMB Number: 1218-0075.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profits; Not-for-profit 
organizations; Federal Government; State, local or tribal government.
    Number of Respondents: 55,939.
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Average Time Per Response: Varies from 5 minutes (.08 hour) to 2 
hours.
    Estimated Total Burden Hours: 6.042.
    Estimated Cost (Operation and Maintenance): $0.

V. 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 et seq.), and Secretary of Labor's Order No. 5-2002 (67 FR 
65008).

    Signed at Washington, DC, on November 18th, 2004.
John L. Henshaw,
Assistant Secretary of Labor.
[FR Doc. 04-26044 Filed 11-23-04; 8:45 am]
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