II 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1000 

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 high gravity violations, to adjust penalties for inflation, to provide rights for victims or their family members, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 1, 2017 

Mr. FRANKEN (for himself, Mrs. MURRAY, Mr. BROWN, Ms. WARREN, and 

Mr. MARKEY) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

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 high gravity 

violations, to adjust penalties for inflation, to provide 

rights for victims or their family members, and for other 

purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Protecting America’s Workers Act’’. 


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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. References. 

TITLE I—COVERAGE OF PUBLIC EMPLOYEES, VOLUNTARY 

EMERGENCY RESPONDERS, AND APPLICATION OF ACT 

Sec. 101. Coverage of public employees. 

Sec. 102. Authorized employee representative. 

Sec. 103. Application of Act. 

TITLE II—INCREASING WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTIONS 

Sec. 201. Enhanced protections from retaliation. 

TITLE III—IMPROVING REPORTING, INSPECTION, AND 

ENFORCEMENT 

Sec. 301. General duty of employers. 

Sec. 302. Occupational safety and health standards. 

Sec. 303. Posting of employee rights. 

Sec. 304. Employer reporting of work-related injuries, illnesses, deaths, and 

hospitalizations; prohibition on discouraging employee reporting. 

Sec. 305. No loss of employee pay for inspections. 

Sec. 306. Investigations of fatalities and significant incidents. 

Sec. 307. Prohibition on unclassified citations. 

Sec. 308. Victims’ rights. 

Sec. 309. Right to contest citations and penalties. 

Sec. 310. Correction of serious, willful, or repeated violations pending contest 

and procedures for a stay. 

Sec. 311. Inaction by the Review Commission. 

Sec. 312. Conforming amendments. 

Sec. 313. Civil penalties. 

Sec. 314. Criminal penalties. 

Sec. 315. Prejudgment interest. 

TITLE IV—STATE PLANS 

Sec. 401. Concurrent enforcement authority and review of State occupational 

safety and health plans. 

Sec. 402. Evaluation of repeated violations in State plans. 

TITLE V—NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY 

AND HEALTH 

Sec. 501. Health hazard evaluations by the National Institute for Occupational 

Safety and Health. 

TITLE VI—EFFECTIVE DATE 

Sec. 601. Effective date. 


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1 SEC. 2. REFERENCES. 

2 Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in 

3 this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms 

4 of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provi5 sion, the reference shall be considered to be made to a 

6 section or other provision of the Occupational Safety and 

7 Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 651 et seq.). 

8 TITLE I—COVERAGE OF PUBLIC 

9 EMPLOYEES, VOLUNTARY 

10 EMERGENCY RESPONDERS, 

11 AND APPLICATION OF ACT 

12 SEC. 101. COVERAGE OF PUBLIC EMPLOYEES. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 3(5) (29 U.S.C. 652(5)) 

14 is amended by striking ‘‘but does not include’’ and all that 

15 follows through the period at the end and inserting ‘‘in16 cluding the United States, a State, or a political subdivi17 sion of a State.’’. 

18 (b) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this Act shall be 

19 construed to affect the application of section 18 of the Oc20 cupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 

21 667). 

22 SEC. 102. AUTHORIZED EMPLOYEE REPRESENTATIVE. 

23 Section 3 (29 U.S.C. 652) is amended by adding at 

24 the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(15) AUTHORIZED EMPLOYEE REPRESENTA2 TIVE.—The term ‘authorized employee representa3 tive’— 

4 ‘‘(A) means any person or organization 

5 that for the purposes of this Act represents 2 

6 or more employees at an establishment, factory, 

7 plant, construction site, or other workplace, or 

8 other environment where work is performed by 

9 employees for an employer; and 

10 ‘‘(B) includes a representative authorized 

11 by employees, a representative of employees, or 

12 any other representative of employees under 

13 this Act.’’. 

14 SEC. 103. APPLICATION OF ACT. 

15 Section 4(b) (29 U.S.C. 653(b)) is amended— 

16 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (2), (3), and 

17 (4) as paragraphs (5), (6), and (7), respectively; and 

18 (2) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the 

19 following: 

20 ‘‘(1) If a Federal agency has promulgated and is en21 forcing a standard or regulation affecting occupational 

22 safety or health of some or all of the employees within 

23 that agency’s regulatory jurisdiction, and the Secretary 

24 determines that such a standard or regulation as promul25 gated and the manner in which the standard or regulation 


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1 is being enforced provides protection to those employees 

2 that is at least as effective as the protection provided to 

3 those employees by this Act and the Secretary’s enforce4 ment of this Act, the Secretary may publish a certification 

5 notice in the Federal Register. The notice shall set forth 

6 that determination and the reasons for the determination 

7 and certify that the Secretary has ceded jurisdiction to 

8 that Federal agency with respect to the specified standard 

9 or regulation affecting occupational safety or health. In 

10 determining whether to cede jurisdiction to a Federal 

11 agency, the Secretary shall seek to avoid duplication of, 

12 and conflicts between, health and safety requirements. 

13 Such certification shall remain in effect unless and until 

14 rescinded by the Secretary. 

15 ‘‘(2) The Secretary shall, by regulation, establish pro16 cedures by which any person who may be adversely af17 fected by a decision of the Secretary certifying that the 

18 Secretary has ceded jurisdiction to another Federal agency 

19 pursuant to paragraph (1) may petition the Secretary to 

20 rescind a certification notice under paragraph (1). Upon 

21 receipt of such a petition, the Secretary shall investigate 

22 the matter involved and shall, within 90 days after receipt 

23 of the petition, publish a decision with respect to the peti24 tion in the Federal Register. 

25 ‘‘(3) Any person who may be adversely affected by— 


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1 ‘‘(A) a decision of the Secretary certifying that 

2 the Secretary has ceded jurisdiction to another Fed3 eral agency pursuant to paragraph (1); or 

4 ‘‘(B) a decision of the Secretary denying a peti5 tion to rescind such a certification notice under 

6 paragraph (1), 

7 may, not later than 60 days after such decision is pub8 lished in the Federal Register, file a petition challenging 

9 such decision with the United States Court of Appeals for 

10 the circuit in which such person resides or such person 

11 has a principal place of business, for judicial review of 

12 such decision. A copy of the petition shall be forthwith 

13 transmitted by the clerk of the court to the Secretary. The 

14 Secretary’s decision shall be set aside if found to be arbi15 trary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, or otherwise not 

16 in accordance with law. 

17 ‘‘(4) Nothing in this Act shall apply to working condi18 tions covered by the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act 

19 of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 801 et seq.).’’. 

20 TITLE II—INCREASING 

21 WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTIONS 

22 SEC. 201. ENHANCED PROTECTIONS FROM RETALIATION. 

23 (a) EMPLOYEE ACTIONS.—Section 11(c)(1) (29 

24 U.S.C. 660(c)(1)) is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘discharge’’ and all that follows 

2 through ‘‘because such’’ and inserting the following: 

3 ‘‘discharge or cause to be discharged, or in any man4 ner discriminate against or cause to be discriminated 

5 against, any employee because— 

6 ‘‘(A) such’’; 

7 (2) by striking ‘‘this Act or has’’ and inserting 

8 the following: ‘‘this Act; 

9 ‘‘(B) such employee has’’; 

10 (3) by striking ‘‘in any such proceeding or be11 cause of the exercise’’ and inserting the following: 

12 ‘‘before Congress or in any Federal or State pro13 ceeding related to safety or health; 

14 ‘‘(C) such employee has refused to violate any 

15 provision of this Act; or 

16 ‘‘(D) of the exercise’’; and 

17 (4) by inserting before the period at the end the 

18 following: ‘‘, including the reporting of any injury, 

19 illness, or unsafe condition to the employer, agent of 

20 the employer, safety and health committee involved, 

21 or employee safety and health representative in22 volved’’. 

23 (b) PROHIBITION OF RETALIATION.—Section 11(c) 

24 (29 U.S.C. 660(c)) is amended by striking paragraph (2) 

25 and inserting the following: 


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1 ‘‘(2) PROHIBITION OF RETALIATION.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—No person shall dis3 charge, or cause to be discharged, or in any 

4 manner discriminate against, or cause to be dis5 criminated against, an employee for refusing to 

6 perform the employee’s duties if the employee 

7 has a reasonable apprehension that performing 

8 such duties would result in serious injury to, or 

9 serious impairment of the health of, the em10 ployee or other employees. 

11 ‘‘(B) CIRCUMSTANCES.—For purposes of 

12 subparagraph (A), the circumstances causing 

13 the employee’s good-faith belief that performing 

14 such duties would pose a safety or health haz15 ard shall be of such a nature that a reasonable 

16 person, under the circumstances confronting the 

17 employee, would conclude that there is such a 

18 hazard. In order to qualify for protection under 

19 this paragraph, the employee, when practicable, 

20 shall have communicated or attempted to com21 municate the safety or health concern to the 

22 employer and have not received from the em23 ployer a response reasonably calculated to allay 

24 such concern.’’. 


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1 (c) PROCEDURE.—Section 11(c) (29 U.S.C. 660(c)) 

2 is amended by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the 

3 following: 

4 ‘‘(3) COMPLAINT.—Any employee who believes 

5 that the employee has been discharged, disciplined, 

6 or otherwise discriminated against by any person in 

7 violation of paragraph (1) or (2) may seek relief for 

8 such violation by filing a complaint with the Sec9 retary under paragraph (5). 

10 ‘‘(4) STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An employee may take 

12 the action permitted by paragraph (3) not later 

13 than 180 days after the later of— 

14 ‘‘(i) the date on which an alleged vio15 lation of paragraph (1) or (2) occurs; or 

16 ‘‘(ii) the date on which the employee 

17 knows or should reasonably have known 

18 that such alleged violation occurred. 

19 ‘‘(B) REPEAT VIOLATION.—Except in 

20 cases when the employee has been discharged, 

21 a violation of paragraph (1) or (2) shall be con22 sidered to have occurred on the last date an al23 leged repeat violation occurred. 

24 ‘‘(5) INVESTIGATION.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An employee may, 

2 within the time period required under para3 graph (4)(A), file a complaint with the Sec4 retary alleging a violation of paragraph (1) or 

5 (2). If the complaint alleges a prima facie case, 

6 the Secretary shall conduct an investigation of 

7 the allegations in the complaint, which— 

8 ‘‘(i) shall include— 

9 ‘‘(I) interviewing the complain10 ant; 

11 ‘‘(II) providing the respondent an 

12 opportunity to— 

13 ‘‘(aa) submit to the Sec14 retary a written response to the 

15 complaint; and 

16 ‘‘(bb) meet with the Sec17 retary to present statements from 

18 witnesses or provide evidence; 

19 and 

20 ‘‘(III) providing the complainant 

21 an opportunity to— 

22 ‘‘(aa) receive any statements 

23 or evidence provided to the Sec24 retary; 


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1 ‘‘(bb) meet with the Sec2 retary; and 

3 ‘‘(cc) rebut any statements 

4 or evidence; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) may include issuing subpoenas 

6 for the purposes of such investigation. 

7 ‘‘(B) DECISION.—Not later than 90 days 

8 after the filing of the complaint, the Secretary 

9 shall— 

10 ‘‘(i) determine whether reasonable 

11 cause exists to believe that a violation of 

12 paragraph (1) or (2) has occurred; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) issue a decision granting or de14 nying relief. 

15 ‘‘(6) PRELIMINARY ORDER FOLLOWING INVES16 TIGATION.—If, after completion of an investigation 

17 under paragraph (5)(A), the Secretary finds reason18 able cause to believe that a violation of paragraph 

19 (1) or (2) has occurred, the Secretary shall issue a 

20 preliminary order providing relief authorized under 

21 paragraph (14) at the same time the Secretary 

22 issues a decision under paragraph (5)(B). If a de 

23 novo hearing is not requested within the time period 

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1 nary order shall be deemed a final order of the Sec2 retary and is not subject to judicial review. 

3 ‘‘(7) HEARING.— 

4 ‘‘(A) REQUEST FOR HEARING.— 

5 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—A de novo hearing 

6 on the record before an administrative law 

7 judge may be requested— 

8 ‘‘(I) by the complainant or re9 spondent within 30 days after receiv10 ing notification of a decision granting 

11 or denying relief issued under para12 graph (5)(B) or a preliminary order 

13 under paragraph (6), respectively; 

14 ‘‘(II) by the complainant within 

15 30 days after the date the complaint 

16 is dismissed without investigation by 

17 the Secretary under paragraph (5)(A); 

18 or 

19 ‘‘(III) by the complainant within 

20 120 days after the date of filing the 

21 complaint, if the Secretary has not 

22 issued a decision under paragraph 

23 (5)(B). 

24 ‘‘(ii) REINSTATEMENT ORDER.—The 

25 request for a hearing shall not operate to 


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1 stay any preliminary reinstatement order 

2 issued under paragraph (6). 

3 ‘‘(B) PROCEDURES.— 

4 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—A hearing re5 quested under this paragraph shall be con6 ducted expeditiously and in accordance 

7 with rules established by the Secretary for 

8 hearings conducted by administrative law 

9 judges. 

10 ‘‘(ii) SUBPOENAS; PRODUCTION OF

11 EVIDENCE.—In conducting any such hear12 ing, the administrative law judge may issue 

13 subpoenas. The respondent or complainant 

14 may request the issuance of subpoenas 

15 that require the deposition of, or the at16 tendance and testimony of, witnesses and 

17 the production of any evidence (including 

18 any books, papers, documents, or record19 ings) relating to the matter under consid20 eration. 

21 ‘‘(iii) DECISION.—The administrative 

22 law judge shall issue a decision not later 

23 than 90 days after the date on which a 

24 hearing was requested under this para25 graph and promptly notify, in writing, the 


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1 parties and the Secretary of such decision, 

2 including the findings of fact and conclu3 sions of law. If the administrative law 

4 judge finds that a violation of paragraph 

5 (1) or (2) has occurred, the judge shall 

6 issue an order for relief under paragraph 

7 (14). If review under paragraph (8) is not 

8 timely requested, such order shall be 

9 deemed a final order of the Secretary that 

10 is not subject to judicial review. 

11 ‘‘(8) ADMINISTRATIVE APPEAL.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 

13 days after the date of notification of a decision 

14 and order issued by an administrative law judge 

15 under paragraph (7), the complainant or re16 spondent may file, with objections, an adminis17 trative appeal with an administrative review 

18 body designated by the Secretary (referred to in 

19 this paragraph as the ‘review board’). 

20 ‘‘(B) STANDARD OF REVIEW.—In review21 ing the decision and order of the administrative 

22 law judge, the review board shall affirm the de23 cision and order if it is determined that the fac24 tual findings set forth therein are supported by 


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1 substantial evidence and the decision and order 

2 are made in accordance with applicable law. 

3 ‘‘(C) DECISIONS.—If the review board 

4 grants an administrative appeal, the review 

5 board shall issue a final decision and order af6 firming or reversing, in whole or in part, the 

7 decision under review by not later than 90 days 

8 after receipt of the administrative appeal. If it 

9 is determined that a violation of paragraph (1) 

10 or (2) has occurred, the review board shall issue 

11 a final decision and order providing relief au12 thorized under paragraph (14). Such decision 

13 and order shall constitute final agency action 

14 with respect to the matter appealed. 

15 ‘‘(9) SETTLEMENT IN THE ADMINISTRATIVE

16 PROCESS.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—At any time before 

18 issuance of a final order, an investigation or 

19 proceeding under this subsection may be termi20 nated on the basis of a settlement agreement 

21 entered into by the parties. 

22 ‘‘(B) PUBLIC POLICY CONSIDERATIONS.— 

23 Neither the Secretary, an administrative law 

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1 ment that contains conditions conflicting with 

2 the rights protected under this Act or that are 

3 contrary to public policy, including a restriction 

4 on a complainant’s right to future employment 

5 with employers other than the specific employ6 ers named in a complaint. 

7 ‘‘(10) INACTION BY THE REVIEW BOARD OR AD8 MINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The complainant may 

10 bring a de novo action described in subpara11 graph (B) if— 

12 ‘‘(i) an administrative law judge has 

13 not issued a decision and order within the 

14 90-day time period required under para15 graph (7)(B)(iii); or 

16 ‘‘(ii) the review board has not issued 

17 a decision and order within the 90-day 

18 time period required under paragraph 

19 (8)(C). 

20 ‘‘(B) DE NOVO ACTION.—Such de novo ac21 tion may be brought at law or equity in the 

22 United States district court for the district 

23 where a violation of paragraph (1) or (2) alleg24 edly occurred or where the complainant resided 

25 on the date of such alleged violation. The court 


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1 shall have jurisdiction over such action without 

2 regard to the amount in controversy and to 

3 order appropriate relief under paragraph (14). 

4 Such action shall, at the request of either party 

5 to such action, be tried by the court with a 

6 jury. 

7 ‘‘(11) JUDICIAL REVIEW.— 

8 ‘‘(A) TIMELY APPEAL TO THE COURT OF

9 APPEALS.—Any party adversely affected or ag10 grieved by a final decision and order issued 

11 under this subsection may obtain review of such 

12 decision and order in the United States Court 

13 of Appeals for the circuit where the violation, 

14 with respect to which such final decision and 

15 order was issued, allegedly occurred or where 

16 the complainant resided on the date of such al17 leged violation. To obtain such review, a party 

18 shall file a petition for review not later than 60 

19 days after the final decision and order was 

20 issued. Such review shall conform to chapter 7 

21 of title 5, United States Code. The commence22 ment of proceedings under this subparagraph 

23 shall not, unless ordered by the court, operate 

24 as a stay of the final decision and order. 


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1 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION ON COLLATERAL AT2 TACK.—An order and decision with respect to 

3 which review may be obtained under subpara4 graph (A) shall not be subject to judicial review 

5 in any criminal or other civil proceeding. 

6 ‘‘(12) ENFORCEMENT OF ORDER.—If a re7 spondent fails to comply with an order issued under 

8 this subsection, the Secretary or the complainant on 

9 whose behalf the order was issued may file a civil ac10 tion for enforcement in the United States district 

11 court for the district in which the violation was 

12 found to occur to enforce such order. If both the 

13 Secretary and the complainant file such action, the 

14 action of the Secretary shall take precedence. The 

15 district court shall have jurisdiction to grant all ap16 propriate relief described in paragraph (14). 

17 ‘‘(13) BURDENS OF PROOF.— 

18 ‘‘(A) CRITERIA FOR DETERMINATION.—In 

19 making a determination or adjudicating a com20 plaint pursuant to this subsection, the Sec21 retary, or an administrative law judge, review 

22 board, or court, may determine that a violation 

23 of paragraph (1) or (2) has occurred only if the 

24 complainant demonstrates that any conduct de25 scribed in paragraph (1) or (2) with respect to 


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1 the complainant was a contributing factor in 

2 the adverse action alleged in the complaint. 

3 ‘‘(B) PROHIBITION.—Notwithstanding sub4 paragraph (A), a decision or order that is favor5 able to the complainant shall not be issued in 

6 any administrative or judicial action pursuant 

7 to this subsection if the respondent dem8 onstrates by clear and convincing evidence that 

9 the respondent would have taken the same ad10 verse action in the absence of such conduct. 

11 ‘‘(14) RELIEF.— 

12 ‘‘(A) ORDER FOR RELIEF.—If the Sec13 retary, or an administrative law judge, review 

14 board, or court, determines that a violation of 

15 paragraph (1) or (2) has occurred, the Sec16 retary, administrative law judge, review board, 

17 or court, respectively, shall have jurisdiction to 

18 order all appropriate relief, including injunctive 

19 relief, and compensatory and exemplary dam20 ages, including— 

21 ‘‘(i) affirmative action to abate the 

22 violation; 

23 ‘‘(ii) reinstatement without loss of po24 sition or seniority, and restoration of the 

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1 sociated with the complainant’s employ2 ment, including opportunities for pro3 motions to positions with equivalent or bet4 ter compensation for which the complain5 ant is qualified; 

6 ‘‘(iii) compensatory and consequential 

7 damages sufficient to make the complain8 ant whole (including back pay, prejudg9 ment interest, and other damages); and 

10 ‘‘(iv) expungement of all warnings, 

11 reprimands, or derogatory references that 

12 have been placed in paper or electronic 

13 records or databases of any type relating 

14 to the actions by the complainant that 

15 gave rise to the unfavorable personnel ac16 tion, and, at the complainant’s direction, 

17 transmission of a copy of the decision on 

18 the complaint to any person whom the 

19 complainant reasonably believes may have 

20 received such unfavorable information. 

21 ‘‘(B) ATTORNEYS’ FEES AND COSTS.—If 

22 the Secretary or an administrative law judge, 

23 review board, or court grants an order for relief 

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1 spectively, shall assess, at the request of the 

2 employee against the employer— 

3 ‘‘(i) reasonable attorneys’ fees; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) costs (including expert witness 

5 fees) reasonably incurred, as determined 

6 by the Secretary, administrative law judge, 

7 review board, or court, respectively, in con8 nection with bringing the complaint upon 

9 which the order was issued. 

10 ‘‘(15) PROCEDURAL RIGHTS.—The rights and 

11 remedies provided for in this subsection may not be 

12 waived by any agreement, policy, form, or condition 

13 of employment, including by any pre-dispute arbitra14 tion agreement or collective bargaining agreement. 

15 ‘‘(16) SAVINGS.—Nothing in this subsection 

16 shall be construed to diminish the rights, privileges, 

17 or remedies of any employee who exercises rights 

18 under any Federal or State law or common law, or 

19 under any collective bargaining agreement. 

20 ‘‘(17) ELECTION OF VENUE.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An employee of an 

22 employer who is located in a State that has a 

23 State plan approved under section 18 may file 

24 a complaint alleging a violation of paragraph 

25 (1) or (2) by such employer with— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the Secretary under paragraph 

2 (5); or 

3 ‘‘(ii) a State plan administrator in 

4 such State. 

5 ‘‘(B) REFERRALS.—If— 

6 ‘‘(i) the Secretary receives a complaint 

7 pursuant to subparagraph (A)(i), the Sec8 retary shall not refer such complaint to a 

9 State plan administrator for resolution; or 

10 ‘‘(ii) a State plan administrator re11 ceives a complaint pursuant to subpara12 graph (A)(ii), the State plan administrator 

13 shall not refer such complaint to the Sec14 retary for resolution.’’. 

15 (d) RELATION TO ENFORCEMENT.—Section 17(j) 

16 (29 U.S.C. 666(j)) is amended by inserting before the pe17 riod the following: ‘‘, including the history of violations 

18 under section 11(c)’’. 

19 TITLE III—IMPROVING REPORT20 ING, INSPECTION, AND EN21 FORCEMENT 

22 SEC. 301. GENERAL DUTY OF EMPLOYERS. 

23 Section 5 (29 U.S.C. 654(a)(1)) is amended— 

24 (1) in subsection (a), by amending paragraph 

25 (1) to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(1) shall furnish employment and a place of 

2 employment that are free from recognized hazards— 

3 ‘‘(A) that are causing or are likely to cause 

4 death or serious physical harm and that the 

5 employer creates or controls; or 

6 ‘‘(B) to which the employer exposes any 

7 employee of the employer or any other person 

8 performing work at the place of employment; 

9 and’’; and 

10 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub11 section: 

12 ‘‘(c) Each employee or other person exposed to a haz13 ard in violation of subsection (a) may constitute a separate 

14 violation.’’. 

15 SEC. 302. OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH STAND16 ARDS. 

17 Section 6(a) (29 U.S.C. 655(a)) is amended by strik18 ing ‘‘Without regard’’ and all that follows through ‘‘af19 fected employees.’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘(1) With20 out regard to chapters 5 and 6 of title 5, United States 

21 Code, or to the other subsections of this section, the Sec22 retary shall— 

23 ‘‘(A) as soon as practicable during the period 

24 beginning with the effective date of this Act and 

25 ending 2 years after such date, by rule promulgate 


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1 as an occupational safety or health standard any na2 tional consensus standard, and any established Fed3 eral standard, unless the Secretary determines that 

4 the promulgation of such a standard would not re5 sult in improved safety or health for specifically des6 ignated employees; and 

7 ‘‘(B) by rule, not later than 2 years after the 

8 effective date under section 601(a) of the Protecting 

9 America’s Workers Act, update any national con10 sensus standard that has been promulgated or incor11 porated by reference pursuant to this subsection, ex12 cept that such a standard shall not be updated pur13 suant to this subparagraph, if— 

14 ‘‘(i) the standard has been superseded by 

15 a standard promulgated pursuant to subsection 

16 (b); or 

17 ‘‘(ii) the Secretary determines such update 

18 would not result in improved health or safety 

19 for specifically designated employees. 

20 ‘‘(2) In the event of conflict among any such stand21 ards, including national consensus standards, or in the 

22 event of a consolidation of national consensus standards, 

23 the Secretary shall promulgate the standard which assures 

24 the greatest protection of the safety or health of the af25 fected employees. 


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1 ‘‘(3) No standard, rule, or regulation promulgated 

2 under this Act, on or after the date of enactment of the 

3 Protecting America’s Workers Act, shall reduce the pro4 tection afforded by a health or safety standard, rule, regu5 lation, or national consensus standard in effect on the day 

6 before the date of enactment of such Act.’’. 

7 SEC. 303. POSTING OF EMPLOYEE RIGHTS. 

8 Section 8(c)(1) (29 U.S.C. 657(c)(1)) is amended by 

9 adding at the end the following new sentence: ‘‘Such regu10 lations shall include provisions requiring employers to post 

11 for employees information on the protections afforded 

12 under section 11(c).’’. 

13 SEC. 304. EMPLOYER REPORTING OF WORK-RELATED INJU14 RIES, ILLNESSES, DEATHS, AND HOS15 PITALIZATIONS; PROHIBITION ON DISCOUR16 AGING EMPLOYEE REPORTING. 

17 Section 8(c)(2) (29 U.S.C. 657(c)(2)) is amended by 

18 adding at the end the following new sentences: ‘‘Such reg19 ulations shall require site-controlling employers to keep a 

20 site log for all recordable injuries and illnesses occurring 

21 among all employees on the particular site, including em22 ployees of the site-controlling employer or others who are 

23 performing work at the particular site (including inde24 pendent contractors). Such regulations shall require em25 ployers to promptly notify the Secretary of any work-reVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:03 May 05, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1000.IS S1000

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1 lated death or work-related injury or illness that results 

2 in the in-patient hospitalization of an employee for medical 

3 treatment, amputation, or loss of an eye, and shall pro4 hibit the employer from adopting or implementing policies 

5 or practices by the employer that have the effect of dis6 couraging accurate recordkeeping and the reporting of 

7 work-related injuries or illnesses by any employee or in 

8 any manner discriminates or provides for adverse action 

9 against any employee for reporting a work-related injury 

10 or illness. For purposes of this paragraph, the term ‘site11 controlling employer’ means the employer that has pri12 mary control over a work site at which employees of more 

13 than one employer work, such as by hiring or coordinating 

14 the work of other employers working at the site.’’. 

15 SEC. 305. NO LOSS OF EMPLOYEE PAY FOR INSPECTIONS. 

16 Section 8(e) (29 U.S.C. 657(e)) is amended by insert17 ing after the first sentence the following: ‘‘Time spent by 

18 an employee participating in or aiding any such inspection 

19 shall be deemed to be hours worked and no employee shall 

20 suffer any loss of wages, benefits, or other terms and con21 ditions of employment for having participated in or aided 

22 any such inspection.’’. 


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1 SEC. 306. INVESTIGATIONS OF FATALITIES AND SIGNIFI2 CANT INCIDENTS. 

3 Section 8 (29 U.S.C. 657) is amended by adding at 

4 the end the following new subsection: 

5 ‘‘(i) INVESTIGATION OF FATALITIES AND SERIOUS

6 INCIDENTS.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall investigate 

8 any significant incident or an incident resulting in death 

9 that occurs in a place of employment. 

10 ‘‘(2) EVIDENCE PRESERVATION.—If a significant in11 cident or an incident resulting in death occurs in a place 

12 of employment, the employer shall promptly notify the 

13 Secretary of the incident involved and shall take appro14 priate measures to prevent the destruction or alteration 

15 of any evidence that would assist in investigating the inci16 dent. The appropriate measures required by this para17 graph do not prevent an employer from taking action on 

18 a worksite to prevent injury to employees or substantial 

19 damage to property or to avoid disruption of essential 

20 services necessary to public safety, provided that if an em21 ployer takes such action, the employer shall notify the Sec22 retary of the action in a timely fashion. 

23 ‘‘(3) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

24 ‘‘(A) INCIDENT RESULTING IN DEATH.—The 

25 term ‘incident resulting in death’ means an incident 

26 that results in the death of an employee. 


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1 ‘‘(B) SIGNIFICANT INCIDENT.—The term ‘sig2 nificant incident’ means an incident that results in 

3 the in-patient hospitalization of 2 or more employees 

4 for medical treatment.’’. 

5 SEC. 307. PROHIBITION ON UNCLASSIFIED CITATIONS. 

6 Section 9 (29 U.S.C. 658) is amended by adding at 

7 the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(d) No citation for a violation of this Act may be 

9 issued, modified, or settled under this section without a 

10 designation enumerated in section 17 with respect to such 

11 violation.’’. 

12 SEC. 308. VICTIMS’ RIGHTS. 

13 The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 is 

14 amended by inserting after section 9 (29 U.S.C. 658) the 

15 following: 

16 ‘‘SEC. 9A. VICTIMS’ RIGHTS. 

17 ‘‘(a) RIGHTS BEFORE THE SECRETARY.—A victim, 

18 or the representative of a victim, shall be afforded the 

19 right, with respect to an inspection or investigation con20 ducted under section 8 to— 

21 ‘‘(1) meet with the Secretary regarding the in22 spection or investigation conducted under such sec23 tion before the Secretary’s decision to issue a cita24 tion or take no action; 


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1 ‘‘(2) receive, at no cost, a copy of any citation 

2 or report, issued as a result of such inspection or in3 vestigation, at the same time as the employer re4 ceives such citation or report; 

5 ‘‘(3) be informed of any notice of contest or ad6 dition of parties to the proceedings filed under sec7 tion 10(c); and 

8 ‘‘(4) be provided notification of the date and 

9 time or any proceedings, service of pleadings, and 

10 other relevant documents, and an explanation of the 

11 rights of the employer, employee and employee rep12 resentative, and victim to participate in proceedings 

13 conducted under section 10(c). 

14 ‘‘(b) RIGHTS BEFORE THE COMMISSION.—Upon re15 quest, a victim or representative of a victim shall be af16 forded the right with respect to a work-related bodily in17 jury or death to— 

18 ‘‘(1) be notified of the time and date of any 

19 proceeding before the Commission; 

20 ‘‘(2) receive pleadings and any decisions relat21 ing to the proceedings; and 

22 ‘‘(3) be provided an opportunity to appear and 

23 make a statement in accordance with the rules pre24 scribed by the Commission. 


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1 ‘‘(c) MODIFICATION OF CITATION.—Before entering 

2 into an agreement to withdraw or modify a citation issued 

3 as a result of an inspection or investigation of an incident 

4 under section 8, the Secretary shall notify a victim or rep5 resentative of a victim and provide the victim or represent6 ative of a victim with an opportunity to appear and make 

7 a statement before the parties conducting settlement nego8 tiations. In lieu of an appearance, the victim or represent9 ative of the victim may elect to submit a letter to the Sec10 retary and the parties. 

11 ‘‘(d) SECRETARY PROCEDURES.—The Secretary shall 

12 establish procedures— 

13 ‘‘(1) to inform victims of their rights under this 

14 section; and 

15 ‘‘(2) for the informal review of any claim of a 

16 denial of such a right. 

17 ‘‘(e) COMMISSION PROCEDURES AND CONSIDER18 ATIONS.—The Commission shall— 

19 ‘‘(1) establish procedures relating to the rights 

20 of victims to be heard in proceedings before the 

21 Commission; and 

22 ‘‘(2) in rendering any decision, provide due con23 sideration to any statement or information provided 

24 by any victim before the Commission. 


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1 ‘‘(f) FAMILY LIAISONS.—The Secretary shall des2 ignate at least 1 employee at each area office of the Occu3 pational Safety and Health Administration to serve as a 

4 family liaison to— 

5 ‘‘(1) keep victims informed of the status of in6 vestigations, enforcement actions, and settlement ne7 gotiations; and 

8 ‘‘(2) assist victims in asserting their rights 

9 under this section. 

10 ‘‘(g) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘victim’ 

11 means— 

12 ‘‘(1) an employee, including a former employee, 

13 who has sustained a work-related injury or illness 

14 that is the subject of an inspection or investigation 

15 conducted under section 8; or 

16 ‘‘(2) a family member (as further defined by 

17 the Secretary) of a victim described in paragraph 

18 (1), if— 

19 ‘‘(A) the victim dies as a result of an inci20 dent that is the subject of an inspection or in21 vestigation conducted under section 8; or 

22 ‘‘(B) the victim sustains a work-related in23 jury or illness that is the subject of an inspec24 tion or investigation conducted under section 8, 


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1 and the victim because of incapacity cannot rea2 sonably exercise the rights under this section.’’. 

3 SEC. 309. RIGHT TO CONTEST CITATIONS AND PENALTIES. 

4 Section 10(c) (29 U.S.C. 659(c)) is amended— 

5 (1) in the first sentence— 

6 (A) by inserting after ‘‘that he intends to 

7 contest a citation issued under section (9)(a)’’ 

8 the following: ‘‘(or a modification of a citation 

9 issued under this section)’’; 

10 (B) by inserting after ‘‘the issuance of a 

11 citation under section 9(a)’’ the following: ‘‘(in12 cluding a modification of a citation issued 

13 under such section)’’; and 

14 (C) by inserting after ‘‘files a notice with 

15 the Secretary alleging’’ the following: ‘‘that the 

16 citation fails to properly designate the violation 

17 as serious, willful, or repeated, that the pro18 posed penalty is not adequate, or’’; 

19 (2) by inserting after the first sentence, the fol20 lowing: ‘‘The pendency of a contest before the Com21 mission shall not bar the Secretary from inspecting 

22 a place of employment or from issuing a citation 

23 under section 9.’’; and 

24 (3) in the last sentence— 


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1 (A) by inserting ‘‘employers and’’ after 

2 ‘‘Commission shall provide’’; and 

3 (B) by inserting before the period at the 

4 end ‘‘, and notification of any modification of a 

5 citation’’. 

6 SEC. 310. CORRECTION OF SERIOUS, WILLFUL, OR RE7 PEATED VIOLATIONS PENDING CONTEST AND 

8 PROCEDURES FOR A STAY. 

9 Section 10 (29 U.S.C. 659) is amended by adding 

10 at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(d) CORRECTION OF SERIOUS, WILLFUL, OR RE12 PEATED VIOLATIONS PENDING CONTEST AND PROCE13 DURES FOR A STAY.— 

14 ‘‘(1) PERIOD PERMITTED FOR CORRECTION OF

15 SERIOUS, WILLFUL, OR REPEATED VIOLATIONS.— 

16 For each violation which the Secretary designates as 

17 serious, willful, or repeated, the period permitted for 

18 the correction of the violation shall begin to run 

19 upon receipt of the citation. 

20 ‘‘(2) FILING OF A MOTION OF CONTEST.—The 

21 filing of a notice of contest by an employer— 

22 ‘‘(A) shall not operate as a stay of the pe23 riod for correction of a violation designated as 

24 serious, willful, or repeated; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) may operate as a stay of the period 

2 for correction of a violation not designated by 

3 the Secretary as serious, willful, or repeated. 

4 ‘‘(3) CRITERIA AND RULES OF PROCEDURE FOR

5 STAYS.— 

6 ‘‘(A) MOTION FOR A STAY.—An employer 

7 that receives a citation alleging a violation des8 ignated as serious, willful, or repeated and that 

9 files a notice of contest to the citation asserting 

10 that the time set for abatement of the alleged 

11 violation is unreasonable or challenging the ex12 istence of the alleged violation may file with the 

13 Commission a motion to stay the period for the 

14 abatement of the violation. 

15 ‘‘(B) CRITERIA.—In determining whether 

16 a stay should be issued on the basis of a motion 

17 filed under subparagraph (A), the Commission 

18 may grant a stay only if the employer has dem19 onstrated— 

20 ‘‘(i) a substantial likelihood of success 

21 on the areas contested under subparagraph 

22 (A); and 

23 ‘‘(ii) that a stay will not adversely af24 fect the health and safety of workers. 


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1 ‘‘(C) RULES OF PROCEDURE.—The Com2 mission shall develop rules of procedure for con3 ducting a hearing on a motion filed under sub4 paragraph (A) on an expedited basis. At a min5 imum, such rules shall provide the following: 

6 ‘‘(i) That a hearing before an admin7 istrative law judge shall occur not later 

8 than 15 days following the filing of the 

9 motion for a stay (unless extended at the 

10 request of the employer), and shall provide 

11 for a decision on the motion not later than 

12 15 days following the hearing (unless ex13 tended at the request of the employer). 

14 ‘‘(ii) That a decision of an administra15 tive law judge on a motion for stay is ren16 dered on a timely basis. 

17 ‘‘(iii) That if a party is aggrieved by 

18 a decision issued by an administrative law 

19 judge regarding the stay, such party has 

20 the right to file an objection with the Com21 mission not later than 5 days after receipt 

22 of the administrative law judge’s decision. 

23 Within 10 days after receipt of the objec24 tion, a Commissioner, if a quorum is seat25 ed pursuant to section 12(f), shall decide 


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1 whether to grant review of the objection. 

2 If, within 10 days after receipt of the ob3 jection, no decision is made on whether to 

4 review the decision of the administrative 

5 law judge, the Commission declines to re6 view such decision, or no quorum is seated, 

7 the decision of the administrative law 

8 judge shall become a final order of the 

9 Commission. If the Commission grants re10 view of the objection, the Commission shall 

11 issue a decision regarding the stay not 

12 later than 30 days after receipt of the ob13 jection. If the Commission fails to issue 

14 such decision within 30 days, the decision 

15 of the administrative law judge shall be16 come a final order of the Commission. 

17 ‘‘(iv) For notification to employees or 

18 representatives of affected employees of re19 quests for such hearings and shall provide 

20 affected employees or representatives of af21 fected employees an opportunity to partici22 pate as parties to such hearings.’’. 


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1 SEC. 311. INACTION BY THE REVIEW COMMISSION. 

2 Section 10 (29 U.S.C. 659), as amended by section 

3 310, is further amended by adding at the end the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(e) INACTION BY REVIEW COMMISSION.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A petition for review of a 

7 decision or order issued by an administrative law 

8 judge that has been filed in a timely manner, but for 

9 which the Commission has failed to issue a final de10 cision and order after 1 year of the acceptance of 

11 such petition because the Commission lacks a 

12 quorum, the decision or order for which such peti13 tion has been filed— 

14 ‘‘(A) shall be deemed a final decision or 

15 order of the Commission; and 

16 ‘‘(B) may be appealed pursuant to section 

17 11(a). 

18 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—Paragraph (1) shall not 

19 apply with respect to motions to stay filed under 

20 subsection (d)(3).’’. 

21 SEC. 312. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS. 

22 (a) VIOLATIONS DESIGNATED AS SERIOUS, WILL23 FUL, OR REPEATED.—The first sentence of section 10(b) 

24 (29 U.S.C. 659(b)) is amended by inserting ‘‘, with the 

25 exception of violations designated as serious, willful, or re26 peated,’’ after ‘‘(which period shall not begin to run’’. 


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1 (b) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—The first sentence of section 

2 11(a) (29 U.S.C. 660(a)) is amended— 

3 (1) by inserting ‘‘(or the failure of the Commis4 sion, including an administrative law judge, to make 

5 a timely decision on a petition for a stay or other 

6 review)’’ after ‘‘an order of the Commission’’; 

7 (2) by striking ‘‘subsection (c)’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘subsection (c), (d), or (e)’’; and 

9 (3) by inserting ‘‘(or in the case of a petition 

10 from a final Commission order regarding a stay 

11 under section 10(d), 15 days)’’ after ‘‘sixty days’’. 

12 (c) FAILURE TO CORRECT VIOLATIONS.—Section 

13 17(d) (29 U.S.C. 666(d)) is amended to read as follows: 

14 ‘‘(d) Any employer who fails to correct a violation 

15 designated by the Secretary as serious, willful, or repeated 

16 and for which a citation has been issued under section 9(a) 

17 within the period permitted for its correction (and a stay 

18 has not been issued by the Commission under section 

19 10(d)) may be assessed a civil penalty of not more than 

20 $7,000 for each day during which such failure or violation 

21 continues. Any employer who fails to correct any other vio22 lation for which a citation has been issued under section 

23 9(a) within the period permitted for its correction (which 

24 period shall not begin to run until the date of the final 

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1 ceeding under section 10 initiated by the employer in good 

2 faith and not solely for delay of avoidance of penalties) 

3 may be assessed a civil penalty of not more than $7,000 

4 for each day during which such failure or violation con5 tinues.’’. 

6 SEC. 313. CIVIL PENALTIES. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 17 (29 U.S.C. 666) is 

8 amended— 

9 (1) in subsection (a)— 

10 (A) by striking ‘‘$70,000’’ and inserting 

11 ‘‘$126,749’’; 

12 (B) by striking ‘‘$5,000’’ and inserting 

13 ‘‘$9,054’’; and 

14 (C) by adding at the end the following: ‘‘In 

15 determining whether a violation is repeated, the 

16 Secretary or the Commission shall consider the 

17 employer’s history of violations under this Act 

18 and under State occupational safety and health 

19 plans established under section 18. If such a 

20 willful or repeated violation caused or contrib21 uted to the death of an employee, such civil 

22 penalty amounts shall be increased to not more 

23 than $250,000 for each such violation, but not 

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1 ployees such penalty shall not be less than 

2 $25,000 for each such violation.’’; 

3 (2) in subsection (b)— 

4 (A) by striking ‘‘$7,000’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘$12,675’’; and 

6 (B) by adding at the end the following: ‘‘If 

7 such a violation caused or contributed to the 

8 death of an employee, such civil penalty 

9 amounts shall be increased to not more than 

10 $50,000 for each such violation, but not less 

11 than $20,000 for each such violation, except 

12 that for an employer with 25 or fewer employ13 ees such penalty shall not be less than $10,000 

14 for each such violation.’’; 

15 (3) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘$7,000’’ and 

16 inserting ‘‘$12,675’’; 

17 (4) in subsection (d), as amended by section 

18 312(c), by striking ‘‘$7,000’’ each place it occurs 

19 and inserting ‘‘$12,675’’; 

20 (5) by redesignating subsections (e) through (i) 

21 as subsections (f) through (j), and subsections (j) 

22 through (l) as subsections (l) through (n) respec23 tively; and 

24 (6) in subsection (j) (as so redesignated) by 

25 striking ‘‘$7,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$12,000’’. 


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1 (b) INFLATION ADJUSTMENT.—Section 17, as 

2 amended by subsection (a), is further amended by insert3 ing after subsection (d) the following: 

4 ‘‘(e) Amounts provided under this section for civil 

5 penalties shall be adjusted by the Secretary once each 

6 year, not later than January 15 of such year, to account 

7 for any percentage increase or decrease in the Consumer 

8 Price Index for all urban consumers, and consistent with 

9 the requirements of the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation 

10 Adjustment Act of 1990 (28 U.S.C. 2461 note).’’. 

11 SEC. 314. CRIMINAL PENALTIES. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 17 (29 U.S.C. 666), as 

13 amended by section 313, is further amended— 

14 (1) by amending subsection (f) (as redesignated 

15 by section 313(a)(5)) to read as follows: 

16 ‘‘(f)(1) Any employer who knowingly violates any 

17 standard, rule, or order promulgated under section 6 of 

18 this Act, or of any regulation prescribed under this Act, 

19 and that violation caused or significantly contributed to 

20 the death of any employee, shall, upon conviction, be pun21 ished by a fine in accordance with title 18, United States 

22 Code, or by imprisonment for not more than 10 years, or 

23 both, except that if the conviction is for a violation com24 mitted after a first conviction of such person under this 

25 subsection or subsection (j), punishment shall be by a fine 


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1 in accordance title 18, United States Code, or by imprison2 ment for not more than 20 years, or by both. 

3 ‘‘(2) For the purpose of this subsection, the term ‘em4 ployer’ means, in addition to the definition contained in 

5 section 3 of this Act, any officer or director.’’; 

6 (2) by amending subsection (g) (as redesignated 

7 by section 313(a)(5)) to read as follows: 

8 ‘‘(g) Unless otherwise authorized by this Act, any 

9 person that knowingly gives, causes to give, or attempts 

10 to give or cause to give, advance notice of any inspection 

11 conducted under this Act with the intention of impeding, 

12 interfering with, or adversely affecting the results of such 

13 inspection, shall be fined under title 18, United States 

14 Code, imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both.’’; 

15 (3) in subsection (h) (as redesignated by section 

16 313(a)(5)), by striking ‘‘fine of not more than 

17 $10,000, or by imprisonment for not more than six 

18 months,’’ and inserting ‘‘fine in accordance with title 

19 18, United States Code, or by imprisonment for not 

20 more than 5 years,’’; and 

21 (4) by inserting after subsection (j) (as redesig22 nated by section 313(a)(5)) the following: 

23 ‘‘(k)(1) Any employer who knowingly violates any 

24 standard, rule, or order promulgated under section 6, or 

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1 tion caused or significantly contributed to serious bodily 

2 harm to any employee but does not cause death to any 

3 employee, shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine in 

4 accordance with title 18, United States Code, or by impris5 onment for not more than 5 years, or by both, except that 

6 if the conviction is for a violation committed after a first 

7 conviction of such person under this subsection or sub8 section (f), punishment shall be by a fine in accordance 

9 with title 18, United States Code, or by imprisonment for 

10 not more than 10 years, or by both. 

11 ‘‘(2) For the purpose of this subsection, the term ‘em12 ployer’ means, in addition to the definition contained in 

13 section 3 of this Act, any officer or director. 

14 ‘‘(3) For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘seri15 ous bodily harm’ means bodily injury or illness that in16 volves— 

17 ‘‘(A) a substantial risk of death; 

18 ‘‘(B) protracted unconsciousness; 

19 ‘‘(C) protracted and obvious physical disfigure20 ment; or 

21 ‘‘(D) protracted loss or impairment, either tem22 porary or permanent, of the function of a bodily 

23 member, organ, or mental faculty.’’. 

24 (b) JURISDICTION FOR PROSECUTION UNDER STATE

25 AND LOCAL CRIMINAL LAWS.—Section 17 (29 U.S.C. 


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1 666), as amended by subsection (a), is further amended 

2 by adding at the end the following: 

3 ‘‘(o) Nothing in this Act shall preclude a State or 

4 local law enforcement agency from conducting criminal 

5 prosecutions in accordance with the laws of such State or 

6 locality.’’. 

7 SEC. 315. PREJUDGMENT INTEREST. 

8 Section 17(n) (29 U.S.C. 666(n)) (as redesignated by 

9 section 313(a)(5)) is amended by adding at the end the 

10 following: ‘‘Pre-final order interest on such penalties shall 

11 begin to accrue on the date the party contests a citation 

12 issued under this Act, and shall end upon the issuance 

13 of the final order. Such pre-final order interest shall be 

14 calculated at the current underpayment rate determined 

15 by the Secretary of the Treasury pursuant to section 6621 

16 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, and shall be com17 pounded daily. Post-final order interest shall begin to ac18 crue 30 days after the date a final order of the Commis19 sion or the court is issued, and shall be charged at the 

20 rate of 8 percent per year.’’. 

21 TITLE IV—STATE PLANS 

22 SEC. 401. CONCURRENT ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITY AND 

23 REVIEW OF STATE OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY 

24 AND HEALTH PLANS. 

25 Section 18 (29 U.S.C. 667) is amended— 


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1 (1) by amending subsection (f) to read as fol2 lows: 

3 ‘‘(f)(1) The Secretary shall, on the basis of reports 

4 submitted by the State agency and the Secretary’s own 

5 inspections, make a continuing evaluation of the manner 

6 in which each State that has a plan approved under this 

7 section is carrying out such plan. Such evaluation shall 

8 include an assessment of whether the State continues to 

9 meet the requirements of subsection (c) of this section and 

10 any other criteria or indices of effectiveness specified by 

11 the Secretary in regulations. Whenever the Secretary 

12 finds, on the basis of such evaluation, that in the adminis13 tration of the State plan there is a failure to comply sub14 stantially with any provision of the State plan (or any as15 surance contained therein), the Secretary shall make an 

16 initial determination of whether the failure is of such a 

17 nature that the plan should be withdrawn or whether the 

18 failure is of such a nature that the State should be given 

19 the opportunity to remedy the deficiencies, and provide no20 tice of the Secretary’s findings and initial determination. 

21 ‘‘(2) If the Secretary makes an initial determination 

22 to reassert and exercise concurrent enforcement authority 

23 while the State is given an opportunity to remedy the defi24 ciencies, the Secretary shall afford the State an oppor25 tunity for a public hearing within 15 days of such request, 


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1 provided that such request is made not later than 10 days 

2 after the Secretary’s notice to the State. The Secretary 

3 shall review and consider the testimony, evidence, or writ4 ten comments, and not later than 30 days following such 

5 hearing, make a determination to affirm, reverse, or mod6 ify the Secretary’s initial determination to reassert and ex7 ercise concurrent enforcement authority under sections 8, 

8 9, 10, 13, and 17 with respect to standards promulgated 

9 under section 6 and obligations under section 5(a). Fol10 lowing such a determination by the Secretary, or in the 

11 event that the State does not request a hearing within the 

12 timeframe set forth in this paragraph, the Secretary may 

13 reassert and exercise such concurrent enforcement author14 ity, while a final determination is pending under para15 graph (3) or until the Secretary has determined that the 

16 State has remedied the deficiencies as provided under 

17 paragraph (4). Such determination shall be published in 

18 the Federal Register. The procedures set forth in sub19 section (g) shall not apply to a determination by the Sec20 retary to reassert and exercise such concurrent enforce21 ment authority. 

22 ‘‘(3) If the Secretary makes an initial determination 

23 that the plan should be withdrawn, the Secretary shall 

24 provide due notice and the opportunity for a hearing. If 

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1 retary makes a final determination that there is a failure 

2 to comply substantially with any provision of the State 

3 plan (or any assurance contained therein), the Secretary 

4 shall notify the State agency of the withdrawal of approval 

5 of such plan and upon receipt of such notice such plan 

6 shall cease to be in effect, but the State may retain juris7 diction in any case commenced before the withdrawal of 

8 the plan in order to enforce standards under the plan 

9 whenever the issues involved do not relate to the reasons 

10 for the withdrawal of the plan. 

11 ‘‘(4) If the Secretary makes a determination that the 

12 State should be provided the opportunity to remedy the 

13 deficiencies, the Secretary shall provide the State an op14 portunity to respond to the Secretary’s findings and the 

15 opportunity to remedy such deficiencies within a time pe16 riod established by the Secretary, not to exceed 1 year. 

17 The Secretary may extend and revise the time period to 

18 remedy such deficiencies, if the State’s legislature is not 

19 in session during this 1-year time period, or if the State 

20 demonstrates that it is not feasible to correct the defi21 ciencies in the time period set by the Secretary, and the 

22 State has a plan to correct the deficiencies within a rea23 sonable time period. If the Secretary finds that the State 

24 agency has failed to remedy such deficiencies within the 

25 time period specified by the Secretary and that the State 


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1 plan continues to fail to comply substantially with a provi2 sion of the State plan, the Secretary shall withdraw the 

3 State plan as provided for in paragraph (3).’’; and 

4 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub5 section: 

6 ‘‘(i) Not later than 18 months after the date of enact7 ment of this subsection, and again 5 years thereafter, the 

8 Comptroller General of the United States shall complete 

9 and issue a review of the effectiveness of State plans to 

10 develop and enforce safety and health standards to deter11 mine if they are at least as effective as the Federal pro12 gram and to evaluate whether the Secretary’s oversight 

13 of State plans is effective. The Comptroller General’s eval14 uation shall assess— 

15 ‘‘(1) the effectiveness of the Secretary’s over16 sight of State plans, including the indices of effec17 tiveness used by the Secretary; 

18 ‘‘(2) whether the Secretary’s investigations in 

19 response to Complaints About State Program Ad20 ministration (CASPA) are adequate, whether signifi21 cant policy issues have been identified by head22 quarters, and whether corrective actions are fully 

23 implemented by each State; 


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1 ‘‘(3) whether the formula for the distribution of 

2 funds described in section 23(g) to State programs 

3 is fair and adequate; and 

4 ‘‘(4) whether State plans are as effective as the 

5 Federal program in preventing occupational injuries, 

6 illnesses and deaths, and investigating discrimina7 tion complaints, through an evaluation of at least 20 

8 percent of approved State plans, and which shall 

9 cover— 

10 ‘‘(A) enforcement effectiveness, including 

11 handling of fatalities, serious incidents and 

12 complaints, compliance with inspection proce13 dures, hazard recognition, verification of abate14 ment, violation classification, citation and pen15 alty issuance, including appropriate use of will16 ful and repeat citations, and employee involve17 ment; 

18 ‘‘(B) inspections, the number of pro19 grammed health and safety inspections at pri20 vate and public sector establishments, and 

21 whether the State targets the highest hazard 

22 private sector worksites and facilities in that 

23 State; 

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1 sources to hire, train, and retain sufficient 

2 numbers of qualified staff, including timely fill3 ing of vacancies; 

4 ‘‘(D) administrative review, including the 

5 quality of decisions, consistency with Federal 

6 precedence, transparency of proceedings, avail7 ability of decisions and records to the public, 

8 adequacy of State defense, and whether the 

9 State appropriately appeals adverse decisions; 

10 ‘‘(E) anti-discrimination, including whether 

11 discrimination complaints are processed in a 

12 timely manner, whether supervisors and inves13 tigators are properly trained to investigate dis14 crimination complaints, whether a case file re15 view indicates merit cases are properly identi16 fied consistent with Federal policy and proce17 dure, whether employees are notified of their 

18 rights, and whether there is an effective process 

19 for employees to appeal the dismissal of a com20 plaint; 

21 ‘‘(F) program administration, including 

22 whether the State’s standards and policies are 

23 at least as effective as the Federal program and 

24 are updated in a timely manner, and whether 

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1 ble in such States are adopted and implemented 

2 in a manner that is at least as effective as the 

3 Federal program; 

4 ‘‘(G) whether the State plan satisfies the 

5 requirements for approval set forth in this sec6 tion and its implementing regulations; and 

7 ‘‘(H) other such factors identified by the 

8 Comptroller General, or as requested by the 

9 Committee on Education and the Workforce of 

10 the House of Representatives or the Committee 

11 on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of 

12 the Senate.’’. 

13 SEC. 402. EVALUATION OF REPEATED VIOLATIONS IN 

14 STATE PLANS. 

15 Section 18(c) (29 U.S.C. 668(c)) is amended— 

16 (1) in paragraph (7), by striking ‘‘, and’’ and 

17 inserting a comma; 

18 (2) in paragraph (8), by striking the period at 

19 the end and inserting ‘‘, and’’; and 

20 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

21 paragraph: 

22 ‘‘(9) provides that in determining whether a 

23 violation is repeated, the State shall consider the 

24 employer’s violations within the State, in conjunction 

25 with the employer’s history of violations under other 


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1 States’ occupational safety and health plans ap2 proved by the Secretary and the employer’s history 

3 of violations in those States where the Secretary has 

4 jurisdiction under this Act, in a manner that is at 

5 least as effective as provided under section 17.’’. 

6 TITLE V—NATIONAL INSTITUTE 

7 FOR OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY 

8 AND HEALTH 

9 SEC. 501. HEALTH HAZARD EVALUATIONS BY THE NA10 TIONAL INSTITUTE FOR OCCUPATIONAL 

11 SAFETY AND HEALTH. 

12 Section 20(a)(6) (29 U.S.C. 669(a)(6)) is amended 

13 by striking the second sentence and inserting the fol14 lowing: ‘‘The Secretary shall determine following a written 

15 request by any employer, authorized representative of cur16 rent or former employees, physician, other Federal agency, 

17 or State or local health department, specifying with rea18 sonable particularity the grounds on which the request is 

19 made, whether any substance normally found in the place 

20 of employment has potentially toxic effects in such con21 centrations as used or found, or whether any physical 

22 agents, equipment, or working condition found or used has 

23 potentially hazardous effects. The Secretary shall submit 

24 such determination both to employers and affected em25 ployees as soon as possible.’’. 


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1 TITLE VI—EFFECTIVE DATE 

2 SEC. 601. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

3 (a) GENERAL RULE.—Except as provided for in sub4 section (b), this Act and the amendments made by this 

5 Act shall take effect not later than 90 days after the date 

6 of the enactment of this Act. 

7 (b) EXCEPTION FOR STATES AND POLITICAL SUB8 DIVISIONS.—The following are exceptions to the effective 

9 date described in subsection (a): 

10 (1) A State that has a State plan approved 

11 under section 18 of the Occupational Safety and 

12 Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 667) shall amend its 

13 State plan to conform with the requirements of this 

14 Act and the amendments made by this Act not later 

15 than 12 months after the date of the enactment of 

16 this Act. The Secretary of Labor may extend the pe17 riod for a State to make such amendments to its 

18 State plan by not more than 12 months, if the 

19 State’s legislature is not in session during the 12- 

20 month period beginning with the date of the enact21 ment of this Act. Such amendments to the State 

22 plan shall take effect not later than 90 days after 

23 the adoption of such amendments by such State. 

24 (2) This Act and the amendments made by this 

25 Act shall take effect not later than 36 months after 


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1 the date of the enactment of this Act with respect 

2 to a workplace of a State, or a political subdivision 

3 of a State, that does not have a State plan approved 

4 under such section 18. 

Æ 


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