37862 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 122 / Monday, June 25, 2012 / Proposed Rules 

under the Regulatory Flexibility Act 

(5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.); 

• Does not contain any unfunded 

mandate or significantly or uniquely 

affect small governments, as described 

in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

of 1995 (Pub. L. 104–4); 

• Does not have Federalism 

implications as specified in Executive 

Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 

1999); 

• Is not an economically significant 

regulatory action based on health or 

safety risks subject to Executive Order 

13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997); 

• Is not a significant regulatory action 

subject to Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 

28355, May 22, 2001); 

• Is not subject to requirements of 

Section 12(d) of the National 

Technology Transfer and Advancement 

Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272 note) because 

application of those requirements would 

be inconsistent with the Clean Air Act; 

and 

• Does not provide EPA with the 

discretionary authority to address, as 

appropriate, disproportionate human 

health or environmental effects, using 

practicable and legally permissible 

methods, under Executive Order 12898 

(59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994). 

In addition, this rule does not have 

tribal implications as specified by 

Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, 

November 6, 2000), because the SIP is 

not approved to apply in Indian country 

located in the State, and EPA notes that 

it will not impose substantial direct 

costs on tribal governments or preempt 

tribal law. 

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control, Incorporation by 

reference, Intergovernmental relations, 

Nitrogen dioxide, Particulate matter, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Sulfur oxides, Volatile 

organic compounds. 

Dated: June 7, 2012. 

Howard M. Cantor, 

Acting Regional Administrator, Region 8. 

[FR Doc. 2012–15476 Filed 6–22–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE P 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

42 CFR Part 84 

RIN 0920–AA38 

[Docket No. CDC–2012–0009; NIOSH–258] 

Open-Circuit Self-Contained Breathing 

Apparatus Remaining Service-Life 

Indicator Performance Requirements 

AGENCY: Centers for Disease Control and 

Prevention, HHS. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking. 

SUMMARY: As a component of its ongoing 

update of respirator certification 

standards under Part 84 and in response 

to a petition to amend 42 CFR 84.83(F), 

HHS proposes a revision to the current 

requirement for open-circuit selfcontained breathing apparatus (OC– 

SCBA) remaining service-life indicators 

(indicators), which are devices built into 

a respirator to alert the user that the 

breathing air provided by the respirator 

is close to depletion. HHS intends to 

revise the current standard, employed 

by the National Institute for 

Occupational Safety and Health 

(NIOSH) located within the Centers for 

Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 

to allow greater latitude in the setting of 

the indicator alarm to ensure that the 

alarm more effectively meets the 

different worker protection needs of 

different work operations. This revision 

sets a default service life at 25 percent 

of the rated service time and allows the 

indicator to be adjusted higher by the 

manufacturer, at the request of the 

purchaser. 

DATES: Comments must be received by 

August 24, 2012. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, 

identified by HHS RIN 0920–AA38, by 

either of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments to 

Docket CDC–2012–0009. 

• Mail: NIOSH Docket Office, Robert 

A. Taft Laboratories, MS–C34, 4676 

Columbia Parkway, Cincinnati, OH 

45226. 

Instructions: All submissions received 

must include the agency name and 

docket number or Regulation Identifier 

Number (RIN) for this rulemaking. All 

relevant comments received will be 

posted without change to http:// 

www.regulations.gov, including any 

personal information provided. For 

detailed instructions on submitting 

comments and additional information 

on the rulemaking process, see the 

‘‘Public Participation’’ heading of the 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of 

this document. 

Docket: For access to the docket to 

read background documents or 

comments received, go to http:// 

www.regulations.gov or http:// 

www.cdc.gov/niosh/docket/review/ 

docket258/default.html. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jonathan Szalajda, NIOSH National 

Personal Protective Technology 

Laboratory (NPPTL), P.O. Box 18070, 

626 Cochrans Mill Road, Pittsburgh, PA 

15236, (412) 386–5200 (this is not a tollfree number). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

preamble to this notice of proposed 

rulemaking is organized as follows: 

I. Public Participation 

II. Background 

A. Introduction 

B. Background and Significance 

C. Need for Rulemaking 

D. Public Meetings for Discussion and 

Comment 

III. Summary of Proposed Rule 

IV. Regulatory Assessment Requirements 

A. Executive Orders 12866 and 13563 

B. Regulatory Flexibility Act 

C. Paperwork Reduction Act 

D. Small Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act 

E. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 

F. Executive Order 12988 (Civil Justice) 

G. Executive Order 13132 (Federalism) 

H. Executive Order 13045 (Protection of 

Children From Environmental Health 

Risks and Safety Risks) 

I. Executive Order 13211 (Actions 

Concerning Regulations That 

Significantly Affect Energy Supply, 

Distribution, or Use) 

J. Plain Writing Act of 2010 

V. Proposed Rule 

I. Public Participation 

Interested persons or organizations 

are invited to participate in this 

rulemaking by submitting written views, 

arguments, recommendations, and data. 

Comments are invited on any topic 

related to this proposal. In addition, 

HHS invites comment specifically on 

the following question related to this 

rulemaking: 

1. HHS proposes that the remaining 

service-life indicator (indicator) be set at 

25 percent of the rated service time of 

the respirator, as a default setting, with 

the option for the setting to be adjusted 

higher by the manufacturer, at the 

discretion of the purchaser. Is 25 

percent of the rated service time of the 

respirator an appropriate default setting 

for the indicator? 

2. Should the rule specify an upper 

limit that would require that the 

indicator be set to alarm no earlier than 

a set amount, such as 50 percent of rated 

service time? Are there possible 

emergency or rescue scenarios for which 


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Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 122 / Monday, June 25, 2012 / Proposed Rules 37863 

1 42 CFR 84.71(a)(6). 

2National Institute for Occupational Safety and 

Health, National Personal Protective Technology 

Laboratory, transcript of public meeting held 

December 2, 2008. Available at http://www.cdc.gov/ 

niosh/docket/archive/pdfs/NIOSH-034-A/0034-A120208-Transcript.pdf. Last accessed October 25, 

2011. 

3NFPA 1981: Standard on open-circuit selfcontained breathing apparatus (SCBA) for 

emergency services, Chapter 4. 2007 Edition. 

4National Institute for Occupational Safety and 

Health, National Personal Protective Technology 

Laboratory, transcript of public meeting held 

December 2, 2008. Available at http://www.cdc.gov/ 

niosh/docket/archive/pdfs/NIOSH-034-A/0034-A120208-Transcript.pdf. Last accessed October 25, 

2011. 

Fahy F. U.S. Fire Service fatalities in structure 

fires, 1977–2009. National Fire Protection 

Association. June 2010. 

5Fahy F. U.S. Fire Service fatalities in structure 

fires, 1977–2009. National Fire Protection 

Association. June 2010. 

6Bernocco S, Gagliano M, Phillips C, Jose P. Is 

your department complying with the NFPA 1404 air 

management policy? Fire Engineering 2008;161. 

7E.g. see, City of Charleston, Post incident 

assessment and review team. Firefighter fatality 

investigative report: Sofa Super Store, 1807 

Savannah Highway, Charleston, SC, June 18, 2007. 

Phase II Report. May 15, 2008. 

8Marino D. Air management: Know your airconsumption rate. Fire Engineering. October 1, 

2006. 

one would want an indicator to alarm at 

50 percent or more of the rated service 

time? 

Comments submitted should be titled 

‘‘Open-Circuit Self-Contained Breathing 

Apparatus Remaining Service-Life 

Indicator Performance Requirements, 

RIN 0920–AA38,’’ and should identify 

the author(s), return address, and a 

phone number, in case clarification is 

needed. Electronic comments can be 

submitted to http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Printed comments 

can be sent to the NIOSH Docket Office 

at the address above. All 

communications received on or before 

the closing date for comments will be 

fully considered by HHS. 

All relevant comments submitted will 

be available for examination in the rule 

docket (a publicly available repository 

of the documents associated with the 

rulemaking). A complete electronic 

docket containing all comments 

submitted will be available at http:// 

www.regulations.gov; comments will be 

available in writing by request. All 

comments received are included 

without change in the dockets, 

including any personal information 

provided. 

II. Background 

A. Introduction 

Under 42 CFR Part 84, ‘‘Approval of 

Respiratory Protective Devices’’ (Part 

84), NIOSH approves respirators used 

by workers in mines and other 

workplaces for protection against 

hazardous atmospheres. The Mine 

Safety and Health Administration 

(MSHA) and the Occupational Safety 

and Health Administration (OSHA) 

require U.S. employers to supply 

NIOSH-approved respirators to their 

employees whenever the employer 

requires the use of a respirator. 

B. Background and Significance 

Employers rely on NIOSH-approved 

respirators to protect their employees 

from airborne toxic contaminants and 

oxygen-deficient environments. More 

than 3.3 million private sector 

employees in the United States wear 

respirators for certain work tasks. The 

most effective and reliable means of 

protecting workers from oxygendeficient environments is to prevent 

their causes or entry into them by 

workers. However, it is not 

technologically or economically feasible 

in all workplaces and operations to 

reduce airborne concentrations of 

contaminants to safe levels and to 

prevent exposure to oxygen-deficient 

environments. In such cases, workers 

depend on respirators to protect them 

from asphyxiation or airborne 

contaminants that are known or 

suspected to cause acute and chronic 

health effects, such as heavy metal 

poisoning, acid burns, chronic 

obstructive pulmonary disease, silicosis, 

neurological disorders, and cancer. 

Open-circuit self-contained breathing 

apparatus are used primarily by 

firefighters and other rescue workers to 

provide breathable air in an 

environment that may be immediately 

dangerous to life and health (IDLH). 

These respirators are characterized by a 

cylinder of compressed breathing air, 

which is inhaled by the user and then 

exhaled out of the system. OC–SCBA are 

required by HHS regulations to have a 

‘‘remaining service life indicator or 

warning device,’’ 1 which is intended to 

alert users when the breathing air 

supply has been depleted to a certain 

percentage of breathing air available for 

use. The remaining service life 

indicator, referred to as a ‘‘low-air 

alarm,’’ or ‘‘end-of-service-time 

indicator’’ by various industries, is 

relied upon by rescuers to warn when 

they have begun to utilize their reserve 

supply of breathing air. The current 

HHS regulation requires that the 

indicator alarms when the rated service 

time of the respirator is reduced to 

within 20 to 25 percent. 

C. Need for Rulemaking 

In 2003, NIOSH received a petition 

from David Bernzweig of the Columbus 

(OH) Professional Firefighters 

International Association of Fire 

Fighters Local 67 requesting that the 

agency initiate rulemaking to change the 

provisions of paragraph § 84.83(f).2 The 

current rule requires that the indicator 

alarm within the 20 to 25 percent range; 

stakeholders request that HHS eliminate 

the lower value (20 percent) and require 

the indicator to alarm no later than at 25 

percent of rated service time. NIOSH 

considered the request and facilitated 

discussion among stakeholders (see 

Section II.D. below). The National Fire 

Protection Association (NFPA), which 

sets standards for personal protective 

equipment used in the fire service, 

initiated an effort in 2008 to develop 

consensus on the matter and recently 

decided to propose amending NFPA 

1981: Standard on Open-Circuit SelfContained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) 

for Emergency Services 3 to require that 

the indicator alarm at 33 percent in its 

upcoming revision of the standard. 

Studies conducted by NFPA have 

demonstrated that, while the number of 

structure fires in the United States has 

declined more than 50 percent between 

1977 and 2002, the rate of traumatic 

firefighter deaths has increased in recent 

years.4 A majority of those deaths (over 

63 percent) are due to smoke inhalation 

or asphyxiation, and many are 

attributed to firefighters going deep into 

large structures, becoming caught, lost, 

or disoriented, and then subsequently 

running out of breathing air before being 

able to exit.5 NFPA 1404, Standard for 

Fire Service Respiratory Protection 

Training, requires that firefighters leave 

the IDLH atmosphere before the 

indicator alarms, that is, before the 

individual begins to consume the 

respirator’s reserve breathing air supply. 

While modern practice is for firefighters 

to practice ‘‘air management,’’ or 

allocate enough breathing air for entry, 

work, and exit,6 many find maintaining 

situational awareness difficult.7 Many 

still rely on the indicator alarm to tell 

them to begin their exit, which is 

problematic because fire departments 

are finding that allotting 20–25 percent 

of the breathing air supply to exit does 

not allow enough time for escape from 

a large structure.8 If the firefighter 

becomes disoriented in the smoke, 

rescuers will have very little time to 

bring the individual out of the building 

unharmed. 

OC–SCBA used in firefighting are 

certified by both NIOSH (under 42 CFR 

Part 84) and NFPA, under NFPA 1981: 

Standard on Open-Circuit SelfContained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) 


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37864 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 122 / Monday, June 25, 2012 / Proposed Rules 

9NFPA 1981: Standard on open-circuit selfcontained breathing apparatus (SCBA) for 

emergency services, Chapter 4. 2007 Edition. 

10NFPA 1981: 6.2.3 (2007). 

11Fahy RF, Fire Analysis and Research Division, 

National Fire Protection Association. ‘‘U.S. Fire 

Service fatalities in structure fires, 1977–2009.’’ 

June 2010. 

for Emergency Services.9 NFPA is 

proposing to increase the indicator 

alarm time in the 2013 edition of NFPA 

1981 in order to provide the user with 

more reserve breathing air for self- or 

assisted-escape from the IDLH 

environment. Current NFPA standards 

require that the indicator ‘‘meet the 

activation requirements of NIOSH 

certification,’’ 10 which may result in 

indicator notification at less than 25 

percent of cylinder volume. As 

discussed above, this may not allow an 

early enough warning that the user has 

begun depleting the respirator’s reserve 

breathing air. The NFPA has decided to 

amend its standard to increase the 

indicator setting to 33 percent (+5/ 

¥0).11

HHS finds that revising § 84.83(f) to 

allow greater latitude with regard to 

setting the indicator alarm would not 

reduce the amount of protection 

afforded to firefighters and other OC– 

SCBA users. In fact, HHS believes that 

specifying a default setting of 25 percent 

and allowing respiratory protection 

program managers to request the 

indicator to be set at a certain value will 

result in a more meaningful alarm that 

will reduce firefighter fatalities and may 

offer greater protection for users in other 

industries. 

D. Public Meetings for Discussion and 

Comment 

NIOSH held a public meeting to 

discuss underlying issues and technical 

matters addressed in this proposed rule 

on December 2, 2008, at the Pittsburgh 

Hyatt Regency, Pittsburgh International 

Airport (73 FR 65860, November 5, 

2008). The official transcript of this 

meeting as well as public comments are 

available on NIOSH Docket 34–A (See 

http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docket/ 

archive/docket034A.html). NIOSH had 

previously collected public comments 

on remaining service-life indicators in 

2004 (See NIOSH Docket 34, http:// 

www.cdc.gov/niosh/docket/archive/ 

docket034.html). Most comments were 

generally supportive of the need to 

modify the indicator requirement. Those 

opposed to changing the requirement 

generally recommended that efforts to 

improve training in air management 

techniques should be pursued instead of 

changing this indicator requirement. 

III. Summary of Proposed Rule 

This proposed change would establish 

a default setting of 25 percent, and 

allow purchasers to request that the 

manufacturer set the remaining servicelife indicator alarm at a value 

appropriate for the purchaser’s 

occupational needs. Although it is not 

required, purchasers may also have the 

indicator setting modified for already 

fielded OC–SCBA units by an 

authorized representative of the 

manufacturer. The amendment would 

also codify a long-standing NIOSH 

policy requiring the indicator to alarm 

continuously until the respirator’s 

breathing air supply is depleted. 

HHS recognizes that not all OC–SCBA 

users find that the current standard 

places workers in jeopardy. 

Accordingly, HHS finds it prudent to 

retain the higher value (25 percent) 

established by the current regulation as 

a default setting, which would allow 

respiratory protection program 

managers who would prefer not to make 

any changes to the OC–SCBA used in 

their occupational setting to maintain 

their status quo. The proposed 

amendment to § 84.83(f) would, 

however, allow managers who have 

determined that a higher set-point is 

warranted for their application the 

latitude to request a different value. 

Allowing managers to establish an 

earlier indicator alarm level would 

enable firefighters and incident 

commanders at structure fires involving 

substantial exit challenges to rely on the 

indicator alarm in emergency 

circumstances to warn that the reserve 

breathing air supply is being utilized. 

Allowing respiratory protection program 

managers to request that manufacturers 

set the indicator alarm at a certain value 

may also benefit workers in other 

industries that rely on OC–SCBA. 

Alternatives Considered 

While developing the proposed rule, 

HHS did not identify any acceptable 

alternatives to lifting the restriction 

created by the current regulation. We 

did, however, consider the appropriate 

value for the alarm, and the necessity 

for a single value or a range in which 

the alarm should sound. As discussed 

above, many OC–SCBA are used in 

occupational settings for which the 

current remaining service-life indicator 

setting of 25 percent has been integrated 

into user protocols without concern or 

incident. Different emergency and 

rescue uses are likely to be best served 

by different indicator alarm settings. For 

this reason, we did not find it 

appropriate to adopt the proposed 

NFPA standard, 33 percent, as the 

minimum alarm setting for all uses. 

HHS also considered the possibility of 

allowing a ‘‘user-adjustable’’ alarm 

setting, but rejected that option because 

of the complexity of the remaining 

service-life indicator. Allowing 

respiratory program managers to adjust 

the settings in the field would require 

extensive training and due to the 

technical difficulties of this task would 

introduce a reliability (and hence safety) 

concern. 

IV. Regulatory Assessment 

Requirements 

A. Executive Orders 12866 and 13563 

Executive Orders 12866 and 13563 

directs agencies to assess all costs and 

benefits of available regulatory 

alternatives and, if regulation is 

necessary, to select regulatory 

approaches that maximize net benefits 

(including potential economic, 

environmental, public health and safety 

effects, distributive impacts, and 

equity). 

This proposed rule is not being 

treated as a ‘‘significant’’ action under 

E.O. 12866. It would modify the settings 

for an indicator required by current 

regulation, as well as codify a longstanding policy of requiring that the 

indicator alarm continuously once it has 

begun. The current rule requires that a 

remaining service-life indicator alarm 

when the breathing air provided by an 

OC–SCBA reaches between 20 and 25 

percent of its limit. The proposed rule 

would replace the range with a default 

value of 25 percent, which would allow 

facility managers to be able to request 

that the manufacturer set the indicator 

value at a higher limit than 25 percent 

of remaining breathing air. There are no 

costs and only benefits associated with 

this change: All approved OC–SCBA 

models have a remaining service-life 

indicator for which alarm limits are set 

during manufacturing; allowing 

respiratory protection program 

managers to specify that value (to be set 

by the manufacturer) if they find it 

necessary to do so will save lives by 

improving the respiratory protection of 

emergency personnel and other users 

and indirectly by increasing the 

likelihood that victims will be 

successfully rescued in emergency 

response operations. 

The rule does not interfere with State, 

local, or tribal governments in the 

exercise of their governmental 

functions. 

B. Regulatory Flexibility Act 

The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), 

5 U.S.C. 601 et seq., requires each 


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Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 122 / Monday, June 25, 2012 / Proposed Rules 37865 

agency to consider the potential impact 

of its regulations on small entities, 

including small businesses, small 

governmental units, and small not-forprofit organizations. As discussed 

above, all OC–SCBA models are 

equipped with a remaining service-life 

indicator that will not require any 

expenditure of resources to set at the 

proposed alarm limit. This proposed 

rule will allow small organizations such 

as local fire departments to specify their 

desired indicator limit when purchasing 

new devices from the manufacturer. The 

Secretary of HHS has certified to the 

Chief Counsel, Office of Advocacy of the 

Small Business Administration, that this 

rule does not have a significant impact 

on a substantial number of small 

entities. Accordingly, no regulatory 

impact analysis is required. 

C. Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

The Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA), 

44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq., requires an 

agency to invite public comment on and 

to obtain OMB approval of any 

regulation that requires 10 or more 

people to report information to the 

agency or to keep certain records. This 

rule does not contain any information 

collection requirements; thus HHS has 

determined that the PRA does not apply 

to this rule. 

D. Small Business Regulatory 

Enforcement Fairness Act 

As required by Congress under the 

Small Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act of 1996 (5 U.S.C. 801 et 

seq.), HHS would report to Congress the 

promulgation of a final rule, once it is 

developed, prior to its taking effect. The 

report would state that HHS has 

concluded that the rule is not a ‘‘major 

rule’’ because it is not likely to result in 

an annual effect on the economy of $100 

million or more. 

E. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 

1995 

Title II of the Unfunded Mandates 

Reform Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1531 et 

seq.) directs agencies to assess the 

effects of Federal regulatory actions on 

State, local, and tribal governments, and 

the private sector ‘‘other than to the 

extent that such regulations incorporate 

requirements specifically set forth in 

law.’’ For purposes of the Unfunded 

Mandates Reform Act, this proposed 

rule does not include any Federal 

mandate that may result in increased 

annual expenditures in excess of $100 

million by state, local or tribal 

governments in the aggregate, or by the 

private sector, adjusted annually for 

inflation. For 2011, the inflationadjusted threshold is $136 million. 

F. Executive Order 12988 (Civil Justice) 

This proposed rule has been drafted 

and reviewed in accordance with 

Executive Order 12988, Civil Justice 

Reform, and will not unduly burden the 

Federal court system. The proposed 

amendment to an existing respirator 

approval standard would apply 

uniformly to all applicants. This 

proposed rule has been reviewed 

carefully to eliminate drafting errors and 

ambiguities. 

G. Executive Order 13132 (Federalism) 

HHS has reviewed this proposed rule 

in accordance with Executive Order 

13132 regarding federalism, and has 

determined that it does not have 

‘‘federalism implications.’’ The 

proposed rule does not ‘‘have 

substantial direct effects on the States, 

on the relationship between the national 

government and the States, or on the 

distribution of power and 

responsibilities among the various 

levels of government.’’ 

H. Executive Order 13045 (Protection of 

Children From Environmental Health 

Risks and Safety Risks) 

In accordance with Executive Order 

13045, HHS has evaluated the 

environmental health and safety effects 

of this proposed rule on children. HHS 

has determined that the proposed rule 

would have no effect on children. 

I. Executive Order 13211 (Actions 

Concerning Regulations That 

Significantly Affect Energy Supply, 

Distribution, or Use) 

In accordance with Executive Order 

13211, HHS has evaluated the effects of 

this proposed rule on energy supply, 

distribution, or use and has determined 

that the rule will not have a significant 

adverse effect. 

J. Plain Writing Act of 2010 

Under Public Law 111–274 (October 

13, 2010), executive Departments and 

Agencies are required to use plain 

language in documents that explain to 

the public how to comply with a 

requirement the Federal Government 

administers or enforces. HHS has 

attempted to use plain language in 

promulgating the proposed rule 

consistent with the Federal Plain 

Writing Act guidelines. 

V. Proposed Rule 

List of Subjects in 42 CFR Part 84 

Occupational safety and health, 

Personal protective equipment, 

Respirators. 

Text of the Rule 

For the reasons discussed in the 

preamble, the Department of Health and 

Human Services proposes to amend 42 

CFR Part 84 as follows: 

PART 84—APPROVAL OF 

RESPIRATORY PROTECTIVE DEVICES 

1. The authority citation for Part 84 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 29 U.S.C. 577a, 651 et seq., and 

657(g); 30 U.S.C. 3, 5, 7, 811, 842(h), 844. 

§ 84.83 [Amended] 

2. Amend § 84.83 as follows: 

a. Revise paragraph (f) to read as 

follows: 

§ 84.83 Timers; elapsed time indicators; 

remaining service life indicators; minimum 

requirements. 

* * * * * 

(f) Each remaining service-life 

indicator or warning device shall give 

an alarm when the reserve capacity of 

the apparatus is reached, and shall 

alarm continuously until depletion of 

the breathing air supply. The remaining 

service-life indicator shall be set by the 

manufacturer at 25 percent rated service 

time unless requested by purchasers to 

set the indicator to alarm at a higher 

value. For deployed units, the 

remaining service-life indicator may be 

set by an authorized representative of 

the manufacturer. 

Dated: June 11, 2012. 

Kathleen Sebelius, 

Secretary, Department of Health and Human 

Services. 

[FR Doc. 2012–14764 Filed 6–22–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4163–18–P 

NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION 

SAFETY BOARD 

49 CFR Chapter VIII 

[Docket No. NTSB–GC–2012–001] 

Plan for Retrospective Analysis of 

Existing Rules 

AGENCY: National Transportation Safety 

Board (NTSB). 

ACTION: Request for information. 

SUMMARY: Pursuant to Executive Order 

13579, ‘‘Regulation and Independent 

Regulatory Agencies,’’ issued July 11, 

2011, the NTSB is announcing it is 

undertaking a review of all NTSB 

regulations. The purpose of Executive 

Order 13579 is to ensure all agencies 

adhere to the key principles found in 

Executive Order 13563, ’’Improving 

Regulation and Regulatory Review,’’ 


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