[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 50 (Friday, March 14, 1997)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 12133-12134]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-6515]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

29 CFR Part 1915

[Docket No. S-051]
RIN 1218-AB51


Safety Standards for Fire Protection for Shipyard Employment

AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), U.S. 
Department of Labor.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting.

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SUMMARY: The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is 
announcing a public meeting of the Fire Protection for Shipyard 
Employment Negotiated Rulemaking Advisory Committee. Membership for 
this committee has been drawn from shipyard operators, labor, 
professional associations, public interests and government agencies. 
Members of the Committee represent the interests of all groups 
interested in, or significantly affected by, the outcome of the 
rulemaking.

DATES: The public meeting will be held on April 8 through April 10, 
1997. The meetings will run from 9:00 a.m. to approximately 4:00 p.m. 
daily.

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will be held at Bollinger Shipyard, 20 
miles east of Thibodaux on Hwy. 308, Lockport, Louisiana, Telephone: 
505-532-2554.
    Any written comments in response to this notice should be sent, in 
quadruplicate, to the following address: U.S. Department of Labor, 
OSHA, Docket Office, Docket S-051. Room N-2625, 200 Constitution Ave., 
N.W., Washington, D.C. 20210; Telephone: 202-219-7894.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Ms. Bonnie Friedman, U.S. Department of Labor, OSHA, Office of 
Information and Consumer Affairs, Room N-3647, 200 Constitution Ave., 
N.W., Washington, D.C. 20210; Telephone: 202-219-8151.


[[Page 12134]]



SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    OSHA has decided to use the negotiated rulemaking (Neg/Reg) process 
to develop a proposed standard for fire protection covering all 
shipyard employment. The shipyard stakeholders from all sectors 
strongly support consensual rulemaking efforts like negotiated 
rulemaking. OSHA believes this process will result in a proposed 
standard whose provisions will effectively protect employees working 
throughout the shipyard. (See OSHA's Notice of Intent to Form a 
Negotiated Rulemaking Committee to Develop a Proposed Rule on Fire 
Protection in Shipyard Employment, 61 FR 28824, June 6, 1996, for a 
detailed explanation of why OSHA is using negotiated rulemaking to 
develop its proposed standard and for general information on the 
negotiated rulemaking process). The goal of this negotiated rulemaking 
is a proposed rule and supporting documentation that all members will 
support.
    The initial meeting of this Advisory Committee was held in 
Portland, Oregon on October 16 and 17, 1996. The members were 
introduced and the negotiated rulemaking process and the legal 
requirements for OSHA rulemaking were explained to them. Ground rules 
for this Committee were adopted. In addition, the Committee set forth 
substantive issues that needed to be resolved, established work groups 
and began discussing scope and application, fire prevention and fire 
fighting.
    The last meeting of this Advisory Committee took place in 
Jacksonville, Florida, February 4 through February 6, 1997. The 
Committee continued with the issues as developed into work groups 
during the first meeting: fire watches, fire response, safe work 
practices, and fire protection.

II. The Key Issues in This Rulemaking

    OSHA expects that key issues to be addressed as part of these 
negotiations will include: scope and application; controls and work 
practices; fire brigades; written fire plans; technological advances; 
costs of fire protection; and appendices.

III. Agenda for the April 8-10, 1997, Meeting

    1. The meeting will be opened and the roll taken.
    2. The minutes from the February 1997, Jacksonville, Florida, 
meeting will be presented for acceptance by the Committee.
    3. The tentative agenda for this meeting will be reviewed and 
changes made, if necessary.
    4. The ``Fire Watches'' work group draft will be presented to the 
Committee.
    5. The ``Scope and Application'' section of the preamble will be 
presented to the Committee for acceptance.
    6. The Work group chairpersons will report on the status of their 
assignments.
    7. The Committee will break into work group sessions as needed 
throughout the meeting.
    8. The Committee will establish the time and date for the next 
meeting.
    The Advisory Committee's Facilitator, relying on the information 
presented to him by OSHA as well as the considerable input from the 
various interests during convening efforts, will identify and present 
other substantive issues to be resolved by this Committee, as time 
permits. OSHA requests that all interested parties bring their 
calendars to facilitate the development of a tentative schedule of 
committee meetings, site visits and work group meetings.

IV. Public Participation

    All interested parties are invited to attend this public meeting at 
the time and place indicated above. No advance registration is 
required. Seating will be available to the public on a first-come, 
first-served basis. Individuals with disabilities wishing to attend 
should contact Ms. Theda Kenney at (202) 219-8061 to obtain appropriate 
accommodations no later than March 21, 1997.
    The Facilitator of the Committee will decide to what extent oral 
presentations by members of the public may be permitted at the meeting. 
Oral presentations may include statements of fact and opinions, but 
shall not include any questioning of the Committee Members or other 
participants unless these questions have been specifically approved by 
the Facilitator.
    Part 1912 of Title 29 of the Code of Federal Regulations will apply 
generally. The reporting requirements of Sec. 1912.33 have been changed 
pursuant to Sec. 1912.42 to help meet the special needs of this 
Committee. Specifically, Sec. 1912.33 requires that verbatim 
transcripts be kept of all advisory committee meetings. Producing a 
coherent transcript requires a certain degree of formality. The 
Assistant Secretary therefore has determined pursuant to Sec. 1912.42 
that such formality might interfere with the free exchange of 
information and ideas during the negotiations, and that the OSH Act 
would be better served by simply requiring detailed minutes of the 
proceedings without a formal transcript.
    Minutes of the meetings and materials prepared for the Committee 
will be available for public inspection at the OSHA Docket Office, N-
2625, 200 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20210; Telephone: 202-
219-7894.
    Any written comments should be directed to Docket No. S-051, and 
sent in quadruplicate to the following address: U.S. Department of 
Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Docket Office, 
Room N-2625, 200 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20210; 
Telephone 202-219-7894.

    Authority: This document was prepared under the direction of 
Greg Watchman, Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational 
Safety and Health, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution 
Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20210, pursuant to section 3 of the 
Negotiated Rulemaking Act of 1990, 104 Stat. 4969, Title 5 U.S.C. 
561 et seq.; and Section 7(b) of the Occupational Safety and Health 
Act of 1970, 84 Stat. 1597, Title 29 U.S.C. 656.

    Signed at Washington, DC, this 10th day of March 1997.
Greg Watchman,
Acting Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. 97-6515 Filed 3-13-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-26-M