IIB 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5522 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 1, 2008 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, 

Labor, and Pensions 

AN ACT 

To require the Secretary of Labor to issue interim and 

final occupational safety and health standards regarding 

worker exposure to combustible dust, 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, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Worker Protection 

3 Against Combustible Dust Explosions and Fires Act of 

4 2008’’. 

5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

6 Congress finds the following: 

7 (1) An emergency exists concerning worker ex8 posure to combustible dust explosions and fires. 

9 (2) 13 workers were killed and more than 60 

10 seriously injured in a catastrophic combustible dust 

11 explosion at Imperial Sugar in Port Wentworth, 

12 Georgia on February 7, 2008. 

13 (3) Following 3 catastrophic dust explosions 

14 that killed 14 workers in 2003, the Chemical Safety 

15 and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) issued a re16 port in November 2006, which identified 281 com17 bustible dust incidents between 1980 and 2005 that 

18 killed 119 workers and injured 718. The CSB con19 cluded that ‘‘combustible dust explosions are a seri20 ous hazard in American industry’’. 

21 (4) A quarter of the explosions occurred at food 

22 industry facilities, including sugar plants. Seventy 

23 additional combustible dust explosions have occurred 

24 since 2005. 

25 (5) Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDSs) often 

26 do not adequately address the hazards of combusVerDate Aug 31 2005 03:40 May 02, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5522.RFS H5522

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1 tible dusts, and the OSHA Hazard Communication 

2 Standard (HCS) inadequately addresses dust explo3 sion hazards and fails to ensure that safe work prac4 tices and guidance documents are included in 

5 MSDSs. 

6 (6) The CSB recommended that OSHA issue a 

7 standard designed to prevent combustible dust fires 

8 and explosions in general industry, based on current 

9 National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) dust 

10 explosion standards. 

11 (7) The CSB also recommended that OSHA re12 vise the Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) 

13 (1910.1200) to clarify that combustible dusts are 

14 covered and that Material Safety Data Sheets con15 tain information about the hazards and physical 

16 properties of combustible dusts. 

17 (8) OSHA has not initiated rulemaking in re18 sponse to the CSB’s recommendation. 

19 (9) OSHA issued a grain handling facilities 

20 standard (29 C.F.R. 1910.272), in 1987 that has 

21 proven highly effective in reducing the risk of com22 bustible grain dust explosions, according to an 

23 OSHA evaluation. 

24 (10) No Occupational Safety and Health Ad25 ministration standard comprehensively addresses 


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1 combustible dust explosion hazards in general indus2 try. 

3 (11) Voluntary National Fire Protection Asso4 ciation standards exist which, when implemented, ef5 fectively reduce the likelihood and impact of combus6 tible dust explosions. 

7 SEC. 3. ISSUANCE OF STANDARD ON COMBUSTIBLE DUST. 

8 (a) INTERIM STANDARD.— 

9 (1) APPLICATION AND RULEMAKING.—Notwith10 standing any other provision of law, not later than 

11 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

12 Secretary of Labor shall promulgate an interim final 

13 standard regulating combustible dusts. The interim 

14 final standard shall, at a minimum, apply to manu15 facturing, processing, blending, conveying, repack16 aging, and handling of combustible particulate solids 

17 and their dusts, including organic dusts (such as 

18 sugar, candy, paper, soap, and dried blood), plastics, 

19 sulfur, wood, rubber, furniture, textiles, pesticides, 

20 pharmaceuticals, fibers, dyes, coal, metals (such as 

21 aluminum, chromium, iron, magnesium, and zinc), 

22 fossil fuels, and others determined by the Secretary, 

23 but shall not apply to processes already covered by 

24 OSHA’s standard on grain facilities (29 C.F.R. 

25 1910.272). 


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1 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—The interim final stand2 ard required under this subsection shall include the 

3 following: 

4 (A) Requirements for hazard assessment to 

5 identify, evaluate, and control combustible dust 

6 hazards. 

7 (B) Requirements for a written program 

8 that includes provisions for hazardous dust in9 spection, testing, hot work, ignition control, and 

10 housekeeping, including the frequency and 

11 method or methods used to minimize accumula12 tions of combustible dust on ledges, floors, 

13 equipment, and other exposed surfaces. 

14 (C) Requirements for engineering controls 

15 (which requirements shall be effective 6 months 

16 after the date on which the interim standard is 

17 issued), administrative controls, and operating 

18 procedures, such as means to control fugitive 

19 dust emissions and ignition sources, the safe 

20 use and maintenance of dust producing and 

21 dust collection systems and filters, minimizing 

22 horizontal surfaces where dust can accumulate, 

23 and sealing of areas inaccessible to house24 keeping. 


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1 (D) Requirements for housekeeping to pre2 vent accumulation of combustible dust in places 

3 of employment in such depths that it can 

4 present explosion, deflagration, or other fire 

5 hazards, including safe methods of dust re6 moval. 

7 (E) Requirements for employee participa8 tion in hazard assessment, development of and 

9 compliance with the written program, and other 

10 elements of hazard management. 

11 (F) Requirements to provide written safety 

12 and health information and annual training to 

13 employees, including housekeeping procedures, 

14 hot work procedures, preventive maintenance 

15 procedures, common ignition sources, and lock16 out, tag-out procedures. 

17 (3) PROCEDURE.—The requirements in this 

18 subsection shall take effect without regard to the 

19 procedural requirements applicable to regulations 

20 promulgated under section 6(b) of the Occupational 

21 Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 655(b)) 

22 or the procedural requirements of chapter 5 of title 

23 5, United States Code. 

24 (4) EFFECTIVE DATE OF INTERIM STAND25 ARD.—Except as specified in paragraph (2)(C) with 


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1 regards to engineering controls, the interim final 

2 standard shall take effect 30 days after issuance. 

3 The interim final standard shall have the legal effect 

4 of an occupational safety and health standard, and 

5 shall apply until a final standard becomes effective 

6 under section 6 of the Occupational Safety and 

7 Health Act (29 U.S.C. 655). 

8 (b) FINAL STANDARD.— 

9 (1) RULEMAKING.—Not later than 18 months 

10 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec11 retary of Labor shall, pursuant to section 6 of the 

12 Occupational Safety and Health Act (29 U.S.C. 

13 655), promulgate a final standard regulating com14 bustible dust explosions. 

15 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—The final standard re16 quired under this subsection shall include the fol17 lowing: 

18 (A) The scope described in subsection 

19 (a)(1). 

20 (B) The worker protection provisions in 

21 subsection (a)(2). 

22 (C) Requirements for managing change of 

23 dust producing materials, technology, equip24 ment, staffing, and procedures. 


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1 (D) Requirements for building design such 

2 as explosion venting, ducting, and sprinklers. 

3 (E) Requirements for explosion protection, 

4 including separation and segregation of the haz5 ard. 

6 (F) Relevant and appropriate provisions of 

7 National Fire Protection Association combus8 tible dust standards. 

9 (3) PROCEDURE.—The final standard required 

10 by this subsection shall be promulgated in accord11 ance with the procedural requirements for rule12 making under section 6(b) of the Occupational Safe13 ty and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 655(b)) and 

14 under title 5, United States Code, including the re15 quirements relating to small businesses in chapter 6 

16 of such title. 

17 SEC. 4. REVISION OF THE HAZARD COMMUNICATION 

18 STANDARD. 

19 (a) REVISION REQUIRED.—Notwithstanding any 

20 other provision of law, not later than 6 months after the 

21 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Labor shall 

22 revise the hazard communication standard in section 

23 1910.1200 of title 29, Code of Federal Regulations, by 

24 amending the definition of ‘‘physical hazard’’ in subsection 


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1 (c) of such section to include ‘‘a combustible dust’’ as an 

2 additional example of such a hazard. 

3 (b) EFFECT OF MODIFICATIONS.—The modification 

4 under this section shall be in force until superseded in 

5 whole or in part by regulations promulgated by the Sec6 retary of Labor under section 6(b) of the Occupational 

7 Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 655(b)) and 

8 shall be enforced in the same manner and to the same 

9 extent as any rule or regulation promulgated under section 

10 6(b). 

11 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The modification to the haz12 ard communication standard required shall take effect 

13 within 30 days after the publication of the revised rule. 

Passed the House of Representatives April 30, 2008. 

Attest: LORRAINE C. MILLER, 

Clerk. 


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