[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 207 (Thursday, October 27, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62003-62005]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-21480]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

[Docket No. ICR-1218-0195 (2006)]


The Asbestos in Shipyards Standard; Extension of the Office of 
Management and Budget's Approval of Information Collection (Paperwork) 
Requirements

AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Labor.

ACTION: Request for public comments.

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SUMMARY: OSHA solicits public comment concerning its request for an 
extension of the information collection requirements contained in the 
Asbestos in Shipyards Standard (29 CFR 1915.1001). This Standard 
regulates occupational exposure to Asbestos, thereby preventing serious 
illness (e.g., asbestosis, an emphysema-like condition, mesothelioma, 
and gastrointestinal cancer) among shipyard employees.

DATES: Comments must be submitted by the following dates:
    Hard copy: Your comment must be submitted (postmarked or received) 
by December 27, 2005.
    Facsimile and electronic transmission: Your comments must be 
received by December 27, 2005.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by OSHA Docket No. ICR-
1218-0195 (2006), by any of the following methods:
    Regular mail, express delivery, hand delivery, and messenger 
service: Submit your comments and attachments to the OSHA Docket 
Office, Room N-2625, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, 
NW., Washington, DC 20210; telephone (202) 693-2350 (OSHA's TTY number 
is (877) 889-5627). OSHA Docket Office and Department of Labor hours 
are 8:15 a.m. to 4:45 p.m., ET.
    Facsimile: If your comments are 10 pages or fewer in length, 
including attachments, you may fax them to the OSHA Docket Office at 
(202) 693-1648.
    Electronic: You may submit comments through the Internet at http://ecomments.osha.gov. Follow instructions on the OSHA Web page for 
submitting comments.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read or download comments or 
background materials, such as the complete Information Collection 
Request (ICR) (containing the Supporting Statement, OMB-83-I Form, and 
attachments), go to OSHA's Web page at http://www.OSHA.gov. In 
addition, the ICR, comments and

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submissions are available for inspection and copying at the OSHA Docket 
Office at the address above. You may also contact Todd Owen at the 
address below to obtain a copy of the ICR. For additional information 
on submitting comments, please see the ``Public Participation'' heading 
in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Todd Owen, Directorate of Standards 
and Guidance, OSHA, Room N-3609, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20210, telephone: (202) 693-2222.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to reduce 
paperwork and respondent (i.e., employer) burden, conducts a 
preclearance consultation program to provide the public with an 
opportunity to comment on proposed and continuing information 
collection requirements in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act 
of 1995 (PRA-95) (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)).
    This program ensures that information is in the desired format, 
reporting burden (time and costs) is minimal, collection instruments 
are clearly understood, and OSHA's estimate of the information 
collection burden is accurate. The Occupational Safety and Health Act 
of 1970 (the Act) (29 U.S.C. 651 et seq.) authorizes information 
collection by employers as necessary or appropriate for enforcement of 
the Act or for developing information regarding the causes and 
prevention of occupational injuries, illnesses, and accidents (29 
U.S.C. 657).
    On January 5, 2005, OSHA published the Standards Improvement 
Project--Phase II, Final rule (70 FR 1112). The final rule removed and 
revised provisions of standards that were outdated, duplicative, 
unnecessary, or inconsistent and clarified or simplified regulatory 
language. The final rule contained two revisions to collections of 
information contained in the Asbestos in Shipyards Standard. The 
revisions included modifying the time the employer has to provide their 
employees with exposure monitoring results in 29 CFR 
1915.1001(f)(5)(ii) from ``as soon as possible following receipt of the 
results'' to ``as soon as possible but no later than five working days 
after the receipt of the results,'' and removing the requirement to 
send the certification and evaluation documentation required under 
Sec.  1915.1001(g)(6)(iii) to OSHA's Directorate of Technical Support. 
That reduction in burden hours was taken on the prior information 
collection request.
    The information collection requirements specified in the Asbestos 
in Shipyards Standard protect employees from the adverse health effects 
that may result from occupational exposure to Asbestos. The major 
information collection requirements in the Standard include 
implementing an exposure-monitoring program that informs employees of 
their exposure-monitoring results; at multi-employer worksites, 
notification of other onsite employers by employers establishing 
regulated areas for the type of work performed with asbestos-containing 
materials (ACMs) and/or presumed asbestos-containing materials (PACMs), 
the requirements that pertain to regulated areas, and the measures the 
employers can use to protect their employees from asbestos 
overexposure; developing specific information and training programs for 
employees; providing medical surveillance for employees potentially 
exposed to ACMs and/or PACMs, including administering an employee 
medical questionnaire, providing information to the examining 
physician, and providing the physician's written opinion to the 
employee; and maintaining records of objective data used for exposure 
determinations, employee exposure-monitoring and medical surveillance 
records, training records, the record (i.e., information, data, and 
analyses) used to demonstrate that PACM does not contain asbestos, and 
notifications made and received by building/facility owners regarding 
the content of ACMs and PACMs.

II. Special Issues for Comment

    OSHA has a particular interest in comments on the following issues:
    <bullet> Whether the proposed information collection requirements 
are necessary for the proper performance of the Agency's functions, 
including whether the information is useful;
    <bullet> The accuracy of OSHA's estimate of the burden (time and 
costs) of the information collection requirements, including the 
validity of the methodology and assumptions used;
    <bullet> The quality, utility, and clarity of the information 
collected; and
    <bullet> Ways to minimize the burden on employers who must comply; 
for example, by using automated or other technological information 
collection and transmission techniques.

III. Proposed Actions

    OSHA is requesting that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
extend the approval of these collections of information (paperwork) 
requirements necessitated by the Asbestos in Shipyards Standard (29 CFR 
1915.1001). OSHA will summarize the comments submitted in response to 
this notice, and will include this summary in its request to OMB to 
extend its approval of these information collection requirements.
    Type of Review: Extension of currently approved information 
collection requirements.
    Title: Asbestos in Shipyards Standard.
    OMB Number: 1218-0195.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profits; Federal government; 
State, local, or tribal government.
    Number of Respondents: 19.
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Average Time Per Response: Varies from five minutes (.08 hour) to 
maintain records to 17.3 hours for training a competent person.
    Estimated Total Burden Hours: 1,426.
    Estimated Cost (Operation and Maintenance): $33,635.

IV. Public Participation--Submission of Comments on This Notice and 
Internet Access to Comments and Submissions

    You may submit comments and supporting materials in response to 
this notice by (1) hard copy, (2) fax transmission (facsimile), or (3) 
electronically through the OSHA Web page. Because of security-related 
problems, there may be a significant delay in the receipt of comments 
by regular mail. Please contact the OSHA Docket Office at (202) 693-
2350 (TTY (877) 889-5627) for information about security procedures 
concerning the delivery of submissions by express delivery, hand 
delivery, and courier service.
    All comments, submissions and background documents are available 
for inspection and copying at the OSHA Docket Office at the above 
address. Comments and submissions posted on OSHA's Web page are 
available at http://www.OSHA.gov. Contact the OSHA Docket Office for 
information about materials not available through the OSHA Web page and 
for assistance using the Web page to locate docket submissions.
    Electronic copies of this Federal Register notice, as well as other 
relevant documents, are available on OSHA's Web page. Since all 
submissions become public, private information such as social security 
numbers should not be submitted.

V. Authority and Signature

    Jonathan L. Snare, Acting Assistant Security of Labor for 
Occupational Safety and Health, directed the

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preparation of this notice. The authority for this notice is the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3506 et seq.), and Secretary 
of Labor's Order no. 5-2002 (67 FR 65008).

    Dated: Signed at Washington, DC, on October 21, 2005.
Jonathan L. Snare,
Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor.
[FR Doc. 05-21480 Filed 10-26-05; 8:45 am]
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