I 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 914 

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 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 7, 2017 

Mr. COURTNEY (for himself, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas, Mr. POCAN, Ms. SHEA-PORTER, and 

Ms. TITUS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce 

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. 

TITLE I—COVERAGE OF PUBLIC EMPLOYEES, AUTHORIZED EMPLOYEE REPRESENTATIVES, VOLUNTARY EMERGENCY RESPONDERS, AND APPLICATION OF ACT 

Sec. 101. Coverage of public employees. 

Sec. 102. Authorized employee representatives. 

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 TITLE I—COVERAGE OF PUBLIC 

2 EMPLOYEES, AUTHORIZED 

3 EMPLOYEE REPRESENTA4 TIVES, VOLUNTARY EMER5 GENCY RESPONDERS, AND 

6 APPLICATION OF ACT 

7 SEC. 101. COVERAGE OF PUBLIC EMPLOYEES. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 3(5) of the Occupational 

9 Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 652(5)) is 

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

11 follows through the period at the end and inserting ‘‘in12 cluding the United States, a State, or a political subdivi13 sion of a State.’’. 

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

15 construed to affect the application of section 18 of the Oc16 cupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 

17 667). 

18 SEC. 102. AUTHORIZED EMPLOYEE REPRESENTATIVES. 

19 Section 3 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 

20 of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 652) is amended by adding at the end 

21 the following: 

22 ‘‘(15) AUTHORIZED EMPLOYEE REPRESENTA23 TIVE.—The term ‘authorized employee representa24 tive’— 


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1 ‘‘(A) means any person or organization 

2 that for the purposes of this Act represents not 

3 less than one employee at an establishment, fac4 tory, plant, construction site, or other work5 place, or other environment where work is per6 formed by an employee for an employer; and 

7 ‘‘(B) includes a representative authorized 

8 by employees, a representative of employees, or 

9 any other representative of an employee under 

10 this Act.’’. 

11 SEC. 103. APPLICATION OF ACT. 

12 Section 4(b) of the Occupational Safety and Health 

13 Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 653(b)(1)) is amended— 

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

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

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

17 following: 

18 ‘‘(1) If a Federal agency has promulgated and is en19 forcing a standard or regulation affecting occupational 

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

21 that agency’s regulatory jurisdiction, and the Secretary 

22 determines that such a standard or regulation as promul23 gated and the manner in which the standard or regulation 

24 is being enforced provides protection to those employees 

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


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1 those employees by this Act and the Secretary’s enforce2 ment of this Act, the Secretary may publish a certification 

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

4 that determination and the reasons for the determination 

5 and certify that the Secretary has ceded jurisdiction to 

6 that Federal agency with respect to the specified standard 

7 or regulation affecting occupational safety or health. In 

8 determining whether to cede jurisdiction to a Federal 

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

10 and conflicts between, health and safety requirements. 

11 Such certification shall remain in effect unless and until 

12 rescinded by the Secretary. 

13 ‘‘(2) The Secretary shall, by regulation, establish pro14 cedures by which any person who may be adversely af15 fected by a decision of the Secretary certifying that the 

16 Secretary has ceded jurisdiction to another Federal agency 

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

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

19 receipt of such a petition, the Secretary shall investigate 

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

21 of the petition, publish a decision with respect to the peti22 tion in the Federal Register. 

23 ‘‘(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) of the 

24 Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 

25 660(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 of such Act (29 U.S.C. 660(c)) is amended by striking 

25 paragraph (2) and inserting the following: 


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1 ‘‘(2) PROHIBITION OF RETALIATION.—(A) No 

2 person shall discharge, or cause to be discharged, or 

3 in any manner discriminate against, or cause to be 

4 discriminated against, an employee for refusing to 

5 perform the employee’s duties if the employee has a 

6 reasonable apprehension that performing such duties 

7 would result in serious injury to, or serious impair8 ment of the health of, the employee or other employ9 ees. 

10 ‘‘(B) For purposes of subparagraph (A), the 

11 circumstances causing the employee’s good-faith be12 lief that performing such duties would pose a safety 

13 or health hazard shall be of such a nature that a 

14 reasonable person, under the circumstances con15 fronting the employee, would conclude that there is 

16 such a hazard. In order to qualify for protection 

17 under this paragraph, the employee, when prac18 ticable, shall have communicated or attempted to 

19 communicate the safety or health concern to the em20 ployer and have not received from the employer a re21 sponse reasonably calculated to allay such concern.’’. 

22 (c) PROCEDURE.—Section 11(c) of such Act (29 

23 U.S.C. 660(c)) is amended by striking paragraph (3) and 

24 inserting the following: 


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

2 that the employee has been discharged, disciplined, 

3 or otherwise discriminated against by any person in 

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

5 such violation by filing a complaint with the Sec6 retary under paragraph (5). 

7 ‘‘(4) STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.— 

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

9 the action permitted by paragraph (3)(A) not 

10 later than 180 days after the later of— 

11 ‘‘(i) the date on which an alleged vio12 lation of paragraph (1) or (2) occurs; or 

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

14 knows or should reasonably have known 

15 that such alleged violation occurred. 

16 ‘‘(B) REPEAT VIOLATION.—Except in 

17 cases when the employee has been discharged, 

18 a violation of paragraph (1) or (2) shall be con19 sidered to have occurred on the last date an al20 leged repeat violation occurred. 

21 ‘‘(5) INVESTIGATION.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An employee may, 

23 within the time period required under para24 graph (4)(B), file a complaint with the Sec25 retary alleging a violation of paragraph (1) or 


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

2 the Secretary shall conduct an investigation of 

3 the allegations in the complaint, which— 

4 ‘‘(i) shall include— 

5 ‘‘(I) interviewing the complain6 ant; 

7 ‘‘(II) providing the respondent an 

8 opportunity to— 

9 ‘‘(aa) submit to the Sec10 retary a written response to the 

11 complaint; and 

12 ‘‘(bb) meet with the Sec13 retary to present statements from 

14 witnesses or provide evidence; 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(III) providing the complainant 

17 an opportunity to— 

18 ‘‘(aa) receive any statements 

19 or evidence provided to the Sec20 retary; 

21 ‘‘(bb) meet with the Sec22 retary; and 

23 ‘‘(cc) rebut any statements 

24 or evidence; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) may include issuing subpoenas 

2 for the purposes of such investigation. 

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

4 after the filing of the complaint, the Secretary 

5 shall— 

6 ‘‘(i) determine whether reasonable 

7 cause exists to believe that a violation of 

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

9 ‘‘(ii) issue a decision granting or de10 nying relief. 

11 ‘‘(6) PRELIMINARY ORDER FOLLOWING INVES12 TIGATION.—If, after completion of an investigation 

13 under paragraph (5)(A), the Secretary finds reason14 able cause to believe that a violation of paragraph 

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

16 preliminary order providing relief authorized under 

17 paragraph (14) at the same time the Secretary 

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

19 novo hearing is not requested within the time period 

20 required under paragraph (7)(A)(i), such prelimi21 nary order shall be deemed a final order of the Sec22 retary and is not subject to judicial review. 

23 ‘‘(7) HEARING.— 

24 ‘‘(A) REQUEST FOR HEARING.— 


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

2 on the record before an administrative law 

3 judge may be requested— 

4 ‘‘(I) by the complainant or re5 spondent within 30 days after receiv6 ing notification of a decision granting 

7 or denying relief issued under para8 graph (5)(B) or paragraph (6) respec9 tively; 

10 ‘‘(II) by the complainant within 

11 30 days after the date the complaint 

12 is dismissed without investigation by 

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

14 or 

15 ‘‘(III) by the complainant within 

16 120 days after the date of filing the 

17 complaint, if the Secretary has not 

18 issued a decision under paragraph 

19 (5)(B). 

20 ‘‘(ii) REINSTATEMENT ORDER.—The 

21 request for a hearing shall not operate to 

22 stay any preliminary reinstatement order 

23 issued under paragraph (6). 

24 ‘‘(B) PROCEDURES.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—A hearing re2 quested under this paragraph shall be con3 ducted expeditiously and in accordance 

4 with rules established by the Secretary for 

5 hearings conducted by administrative law 

6 judges. 

7 ‘‘(ii) SUBPOENAS; PRODUCTION OF

8 EVIDENCE.—In conducting any such hear9 ing, the administrative law judge may issue 

10 subpoenas. The respondent or complainant 

11 may request the issuance of subpoenas 

12 that require the deposition of, or the at13 tendance and testimony of, witnesses and 

14 the production of any evidence (including 

15 any books, papers, documents, or record16 ings) relating to the matter under consid17 eration. 

18 ‘‘(iii) DECISION.—The administrative 

19 law judge shall issue a decision not later 

20 than 90 days after the date on which a 

21 hearing was requested under this para22 graph and promptly notify, in writing, the 

23 parties and the Secretary of such decision, 

24 including the findings of fact and conclu25 sions of law. If the administrative law 


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1 judge finds that a violation of paragraph 

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

3 issue an order for relief under paragraph 

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

5 timely requested, such order shall be 

6 deemed a final order of the Secretary that 

7 is not subject to judicial review. 

8 ‘‘(8) ADMINISTRATIVE APPEAL.— 

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

10 days after the date of notification of a decision 

11 and order issued by an administrative law judge 

12 under paragraph (7), the complainant or re13 spondent may file, with objections, an adminis14 trative appeal with an administrative review 

15 body designated by the Secretary (referred to in 

16 this paragraph as the ‘review board’). 

17 ‘‘(B) STANDARD OF REVIEW.—In review18 ing the decision and order of the administrative 

19 law judge, the review board shall affirm the de20 cision and order if it is determined that the fac21 tual findings set forth therein are supported by 

22 substantial evidence and the decision and order 

23 are made in accordance with applicable law. 

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

25 grants an administrative appeal, the review 


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1 board shall issue a final decision and order af2 firming or reversing, in whole or in part, the 

3 decision under review by not later than 90 days 

4 after receipt of the administrative appeal. If it 

5 is determined that a violation of paragraph (1) 

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

7 a final decision and order providing relief au8 thorized under paragraph (14). Such decision 

9 and order shall constitute final agency action 

10 with respect to the matter appealed. 

11 ‘‘(9) SETTLEMENT IN THE ADMINISTRATIVE

12 PROCESS.— 

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

14 issuance of a final order, an investigation or 

15 proceeding under this subsection may be termi16 nated on the basis of a settlement agreement 

17 entered into by the parties. 

18 ‘‘(B) PUBLIC POLICY CONSIDERATIONS.— 

19 Neither the Secretary, an administrative law 

20 judge, nor the review board conducting a hear21 ing under this subsection shall accept a settle22 ment that contains conditions conflicting with 

23 the rights protected under this Act or that are 

24 contrary to public policy, including a restriction 

25 on a complainant’s right to future employment 


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1 with employers other than the specific employ2 ers named in a complaint. 

3 ‘‘(10) INACTION BY THE REVIEW BOARD OR AD4 MINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE.— 

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

6 bring a de novo action described in subpara7 graph (B) if— 

8 ‘‘(i) an administrative law judge has 

9 not issued a decision and order within the 

10 90-day time period required under para11 graph (7)(B)(iii); or 

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

13 a decision and order within the 90-day 

14 time period required under paragraph 

15 (8)(C). 

16 ‘‘(B) DE NOVO ACTION.—Such de novo ac17 tion may be brought at law or equity in the 

18 United States district court for the district 

19 where a violation of paragraph (1) or (2) alleg20 edly occurred or where the complainant resided 

21 on the date of such alleged violation. The court 

22 shall have jurisdiction over such action without 

23 regard to the amount in controversy and to 

24 order appropriate relief under paragraph (14). 

25 Such action shall, at the request of either party 


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

2 jury. 

3 ‘‘(11) JUDICIAL REVIEW.— 

4 ‘‘(A) TIMELY APPEAL TO THE COURT OF

5 APPEALS.—Any party adversely affected or ag6 grieved by a final decision and order issued 

7 under this subsection may obtain review of such 

8 decision and order in the United States Court 

9 of Appeals for the circuit where the violation, 

10 with respect to which such final decision and 

11 order was issued, allegedly occurred or where 

12 the complainant resided on the date of such al13 leged violation. To obtain such review, a party 

14 shall file a petition for review not later than 60 

15 days after the final decision and order was 

16 issued. Such review shall conform to chapter 7 

17 of title 5, United States Code. The commence18 ment of proceedings under this subparagraph 

19 shall not, unless ordered by the court, operate 

20 as a stay of the final decision and order. 

21 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION ON COLLATERAL AT22 TACK.—An order and decision with respect to 

23 which review may be obtained under subpara24 graph (A) shall not be subject to judicial review 

25 in any criminal or other civil proceeding. 


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1 ‘‘(12) ENFORCEMENT OF ORDER.—If a re2 spondent fails to comply with an order issued under 

3 this subsection, the Secretary or the complainant on 

4 whose behalf the order was issued may file a civil ac5 tion for enforcement in the United States district 

6 court for the district in which the violation was 

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

8 Secretary and the complainant file such action, the 

9 action of the Secretary shall take precedence. The 

10 district court shall have jurisdiction to grant all ap11 propriate relief described in paragraph (14). 

12 ‘‘(13) BURDENS OF PROOF.— 

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

14 making a determination or adjudicating a com15 plaint pursuant to this subsection, the Sec16 retary, administrative law judge, review board, 

17 or a court may determine that a violation of 

18 paragraph (1) or (2) has occurred only if the 

19 complainant demonstrates that any conduct de20 scribed in paragraph (1) or (2) with respect to 

21 the complainant was a contributing factor in 

22 the adverse action alleged in the complaint. 

23 ‘‘(B) PROHIBITION.—Notwithstanding sub24 paragraph (A), a decision or order that is favor25 able to the complainant shall not be issued in 


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1 any administrative or judicial action pursuant 

2 to this subsection if the respondent dem3 onstrates by clear and convincing evidence that 

4 the respondent would have taken the same ad5 verse action in the absence of such conduct. 

6 ‘‘(14) RELIEF.— 

7 ‘‘(A) ORDER FOR RELIEF.—If the Sec8 retary, administrative law judge, review board, 

9 or a court determines that a violation of para10 graph (1) or (2) has occurred, the Secretary, 

11 administrative law judge, review board, or 

12 court, respectively, shall have jurisdiction to 

13 order all appropriate relief, including injunctive 

14 relief, compensatory and exemplary damages, 

15 including— 

16 ‘‘(i) affirmative action to abate the 

17 violation; 

18 ‘‘(ii) reinstatement without loss of po19 sition or seniority, and restoration of the 

20 terms, rights, conditions, and privileges as21 sociated with the complainant’s employ22 ment, including opportunities for pro23 motions to positions with equivalent or bet24 ter compensation for which the complain25 ant is qualified; 


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1 ‘‘(iii) compensatory and consequential 

2 damages sufficient to make the complain3 ant whole, (including back pay, prejudg4 ment interest, and other damages); and 

5 ‘‘(iv) expungement of all warnings, 

6 reprimands, or derogatory references that 

7 have been placed in paper or electronic 

8 records or databases of any type relating 

9 to the actions by the complainant that 

10 gave rise to the unfavorable personnel ac11 tion, and, at the complainant’s direction, 

12 transmission of a copy of the decision on 

13 the complaint to any person whom the 

14 complainant reasonably believes may have 

15 received such unfavorable information. 

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

17 the Secretary or an administrative law judge, 

18 review board, or court grants an order for relief 

19 under subparagraph (A), the Secretary, admin20 istrative law judge, review board, or court, re21 spectively, shall assess, at the request of the 

22 employee against the employer— 

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

24 ‘‘(ii) costs (including expert witness 

25 fees) reasonably incurred, as determined 


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1 by the Secretary, administrative law judge, 

2 review board, or court, respectively, in con3 nection with bringing the complaint upon 

4 which the order was issued. 

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

6 remedies provided for in this subsection may not be 

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

8 of employment, including by any pre-dispute arbitra9 tion agreement or collective bargaining agreement. 

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

11 shall be construed to diminish the rights, privileges, 

12 or remedies of any employee who exercises rights 

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

14 under any collective bargaining agreement. 

15 ‘‘(17) ELECTION OF VENUE.— 

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

17 employer who is located in a State that has a 

18 State plan approved under section 18 may file 

19 a complaint alleging a violation of paragraph 

20 (1) or (2) by such employer with— 

21 ‘‘(i) the Secretary under paragraph 

22 (5); or 

23 ‘‘(ii) a State plan administrator in 

24 such State. 

25 ‘‘(B) REFERRALS.—If— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the Secretary receives a complaint 

2 pursuant to subparagraph (A)(i), the Sec3 retary shall not refer such complaint to a 

4 State plan administrator for resolution; or 

5 ‘‘(ii) a State plan administrator re6 ceives a complaint pursuant to subpara7 graph (A)(ii), the State plan administrator 

8 shall not refer such complaint to the Sec9 retary for resolution.’’. 

10 (d) RELATION TO ENFORCEMENT.—Section 17(j) of 

11 such Act (29 U.S.C. 666(j)) is amended by inserting be12 fore the period the following: ‘‘, including the history of 

13 violations under section 11(c)’’. 

14 TITLE III—IMPROVING REPORT15 ING, INSPECTION, AND EN16 FORCEMENT 

17 SEC. 301. GENERAL DUTY OF EMPLOYERS. 

18 Section 5 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 

19 of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 654(a)(1)) is amended— 

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

21 (1) to read as follows: 

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

23 employment that are free from recognized hazards 

24 that are causing or are likely to cause death or seri25 ous physical harm and that the employer creates or 


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1 controls or to which the employer exposes any em2 ployee of the employer or any other person per3 forming work at the place of employment; and’’; and 

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

6 ‘‘(c) Each employee or other person exposed to a haz7 ard in violation of subsection (a) may constitute a separate 

8 violation.’’. 

9 SEC. 302. OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH STAND10 ARDS. 

11 Section 6 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 

12 of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 655) is amended— 

13 (1) in subsection (a)— 

14 (A) by striking ‘‘Without regard’’ and in15 serting ‘‘(1) Without regard’’; 

16 (B) by striking ‘‘chapter 5’’ and inserting 

17 ‘‘chapters 5 and 6’’; 

18 (C) by striking ‘‘shall, as soon as prac19 ticable’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘shall—’’ 

20 ‘‘(A) as soon as practicable’’; 

21 (D) by striking ‘‘In the’’ and inserting the 

22 following: 

23 ‘‘(2) In the’’; 

24 (E) by striking ‘‘designated employees.’’ 

25 and inserting ‘‘designated employees; and’’; 


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1 (F) by adding at the end of paragraph (1) 

2 (as designated by subparagraph (A)) the fol3 lowing: 

4 ‘‘(B) not later than 2 years after the effec5 tive date of section 601(a) of the Protecting 

6 America’s Workers Act, by rule update any na7 tional consensus standard that has been pro8 mulgated or incorporated by reference pursuant 

9 to this subsection, except that such a standard 

10 shall not be updated pursuant to this subpara11 graph, if— 

12 ‘‘(i) the standard has been superseded 

13 by a standard promulgated pursuant to 

14 subsection (b); or 

15 ‘‘(ii) the Secretary determines such 

16 update would not result in improved health 

17 or safety for specifically designated em18 ployees.’’; and 

19 (G) in paragraph (2) (as designated by 

20 subparagraph (D)), by inserting ‘‘including na21 tional consensus standards, or in the event of a 

22 consolidation of national consensus standards,’’ 

23 after ‘‘conflict among any such standards,’’; 

24 and 

25 (2) by adding at the end the following: 


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

2 under this Act shall reduce the protection afforded by an 

3 existing health or safety standard, rule, regulation, or na4 tional consensus standard.’’. 

5 SEC. 303. POSTING OF EMPLOYEE RIGHTS. 

6 Section 8(c)(1) f the Occupational Safety and Health 

7 Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 657(c)(1)) is amended by adding 

8 at the end the following new sentence: ‘‘Such regulations 

9 shall include provisions requiring employers to post for 

10 employees information on the protections afforded under 

11 section 11(c).’’. 

12 SEC. 304. EMPLOYER REPORTING OF WORK-RELATED INJU13 RIES, ILLNESSES, DEATHS AND HOSPITALIZA14 TIONS; PROHIBITION ON DISCOURAGING EM15 PLOYEE REPORTING. 

16 Section 8(c)(2) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 657(c)(2)) is 

17 amended by adding at the end the following new sen18 tences: ‘‘Such regulations shall require site-controlling em19 ployers to keep a site log for all recordable injuries and 

20 illnesses occurring among all employees on the particular 

21 site, including employees of the site-controlling employer 

22 or others who are performing work at the particular site 

23 (including independent contractors). Such regulations 

24 shall require employers to promptly notify the Secretary 

25 of any work-related death or work-related injury or illness 


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1 that results in the in-patient hospitalization of an em2 ployee for medical treatment, amputation, or loss of an 

3 eye, and shall prohibit the employer from adopting or im4 plementing policies or practices by the employer that have 

5 the effect of discouraging accurate recordkeeping and the 

6 reporting of work-related injuries or illnesses by any em7 ployee or in any manner discriminates or provides for ad8 verse action against any employee for reporting a work9 related injury or illness. For purposes of this paragraph, 

10 the term ‘site-controlling employer’ means the employer 

11 that has primary control over a work site at which employ12 ees of more than one employer work, such as by hiring 

13 or coordinating the work of other employers working at 

14 the site.’’. 

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

16 Section 8(e) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 657(e)) is 

17 amended by inserting after the first sentence the fol18 lowing: ‘‘Time spent by an employee participating in or 

19 aiding any such inspection shall be deemed to be hours 

20 worked and no employee shall suffer any loss of wages, 

21 benefits, or other terms and conditions of employment for 

22 having participated in or aided any such inspection.’’. 


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

3 Section 8 of such Act (29 U.S.C. 657) is amended 

4 by adding at the end the following new subsection: 

5 ‘‘(i) INVESTIGATION OF FATALITIES AND SERIOUS

6 INCIDENTS.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall inves8 tigate any significant incident or an incident result9 ing in death that occurs in a place of employment. 

10 ‘‘(2) EVIDENCE PRESERVATION.—If a signifi11 cant incident or an incident resulting in death oc12 curs in a place of employment, the employer shall 

13 promptly notify the Secretary of the incident in14 volved and shall take appropriate measures to pre15 vent the destruction or alteration of any evidence 

16 that would assist in investigating the incident. The 

17 appropriate measures required by this paragraph do 

18 not prevent an employer from taking action on a 

19 worksite to prevent injury to employees or substan20 tial damage to property or to avoid disruption of es21 sential services necessary to public safety, provided 

22 that if an employer takes such action, the employer 

23 shall notify the Secretary of the action in a timely 

24 fashion. 

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


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1 ‘‘(A) INCIDENT RESULTING IN DEATH.— 

2 The term ‘incident resulting in death’ means an 

3 incident that results in the death of an em4 ployee. 

5 ‘‘(B) SIGNIFICANT INCIDENT.—The term 

6 ‘significant incident’ means an incident that re7 sults in the in-patient hospitalization of 2 or 

8 more employees for medical treatment.’’. 

9 SEC. 307. PROHIBITION ON UNCLASSIFIED CITATIONS. 

10 Section 9 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 

11 of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 658) is amended by adding at the end 

12 the following: 

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

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

15 designation enumerated in section 17 with respect to such 

16 violation.’’. 

17 SEC. 308. VICTIMS’ RIGHTS. 

18 The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 is 

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

20 following: 

21 ‘‘SEC. 9A. VICTIMS’ RIGHTS. 

22 ‘‘(a) RIGHTS BEFORE THE SECRETARY.—A victim or 

23 the representative of a victim, shall be afforded the right, 

24 with respect to an inspection or investigation conducted 

25 under section 8 to— 


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1 ‘‘(1) meet with the Secretary regarding the in2 spection or investigation conducted under such sec3 tion before the Secretary’s decision to issue a cita4 tion or take no action; 

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

6 or report, issued as a result of such inspection or in7 vestigation, at the same time as the employer re8 ceives such citation or report; 

9 ‘‘(3) be informed of any notice of contest or ad10 dition of parties to the proceedings filed under sec11 tion 10(c); and 

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

13 time or any proceedings, service of pleadings, and 

14 other relevant documents, and an explanation of the 

15 rights of the employer, employee and employee rep16 resentative, and victim to participate in proceedings 

17 conducted under section 10(c). 

18 ‘‘(b) RIGHTS BEFORE THE COMMISSION.—Upon re19 quest, a victim or representative of a victim shall be af20 forded the right with respect to a work-related bodily in21 jury or death to— 

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

23 proceeding before the Commission; 

24 ‘‘(2) receive pleadings and any decisions relat25 ing to the proceedings; and 


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

2 make a statement in accordance with the rules pre3 scribed by the Commission. 

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

5 into an agreement to withdraw or modify a citation issued 

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

7 under section 8, the Secretary shall notify a victim or rep8 resentative of a victim and provide the victim or represent9 ative of a victim with an opportunity to appear and make 

10 a statement before the parties conducting settlement nego11 tiations. In lieu of an appearance, the victim or represent12 ative of the victim may elect to submit a letter to the Sec13 retary and the parties. 

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

15 establish procedures— 

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

17 section; and 

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

19 denial of such a right. 

20 ‘‘(e) COMMISSION PROCEDURES AND CONSIDER21 ATIONS.—The Commission shall— 

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

23 of victims to be heard in proceedings before the 

24 Commission; and 


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1 ‘‘(2) in rendering any decision, provide due con2 sideration to any statement or information provided 

3 by any victim before the Commission. 

4 ‘‘(f) FAMILY LIAISONS.—The Secretary shall des5 ignate at least 1 employee at each area office of the Occu6 pational Safety and Health Administration to serve as a 

7 family liaison to— 

8 ‘‘(1) keep victims informed of the status of in9 vestigations, enforcement actions, and settlement ne10 gotiations; and 

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

12 under this section. 

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

14 means— 

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

16 who has sustained a work-related injury or illness 

17 that is the subject of an inspection or investigation 

18 conducted under section 8; or 

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

20 the Secretary) of a victim described in paragraph 

21 (1), if— 

22 ‘‘(A) the victim dies as a result of an inci23 dent that is the subject of an inspection or in24 vestigation conducted under section 8; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) the victim sustains a work-related in2 jury or illness that is the subject of an inspec3 tion or investigation conducted under section 8, 

4 and the victim because of incapacity cannot rea5 sonably exercise the rights under this section.’’. 

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

7 Section 10(c) of the Occupational Safety and Health 

8 Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 659(c)) is amended— 

9 (1) in the first sentence— 

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

11 contest a citation issued under section (9)’’ the 

12 following: ‘‘(or a modification of a citation 

13 issued under this section)’’; 

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

15 citation under section 9’’ the following: ‘‘(in16 cluding a modification of a citation issued 

17 under such section)’’; and 

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

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

20 citation fails properly to designate the violation 

21 as serious, willful, or repeated, that the pro22 posed penalty is not adequate, or’’; 

23 (2) by inserting after the first sentence, the fol24 lowing: ‘‘The pendency of a contest before the Com25 mission shall not bar the Secretary from inspecting 


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1 a place of employment or from issuing a citation 

2 under section 9.’’; and 

3 (3) by amending the last sentence— 

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

5 ‘‘Commission shall provide’’; and 

6 (B) by inserting before the period at the 

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

8 citation’’. 

9 SEC. 310. CORRECTION OF SERIOUS, WILLFUL, OR RE10 PEATED VIOLATIONS PENDING CONTEST AND 

11 PROCEDURES FOR A STAY. 

12 Section 10 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 

13 of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 659) is amended by adding at the end 

14 the following: 

15 ‘‘(d) CORRECTION OF SERIOUS, WILLFUL, OR RE16 PEATED VIOLATIONS PENDING CONTEST AND PROCE17 DURES FOR A STAY.— 

18 ‘‘(1) PERIOD PERMITTED FOR CORRECTION OF

19 SERIOUS, WILLFUL, OR REPEATED VIOLATIONS.— 

20 For each violation which the Secretary designates as 

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

22 the correction of the violation shall begin to run 

23 upon receipt of the citation. 

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

25 filing of a notice of contest by an employer— 


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1 ‘‘(A) shall not operate as a stay of the pe2 riod for correction of a violation designated as 

3 serious, willful, or repeated; and 

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

5 for correction of a violation not designated by 

6 the Secretary as serious, willful, or repeated. 

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

8 STAYS.— 

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

10 that receives a citation alleging a violation des11 ignated as serious, willful, or repeated and that 

12 files a notice of contest to the citation asserting 

13 that the time set for abatement of the alleged 

14 violation is unreasonable or challenging the ex15 istence of the alleged violation may file with the 

16 Commission a motion to stay the period for the 

17 abatement of the violation. 

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

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

20 filed under subparagraph (A), the Commission 

21 may grant a stay only if the employer has dem22 onstrated— 

23 ‘‘(i) a substantial likelihood of success 

24 on the areas contested under subparagraph 

25 (A); and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) that a stay will not adversely af2 fect the health and safety of workers. 

3 ‘‘(C) RULES OF PROCEDURE.—The Com4 mission shall develop rules of procedure for con5 ducting a hearing on a motion filed under sub6 paragraph (A) on an expedited basis. At a min7 imum, such rules shall provide: 

8 ‘‘(i) That a hearing before an admin9 istrative law judge shall occur not later 

10 than 15 days following the filing of the 

11 motion for a stay (unless extended at the 

12 request of the employer), and shall provide 

13 for a decision on the motion not later than 

14 15 days following the hearing (unless ex15 tended at the request of the employer). 

16 ‘‘(ii) That a decision of an administra17 tive law judge on a motion for stay is ren18 dered on a timely basis. 

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

20 a decision issued by an administrative law 

21 judge regarding the stay, such party has 

22 the right to file an objection with the Com23 mission not later than 5 days after receipt 

24 of the administrative law judge’s decision. 

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1 tion, a Commissioner, if a quorum is seat2 ed pursuant to section 12(f), shall decide 

3 whether to grant review of the objection. 

4 If, within 10 days after receipt of the ob5 jection, no decision is made on whether to 

6 review the decision of the administrative 

7 law judge, the Commission declines to re8 view such decision, or no quorum is seated, 

9 the decision of the administrative law 

10 judge shall become a final order of the 

11 Commission. If the Commission grants re12 view of the objection, the Commission shall 

13 issue a decision regarding the stay not 

14 later than 30 days after receipt of the ob15 jection. If the Commission fails to issue 

16 such decision within 30 days, the decision 

17 of the administrative law judge shall be18 come a final order of the Commission. 

19 ‘‘(iv) For notification to employees or 

20 representatives of affected employees of re21 quests for such hearings and shall provide 

22 affected employees or representatives of af23 fected employees an opportunity to partici24 pate as parties to such hearings.’’. 


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1 SEC. 311. INACTION BY THE REVIEW COMMISSION. 

2 Section 10 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 

3 of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 659) is further amended by adding 

4 at the end the following: 

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

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A decision or order issued 

7 by an administrative law judge of the Commission 

8 for which a petition for review has been filed in a 

9 timely manner, and for which 1 year after the Com10 mission has accepted such petition and directed that 

11 such petition be reviewed by the Commission, the 

12 Commission has failed to issue a final decision or 

13 order because the Commission lacks a quorum— 

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 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 

25 U.S.C. 659(b)) is amended by inserting ‘‘, with the excepVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:26 Feb 15, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00037 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H914.IH H914

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1 tion of violations designated as serious, willful, or re2 peated,’’ after ‘‘(which period shall not begin to run’’. 

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

4 11(a) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 

5 (29 U.S.C. 660(a)) is amended— 

6 (1) by inserting ‘‘(or the failure of the Commis7 sion, including an administrative law judge, to make 

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

9 review)’’ after ‘‘an order’’; 

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

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

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

13 from a final Commission order regarding a stay 

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

15 (c) FAILURE TO CORRECT VIOLATIONS.—Section 

16 17(d) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 

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

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

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

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

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

22 has not been issued by the Commission under section 

23 10(d)) may be assessed a civil penalty of not more than 

24 $7,000 for each day during which such failure or violation 

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1 lation for which a citation has been issued under section 

2 9(a) of this title within the period permitted for its correc3 tion (which period shall not begin to run until the date 

4 of the final order of the Commission in the case of any 

5 review proceeding under section 10 initiated by the em6 ployer in good faith and not solely for delay of avoidance 

7 of penalties) may be assessed a civil penalty of not more 

8 than $7,000 for each day during which such failure or vio9 lation continues.’’. 

10 SEC. 313. CIVIL PENALTIES. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 17 of the Occupational 

12 Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 666) is amend13 ed— 

14 (1) in subsection (a)— 

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

16 ‘‘$126,749’’; 

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

18 ‘‘$9,054’’; and 

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

20 determining whether a violation is repeated, the 

21 Secretary or the Commission shall consider the 

22 employer’s history of violations under this Act 

23 and under State occupational safety and health 

24 plans established under section 18. If such a 

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1 uted to the death of an employee, such civil 

2 penalty amounts shall be increased to not more 

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

4 less than $50,000 for each such violation, ex5 cept that for an employer with 25 or fewer em6 ployees such penalty shall not be less than 

7 $25,000 for each such violation.’’; 

8 (2) in subsection (b)— 

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

10 ‘‘$12,675’’; and 

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

12 such a violation caused or contributed to the 

13 death of an employee, such civil penalty 

14 amounts shall be increased to not more than 

15 $50,000 for each such violation, but not less 

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

17 that for an employer with 25 or fewer employ18 ees such penalty shall not be less than $10,000 

19 for each such violation.’’; 

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

21 inserting ‘‘$12,675’’; 

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

23 312(c), by striking ‘‘$7,000’’ each place it occurs 

24 and inserting ‘‘$12,675’’; 


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

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

3 through (l) as subsections (l) through (n) respec4 tively; and 

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

6 striking ‘‘$7,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$12,675’’. 

7 (b) INFLATION ADJUSTMENT.—Section 17 is further 

8 amended by inserting after subsection (d) the following: 

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

10 penalties shall be adjusted by the Secretary once each 

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

12 for the percentage increase or decrease in the Consumer 

13 Price Index for all urban consumers during such period, 

14 consistent with the requirements of the Federal Civil Pen15 alties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990 (28 U.S.C. 2461 

16 note).’’. 

17 SEC. 314. CRIMINAL PENALTIES. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 17 of the Occupational 

19 Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 666) (as 

20 amended by section 310) is further amended— 

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

22 by section 310) to read as follows: 

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

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

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


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1 and that violation caused or significantly contributed to 

2 the death of any employee, shall, upon conviction, be pun3 ished by a fine in accordance with title 18, United States 

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

5 both, except that if the conviction is for a violation com6 mitted after a first conviction of such person under this 

7 subsection or subsection (i), punishment shall be by a fine 

8 in accordance title 18, United States Code, or by imprison9 ment for not more than 20 years, or by both. 

10 ‘‘(2) For the purpose of this subsection, the term ‘em11 ployer’ means, in addition to the definition contained in 

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

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

14 by section 310) to read as follows: 

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

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

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

18 conducted under this Act with the intention of impeding, 

19 interfering with, or adversely affecting the results of such 

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

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

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

23 310), by striking ‘‘fine of not more than $10,000, or 

24 by imprisonment for not more than six months,’’ 

25 and inserting ‘‘fine in accordance with title 18, 


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1 United States Code, or by imprisonment for not 

2 more than 5 years,’’; and 

3 (4) by inserting after subsection (j) (as redesig4 nated by section 310) the following: 

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

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

7 any regulation prescribed under this Act, and that viola8 tion caused or significantly contributed to serious bodily 

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

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

11 accordance with title 18, United States Code, or by impris12 onment for not more than 5 years, or by both, except that 

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

14 conviction of such person under this subsection or sub15 section (e), punishment shall be by a fine in accordance 

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

17 not more than 10 years, or by both. 

18 ‘‘(2) For the purpose of this subsection, the term ‘em19 ployer’ means, in addition to the definition contained in 

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

21 ‘‘(3) For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘seri22 ous bodily harm’ means bodily injury or illness that in23 volves— 

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

25 ‘‘(B) protracted unconsciousness; 


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1 ‘‘(C) protracted and obvious physical disfigure2 ment; or 

3 ‘‘(D) protracted loss or impairment, either tem4 porary or permanent, of the function of a bodily 

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

6 (b) JURISDICTION FOR PROSECUTION UNDER STATE

7 AND LOCAL CRIMINAL LAWS.—Such section is further 

8 amended by adding at the end the following: 

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

10 local law enforcement agency from conducting criminal 

11 prosecutions in accordance with the laws of such State or 

12 locality.’’. 

13 SEC. 315. PREJUDGMENT INTEREST. 

14 Section 17(n) of the Occupational Safety and Health 

15 Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 666(n)) (as redesignated by sec16 tion 310) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘Pre-final order interest on such penalties shall begin to 

18 accrue on the date the party contests a citation issued 

19 under this Act, and shall end upon the issuance of the 

20 final order. Such pre-final order interest shall be cal21 culated at the current underpayment rate determined by 

22 the Secretary of the Treasury pursuant to section 6621 

23 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, and shall be com24 pounded daily. Post-final order interest shall begin to ac25 crue 30 days after the date a final order of the CommisVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:26 Feb 15, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00044 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H914.IH H914

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1 sion or the court is issued, and shall be charged at the 

2 rate of 8 percent per year.’’. 

3 TITLE IV—STATE PLANS 

4 SEC. 401. CONCURRENT ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITY AND 

5 REVIEW OF STATE OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY 

6 AND HEALTH PLANS. 

7 Section 18 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 

8 of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 668) is amended— 

9 (1) by amending subsection (f) to read as fol10 lows: 

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

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

13 inspections, make a continuing evaluation of the manner 

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

15 section is carrying out such plan. Such evaluation shall 

16 include an assessment of whether the State continues to 

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

18 any other criteria or indices of effectiveness specified by 

19 the Secretary in regulations. Whenever the Secretary 

20 finds, on the basis of such evaluation, that in the adminis21 tration of the State plan there is a failure to comply sub22 stantially with any provision of the State plan (or any as23 surance contained therein), the Secretary shall make an 

24 initial determination of whether the failure is of such a 

25 nature that the plan should be withdrawn or whether the 


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

2 the opportunity to remedy the deficiencies, and provide no3 tice of the Secretary’s findings and initial determination. 

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

5 to reassert and exercise concurrent enforcement authority 

6 while the State is given an opportunity to remedy the defi7 ciencies, the Secretary shall afford the State an oppor8 tunity for a public hearing within 15 days of such request, 

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

10 after Secretary’s notice to the State. The Secretary shall 

11 review and consider the testimony, evidence, or written 

12 comments, and not later than 30 days following such hear13 ing, make a determination to affirm, reverse, or modify 

14 the Secretary’s initial determination to reassert and exer15 cise concurrent enforcement authority under sections 8, 9, 

16 10, 13, and 17 with respect to standards promulgated 

17 under section 6 and obligations under section 5(a). Fol18 lowing such a determination by the Secretary, or in the 

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

20 timeframe set forth in this paragraph, the Secretary may 

21 reassert and exercise such concurrent enforcement author22 ity, while a final determination is pending under para23 graph (3) or until the Secretary has determined that the 

24 State has remedied the deficiencies as provided under 

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


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1 the Federal Register. The procedures set forth in section 

2 18(g) shall not apply to a determination by the Secretary 

3 to reassert and exercise such concurrent enforcement au4 thority. 

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

6 that the plan should be withdrawn, the Secretary shall 

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

8 based on the evaluation, comments, and evidence, the Sec9 retary makes a final determination that there is a failure 

10 to comply substantially with any provision of the State 

11 plan (or any assurance contained therein), he shall notify 

12 the State agency of the withdrawal of approval of such 

13 plan and upon receipt of such notice such plan shall cease 

14 to be in effect, but the State may retain jurisdiction in 

15 any case commenced before the withdrawal of the plan in 

16 order to enforce standards under the plan whenever the 

17 issues involved do not relate to the reasons for the with18 drawal of the plan. 

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

20 State should be provided the opportunity to remedy the 

21 deficiencies, the Secretary shall provide the State an op22 portunity to respond to the Secretary’s findings and the 

23 opportunity to remedy such deficiencies within a time pe24 riod established by the Secretary, not to exceed 1 year. 

25 The Secretary may extend and revise the time period to 


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

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

3 demonstrates that it is not feasible to correct the defi4 ciencies in the time period set by the Secretary, and the 

5 State has a plan to correct the deficiencies within a rea6 sonable time period. If the Secretary finds that the State 

7 agency has failed to remedy such deficiencies within the 

8 time period specified by the Secretary and that the State 

9 plan continues to fail to comply substantially with a provi10 sion of the State plan, the Secretary shall withdraw the 

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

12 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub13 section: 

14 ‘‘(i) Not later than 18 months after the date of enact15 ment of this subsection, and again 5 years thereafter, the 

16 Comptroller General shall complete and issue a review of 

17 the effectiveness of State plans to develop and enforce 

18 safety and health standards to determine if they are at 

19 least as effective as the Federal program and to evaluate 

20 whether the Secretary’s oversight of State plans is effec21 tive. The Comptroller General’s evaluation shall assess— 

22 ‘‘(1) the effectiveness of the Secretary’s over23 sight of State plans, including the indices of effec24 tiveness used by the Secretary; 


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

2 response to Complaints About State Plan Adminis3 tration (CASPA) are adequate, whether significant 

4 policy issues have been identified by headquarters 

5 and corrective actions are fully implemented by each 

6 State; 

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

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

9 is fair and adequate; and 

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

11 Federal program in preventing occupational injuries, 

12 illnesses and deaths, and investigating discrimina13 tion complaints, through an evaluation of at least 20 

14 percent of approved State plans, and which shall 

15 cover— 

16 ‘‘(A) enforcement effectiveness, including 

17 handling of fatalities, serious incidents and 

18 complaints, compliance with inspection proce19 dures, hazard recognition, verification of abate20 ment, violation classification, citation and pen21 alty issuance, including appropriate use of will22 ful and repeat citations, and employee involve23 ment; 

24 ‘‘(B) inspections, the number of pro25 grammed health and safety inspections at priVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:26 Feb 15, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00049 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H914.IH H914

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1 vate and public sector establishments, and 

2 whether the State targets the highest hazard 

3 private sector work sites and facilities in that 

4 State; 

5 ‘‘(C) budget and staffing, including wheth6 er the State is providing adequate budget re7 sources to hire, train and retain sufficient num8 bers of qualified staff, including timely filling of 

9 vacancies; 

10 ‘‘(D) administrative review, including the 

11 quality of decisions, consistency with Federal 

12 precedence, transparency of proceedings, deci13 sions and records are available to the public, 

14 adequacy of State defense, and whether the 

15 State appropriately appeals adverse decisions; 

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

17 discrimination complaints are processed in a 

18 timely manner, whether supervisors and inves19 tigators are properly trained to investigate dis20 crimination complaints, whether a case file re21 view indicates merit cases are properly identi22 fied consistent with Federal policy and proce23 dure, whether employees are notified of their 

24 rights, and whether there is an effective process 


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1 for employees to appeal the dismissal of a com2 plaint; 

3 ‘‘(F) program administration, including 

4 whether the State’s standards and policies are 

5 at least as effective as the Federal program and 

6 are updated in a timely manner, and whether 

7 National Emphasis Programs that are applica8 ble in such States are adopted and implemented 

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

10 Federal program; 

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

12 requirements for approval set forth in this sec13 tion and its implementing regulations; and 

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

15 Comptroller General, or as requested by the 

16 Committee on Education and the Workforce of 

17 the House of Representatives or the Committee 

18 on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of 

19 the Senate.’’. 

20 SEC. 402. EVALUATION OF REPEATED VIOLATIONS IN 

21 STATE PLANS. 

22 Section 18(c) of the Occupational Safety and Health 

23 Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 668(c)) is amended— 

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

25 inserting a comma; 


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

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

3 (3) by adding after paragraph 8 the following 

4 new paragraph: 

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

6 violation is repeated, the State shall consider the 

7 employer’s violations within the State, in conjunction 

8 with the employer’s history of violations under other 

9 States’ occupational safety and health plans ap10 proved by the Secretary and the employer’s history 

11 of violations in those States where the Secretary has 

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

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

14 TITLE V—NATIONAL INSTITUTE 

15 FOR OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY 

16 AND HEALTH 

17 SEC. 501. HEALTH HAZARD EVALUATIONS BY THE NA18 TIONAL INSTITUTE FOR OCCUPATIONAL 

19 SAFETY AND HEALTH. 

20 Section 20(a)(6) of the Occupational Safety and 

21 Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 669(a)(6)) is amended by 

22 striking the second sentence and inserting the following: 

23 ‘‘The Secretary shall determine following a written request 

24 by any employer, authorized representative of current or 

25 former employees, physician, other Federal agency, or 


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1 State or local health department, specifying with reason2 able particularity the grounds on which the request is 

3 made, whether any substance normally found in the place 

4 of employment has potentially toxic effects in such con5 centrations as used or found or whether any physical 

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

7 potentially hazardous effects; and shall submit such deter8 mination both to employers and affected employees as 

9 soon as possible.’’. 

10 TITLE VI—EFFECTIVE DATE 

11 SEC. 601. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

12 (a) GENERAL RULE.—Except as provided for in sub13 section (b), this Act and the amendments made by this 

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

15 of the enactment of this Act. 

16 (b) EXCEPTION FOR STATES AND POLITICAL SUB17 DIVISIONS.—The following are exceptions to the effective 

18 date described in subsection (a): 

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

20 under section 18 (29 U.S.C. 667) shall amend its 

21 State plan to conform with the requirements of this 

22 Act and the amendments made by this Act not later 

23 than 12 months after the date of the enactment of 

24 this Act. The Secretary of Labor may extend the pe25 riod for a State to make such amendments to its 


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

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

3 month period beginning with the date of the enact4 ment of this Act. Such amendments to the State 

5 plan shall take effect not later than 90 days after 

6 the adoption of such amendments by such State. 

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

8 Act shall take effect not later than 36 months after 

9 the date of the enactment of this Act with respect 

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

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

12 under section 18 (29 U.S.C. 667). 

Æ 


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