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OSHA interpretation · 1996-05-15

The Effect of the 1904 Rulemaking Effort on the De Minimis Citation Policy.

← All interpretations§ 1904

OSHA’s standing caveat

Interpretation letters explain existing requirements and how they apply to particular circumstances, but they cannot create additional employer obligations. Enforcement guidance may be affected by later changes to OSHA rules, and a letter addresses the facts it was given — not necessarily yours.

May 15, 1996 To: OSHA Regional Offices OSHA Area Offices State Plan Designees Consultation Program Designees From: John Miles Director Directorate of Compliance Programs Re: The Effect of the 1904 Rulemaking Effort of the De Minimis Citation Policy The OSHA Field Inspection Reference Manual (FIRM) provides for De Minimis citations in the event that an employer is complying with a proposed standard. This policy should not be applied to the current OSHA proposal for revising the injury and illness recordkeeping system by revising 29 CFR 1904. Furthermore, written or verbal interpretations of the recordkeeping rule should stress the need for employers to continue to use the current system until a final rule to revise the system becomes effective. Until it is replaced, the current system must be maintained to provide nationwide consistency of the records for OSHA, the BLS survey of occupational injury and illnesses, employers and workers. Allowing employers to adopt the proposed system in the interim could result in harm to the Nation's safety and health statistics, and lead to inappropriate comparisons of individual firms with national averages.

Reproduced verbatim from osha.gov. US Government work, public domain (17 U.S.C. § 105).

Other letters on the same sections

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