Washington Column

Map of OSHA regions. Courtesy of OSHA.gov.

OSHA Focusing on Regional Fatality and Injury Rates in Tree Care

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) utilizes various strategies to mitigate workplace hazards and ensure compliance with safety standards. One approach is the implementation of Regional Emphasis Programs (REPs). REPs are primarily targeted enforcement and inspections in specific high-risk industries or for particular hazards within a region. As of the end of 2023, OSHA […]

White House

Biden Administration Updates Its Regulatory Plan

On December 6, 2023, the Biden administration released its Fall 2023 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions, providing a detailed glimpse into the initiatives under development across approximately 67 federal departments, agencies and commissions. These semi-annual regulatory agendas report on what these agencies plan to issue in the near and long term. Target dates […]

crane demonstrations for OSHA to help educate inspectors

TCIA Joins Comments on OSHA’s Proposed Worker Walkaround Rule

On November 13, 2023, the Tree Care Industry Association (TCIA) and 73 other organizations joined comments, led by the Coalition for Workplace Safety (CWS), in response to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Proposed Worker Walkaround Representative Designation Process Rule. The proposal seeks to amend OSHA’s existing regulation governing the participation of third parties […]

The Heat Injury and Illness rule

Last Call for Comments on Heat-Injury-and-Illness Rulemaking Report

On November 3, 2023, the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Office of Advocacy, as part of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) process, transmitted its final report to Doug Parker, Assistant Secretary of Labor for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), on the agency’s upcoming rulemaking, “Heat Injury and Illness Prevention in Outdoor […]

U.S. House of Representatives Examines OSHA’s Policies and Priorities

On September 27, 2023, the House Education and the Workforce Committee’s Subcommittee on Workforce Protections held a hearing, “Examining the Policies and Priorities of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration” (OSHA), in which Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Douglas Parker was the sole witness. This oversight hearing offered Parker an opportunity […]

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