IHMM Today January 16, 2024

INSIDE IHMM

IHMM Government Affairs in 2023

Here are the highlights of what we worked on in 2023, and with a new committee forming will build on for 2024. The IHMM Government Affairs Committee meets on January 18, 2024 at 12 noon Eastern.

• Professional Certification Coalition, 2023 Accomplishments and 2024 Priorities
• More Federal Recognition for the CSHM, CSMP, CHMM, and CHMP – IHMM Comments to OSHA Voluntary Protection Program [VPP]

• Hazardous Materials: Harmonization With International Standards – IHMM Comments Filed 7/31/2023

• PHMSA Seeks Comment on Initiatives to Modernize the HMR

• PHMSA – Hazardous Materials: Harmonization With International Standards – IHMM Comments Submitted – Docket No. PHMSA-2021-0092 (HM-215Q)

• NY Department of Labor rulemaking concerning the recognition of the CSHM and CSMP. IHMM’s comments concerning initiating this rulemaking are here
• Work with Eric Vega in Puerto Rico concerning credential recognition
• Review of the Governor of Nevada’s Executive Order concerning licensing boards and potential for recognition of the CHMM. IHMM’s comments on the Governor’s Executive Order are here
• Scheduling meetings with the Maryland Congressional delegation concerning the Certified Pandemic Preparedness Specialist [CPPS] credential
• PHMSA Recycled Plastics Policy – https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/04/14/2023-07869/hazardous-materials-request-for-feedback-on-recycled-plastics-policy
• Ohio EPA Hazardous Waste Rules – https://epa.ohio.gov/about/media-center/events/public-hearing-HazWasteRules
• OSHA, finding the personnel who make the decisions concerning credentials recognized as prerequisites for OSHA training programs
• Maine DEP, update Chapter 851, Standards for Generators of Hazardous Waste. In the current regulation work is required by a professional engineer. IHMM is proposing to include an environmental professional as defined by 40 CFR §312.10.

The IHMM Government Affairs Committee is found here, where you may also join our group.

IHMM and EPA Collaborate on the Continuing Challenge Hazmat Workshop

The Continuing Challenge is the oldest hazmat training workshop by responders by responders and we are entering our 35^th year.  The 2024 event is from September 3-5, 2024 in Sacramento, California.

We are currently looking for instructors for the 2024 workshop in all things hazmat including:

Planning/SARA Title III;

Mental Health for First Responders;

Drug Labs, Incident Command System and Response Management;

WMD/Explosives;

General Hazmat Response;

HAZWOPER;

Chemistry;

Oil Spills;

Hazmat Firefighting, Risk-Exposure Assessment;

Legal Issues for First Responders;

Media and Community Relations;

Radiation Response and Cleanup;

Air Monitoring and Sampling; Sampling; and

Lithium Ion Battery and Other Alternative Fuels Response.

Our students are hazmat team members from local, state, tribal, Federal and International fire and health departments as well as private industry.

Everyone can get more information at Hazmat.org.

Each seminar typically ranges from 2 hours to 8 hours in length. If you are interested in presenting at the Continuing Challenge then let us know by sending an email to [email protected] with a title, name of the program above, and a short description of the material you would like to deliver. Deadline for submissions so we can get them to EPA is February 1, 2024.

A Collaborative Culture

There are 1,198 different conversations going on in the IHMM/HMS Collaboration platform this week.

A collaborative culture is important for every business but is especially important for our hazardous materials, dangerous goods, environment, health, and safety communities of practice. Do you have a problem you need to solve and want the opinions of your colleagues? This is where we come together to help each other.

IHMM credentialed professionals are at the top 1% of their professions and their reach is global. We are at the forefront of environmental protection, health, and safety and this is where collaborating with the best people in their fields, always willing to help one another, lessens the stress of our jobs, and where we strive as a team to make a difference of which we are proud.

We opened COLLABORATION to enable thousands of certificants and supporters to collaborate together.

You can collaborate here.

Access to COLLABORATION is through the same username/password you use to access your MYIHMM account. Having a problem? Contact Jimmy Nguyen at [email protected]

IHMM Proposes Changes in Government Recognition of Credentials

State of Maine Department of Environmental Protection is proposing to update Chapter 851, Standards for Generators of Hazardous Waste. In the current regulation work is required by a professional engineer. IHMM is proposing to include an environmental professional as defined by 40 CFR §312.10.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has a number of courses in occupational safety and health within which OSHA credits “A degree in occupational safety and health, a Certified Safety Professional (CSP) or a Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH) designation.” IHMM will propose including the CHMM, CSHM, and CSMP.

Beltway Buzz, Ogletree Deakins

Congress: New Year, Same Shenanigans. Federal lawmakers returned to Washington, D.C., this week to kick off the second session of the 118th Congress. Unfortunately, not much has changed from 2023—at least not in the U.S. House of Representatives. With government funding for agriculture, energy and water, military construction and veterans affairs, and transportation expiring on January 19, 2024—one week from today—legislators are already scrambling to avoid a partial government shutdown next week. As a result, leadership in both chambers is taking steps to pass a continuing resolution to avoid such a scenario (and those discussions are off to a rocky start). Of course, while trying to resolve this immediate crisis, Congress hasn’t even started to address funding for the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), and U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which expires on February 2, 2024. At this time, it is unclear whether the continuing resolution that is being negotiated will cover this second batch of spending bills.

House Votes to Rescind NLRB’s Joint-Employer Rule. Earlier today, the House passed H.J. Res. 98 to rescind the NLRB’s joint-employer rule. The vote was 206–177, with eight Democrats voting in favor of the resolution. No word yet on when the Senate might vote on a companion measure, which has been introduced by Senators Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA). (For more on Senator Cassidy’s recent scrutiny of the NLRB, please see “Senator Cassidy Blasts NLRB” below.) The White House has stated that President Biden will veto the measure if it arrives on his desk.

DOL Finalizes Independent Contractor Rule. On Wednesday, January 10, 2024, the DOL published in the Federal Register its final rule, “Employee or Independent Contractor Classification Under the Fair Labor Standards Act.” The rule repeals and replaces the current independent contractor regulation promulgated during the Trump administration, which established a commonsense test that focused on an individual’s control over his or her work, and his or her opportunity for profit or loss. In contrast, the new rule sets forth a complicated and confusing “totality-of-the-circumstances analysis of the economic reality test” that will likely lead to more workers being classified as employees. Margaret Santen, William E. Collins Jr., and Taylor E. Gillan have the details. Even before the final rule was officially published in the Federal Register, Senator Cassidy, the ranking member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP), announced that he would introduce a Congressional Review Act resolution to rescind the rule. The rule will go into effect on March 11, 2024.

Inching Closer to Paid Leave? This week, the bipartisan Paid Family Leave Working Group in the House of Representatives released a framework for potential paid leave legislation. The framework focuses on the following four pillars:

1. Public-private partnership pilot. The working group is considering legislative options establishing public-private partnerships “to facilitate standing up and operating state-run programs … [for] states that have existing paid leave programs and those seeking to establish a new one.”
2. Coordination and harmonization of paid leave benefits across states. This pillar introduces the concept of an “Interstate Paid Leave Action Network (I-PLAN)” that would convene, in part, to develop “equivalency standards so that multi-state employers can design paid uniform, nationwide leave programs that will satisfy the quantitative benefit elements of each state’s employer-based plan requirements and help employees better navigate and access available benefits.”
3. Small employer pooling for paid leave insurance. This concept would “authorize small employers to join association-style insurance pooling plans, with the goal of pooling risk and lowering the cost of providing paid family leave.”
4. Improvements to paid leave tax credits for small businesses and working families. The working group will explore ways to “improve the reach and accessibility” of paid family and medical leave tax credits.

The debate over paid leave still has a long way to go, but it has been making incremental progress, particularly following the federal emergency leave programs that were established during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Su Renominated. This week, President Biden renominated Julie Su—currently serving as both acting secretary of labor and deputy secretary of labor—to be secretary of labor. Su was originally nominated on February 28, 2023, following the departure of then-secretary of labor Martin Walsh. The full Senate never voted on her nomination, as Senator Manchin publicly opposed Su, and her nomination was returned to the White House upon the conclusion of the first session of the 118th Congress. At the moment, it is not clear whether the situation in the Senate will improve for Su this time around.

Senator Cassidy Blasts NLRB. This week, Senate HELP Committee Ranking Member Bill Cassidy (R-LA) released a report titled “The Biden Administration: Politicizing National Labor Law to Help Their Union Bosses.” The report focuses on allegations of election mismanagement by the Board in favor of unions, as well as the Board’s recent changes to its election rules and its decision that aligns with unions’ card check strategies. The report concludes by noting that “the minority staff for the HELP Committee will continue to investigate the NLRB’s politicized conduct to ensure that the Board, General Counsel Abruzzo, and all regions make every reasonable effort to maintain neutrality and carry out their statutory mission of promoting all employee choice, and not just a choice for unions.”

Resources for Schools Amidst Recent Threats

This week hundreds of schools across the country reported receiving bomb threats. The safety and security of students, teachers, and staff are of utmost importance, and it is disheartening to witness the disruption and fear caused by these threats. We understand that such incidents not only pose immediate concerns for physical safety but can also have a lasting emotional effect on the communities involved and beyond.

To support our communities and schools, we have compiled a list of resources that may be helpful. Please stay informed, follow guidance from local authorities, and reach out with any questions or concerns you may have.

• Crisis Navigation Resources
• Social Media Threat Guidance for School Staff and Authorities Infographic
• Bombing Prevention Assistance for K-12 Schools
• Bomb Threat Guide
• How to Cope With Traumatic Events

EPA Issues Final SNUR to Prevent Inactive PFAS from Reentering Commerce

On January 11, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a final significant new use rule (SNUR) to prevent companies from starting or resuming the manufacture (including import) or processing of 329 per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that are designated as inactive on the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Chemical Substance Inventory. 89 Fed. Reg. 1822. The final rule notes that persons subject to the final SNUR are required to notify EPA at least 90 days before commencing any manufacture (including import) or processing of the chemical substance for a significant new use. Once EPA receives a significant new use notification (SNUN), EPA must review and make an affirmative determination on the SNUN and take such action as is required by any such determination before the manufacture (including import) or processing for the significant new use can commence. EPA states that such a review “will assess whether the new use may present unreasonable risk to health or the environment and ensure that EPA takes appropriate action as required to protect health or the environment.” The SNUR will take effect March 11, 2024. For more information, please read the full memorandum.

Read more here.

DOL Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustments for 2024

The U.S. Department of Labor has issued a final rule announcing adjustments to Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) civil penalty amounts. The final rule is effective January 15, 2024.

On November 2, 2015, the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015 was enacted, which required agencies to: (1) adjust the level of civil monetary penalties with an initial “catch-up” adjustment through an interim final rule and (2) make subsequent annual adjustments for inflation, no later than January 15 of each year.

Visit the OSHA Penalties page and the final rule  for more information.

Congress Faces Time Crunch on Government Funding

DOL – Employee or Independent Contractor Classification Under the Fair Labor Standards Act

NPRM: Streamlining Requirements for the Approval of Certain Energetic Materials

On November 30, PHMSA published the notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) “HM-257A: Streamlining Requirements for the Approval of Certain Energetic Materials” to the Federal Register. This NPRM proposes to amend the Hazardous Materials Regulations to:

• Streamline the classification and approval process for low-hazard ground device fireworks
• Codify existing guidance for UN3178 novelty devices
• Revise classification criteria for small arms cartridges to include tracer ammunition
• Include the PHMSA Portal as the method to submit applications for all explosives approvals
• Allow for voluntary termination of an explosive approval by the approval holder.

If you’re involved in the pyrotechnics supply chain, PHMSA wants your input! The public comment period for this NPRM ends on February 28, 2024.
Interested in being the first to know when PHMSA posts notices and rulemakings to the Federal Register? Receive email notifications from the Federal Register whenever PHMSA posts by visiting the Federal Register site and clicking ‘Subscribe’ at https://www.federalregister.gov/agencies/pipeline-and-hazardous-materials-safety-administration.

Security Requirements and Considerations for Hazardous Materials Transportation

Millions of tons of hazardous materials transported each day, but not all shipments carry the same level of risk. Certain quantities and types of hazmat require security plans due to the elevated risks that they pose.

This brochure outlines the Safety and Security Plan requirements found in 49 CFR Part 172, Subpart I, including when a security plan is required, what should be included in the plan, and what additional training is necessary for those who fall under the security plan requirements. It also offers suggested security measures, per PHMSA’s Risk Management Self-Evaluation Framework, to help develop of these plans.

Link: https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/training/hazmat/security-requirements-brochure

What to Expect in Chemicals Policy and Regulation and on Capitol Hill in 2024

January 23, 2024
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. EST

REGISTER NOW

2024 will be exciting, in a good sense. There is an exceptional level of uncertainty in Washington for the New Year, even in comparison to past election years. Two wars tugging at the national attention and the federal budget, a divided government now referring to just the House of Representatives alone, and an election year with one of the presumptive Presidential candidates under 91 indictments for crimes in multiple jurisdictions. Other than that, for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), it will definitely not just be “another day at the office.” As an example, the new House Speaker marshaled a House budget bill that would cut EPA funding by almost 40 percent!

We invite you to join Lynn L. Bergeson, Managing Partner, Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C^®); James V. Aidala, Senior Government Affairs Consultant, B&C; and Richard E. Engler, Ph.D., Director of Chemistry, B&C for a lively, timely, and focused discussion on the state of play and how we expect things will shake out in 2024. Registration is open now. 

Topics Covered:

• Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) in 2024:
  • Final/proposed existing chemical rules;
  • TSCA Section 4 test rules;
  • Final fees rule;
  • Updated existing chemical framework rule;
  • Prioritization of additional substances;
  • Chemical Data Reporting;
• Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) in 2024:
  • EPA’s Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) activities expected as election year 2024 priorities;
  • EPA’s development of policies and strategies for implementation of the Endangered Species Act (ESA); and
  • OPP’s implementation of the Pesticide Registration Improvement Act of 2022 (PRIA 5) requirements.

New OSHA Electronic Injury and Illness Reporting Requirements for 2024 – Pillsbury Law

As 2023 is swiftly coming to a close, certain employers should begin preparing for electronic submission of injury and illness information to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in 2024.

OSHA – New Injury Tracking Application

Please be aware that the updated Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Injury Tracking Application (ITA) is now available from osha.gov/injuryreporting. This page provides requirements and guidance about electronically submitting your establishments’ injury and illness data from the OSHA Form 300A: Summary of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses, OSHA Form 300: Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses, and OSHA Form 301: Injury and Illness Incident Report.   These data help employers, workers and OSHA evaluate the safety of a workplace, understand industry hazards, and implement worker protections to reduce and eliminate hazards -preventing future workplace injuries and illnesses.

As a reminder, establishments that meet certain size and industry criteria are required to electronically submit injury and illness data from their OSHA Form 300A, 300, and 301 (or equivalent forms) once per year to OSHA via the ITA. Employers should visit the ITA Coverage Application to determine whether they are required to submit this data. Data collection for CY 2023 will begin January 2, 2024, and must be submitted by March 2, 2024.

Linking Risk Characterization and Risk Management: How to Optimize Tools for a Safer Workplace

AIHA and the Foundation for Chemistry Research and Initiatives (FCRI) hosted a series of workshops on occupational risk assessment. The fifth and final webinar in the Many Paths – One Goal series, which was held on Dec. 7, brought together a panel of experts to discuss approaches for characterizing and managing risks in the workplace. The experts presented an overview of risk characterization, the application of the hierarchy of controls, risk management in the context of regulations (for example, EPA’s implementation of the Toxic Substances Control Act), and emerging hazard control technologies and practices.

Read more here.

EPA Updates

Fox Announces Departure From EPA, Casting Doubt On Water Office Agenda

In a surprise to key observers, EPA Assistant Administrator for the Office of Water Radhika Fox is departing the agency at the end of next month, raising doubts on her office’s regulatory agenda, including high-profile drinking water rules governing lead and PFAS, and highlighting the limited number of Senate-confirmed officials running program offices.

EPA Moves To Codify Narrow Approach To Title V Air Permit Reviews

In a blow to environmentalists, EPA is planning to codify its current narrow view of what “applicable requirements” may be examined during review of Clean Air Act Title V air operating permits, seeking to entrench a more-restrictive approach first taken by the Trump administration that largely excludes consideration of underlying air permitting decisions.

EPA Finalizes TSCA Rule Limiting Resumed Use Of Over 300 ‘Inactive’ PFAS

EPA is finalizing a rule requiring industry to seek review from the agency before resuming almost any uses of 329 PFAS registered as “inactive,” rejecting both industry arguments that the rule exceeds its authority and environmentalists’ push to greatly expand both its scope and mandatory disclosures on the targeted chemicals.

EPA Offers OB/OD Alternatives But Continues to Stall RCRA Rule Revisions

EPA has quietly published a compendium of alternatives to open burning/open detonation (OB/OD) technologies for addressing spent munitions and other explosives even as it delays release of a proposed Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) rule that is expected to bar its use in some cases while generally encouraging alternatives.

Biden Officials Face Fierce Environmental Opposition As They Defend CCS

The Biden administration is continuing to defend its support for carbon capture and storage (CCS) part of its multi-pronged climate mitigation strategy, even as it faces mounting pushback from many environmentalists due to concerns about the technology’s safety and efficacy.

Pending Suits Tee Up New Precedents On Major Aspects Of Reformed TSCA

Courts are poised to decide two cases early in 2024 that could reshape how EPA implements key elements of the reformed TSCA, as industry groups seek limits on the agency’s powers to order toxicity testing and regulate new chemical uses.

–Inside EPA

Columbia Southern University

The Hazardous Materials Society [HMS] is a partner of Columbia Southern University. Columbia Southern University is an online university based in Orange Beach, Alabama, that strives to change and improve lives through higher education by enabling students to maximize their professional and personal potential.

A subsidiary of Columbia Southern Education Group, CSU offers online degree programs at the associate, bachelor, master, doctorate or certificate levels in a multitude of areas such as occupational safety and health, fire administration, criminal justice, business administration, human resource management, health care administration and more. CSU also features undergraduate and graduate certificate programs to provide focused training in specialized areas for adult learners.

Click on the CSU graphic at left and learn more about the professional development and degree program opportunities at CSU.

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