The Cal/OSHA Standards Board has revised its “non-emergency” COVID proposal to revise the definition of “close contact” in keeping with California Department of Public Health changes. It also has made revisions based on stakeholder comments. The Board is accepting public comments on the modifications until October 31st. That despite the public having stopped wearing masks …
The Cal/OSHA Appeals Board did not violate the Administrative Procedure Act in invoking the state Government Code when it instituted mandatory teleconferenced appeals hearings during the COVID emergency, so ruled a Sacramento County Superior Court. The ruling denies an injunction against the Board on video hearings and decisively backs the semi-judicial body’s authority to act. …
This week, the Cal/OSHA Standards Board held a public hearing on the non-emergency version of the COVID regulation, General Industry Safety Orders §3205. The hearing and regulation come now post-pandemic when the disease has become endemic, and while few who catch it suffer serious injury. It has essentially become another flu, according to medical doctors …
With a revised definition of “close contact” for potential COVID exposure in the workplace, Cal/OSHA’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health is cautioning employers to pay attention to the change and the potential for more COVID cases. The revision could significantly increase those considered close contacts, according to David Wesley, assistant deputy chief for enforcement …
Facing substantial criticism from the Department of Finance, Cal/OSHA is standing by most of the underlying data for its Standard Regulatory Impact Assessment of the non-emergency COVID regulation. It is expected to be formally published in the coming months and implemented early next year. But it is backing off its assumptions on agency cost savings …
The California Department of Finance says Cal/OSHA’s economic assessment of the impending non-emergency COVID regulation not only could underestimate the costs of the rule but might deliver only about half the benefits envisioned by the Division of Occupational Safety and Health. Further, stakeholders allege multiple systematic failures in the preparation of regulations, public comments, and …
Cal/OSHA’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health envisions a slimmed-down version of its current COVID regulation for the “non-emergency” version, deferring in some cases to California Department of Public Health guidance. The draft appears more performance-oriented than the current emergency standard. DOSH released the much-anticipated draft on June 9th, a day after CDPH revised its …