DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

29 CFR Part 1910

(Docket S-026)

RIN 1218-AB20

Process Safety Management of Highly Hazardous Chemicals

AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Labor.

ACTION: Proposed rule; notice of availability of the John Gray Institute report on contractors and peer reviews of the report; reopening of the record to reexamine the issue of contractors in light of the study; and request for comments.

OSHA''s final rule on Process Safety Management of Highly Hazardous Chemicals which was issued on February 24, 1992 (57 FR 6356) is scheduled to become effective May 26, 1992. OSHA is administratively staying the effective date of certain provisions (operating procedures, contractors, mechanical integrity, and management of change) of the process safety management standard until August 26, 1992, in order to evaluate the merits of these petitions. In addition, OSHA is requesting comments on whether additional time is necessary to comply with these four paragraphs.

On June 1, 1992, OSHA published a Federal Register Notice administratively staying four provisions of the standard for Process Safety Management of Highly Hazardous Chemicals (29 CFR 1910.119). These provisions included paragraphs (f), (h), (j), and (l). The notice also requested comments on whether additional time is necessary to comply with these provisions.