Federal Agencies

Washington — States that have made “significant” safety improvements in recent years by incorporating Chemical Safety Board recommendations are highlighted in the agency’s inaugural Safety Spotlight publication.

Washington — OSHA has published a fact sheet intended to help employers comply with the agency’s standard on worker exposure to respirable crystalline silica (1926.1153) for general industry and maritime.

Washington — NIOSH has published its National Occupational Research Agenda for Manufacturing, intended to spotlight the industry’s most important occupational safety and health research needs for the next decade.

Washington — The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety Inspection Service has denied a National Chicken Council petition seeking unrestricted line speeds in poultry-processing plants.

Washington — OSHA expects to complete revisions to its beryllium standards by the end of fiscal year 2019, the agency states in a recently released congressional budget justification.

Washington — Raymond Martinez is the new chief of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and Ronald Batory takes over as head of the Federal Railroad Administration, after the pair received Senate confirmation on Feb. 13.

Washington — The Chemical Safety Board and OSHA’s Susan Harwood Training Grant Program once again are slated for elimination in President Donald Trump’s fiscal year 2019 budget proposal.

Washington — Inadequate training and certification of cargo tank inspectors may be a “widespread problem,” putting tanker truck drivers and motorists at risk, according to a National Transportation Safety Board report issued after an investigation of a crash involving a tanker truck carrying propane.

Washington — The Mine Safety and Health Administration has no immediate plans to change its regulation on respirable dust in coal mines, MSHA administrator David Zatezalo said Feb. 6 during a hearing before the House Workforce Protections Subcommittee.

Washington — The National Transportation Safety Board on Feb. 6 renewed its call for sleep apnea screenings and treatment after investigating two separate commuter railroad collisions in the New York City metro area.