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OSHA Updates Recordkeeping Regulation

Clarification of Employer's Continuing Obligation To Make and Maintain an Accurate Record of Each Recordable Injury and Illness

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

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: Under the Congressional Review Act, Congress has passed, and the President has signed, Public Law 115-21, a resolution of disapproval of OSHA's final rule titled, "Clarification of Employer's Continuing Obligation to Make and Maintain an Accurate Record of each Recordable Injury and Illness.'' OSHA published the rule, which contained various amendments to OSHA's recordkeeping regulations, on December 19, 2016. The amendments became effective on January 18, 2017. Because Public Law 115-21 invalidates the amendments to OSHA's recordkeeping regulations contained in the rule promulgated on December 19, 2016, OSHA is hereby  removing those amendments from the Code of Federal Regulations. 

DATES: This final rule becomes effective on May 3, 2017.

ANALYSIS: This rulemaking is significant in that it defines OSHA’s authority as to when they can cite a company for not keeping their injury and illness records (i.e. Form 300) current Companies with 10 or more employees are still required to keep and maintain 5 years of injury and illness data. The impact of the legislation and rule recession does not change this requirement. What the legislation did was say that OSHA could not cite companies beyond the 6-month statute of limitation for not keeping the records current. OSHA was citing and fining companies for not keeping the records current over the 5 year retention period.

Therefore, OSHA can cite you for not having the records. They can’t cite you for not keeping them current, past the 6 month deadline. Since there is a 7 day window to record an injury, the period of time a company could be cited for not recording an injury or illness is 6 months and 7 days.

In addition, there are NO revisions in this notice to the following rules:

  • 1904.39 - Reporting fatalities, hospitalizations, amputations, and losses of an eye as a result of work-related incidents to OSHA
  • 1904.41 - Electronic submission of injury and illness records to OSHA (due to start on July 1, 2017)

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