November is here and with it comes the acceleration of the approaching holiday season. Many employees will be starting to think about holiday gatherings, shopping, time away from work, and other things that may take their minds off safety. As HSE professionals, let’s all make sure we help our fellow employees enjoy a safe and careful holiday season. Workplace illnesses and injuries are things no one wants their holiday season to be burdened with. It was a fairly busy week in the regulatory world this time around, so let’s take a look at the latest news:
PHMSA
The agency’s International Division is holding a meeting later this week to discuss ICAO papers. This is a pre-meeting to the actual UN meeting coming up in late November. A second meeting that discusses papers the UN Subcommittee of Experts is scheduled to review will happen a bit later in the month. For detailed information on these UN pre-meetings, and how public stakeholders in the DG community can attend and participate, get more here.
The agency’s Office of Hazardous Materials Safety (OHMS) will hold a virtual public Research, Development & Technology Forum on December 1, 2022. This will present the results of recently completed projects, brief new project plans, and obtain stakeholder input on the direction of current and future research projects on topics including mitigation of climate change, risk management and mitigation, packaging integrity, emerging technology, and technical analysis to aid risk assessment. See further details and how to attend here.
TSA
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) administers the Hazardous Materials Endorsement (HME) and Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC®) vetting programs. TSA is announcing changes to the existing fee structure and fees for the HME and TWIC Programs to include initial in person applications, in-person renewals, comparable STAs, and new online renewal fees. The fee changes in this notice are effective November 3, 2022. See more details here.
OSHA
The agency announced a meeting of its National Advisory Committee on Safety and Health (NACOSH) for December. The NACOSH advises OSHA on ways to improve safety and regulatory compliance in the workplace. Find meeting details here.
FMCSA
The agency published an ICR related to its new “Drug & Alcohol Testing Clearinghouse” for commercial drivers. The clearinghouse is a database that is intended to offer greater national transparency as to the test status of CMV drivers. See the ICR here.
FRA
The agency has released a correction to the contact information it published in relation to the comment period for it proposed rule regarding mandatory train crew sizes. See the corrected contact information right here.
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