Mine Safety and Health Administration July 2023 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) will hold three public hearings on the proposed rule, Lowering Miners' Exposure to Respirable Crystalline Silica and Improving Respiratory Protection. The proposed rule was published on July 13, 2023 and is available at https://www.regulations.gov and MSHA's website at www.MSHA.gov. The proposed rule would amend MSHA's existing standards to better protect miners against occupational exposure to respirable crystalline silica, a carcinogenic hazard, and to improve respiratory protection for all airborne hazards.

The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a pre-clearance consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. This program helps to ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired format, reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of collection requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) is soliciting comments on the information collection for Examinations and Testing of Electrical Equipment, Including Examination, Testing, and Maintenance of High Voltage Longwalls.

The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) proposes to amend its existing standards to better protect miners against occupational exposure to respirable crystalline silica, a carcinogenic hazard, and to improve respiratory protection for all airborne hazards. MSHA has preliminarily determined that under the Agency's existing standards, miners at metal and nonmetal mines and coal mines face a risk of material impairment of health or functional capacity from exposure to respirable crystalline silica. MSHA proposes to set the permissible exposure limit of respirable crystalline silica at 50 micrograms per cubic meter of air ([micro]g/m\3\) for a full shift exposure, calculated as an 8-hour time-weighted average, for all miners. MSHA's proposal would also include other requirements to protect miner health, such as exposure sampling, corrective actions to be taken when miner exposure exceeds the permissible exposure limit, and medical surveillance for metal and nonmetal miners. Furthermore, the proposal would replace existing requirements for respiratory protection and incorporate by reference ASTM F3387-19 Standard Practice for Respiratory Protection. The proposed uniform approach to respirable crystalline silica occupational exposure and improved respiratory protection for all airborne hazards would significantly improve health protections for all miners and lower the risk of material impairment of health or functional capacity.