Office of Workers' Compensation Programs October 2010 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a preclearance consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA95) [44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)]. 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. Currently, the Office of Workers' Compensation Programs is soliciting comments concerning the proposed collection: Request for Information on Earnings, Dual Benefits, Dependents and Third Party Settlement (CA- 1032). A copy of the proposed information collection request can be obtained by contacting the office listed below in the addresses section of this Notice.

The Office of Workers' Compensation Programs (OWCP) is republishing the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking entitled Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act: Recreational Vessels, published on August 17, 2010 (75 FR 50718), and affording the public an additional period for submitting comments. This document contains proposed regulations implementing amendments to the Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act (LHWCA) by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), relating to the exclusion of certain recreational- vessel workers from the LHWCA's definition of ``employee.'' These regulations would clarify both the definition of ``recreational vessel'' and those circumstances under which workers are excluded from LHWCA coverage when working on those vessels. The proposed rules also codify the Department's longstanding view that employees are covered under the LHWCA so long as some of their work constitutes ``maritime employment'' within the meaning of the statute.