Subject of Possible Rule Making: Miscellaneous minor and technical amendments. Industrial safety and health standards affected include chapters 296-24 WAC, General safety and health standards; chapter 296-32 WAC, Safety standards for telecommunications; chapter 296-36 WAC, Safety standards -- Compressed air work; chapter 296-37 WAC, Standards for commercial diving operations; chapter 296-45 WAC, Safety standards for electrical workers; chapter 296-54 WAC, Safety standards -- Logging operations; chapter 296-56 WAC, Safety standards -- Longshore, stevedore and related waterfront operations; chapter 296-62 WAC, General occupational health standards; chapter 296-67 WAC, Safety standards for process safety management; chapter 296-78 WAC, Safety standards for sawmills and woodworking operations; chapter 296-79 WAC, Safety standards for pulp, paper, and paperboard mills/converters; chapter 296-99 WAC, Safety standards for grain handling facilities; chapter 296-155 WAC, Safety standards for construction work; chapter 296-304 WAC, Safety standards for ship repairing, shipbuilding and shipbreaking; and chapter 296-307 WAC, Safety standards for agriculture.

Statutes Authorizing the Agency to Adopt Rules on this Subject: RCW 49.17.010, [49.17].040, and [49.17].050.

Reasons Why Rules on this Subject may be Needed and What They Might Accomplish: OSHA completed a line-by-line review of its standards (29 C.F.R. 1901, 1902, 1910, 1915, 1926, 1928, 1950 and 1951) published in the Code of Federal Regulations on March 7, 1996. From this review, OSHA identified a number of sections that could be simplified or clarified. In this rule, OSHA deleted outdated and obsolete provisions, consolidated repetitious provisions and clarified confusing language. OSHA's rule did not change the substantive requirements of the standards.

     WISHA must propose these amendments to make them at-least-as-effective-as OSHA's. We will conduct a line-by-line review of our standards to:

•	Improve employer compliance and
•	Provide enhanced safety and health to employees.

     Our rule will not change the substantive requirements of the standards.

Other Federal and State Agencies that Regulate this Subject and the Process Coordinating the Rule with These Agencies: No other state or federal agencies (other than OSHA) are known that regulate this subject.

Process for Developing New Rule: The department must adopt rules identical to or at-least-as-effective-as OSHA rules are required by the OSHA/WISHA state plan agreement. Parties interested in the formulation of these rules for proposal may contact the individuals listed below. The public may also participate by commenting after amendments are proposed by providing written comments or giving oral testimony during the public hearing process.

Interested parties can participate in the decision to adopt the new rule and formulation of the proposed rule before publication by contacting Linda Dausener, WISHA Standards Project Manager, Department of Labor and Industries, WISHA Services Division, P.O. Box 44620, Olympia, WA 98504-4620, phone (360) 902-5516, fax (360) 902-5529.

October 4 [3], 2000

Gary Moore

Director

© Washington State Code Reviser's Office