Arent Fox OSHA Team Hosts Webinar on Proposed Changes to PSM Standard and RMP Rule
On June 26, 2014, Arent Fox OSHA Group leader, Mark Dreux, and AcuTech Group, Inc. Technical Manager, Michael Hazzan, presented a webinar on the recommended changes to the PSM Standard and RMP Rule from the Executive Order 13650 Working Group. In the webinar, Mr. Dreux and Mr. Hazzan boil down the Working Group’s interim report and offer critical insight on the recommended regulatory changes and what they could mean for the refining and chemical industries.
Readers can access the full webinar presentation (along with slides) by clicking here.
Background
On August 1, 2013, President Barack Obama issued Executive Order 13650 in order to improve safety in the chemical industry. The Order was largely issued in response to the catastrophic Waco, Texas fertilizer plant explosion in 2013. As part of its terms, the Order created a Working Group made up of six federal agencies and charged it with evaluating the safety and security of the US chemical industry.
The Working Group recently issued their interim report to the President, outlining their preliminary conclusions and recommendations. One of the Working Group’s chief recommendations is “Modernizing Policies and Regulations.” In this section, the Working Group specifically proposes updating OSHA’s PSM standard and EPA’s RMP rule, increasing OSHA penalties for PSM violations, and promoting Safer Technologies and Alternatives (Inherently Safer Technology by another name).
Webinar
Mr. Dreux and Mr. Hazzan examine each of these proposals in turn, offering expert analysis on which provisions of the PSM standard and RMP rule will be updated. Their analysis also includes the practical effects the changes will have on industry going forward. In addition, the webinar addresses the timeline for the rulemaking process and when employers could expect to see the changes implemented, as well as proposed changes in OSHA’s enforcement penalty structure.
Readers can access the full webinar presentation (along with slides) by clicking here. If readers have any questions on the webinar, they can contact Mark Dreux, Head of the Arent Fox OSHA Group, at 202.857.6405 or Michael Hazzan, Technical Manager at AcuTech Group, Inc. at 856.217.1599.
