Observers Doubt Scope Of OSHA’s Revived Emergency Response Standard

OSHA has quietly resumed development of an emergency response standard intended to bolster protections for first responders after pausing the process late in the Obama administration, but stakeholders are warning that the eventual rule may exclude much of the sector as it is dominated by public-sector and volunteer workers outside OSHA’s purview. Although OSHA officially reopened the rulemaking process in October by convening a Small Business Advocacy Review (SBAR) panel, Jordan Barab, who served as the agency’s deputy chief during...