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AGENCY:
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Labor.
ACTION:
Final rule; correction and technical amendment.
SUMMARY:
OSHA is correcting several inadvertent errors in its Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) which were published in the Federal Register on May 20, 2024. The agency has identified several errors in the regulatory text and appendices to the HCS which pertain to the classification of hazardous chemicals and information presented on labels and Safety Data Sheets (SDSs). The agency believes these errors, although minor and primarily typographical in nature, should be addressed expeditiously to avoid confusion or unnecessary costs in the regulated community due to incorporation of errors on labels and SDSs. OSHA is continuing its review of the regulatory text and will issue another correction document to address additional minor errors at a later date.
DATES:
October 9, 2024.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
For press inquiries: Mr. Frank Meilinger, Director, OSHA Office of Communications, U.S. Department of Labor; telephone: (202) 693-1999; email: meilinger.francis2@dol.gov.
For general and technical information: Tiffany DeFoe, Director, Office of Chemical Hazards, Metals, Directorate of Standards and Guidance, OSHA, Room N-3718, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20210; email defoe.tiffany@dol.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Overview
On May 20, 2024, OSHA published a final rule updating and revising its Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) (89 FR 44144). The final rule became effective on July 19, 2024. This document corrects several minor errors in the final rule. The errors addressed by this correction occur in § 1910.1200, paragraphs (d) and (f) of the regulatory text and in appendices A, B, and C. These corrections reflect the agency's intent for the provisions of the final rule as explained in the preamble to the final rule. Some of these corrections are explained in the following discussion, and the table provided at the end of this section summarizes all the corrections included in this notice.
Two of the corrections are to the regulatory text. First, OSHA inadvertently mis-numbered portions of paragraph (d) in the final rule, resulting in erroneous cross-references in other areas of the standard ( e.g., paragraph (f)(1) and appendix D, table D.-1). As shown in OSHA's references to paragraph (d) in the preamble to the final rule, the final economic analysis, and cross references in the regulatory text and appendix D, OSHA intended paragraphs (d)(1)(i)(A) and (d)(1)(i)(B) to be designated (d)(1)(i) and (d)(1)(ii), respectively (see, e.g.,89 FR 44278). To ensure that the regulatory text is clear and consistent with the agency's intent, OSHA is rearranging and renumbering paragraph (d)(1) by incorporating the text currently designated as (d)(1)(ii) into (d)(1) and renumbering the provisions currently designated as (d)(1)(i)(A) and (d)(1)(i)(B) to (d)(1)(i) and (d)(1)(ii), respectively.
Second, a phrase regarding transmission of labels by electronic or other technological means was inadvertently included in paragraph (f)(11). As OSHA's discussion in the preamble of the final rule shows (89 FR 44293), the agency did not intend to include this phrase in paragraph (f)(11) and is therefore removing it.
The remainder of the errors corrected in this document are in the appendices. For instance, in appendix B, the contents of table B.13.1 were inadvertently placed as table B.12.1. OSHA only intended to change table B.12.1 as described in the preamble to the final rule (89 FR 44236). Therefore, the agency is correcting the text of table B.12.1 to align with what it proposed and stated it was finalizing in the preamble.
Additionally, OSHA inadvertently inserted hazard statements for aerosols instead of hazard statements for chemical under pressure in appendix C, table C.4.16. Therefore, OSHA is updating the label elements in C.4.16, Chemical Under Pressure, to conform with the GHS, Rev. 8, consistent with the agency's discussion of its intent to add the hazard communication elements for chemical under pressure (under the aerosol hazard class) in the summary and explanation to the final rule (89 FR 44323-44324). OSHA is also removing extra slashes that were inadvertently inserted in the prevention column of that table.
Correction Summary
The following table contains a summary of the corrections being made to the Hazard Communication Standard. The changes are listed by the paragraph or appendix they are located in.
| Standard | Correction or technical amendment |
|---|---|
| § 1910.1200, paragraph (d)(1) | Change paragraph (d)(1)(i) to paragraph (d)(1) and incorporate (d)(1)(ii) into (d)(1); renumber (d)(1)(i)(A) to be (d)(1)(i) and (d)(1)(i)(B) to be (d)(1)(ii). |
| § 1910.1200, paragraph (f)(11)(i) | Remove the words “either” and “or, with the agreement of the receiving entity, transmit the labels by electronic or other technological means” in the last phrase of (f)(11)(i). |
| § 1910.1200, appendix A, table A.1.1 | Dermal Category 1 value of “≤5” is corrected to read “≤50”. |
| § 1910.1200, appendix A, A.1.3.6.2.4 | Change the symbol before the 10% in the second sentence of A.1.3.6.2.4 from ≤ (less than or equal to) to > (greater than). |
| § 1910.1200, appendix A, table A.2.2 | Rename the table to “Skin irritant category” and reinsert phrase “least 2 animals, particularly taking into account alopecia (limited area), hyperkeratosis, hyperplasia . . .” into the paragraph. |
| § 1910.1200, appendix A, table A.2.3 | Reinsert phrase “data are available and” into “Where data are available and the sub-categories of skin . . .” in the text of the note to the table. |
| § 1910.1200, appendix A, table A.7.1 | Category 1, Category 2, and additional category for effects on or via lactation reproductive toxicity values of “≥0.01%” are corrected to read “≥0.1%.” |
| § 1910.1200, appendix B, table B.3.1 | Add “or” after the first condition under category 3, to read “(1) The chemical does not meet the criteria for Categories 1 and 2; or”. |
| § 1910.1200, appendix B, table B.12.1 | Replace table with the prior version of table B.12.1 apart from also removing “equal to or” from Category 3. |
| § 1910.1200, appendix C, C.4.16 | Remove “/” in all locations in prevention column of all C.4.16 tables. Replace the tables for Chemical Under Pressure in C.4.16 to align with GHS Revision 8 hazard statements. For Category 1, revise hazard statement to read: “Extremely flammable chemical under pressure. May explode if heated.” |
| For Category 2, revise hazard statement to read: “Flammable chemical under pressure. May explode if heated.” For Category 3, revise hazard statement to read: “Chemical under pressure: may explode if heated.” |
Table A.1.1—Acute Toxicity Estimate (ATE) Values and Criteria for Acute Toxicity Hazard Categories
| Exposure route | Category 1 | Category 2 | Category 3 | Category 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oral (mg/kg bodyweight) | ATE ≤ 5 | >5 ATE ≤ 50 | >50 ATE ≤ 300 | >300 ATE ≤ 2000 |
| see: Note (a) | ||||
| Note (b) | ||||
| Dermal (mg/kg bodyweight) | ATE ≤ 50 | >50 ATE ≤ 200 | >200 ATE ≤ 1000 | >1000 ATE ≤ 2000 |
| see: Note (a) | ||||
| Note (b) | ||||
| Inhalation—Gases (ppmV) | ATE ≤ 100 | >100 ATE ≤ 500 | >500 ATE ≤ 2500 | >2500 ATE ≤ 20000 |
| see: Note (a) | ||||
| Note (b) | ||||
| Note (c) | ||||
| Inhalation—Vapors (mg/l) | ATE ≤ 0.5 | >0.5 ATE ≤ 2.0 | >2.0 ATE ≤ 10.0 | >10.0 ATE ≤ 20.0 |
| see: Note (a) | ||||
| Note (b) | ||||
| Note (c) | ||||
| Note (d) | ||||
| Inhalation -Dusts and Mists (mg/l) | ATE ≤ 0.05 | >0.05 ATE ≤ 0.5 | >0.5 ATE ≤ 1.0 | >1.0 ATE ≤ 5.0 |
| see: Note (a) | ||||
| Note (b) | ||||
| Note (c) | ||||
| Note: Gas concentrations are expressed in parts per million per volume (ppmV). | ||||
| Notes to table A.1.1: | ||||
| (a) The acute toxicity estimate (ATE) for the classification of a substance is derived using the LD50/LC50 where available; | ||||
| (b) The acute toxicity estimate (ATE) for the classification of a substance or ingredient in a mixture is derived using: | ||||
| (i) the LD 50 /LC 50 where available. Otherwise, | ||||
| (ii) the appropriate conversion value from table 1.2 that relates to the results of a range test, or | ||||
| (iii) the appropriate conversion value from table 1.2 that relates to a classification category; | ||||
| (c) Inhalation cut-off values in the table are based on 4 hour testing exposures. Conversion of existing inhalation toxicity data which has been generated according to 1 hour exposure is achieved by dividing by a factor of 2 for gases and vapors and 4 for dusts and mists; | ||||
| (d) For some substances the test atmosphere will be a vapor which consists of a combination of liquid and gaseous phases. For other substances the test atmosphere may consist of a vapor which is nearly all the gaseous phase. In these latter cases, classification is based on ppmV as follows: Category 1 (100 ppmV), Category 2 (500 ppmV), Category 3 (2500 ppmV), Category 4 (20000 ppmV). | ||||
| The terms “dust”, “mist” and “vapor” are defined as follows: | ||||
| (i) Dust: solid particles of a substance or mixture suspended in a gas (usually air); | ||||
| (ii) Mist: liquid droplets of a substance or mixture suspended in a gas (usually air); | ||||
| (iii) Vapor: the gaseous form of a substance or mixture released from its liquid or solid state. |
Table A.2.2—Skin Irritation Category
Table A.2.3—Concentration of Ingredients of a Mixture Classified as Skin Category 1 or 2 That Would Trigger Classification of the Mixture as Hazardous to Skin (Category 1 or 2)
| Sum of ingredients classified as: | Concentration triggering classification of a mixture as: | |
|---|---|---|
| Skin corrosive | Skin irritant | |
| Category 1 | Category 2 | |
| Skin Category 1 | ≥5% | ≥1% but <5% |
| Skin Category 2 | ≥10% | |
| (10 × Skin Category 1) + Skin Category 2 | ≥10% | |
| Note: Where data are available and the sub-categories of skin Category 1 (corrosive) are used, the sum of all ingredients of a mixture classified as sub-category 1A, 1B or 1C respectively, must each be ≥5% in order to classify the mixture as either skin sub-category 1A, 1B or 1C. Where the sum of 1A ingredients is <5% but the sum of 1A+1B ingredients is ≥5%, the mixture must be classified as sub-category 1B. Similarly, where the sum of 1A + 1B ingredients is <5% but the sum of 1A + 1B + 1C ingredients is ≥5% the mixture must be classified as sub-category 1C. Where at least one relevant ingredient in a mixture is classified as Category 1 without sub-categorization, the mixture must be classified as Category 1 without sub-categorization if the sum of all ingredients corrosive to skin is ≥5%. |
Table A.7.1—Cut-Off Values/Concentration Limits of Ingredients of a Mixture Classified as Reproductive Toxicants or for Effects on or via Lactation That Trigger Classification of the Mixture
| Ingredients classified as: | Cut-off values/concentration limits triggering classification of a mixture as: | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Category 1 reproductive toxicant | Category 2 reproductive toxicant | Additional category for effects on or via lactation | |
| Category 1 reproductive toxicant | ≥0.1% | ||
| Category 2 reproductive toxicant | ≥0.1% | ||
| Additional category for effects on or via lactation | ≥0.1% |
Table B.3.1—Criteria for Aerosols
Table B.12.1—Criteria for Chemicals Which, in Contact With Water, Emit Flammable Gases
| Category | Criteria |
|---|---|
| 1 | Any chemical which reacts vigorously with water at ambient temperatures and demonstrates generally a tendency for the gas produced to ignite spontaneously, or which reacts readily with water at ambient temperatures such that the rate of evolution of flammable gas is equal to or greater than 10 liters per kilogram of chemical over any one minute. |
| 2 | Any chemical which reacts readily with water at ambient temperatures such that the maximum rate of evolution of flammable gas is equal to or greater than 20 liters per kilogram of chemical per hour, and which does not meet the criteria for Category 1. |
| 3 | Any chemical which reacts slowly with water at ambient temperatures such that the maximum rate of evolution of flammable gas is greater than 1 liter per kilogram of chemical per hour, and which does not meet the criteria for Categories 1 and 2. |
| Note: Classification of solid chemicals shall be based on tests performed on the chemical as presented. If, for example, for the purposes of supply or transport, the same chemical is to be presented in a physical form different from that which was tested and which is considered likely to materially alter its performance in a classification test, classification must be based on testing of the chemical in the new form. |