Labor & Employment Law Daily Wrap Up, EXPERT INSIGHTS—OMB solicits public comment on eliminating regulations: A bold new frontier for OSHA may await, (Apr 29, 2025)

By John D. Surma of Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart

Every safety professional has an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulation he or she cannot stand, believes is a waste of time, energy, and/or money, or considers outdated and antiquated.

Even the average person on the street probably thinks there is some silly OSHA regulation that should be done away with. Now the aggrieved (even only the mildly annoyed) safety professional and individual has a chance to have that regulation eliminated, but only if they act soon.

Quick Hits

• OMB is seeking the public's input on deregulation, including public comment on and recommendations for potentially outdated or burdensome OSHA regulations, with a submission deadline of May 12, 2025.

• Safety professionals and the public now have the opportunity to suggest the elimination or revision of specific OSHA regulations.

• Potential targets for deregulation pursuant to OMB's request for information include OSHA's "walkaround rule," electronic recordkeeping regulations, and the proposed heat injury and illness prevention program.

On April 11, 2025, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) published a notice, titled, "Request for Information: Deregulation," soliciting the public's comments and deregulatory recommendations with respect to rescinding or replacing agency regulations, including OSHA rules. This request for information (RFI) is in keeping with the Trump administration's regulatory freeze issued at the outset of the president's term of office.

On its face, the request for information (RFI) states that "OMB solicits ideas for deregulation from across the country. Commenters should identify rules to be rescinded and provide detailed reasons for their rescission. OMB invites comments about any and all regulations currently in effect." The RFI continues and states the following:

OMB seeks proposals to rescind or replace regulations that stifle American businesses and American ingenuity. We seek comment from the public on regulations that are unnecessary, unlawful, unduly burdensome, or unsound. Comments should address the background of the rule and the reasons for the proposed rescission, with particular attention to regulations that are inconsistent with statutory text or the Constitution, where costs exceed benefits, where the regulation is outdated or unnecessary, or where regulation is burdening American businesses in unforeseen ways.

Without any parameters or limitations on RFI submissions, it is possible that someone might recommend that all OSHA regulations be eliminated, that the construction standards (29 C.F.R. 1926) be eliminated, or that the recordkeeping requirements be eliminated. It is unlikely that any of these would take place, as the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act requires the agency to issue regulations and collect data concerning workplace injuries and illnesses.

Section 2 of the OSH Act states:

(b) The Congress declares it to be its purpose and policy, through the exercise of its powers to regulate commerce among the several States and with foreign nations and to provide for the general welfare, to assure so far as possible every working man and woman in the Nation safe and healthful working conditions and to preserve our human resources—

(3) by authorizing the Secretary of Labor to set mandatory occupational safety and health standards applicable to businesses affecting interstate commerce, and by creating an Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission for carrying out adjudicatory functions under the Act[.]

Section 24 of the OSH Act states:

(a) In order to further the purposes of this Act, the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall develop and maintain an effective program of collection, compilation, and analysis of occupational safety and health statistics. Such program may cover all employments whether or not subject to any other provisions of this Act but shall not cover employments excluded by section 4 of the Act. The Secretary shall compile accurate statistics on work injuries and illnesses which shall include all disabling, serious, or significant injuries and illnesses, whether or not involving loss of time from work, other than minor injuries requiring only first aid treatment and which do not involve medical treatment, loss of consciousness, restriction of work or motion, or transfer to another job.

Consequently, OSHA is effectively obligated by the OSH Act to issue occupational safety and health standards to "assure so far as possible every working man and woman in the Nation [a] safe and healthful" workplace and to collect data concerning workplace safety and health matters. Seeking to eliminate all OSHA standards or recordkeeping rules would require revising the OSH Act.

Which OSHA regulations are probable targets of these efforts? The so-called "walkaround rule" related to who can accompany an OSHA compliance officer during an inspection seems a very likely candidate. Similarly, the electronic recordkeeping regulations may be subject to deletion or elimination. To the extent that OSHA is seeking to implement a heat injury and illness prevention program, it, too, could fall prey to this RFI.

There is no limit on the agency, regulation, or topic that may be submitted pursuant to the RFI. Undoubtedly, there will be an enormous number of suggestions related to OSHA and other agencies—from the U.S. Department of Justice's Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, to the U.S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Indian Affairs, to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (a federal agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services)—to name but a few. Many suggestions will likely be dismissed out of hand, but there will also likely be well-reasoned, thoughtful submissions that do receive at least some attention. The deadline for submissions in response to the RFI is May 12, 2025, and submissions may be made through the website Regulations.gov.

Ogletree Deakins' Workplace Safety and Health Practice Group will continue to monitor developments and provide updates on the Workplace Safety and Health blog as additional information becomes available. This article and more information on how the Trump administration's actions impact employers can be found on Ogletree Deakins' New Administration Resource Hub.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.

John D. Surma

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart

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Atlanta

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