Asunción Valdivia Heat Illness and Fatality Prevention Act of 2022

IB Union Calendar No. 393 117TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 2193 [Report No. 117–547] To direct the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to issue an occupational safety and health standard to protect workers from heat- related injuries and illnesses. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MARCH 26, 2021 Ms. CHU (for herself, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Mr. GRIJALVA, and Ms. ADAMS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor NOVEMBER 7, 2022 Additional sponsors: Ms. OCASIO-CORTEZ, Ms. PINGREE, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. LEVIN of Michigan, Ms. OMAR, Mr. RUIZ, Ms. BROWNLEY, Mr. CAR- SON, Mr. MRVAN, Mr. SAN NICOLAS, Ms. BARRAGA´N, Ms. ROYBAL- ALLARD, Mr. PANETTA, Mr. DESAULNIER, Ms. MATSUI, Mr. COHEN, Ms. NORTON, Ms. SA´NCHEZ, Mr. GALLEGO, Mr. CA´RDENAS, Mr. SABLAN, Ms. BONAMICI, Mr. SOTO, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. KHANNA, Mrs. TORRES of California, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. GARAMENDI, Mr. CARBAJAL, Ms. GARCIA of Texas, Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. CRIST, Ms. CASTOR of Florida, Mr. HUFFMAN, Mr. TORRES of New York, Ms. KAPTUR, Mr. POCAN, Mr. VICENTE GON- ZALEZ of Texas, Mr. LARSEN of Washington, Mr. SUOZZI, Mrs. KIRK- PATRICK, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Mr. NADLER, Ms. LOFGREN, Mr. VARGAS, Mr. CICILLINE, Mr. AGUILAR, Mr. MORELLE, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, Mr. EVANS, Mr. LIEU, Mr. BISHOP of Georgia, Mr. CASTRO of Texas, Ms. NEWMAN, Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Mrs. HAYES, Ms. ROSS, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr. GARCI´A of Illinois, Mrs. DEMINGS, Ms. PRESSLEY, Ms. JAYAPAL, Mr. THOMPSON of California, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mr. VEASEY, Mr. KIM of New Jersey, Mr. CONNOLLY, Mr. MOULTON, Ms. TITUS, Ms. DEAN, Mr. NEGUSE, Mr. SMITH of Washington, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. TONKO, Ms. ESHOO, Ms. MENG, Mr. KILDEE, Ms. BLUNT ROCHESTER, Mr. MCNERNEY, Mr. JONES, Mr. BOWMAN, Mr. RASKIN, Ms. LEGER FERNANDEZ, Mr. SIRES, Mr. COURTNEY, Mr. VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:21 Nov 07, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H2193.RH H2193 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 2193 RH TAKANO, Mr. MCEACHIN, Mrs. MURPHY of Florida, Mrs. MCBATH, Mr. LYNCH, Ms. STANSBURY, Mr. RUSH, Mr. HIGGINS of New York, Ms. TLAIB, Mr. CASTEN, Ms. STEVENS, Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York, Mr. BERA, Mr. GOMEZ, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Ms. BUSH, Mr. BROWN of Maryland, Ms. BROWN of Ohio, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. MFUME, Mrs. LAWRENCE, Mr. ALLRED, Ms. WILLIAMS of Georgia, Ms. SCANLON, Mr. PALLONE, and Ms. JACOBS of California NOVEMBER 7, 2022 Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] [For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on March 26, 2021] A BILL To direct the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to issue an occupational safety and health standard to protect workers from heat-related injuries and illnesses. VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:21 Nov 07, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H2193.RH H2193 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 2193 RH Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Asuncio´n Valdivia Heat 4 Illness and Fatality Prevention Act of 2022’’. 5 SEC. 2. EMPLOYER DUTIES. 6 Each employer shall— 7 (1) furnish employment and a place of employ- 8 ment free from conditions that may reasonably be an- 9 ticipated to cause death or serious physical harm 10 from heat stress; and 11 (2) comply with standards, regulations, rules, 12 and orders promulgated under this Act. 13 SEC. 3. WORKER HEAT PROTECTION STANDARDS. 14 (a) DESIGN OF STANDARDS.— 15 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall promul- 16 gate a worker heat protection standard that, in ac- 17 cordance with the best available evidence, establishes 18 the maximum protective program of measures an em- 19 ployer shall implement to regulate employees’ expo- 20 sure to heat stress and prevent heat-related illness and 21 injury that attains the highest degree of health and 22 safety protection to the extent feasible. 23 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:21 Nov 07, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2193.RH H2193 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 2193 RH (A) DEMONSTRABLY ACHIEVABLE MEAS- 1 URES.—The Secretary may presume that any re- 2 quirement substantially equivalent to a require- 3 ment adopted by a State plan approved by the 4 Occupational Safety and Health Administration 5 pursuant to section 18(c) of the Occupational 6 Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 7 667(c)) and that has been in effect for at least 8 1 year is feasible. 9 (B) PRIORITIZING WORKER PROTECTION.— 10 In weighing any considerations during rule- 11 making, the Secretary shall place preeminent 12 value on assuring employees a safe and healthful 13 working environment. 14 (C) AVAILABLE EXPERTISE.—If the Sec- 15 retary adopts any finding or recommendation by 16 the Institute, the American Conference of Gov- 17 ernmental Industrial Hygienists, or the National 18 Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medi- 19 cine relevant to heat stress in a rulemaking pur- 20 suant to this Act, such finding or recommenda- 21 tion shall be considered the best available evi- 22 dence. 23 (D) EMPLOYER CATEGORIES.—The Sec- 24 retary may, in any rulemaking analysis or de- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:21 Nov 07, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2193.RH H2193 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 2193 RH sign of standards, cluster relevant employers in 1 any categories such as standard industry or oc- 2 cupational classifications or any common or re- 3 lated features of heat sources, conditions of em- 4 ployment, employer practices, employee charac- 5 teristics, or nature of place of employment that, 6 in the Secretary’s reasonable determination, are 7 useful for designing an effective and practicable 8 program of standards, regulations, and enforce- 9 ment that maximizes the health and safety of 10 employees. 11 (3) PROTECTIVE PROGRAMS.— 12 (A) IN GENERAL.—In addition to measures 13 specified by this Act, the Secretary may develop 14 a worker heat protection standard with such ad- 15 ditional requirements that, in the Secretary’s 16 reasonable judgment, are necessary or appro- 17 priate to achieve the purposes of this Act. Such 18 measures may include the following: 19 (i) ENGINEERING CONTROLS.—Re- 20 quirements to eliminate hazardous levels of 21 heat stress through engineering controls, 22 such as isolation or shielding of employees 23 from sources of heat, exhaust ventilation, 24 insulation of hot surfaces, or climate-control 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:21 Nov 07, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2193.RH H2193 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 2193 RH technologies, as well as technology-based 1 standards that encourage the development of 2 such controls. 3 (ii) ADMINISTRATIVE CONTROLS.—Re- 4 quirements to limit exposure to hazardous 5 levels of heat stress by adjustment of work 6 procedures, work schedules, or other work 7 practices. 8 (iii) PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIP- 9 MENT.—Requirements to provide, at the em- 10 ployer’s expense, personal protective equip- 11 ment such as water-cooled garments, air- 12 cooled garments, heat-reflective clothing, 13 and cooling vests. 14 (iv) HEALTH-RELATED PROTOCOLS.— 15 Requirements to conduct medical symptom 16 monitoring, emergency response protocols, 17 medical removal protection, or training of 18 employees and supervisors in recognition of 19 symptoms of heat-related illness and appro- 20 priate responses. 21 (v) TRAINING REQUIREMENTS.—Re- 22 quirements to train employees and super- 23 visors in topics reasonable or necessary to 24 achieve the implementation of the require- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:21 Nov 07, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2193.RH H2193 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 2193 RH ments of a standard or the purposes of this 1 Act, including— 2 (I) training of employees in signs 3 and symptoms of heat-related illness, 4 emergency response procedures, and 5 their rights under this Act; and 6 (II) training of supervisors in 7 monitoring heat conditions and envi- 8 ronmental forecasts, recognizing signs 9 of heat-related illness, and protocols for 10 responding to likely heat-related ill- 11 ness. 12 (vi) PLANNING REQUIREMENTS.—Re- 13 quirements for a heat illness and injury 14 prevention plan that— 15 (I) is of sufficient quality to effec- 16 tuate the purposes of this Act and to 17 effectuate the requirements of the 18 standard that apply to the employer; 19 (II) is developed, updated, and 20 implemented with the meaningful par- 21 ticipation of the employer’s employees 22 and, where applicable, such employees’ 23 representatives, for all aspects of the 24 plan; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:21 Nov 07, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2193.RH H2193 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 2193 RH (III) is produced and maintained 1 in writing and updated in light of 2 changing conditions or practices; and 3 (IV) is made available, upon re- 4 quest, to any employee, the employee’s 5 representative, and the Secretary. 6 (vii) STANDARD HEALTH AND SAFETY 7 MEASURES.—Any measures described in 8 section 6(B)(7) of the Occupational Safety 9 and Health Act of 1970 (29 USC 10 655(B)(7)). 11 (B) INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS.—As the rel- 12 evant scientific evidence develops, technological 13 solutions improve, and environmental conditions 14 or new work practices aggravate the risk of heat- 15 related illness or injury, the Secretary may mod- 16 ify, supplement, or revise a worker heat protec- 17 tion standard by rule in order to improve such 18 standard in light of such changes, even if it de- 19 parts from long-standing past practice, provided 20 that the resulting standard is consistent with 21 this Act. 22 (C) CORE PRACTICES.—The Secretary shall 23 establish criteria under which an employer who 24 exposes or may reasonably be anticipated to ex- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:21 Nov 07, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2193.RH H2193 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 2193 RH pose an employee to heat or heat stress that is 1 not reduced below hazardous levels by engineer- 2 ing controls or personal protective equipment 3 shall implement a reasonable program that in- 4 cludes— 5 (i) suitably cool potable water or ap- 6 propriate hydration, provided at employer 7 expense; 8 (ii) periodic paid rest breaks scheduled 9 to reduce heat stress below hazardous levels; 10 (iii) access to shade or suitable cool- 11 down spaces; 12 (iv) acclimatization policies; and 13 (v) such measures that are necessary or 14 appropriate to ensure effective implementa- 15 tion of the requirements of this subpara- 16 graph. 17 (4) OTHER SPECIFICATIONS.— 18 (A) PROTECTION OF PAY.—The Secretary 19 shall require that, for any required duration 20 such as rest breaks, medical removal protection, 21 and training, an employee shall receive com- 22 pensation at the regular rate at which such em- 23 ployee is employed. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:21 Nov 07, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2193.RH H2193 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 2193 RH (B) LANGUAGE ACCESS.—Any required 1 training, poster, label, hazard alert, or written 2 plan shall be provided in English and a lan- 3 guage understood by the employees, if such is not 4 English, and prepared appropriately for the vo- 5 cabulary, educational level, and literacy of the 6 employees. 7 (C) TEMPORARY LABOR CAMPS.—The Sec- 8 retary shall revise the Secretary’s standard for 9 temporary labor camps to the extent necessary to 10 achieve the purposes of this Act. 11 (5) MAINTAINING PROTECTION.—No worker heat 12 protection standard promulgated under this Act may 13 reduce the protection afforded employees by an exist- 14 ing worker heat protection standard. 15 (b) INITIAL STANDARDS.—Not later than the date that 16 is 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec- 17 retary shall promulgate, without regard to the requirements 18 of chapters 5 and 6 of title 5, United States Code, sub- 19 chapter I of chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code (com- 20 monly known as the ‘‘Paperwork Reduction Act’’), or the 21 National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 431 22 et seq.), an interim final rule establishing a worker heat 23 protection standard and related recordkeeping and report- 24 ing requirements. Such rule shall take effect upon issuance 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:21 Nov 07, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2193.RH H2193 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 2193 RH (except that it may include a reasonable delay in the effec- 1 tive date), shall have the legal effect of an occupational safe- 2 ty and health standard as defined by section 3(8) of the 3 Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 4 652(8)), and shall remain in effect until superseded by a 5 final rule promulgated pursuant to this Act. 6 (c) RULEMAKING PROCEDURES.—For any rulemaking 7 pursuant to this Act after publication of the initial final 8 rule in subsection (b), the following procedures shall apply: 9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall, upon a 10 showing by a petitioner pursuant to paragraph (2) or 11 the Secretary’s own determination that a worker heat 12 protection standard is necessary or appropriate to 13 regulate employees’ exposure to conditions known to 14 cause or that may reasonably be anticipated to cause 15 heat-related illness or injury, promulgate any worker 16 heat protection standard in accordance with the poli- 17 cies set forth in this section and in accordance with 18 section 553 of title 5, United States Code (without re- 19 gard to any reference in such section to sections 556 20 and 557 of such title). 21 (2) PETITIONS FOR RULEMAKING.—Any person 22 may petition the Secretary to promulgate or modify 23 a worker heat protection standard. Within 18 months 24 after receipt of a petition, the Secretary shall either 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:21 Nov 07, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H2193.RH H2193 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 2193 RH grant or deny the petition by publishing a written ex- 1 planation of the reasons for the Secretary’s decision. 2 The Secretary may not deny a petition solely on the 3 basis of inadequate resources or insufficient time for 4 review. 5 (3) TIMELINES.—Except as otherwise provided 6 in subs [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]