I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 3668 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 JULY 10, 2019 Ms. JUDY CHU of California (for herself, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Ms. ADAMS, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. LEVIN of Michigan, Ms. JAYAPAL, Ms. WILD, Ms. BONAMICI, Ms. OMAR, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. DESAULNIER, Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois, Ms. NORTON, Mr. COHEN, Mrs. WAT- SON COLEMAN, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, Mr. CA´RDENAS, Mr. SABLAN, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, and Ms. MENG) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor 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. 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 AND FINDINGS. 3 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 4 ‘‘Asuncion Valdivia Heat Illness and Fatality Prevention 5 Act of 2019’’. 6 (b) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:28 Jul 19, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3668.IH H3668 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 3668 IH (1) Excessive heat exposure poses a direct 1 threat to workers and the economy. Climate change 2 increases this danger, as 18 of the 19 hottest years 3 on record have occurred since 2001. Rising tempera- 4 tures are projected to cause an increase in heat-re- 5 lated workplace injuries and illnesses, a dramatic 6 loss in labor capacity, and decreased productivity. 7 (2) Heat-related illnesses can arise when high 8 temperatures rise above the body’s capacity to dispel 9 heat. Impacts range from comparatively minor prob- 10 lems such as heat cramps to severe afflictions such 11 as organ damage, heat exhaustion, stroke, and 12 death. 13 (3) Farmworkers and construction workers suf- 14 fer the highest incidence of heat illness, but all out- 15 door and indoor workers employed in excessively hot 16 and humid environments are at significant risk of 17 material impairment of health or functional capacity. 18 (4) Asuncion Valdivia was a California farm- 19 worker who died of heat stroke in 2004 after picking 20 grapes for 10 straight hours in 105 degree tempera- 21 tures. Instead of calling an ambulance, his employer 22 told his son to drive Mr. Valdivia home. On his way 23 home, he started foaming at the mouth and died. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:28 Jul 19, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3668.IH H3668 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 3668 IH (5) People working in excessive heat suffer di- 1 minished mental acuity and physical ability, which 2 increases the risk of accidents. Heat-related injuries 3 and illnesses increase workers’ compensation costs 4 and medical expenses. 5 (6) The costs of lower labor productivity under 6 rising temperatures is estimated to reach up to 7 $160,000,000,000 in lost wages per year in the 8 United States by 2090 according to the 2018 Na- 9 tional Climate Assessment. The drop in productivity 10 decreases income for employers and workers. Global 11 gross domestic product losses from heat are pro- 12 jected to be greater than 20 percent by the end of 13 this century. 14 (7) Every year, thousands of workers become 15 sick and some die from exposure to heat. Between 16 1992 and 2017, 815 United States workers died 17 from heat and almost 70,000 were seriously injured. 18 These numbers are generally understood to be gross 19 undercounts because many heat-related illnesses and 20 deaths are blamed on natural causes. 21 (8) Workers have a legal right to a safe work- 22 place. The vast majority of heat-related workplace 23 deaths and illnesses can be prevented by access to 24 water, rest, and shade. Many employers don’t pro- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3668.IH H3668 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 3668 IH vide these simple measures for workers according to 1 the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. 2 (9) Employers often retaliate against employees 3 if they report or seek assistance due to problems 4 with heat. Many employees are therefore afraid to 5 report problems and face increased risk of heat-re- 6 lated illnesses or death. 7 (10) In the absence of a Federal standard, mul- 8 tiple branches of the United States Armed Forces— 9 including the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air 10 Force—have issued heat prevention guidelines, and 11 several States—California, Washington, and Min- 12 nesota—have issued heat prevention standards. The 13 National Institute for Occupational Safety and 14 Health (NIOSH) issued criteria for such a standard 15 in 1972, updating it in 1986 and 2016. 16 (11) Congress created the Occupational Safety 17 and Health Administration to ensure safe and 18 healthful working conditions by setting and enforc- 19 ing standards pursuant to section 6 of the Occupa- 20 tional Safety and Health Act of 1970. Employees 21 are exposed to grave danger from exposure to exces- 22 sive heat. The Occupational Safety and Health Ad- 23 ministration must develop a standard to protect 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3668.IH H3668 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 3668 IH workers from the significant risks of heat-related ill- 1 ness and death. 2 SEC. 2. OSHA SAFETY STANDARD FOR EXPOSURE TO HEAT 3 AND HOT ENVIRONMENTS. 4 (a) PROPOSED STANDARD.—Not later than 2 years 5 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 6 Labor shall, pursuant to section 6(b) of the Occupational 7 Safety and Health Act (29 U.S.C. 655), promulgate a pro- 8 posed standard on prevention of occupational exposure to 9 excessive heat. 10 (b) FINAL STANDARD.—Not later than 42 months 11 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 12 promulgate a final standard on prevention of occupational 13 exposure to excessive heat that shall— 14 (1) provide no less protection than the most 15 protective heat prevention standard adopted by a 16 State plan that has been approved by the Secretary 17 under section 18 of the Occupational Safety and 18 Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 667) and, at a min- 19 imum, include the requirements described in section 20 4; and 21 (2) be effective and enforceable in the same 22 manner and to the same extent as any standard pro- 23 mulgated under section 6(b) of the Occupational 24 Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 655(b)). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3668.IH H3668 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 3668 IH (c) INTERIM FINAL STANDARD.— 1 (1) IN GENERAL.—If the proposed standard de- 2 scribed in subsection (a) is not promulgated not 3 later than 2 years after the date of enactment of 4 this Act, the Secretary of Labor shall promulgate an 5 interim final standard on prevention of occupational 6 exposure to excessive heat not later than 2 years and 7 60 days after such date of enactment— 8 (A) to require covered employers to develop 9 and implement a comprehensive workplace ex- 10 cessive heat prevention plan to protect covered 11 employees from excessive heat that may lead to 12 heat-related injuries and illnesses; and 13 (B) that shall, at a minimum— 14 (i) provide no less protection than the 15 most protective heat prevention standard 16 adopted by a State plan that has been ap- 17 proved by the Secretary under section 18 18 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 19 of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 667); 20 (ii) establish requirements with re- 21 spect to exposure limits that trigger action 22 to protect covered employees from heat-re- 23 lated illness, hydration, scheduled and paid 24 rest breaks in shaded or climate-controlled 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3668.IH H3668 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 3668 IH spaces, an acclimatization plan, exposure 1 monitoring, and other measures to prevent 2 exposure to heat above safe limits, em- 3 ployee and supervisor training, hazard no- 4 tification, an emergency medical response 5 plan, heat-related surveillance, record- 6 keeping, and procedures for compensating 7 piece rate workers for required heat-related 8 rest breaks; 9 (iii) take into consideration the 10 NIOSH Criteria for a Recommended 11 Standard: Occupational Exposure to Heat 12 and Hot Environments published by the 13 National Institute for Occupational Safety 14 and Health in 2016; and 15 (iv) include a requirement to protect 16 employees from discrimination or retalia- 17 tion for exercising the rights of the em- 18 ployees under the interim final standard. 19 (2) APPLICABILITY OF OTHER STATUTORY RE- 20 QUIREMENTS.—The following shall not apply to the 21 promulgation of the interim final standard under 22 this subsection: 23 (A) The requirements applicable to occupa- 24 tional safety and health standards under section 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3668.IH H3668 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 3668 IH 6(b) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1 of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 655(b)). 2 (B) The requirements of section 553(c) of 3 chapter 5 and chapter 6 of title 5, United 4 States Code, and chapter 55 of title 42, United 5 States Code. 6 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE OF INTERIM STAND- 7 ARD.—The interim final standard shall— 8 (A) take effect on a date that is not later 9 than 30 days after the promulgation of such 10 standard, except that such interim final stand- 11 ard may include a reasonable phase-in period 12 for the implementation of required engineering 13 controls that take effect after such date; 14 (B) be enforced in the same manner and 15 to the same extent as any standard promul- 16 gated under section 6(b) of the Occupational 17 Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 18 655(b)); and 19 (C) be in effect until the final standard de- 20 scribed in subsection (b) becomes effective and 21 enforceable. 22 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 23 In this Act: 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3668.IH H3668 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 3668 IH (1) COVERED EMPLOYEE.—The term ‘‘covered 1 employee’’ includes an individual employed by a cov- 2 ered employer. 3 (2) COVERED EMPLOYER.—The term ‘‘covered 4 employer’’— 5 (A) means an employer that employs an 6 individual to work at a covered workplace; and 7 (B) includes a contractor, subcontractor, a 8 temporary service firm, or an employee leasing 9 entity. 10 (3) COVERED WORKPLACE.—The term ‘‘covered 11 workplace’’ includes a workplace with occupational 12 exposure to excessive heat. 13 (4) EMPLOYER.—The term ‘‘employer’’ has the 14 meaning given the term in section 3 of the Occupa- 15 tional Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 16 652). 17 (5) EXCESSIVE HEAT.—The term ‘‘excessive 18 heat’’ includes outdoor or indoor exposure to heat at 19 levels that exceed the capacities of the body to main- 20 tain normal body functions and may cause heat-re- 21 lated injury, illness, or fatality (including heat 22 stroke, heat exhaustion, heat syncope, heat cramps, 23 or heat rashes). 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3668.IH H3668 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 3668 IH (6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 1 the Secretary of Labor. 2 SEC. 4. REQUIREMENTS FOR FINAL STANDARD ON PRE- 3 VENTION OF OCCUPATIONAL EXPOSURE TO 4 EXCESSIVE HEAT. 5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The final standard promulgated 6 under section 2(b) shall, at a minimum— 7 (1) take into consideration the NIOSH Criteria 8 for a Recommended Standard: Occupational Expo- 9 sure to Heat and Hot Environments published by 10 the National Institute for Occupational Safety and 11 Health in 2016; 12 (2) establish requirements with respect to expo- 13 sure limits that trigger action to protect covered em- 14 ployees from heat-related illness, hydration, sched- 15 uled and paid rest breaks in shaded or climate-con- 16 trolled spaces, an acclimatization plan, exposure 17 monitoring, and other measures to prevent exposure 18 to heat above safe limits, employee and supervisor 19 training, hazard notification, medical monitoring, an 20 emergency medical response plan, heat-related sur- 21 veillance recordkeeping, procedures for compensating 22 piece rate workers for required heat-related rest 23 breaks, and a heat prevention plan; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3668.IH H3668 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 3668 IH (3) include the requirements described in sub- 1 section (b). 2 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—The final standard promul- 3 gated under section 2(b) shall include the following: 4 (1) HEAT ILLNESS PREVENTION PLANS.— 5 (A) IN GENERAL.—A covered employer 6 shall develop, implement, and maintain an ef- 7 fective, written excessive heat illness prevention 8 plan for covered employees, which shall— 9 (i) be developed and implemented with 10 the meaningful participation of covered 11 employees and, where applicable, employee 12 representatives and collective bargaining 13 representatives, for all aspects of the plan; 14 (ii) be tailored and specific to hazards 15 in the covered workplace; 16 (iii) be in writing, in English and in 17 the language understood by a majority of 18 the employees, if such language is not 19 English; and 20 (iv) made available, upon request, to 21 such employees, the employee representa- 22 tives for such employees, and the Sec- 23 retary. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:55 Jul 18, 2019 Jkt 034408 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3668.IH H3668 jspears on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 3668 IH (B) PLAN CONTENT.—Each plan shall in- 1 clude procedures and methods for the following: 2 (i) Initial and regular monitoring of 3 employee exposure to determine whether 4 employees are exposed to excessive heat. 5 (ii) Provision of water, paid rest 6 breaks, and access to shade or cool-down 7 areas. 8 (iii) Emergency response. 9 (iv) Acclimatization. 10 (v) Hazard prevention, including engi- 11 neering controls, administrative controls, 12 or personal protective equipment to cor- 13 rect, in a timely manner, applying indus- 14 trial hygiene principles of the hierarchy of 15 controls, including, as appropria [Text truncated for display. 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