OSHA will delay enforcing a new interpretation of its Process Safety Management Standard, prompting a bipartisan group of lawmakers to call for the agency to withdraw that interpretation.

 

In a July 22 memorandum, OSHA announced it had revised the interpretation that exempted retail facilities from PSM requirements. The exemption originally was intended only for retail establishments that sold hazardous chemicals in small quantities, such as gas stations, but the agency had been applying the exemption to establishments that made more than 50 percent of their income from direct sales of those chemicals to end users.

 

The new interpretation states that only facilities with North American Industry Classification System codes of 44 and 45 will be exempt. Although OSHA believes most affected facilities currently are regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency’s Risk Management Program, it may take some time to come into compliance with the PSM standard.

 

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