Bill Text: CA AB1561 | 2009-2010 | Regular Session | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Occupational safety and health: citation outcome

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-0)

Status: (Vetoed) 2010-01-14 - Consideration of Governor's veto stricken from file. [AB1561 Detail]

Download: California-2009-AB1561-Amended.html

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BILL NUMBER: AB 1561	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN SENATE  JUNE 26, 2009

INTRODUCED BY   Committee on Labor and Employment (Monning (Chair),
Eng, Furutani, Ma, and Portantino)

                        MARCH 11, 2009

   An act  to amend Section 6325 of, and  to add Section
6333 to  ,  the Labor Code, relating to employment.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 1561, as amended, Committee on Labor and Employment.
Occupational safety and health: citation outcome analysis.
   Existing law, the California Occupational Safety and Health Act of
1973, establishes enforcement procedures for the requirements
related to safe and healthful working conditions for Californians.
 The Division of Occupational Safety and Health of the  
Department of Industrial Relations is charged with enforcing
occupational health and safety laws, orders, and standards, including
the investigation of alleged violations of those provisions. 
    Existing law requires the division, when it decides that a
place of employment, machine, device, apparatus, or equipment
constitutes an imminent hazard to employees, to prohibit entry to the
workplace or use of the machine, device, apparatus, or equipment.

    This bill would specify that a place of employment may be
deemed dangerous because a particular machine, device, apparatus, or
piece of equipment, as well as a condition or practice in a place of
employment, constitutes an imminent hazard to employees. 
 Existing 
    Existing  law requires the Director of  the
Department of Industrial Relations to prepare and submit to
the Legislature, not later than March 1, an annual report on the
activities of the  Division of Occupational Safety and Health
of the department   division  , including, among
other components, the total inspections made and citations issued;
the number of civil penalties assessed, total amount of fines
collected, and the number of appeals heard; and information contained
in a specified report prepared by the Bureau of Investigations of
the division.
   This bill would require the  Division of Occupational
Safety and Health of the department   division  to
collaborate with the Occupational Safety and Health Appeals Board of
the department to prepare an annual report analyzing the outcomes of
citations and other notifications to employers appealed by those
employers to the board by employers during the immediately prior
calendar year. The division would be required to present the written
report, not later than March 1 of each year, to the Speaker of the
Assembly and the Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Rules for
assignment to the appropriate committee or committees for evaluation.

   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   SECTION 1.    Section 6325 of the   Labor
Code   is amended to read: 
   6325.  When, in the opinion of the division, a place of employment
 ,  is dangerous to employees because of a
condition or practice, or because a  machine, device, apparatus,
or  piece of  equipment or any part thereof is in a
dangerous condition, is not properly guarded  ,  or is
dangerously placed so  as to constitute   that
the condition or practice of the workplace or the machine, device,
apparatus, or equipment constitutes  an imminent hazard to
employees, entry therein, or the use thereof, as the case may be,
shall be prohibited by the division, and a conspicuous notice to that
effect shall be attached thereto.  Such   The
 prohibition of use shall be limited to the immediate area in
which the imminent hazard exists, and the division shall not prohibit
any entry in or use of a place of employment, machine, device,
apparatus, or  piece of  equipment, or any part thereof,
which is outside  such   the  area of
imminent hazard.  Such   The  notice shall
not be removed except by an authorized representative of the
division, nor until the place of employment, machine, device,
apparatus, or equipment is made safe and the required safeguards or
safety appliances or devices are provided. This section shall not
prevent the entry or use with the division's knowledge and permission
for the sole purpose of eliminating the dangerous conditions.
   SECTION 1.   SEC. 2.   Section 6333 is
added to the Labor Code, to read:
   6333.  (a) The division shall collaborate with the appeals board
to prepare an annual report that analyzes the outcomes of each
citation, notification of failure to abate, special order, and order
to take special action that satisfies all of the following:
   (1) It was appealed to the appeals board by the employer to whom
the notification of whichever type was issued.
   (2) It had a docket number issued in the immediately prior
calendar year.
   (3) It was reviewed factually and legally in a prehearing
conference or in an administrative hearing.
   (4) Its outcome was memorialized in a written order of decision.
   (b) The division shall present, not later than March 1 of each
year, the written report analyzing the outcomes of the prior year to
the Speaker of the Assembly and the Chairperson of the Senate
Committee on Rules for assignment to the appropriate committee or
committees for evaluation.
   SEC. 2.   SEC. 3.   It is the intent of
the Legislature that the report prepared each year pursuant to this
act be similar to the winter 1999 report entitled "Outcomes Analysis
of Pre-Hearing Conferences and Administrative Law Hearings Involving
Cal/OSHA Citations" prepared by the Division of Occupational Safety
and Health of the Department of Industrial Relations. However, the
report prepared pursuant to this act is intended to include all the
citations, orders, and other notifications that satisfy the criteria
specified in the act, rather than just a sample of them, as were
analyzed in the 1999 report.