Bill Text: HI SCR40 | 2010 | Regular Session | Amended

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

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Bill Title: Hexavalent Chromium; Workplace Safety; OSHA Regulations

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 18-0)

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2010-04-16 - (H) Report adopted; referred to the committee(s) on EBM with none voting no and Har, Luke, Mizuno, Shimabukuro, Souki excused. [SCR40 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2010-SCR40-Amended.html

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THE SENATE	S.C.R. NO.	40
TWENTY-FIFTH LEGISLATURE, 2010		S.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII

SENATE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

 

 

EXPRESSING SUPPORT FOR ENFORCEMENT OF EXISTING OSHA REGULATIONS ON THE USE OF HEXAVALENT CHROMIUM AND URGING OSHA TO DEVELOP SAFER ALTERNATIVES AND BAN HEXAVALENT CHROMIUM.

 

 

     WHEREAS, hexavalent chromium, also known as Chrome 6, is highly toxic, hazardous, and a known carcinogen; and

 

     WHEREAS, the International Agency for Research on Cancer has determined that there is decisive evidence for the carcinogenicity of hexavalent chromium compounds in humans; and

 

     WHEREAS, hexavalent chromium is commonly used in commercial and industrial applications, including electroplating, welding, industrial paints, shipbuilding, processing of chromite ore, certain dying operations, wastewater treatment, certain inks, plastic colorants, stainless steel production operations, textile processing, and leather tanning; and

 

     WHEREAS, the adverse effects of exposure to hexavalent chromium include lung cancer, ulceration of the nasal passages, perforation of the nasal septum, asthma, allergic contact dermatitis, irritant dermatitis, and ulceration of the skin; and

 

     WHEREAS, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations limit acceptable levels for workplace exposure to hexavalent chromium to five micrograms/m³ for a Time‑Weighted Average of eight hours; and

 

     WHEREAS, the Hawaii Occupational Safety and Health Division, which is the state enforcement partner for OSHA, has adopted penalties for noncompliance with the OSHA standards but, due to a heavy workload, conducts inspections for hexavalent chromium violations only in response to complaints and not on a regular basis; and

 

     WHEREAS, safer industry and process-specific alternatives to hexavalent chromium exist; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-fifth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2010, the House of Representatives concurring, that the Legislature supports vigorous enforcement of existing OSHA regulations on hexavalent chromium until the goal of banning its use is achieved; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature urges OSHA to adopt meaningful enforcement mechanisms for OSHA regulations regarding hexavalent chromium in the workplace; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature recommends that OSHA work to develop and promote the use of safer alternatives to hexavalent chromium with the goal of eventually banning hexavalent chromium; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Secretary for Occupational Safety and Health, the Director of Labor and Industrial Relations, and the Operations Manager of the Hawaii Occupational Safety and Health Division.

Report Title: 

Hexavalent Chromium; Workplace Safety; OSHA Regulations