Category: Regulations

May 12, 2022

After years of drafting and reviews, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has issued a final rule that updates and revises its highway bridge inspection standards for the first time since 2009. The new regulation, published in the Federal Register on […]

April 27, 2022

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has for a second time proposed increased injury and illness reporting for employers — as well as a change that would make that data public — and business advocates are again pushing back. OSHA […]

April 20, 2022

The U.S. Dept. of Labor is moving to revoke Arizona’s occupational health and safety plan and bring the state under federal standards as it says the state’s own standards have fallen short of federal requirements in a “pattern of failures.” […]

March 31, 2022

U.S. organizations have joined the momentum to reopen physical workspaces after more than two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. Earlier this month, the Biden administration laid out a plan that, in part, sought to clarify the White House’s approach for […]

March 30, 2022

Designed for HVAC professionals, the 2019 edition of ASHRAE’s Standard 90.1 code includes more than 100 energy-focused updates since the last edition was published in 2016. In addition, the 2021 IECC incorporates significant changes over the 2018 edition, including: Increased […]

March 22, 2022

The U.S. government’s ability to weigh the social cost of greenhouse gas emissions in federal rulemaking—and with it the potential resumption of delayed leasing for oil and gas drilling on public lands—has been restored, following the U.S. Court of Appeals […]

February 16, 2022

The U.S. Department of Labor announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking by the department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration to improve worker safety and health by ensuring the agency’s general industry and construction industry rules reflect current industry practice and […]

February 16, 2022

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited the employer involved in a February 2021 double fatality at a downtown Boston worksite and his successor company again for failing to provide employees with essential and required […]

February 16, 2022

The Associated General Contractors of America reacted to the announcement with caution. “Although some states have set up limited Buy Clean programs, these types of programs are new and their impacts on material supply chains have not been fully tested,” […]

February 15, 2022

The head of a Boston-based construction company that lost two workers in a fatal accident at a downtown Boston worksite last year now faces nearly $2 million in total fines after safety violations on a new project. Federal regulators hit […]

February 15, 2022

The Biden administration is moving to put U.S. government purchasing power behind construction materials with lower embodied carbon emissions and pollutants, with the White House launching a “Buy Clean Task Force” on Feb. 15. as part of a slate of […]

February 11, 2022

Public construction projects almost always require surety bonds. As a type of insurance, bonds protect the government if the wheels come off a project, or the contractor absconds with the funds. Indeed, bonding has been mandatory on federal public works […]

February 2, 2022

OSHA has released another round of citations against companies that violate the agency’s safety protocols, resulting in injuries and fatalities to workers. This latest roundup of offenses includes willful violations of fall protection standards, standards involving aerial lifts and more. […]

January 25, 2022

1926.451(a)(1) Except as provided in paragraphs (a)(2), (a)(3), (a)(4), (a)(5) and (g), each scaffold and scaffold component shall be capable of supporting, without failure, its own weight and at least 4 times the maximum intended load applied or transmitted to […]

November 18, 2021

OSHA’s vaccine mandate would make all businesses with 100 workers or more face fines — with a maximum penalty of $13,653 per violation and willful or repeated violations carrying a $136,532 maximum per violation — if their employees do not […]

November 8, 2021

The ETS faced challenges even before its publication in the Federal Register. Twenty-four attorneys general signed a letter Sept. 16 promising legal action against the federal government should the mandate come to pass. The letter argued that the mandate could […]

November 1, 2021

Record-breaking heat in the U.S. in 2021 endangered millions of workers exposed to heat illness and injury in both indoor and outdoor work environments. Workers in outdoor and indoor work settings without adequate climate-controlled environments are at risk of hazardous […]

October 28, 2021

Record-breaking heat in the U.S. in 2021 endangered millions of workers exposed to heat illness and injury in both indoor and outdoor work environments. Workers in outdoor and indoor work settings without adequate climate-controlled environments are at risk of hazardous […]

October 28, 2021

To help avoid another building disaster, such as the June 24 partial collapse of the Champlain Towers South residential condominium in Surfside, Florida legislators should establish statewide mandatory structural recertification inspections and whole-building safety inspections for most existing buildings of […]

October 27, 2021

The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration is seeking comments on future rules on workplace heat hazards that will affect construction and other industries. OSHA, part of the U.S. Dept. of Labor, published its advance notice of proposed rulemaking for […]