Republican lawmakers sue CDC over commercial travel mask mandate

A group of 17 Republican lawmakers has sued the Centers for Disease Control and its director, claiming its commercial travel mask mandate causes them financial harm because they must purchase a mask every time they use commercial airlines. The congressmen seek an order to set aside the “transportation hub” mask mandate, which the CDC issued on January 29, 2021, and requires individuals who use certain forms of transportation to wear masks. Courthouse News Service

Pennsylvania recycling company fined $88K by Fed-OSHA

A Freeland, Pennsylvania-based plastic recycling company is facing over $88,000 in fines after two inspections performed by Fed-OSHA in 2021. The agency alleges the company permitting dangerous amounts of combustible dust to build up on surfaces that possibly could ignite due to open electrical equipment in the area. Times Leader

Hot tub manufacturer fined $99K for chemical exposures

Fed-OSHA has cited a Pennsylvania hot tub manufacturer for two repeat violations and one serious violation and issued nearly $99,000 in fines, for allegedly exposing employees to methylene bisphenyl diisocyante without implementing all feasible engineering controls. The agency says it cited the employer for similar violations in 2020 and 2021. Daily Item

Massachusetts waste-to-energy plant fined $26K for exposures to toxins

Fed-OSHA has fined a Berkshire County, Massachusetts waste-to-energy facility $26,000, charging employees were exposed to smoke containing arsenic, cadmium and lead. WNYT

Massachusetts rep asks EPA, Fed-OSHA to probe health problems at courthouse

U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, D-Mass., has asked both Fed-OSHA and the Environmental Protection Agency to investigate conditions at the Roderick L. Ireland Courthouse in Springfield, where environmental conditions are blamed for five deaths from ALS and 60 or more cancer diagnoses. MassLive [may require registration]