Silica Rule Q&A's Slated as Compliance Looms

The Mine Safety and Health Administration has scheduled in-person sessions and webinars to answer questions ahead of the April 14 compliance date for its final rule on miner exposure to respirable crystalline silica.
Effective as of June 2024, the rule halves the permissible exposure limit for respirable crystalline silica to 50 micrograms per cubic meter of air, over an 8-hour time-weighted average.
It also increases silica sampling and enforcement at metal and nonmetal mines and requires mine operators to provide periodic health exams at no cost to miners.
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In the wake of Rep. Andy Biggs’ (R-AZ) recently introduced “Nullify the Occupational Safety and Health Administration Act” (H.R. 86), industry experts have been quick to speculate about the future of the agency.
Among the latest commentaries include those from John Surma, an Ogletree Deakins attorney who represents employers in workplace safety and health matters.
He cited Justice Clarence Thomas’s dissent to the denial of certiorari in Allstates Refractory Contractors as hinting at a potential Supreme Court shift regarding the constitutionality of delegations of rulemaking authority.
“Arguably, reliance on “national standards,” which is built into the OSH Act, would have to be replaced with rules contained within legislation, thereby compelling Congress to have a much more active role with respect to workplace health and safety,” Surma wrote in a March 28 blog post.
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Jonathan Murphy, 22nd Air Refueling Wing occupational safety manager at McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas, has been named as the service’s Occupational Safety Civilian of the Year for 2024.
As chair of the Risk Assessment Working Group for the USAF’s longest combat sortie, Project Magellan, Murphy led a team that mitigated nine critical hazards across four combatant commands.
His oversight during the flight averted mishaps over 45 flight hours and eight air refueling events.
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