Hazard Communication Standard

Document 2024-08568 is a Final Rule published by the Department of Labor in the Federal Register on May 20, 2024, with an effective date of July 19, 2024. OSHA is amending the Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) to conform to the United Nations' Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS), primarily Revision 7 (Rev. 7), address issues that arose during the implementation of the 2012 update to the HCS, and provide better alignment with other U.S. agencies and international trading partners, while enhancing the effectiveness of the standard. Consistent with Executive Order 13563 and the Regulatory Flexibility Act, which call for assessment and, where appropriate, modification and improvement of existing rules, OSHA has reviewed the existing HCS. The agency has determined that the revisions in this final rule will enhance the effectiveness of the HCS by ensuring employees are appropriately apprised of the chemical hazards to which they may be exposed, thus reducing the incidence of chemical-related occupational illnesses and injuries. The modifications to the standard include revised criteria for classification of certain health and physical hazards, revised provisions for updating labels, new labeling provisions for small containers, new provisions related to trade secrets, technical amendments related to the contents of safety data sheets (SDSs), and related revisions to definitions of terms used in the standard. View the original at https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2024/05/20/2024-08568/hazard-communication-standard.

No. Document 2024-08568 is not classified as economically significant under Executive Order 12866. Economically significant rules require OIRA review and are estimated to have impacts of $100 million or more per year.