Originally published by American Thinker on September 9, 2017.
Republicans have struggled to implement their legislative agenda. One notable exception has been their ability to roll back expansive rules implemented under the Obama administration — especially those rammed through at the last minute — to relieve the economy from excessive regulatory burdens. A rule in the works on beryllium exposure in the abrasive blasting industry provides an example where an agency under President Trump has taken a step in the right direction, but could still go further.
In January, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) finalized a rule regarding beryllium exposure in certain industries. The rule drastically reduced the permissible exposure limits for workers and included ancillary provisions regulating such things as recordkeeping and personal protective equipment.
Unfortunately, the rule was vastly expanded at the last minute before being finalized. After the rule had already gone through the usual process whereby affected businesses and the public can provide feedback and input, regulators decided to target additional industries. Rather than stick to its initial goal of reducing exposure to beryllium alloys, OSHA decided that the rule also would cover abrasive blasting in the construction and shipyard industries.
Prolonged exposure to certain types of beryllium can lead to chronic beryllium disease, which affects the lungs, and elevated risks of lung cancer. But materials used in abrasive blasting, which recycles waste products like coal and copper slag from power plants and refining processes, contain only trace amounts of the mineral form of beryllium — as much as 22,000 times less than in some beryllium alloys like those originally targeted by the rule.
To justify the expanded regulation, OSHA claimed that it would prevent 96 premature deaths each year. It provided no scientific basis for this claim. Nor could it justify its fanciful assertion that the rule would somehow conjure up $575.8 million in savings and benefits per year.
What we do know, on the other hand, is that there has been no documented case of beryllium-related illness in the abrasive blasting industry. We also know that compliance will cost businesses dearly, and that OSHA did not follow proper procedure when it roped in the abrasive blasting industry. This is why some members of Congress strenuously objected to the expanded rule, and OSHA ultimately was forced to backtrack.
OSHA just closed comments on a new rule which would partially undo its own overreach by excluding construction and shipyard industries from the ancillary regulations. This is a step in the right direction. However, it is still applying to abrasive blasting the permissible exposure limit of 0.2 micrograms per cubic feet over eight hours, down from the current level of 2.0 micrograms. This might be reasonable for industries dealing with beryllium alloys, but imposing the requirement on abrasive blasting is arbitrary and without strong scientific backing.
A number of OSHA regulations were already in existence regarding potential beryllium exposure in the construction and shipyard industries, such as standards for ventilation, respiratory protection, and hazard communication. Yet by failing to follow proper procedure with regard to these particular industries, OSHA never bothered to demonstrate that existing protections were inadequate before heaping costly new burdens on American businesses.
Thankfully, OSHA has partially reversed course. However, part of the expanded rule that was slipped by without adherence to regulatory procedure remains. The new administration can demonstrate its commitment to protecting American jobs by insisting that OSHA correct the entirety of its Obama-era mistake instead of just reversing only some of the erroneous regulations it attempted to place on industries that use abrasive blasting.
