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Introduced Version House Bill 2489 History

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Key: Green = existing Code. Red = new code to be enacted
H. B. 2489


(By Delegates Caputo and Mahan)
[Introduced January 13, 2010; referred to the
Committee on Energy, Industry and Labor, Economic Development and Small Business then the Judiciary.]




A BILL to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated §22A-1-40, relating to notice of hazardous chemical substances and lead exposure to employees of mine operators; requiring Director of Miners' Health, Safety and Training to adopt a list of hazardous substances by rule and to compile safety information regarding hazardous substances; and providing a criminal penalty for violation.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended by adding thereto a new section, designated §22A-1-40, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 1. OFFICE OF MINERS' HEALTH, SAFETY AND TRAINING; ADMINISTRATION; ENFORCEMENT.

§22A-1-40. Hazardous chemical substances; notice to employees; notice to employees of lead exposure; reports to director; penalties.
(a) It is declared the policy of this state to require mine operators (hereinafter employers) subject to the provisions of this chapter to disclose to employees the hazards of exposure in the workplace to hazardous or toxic chemical substances and materials. For this purpose, the Director of the Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training shall adopt the list of toxic and hazardous substances found in twenty-nine Code of Federal Regulations 1910.1000, 1910.1001, 1910.1020, 1910.1025, 1910.1200 and 1910.1201, Subpart Z, revised as of July 1, 1998, as amended, and shall also maintain, by rule a list of chemical substances and materials which have been determined or are suspected to be hazardous or toxic to the health of employees who may be exposed to them in the course of employment. In establishing and maintaining this list, the director may give consideration to any list made or hereafter made by the Secretary of Labor of the United States identifying or proposing to identify chemical substances and materials as hazardous or toxic or setting standard levels of safe exposure thereto, as the same are published from time to time in the federal register. The director shall publish and update, at least annually, the list of substances and materials and information regarding lead exposure and shall include in the publication thereof, for each listed substance or material, any standard levels of safe exposure published by the secretary in the federal register, giving due consideration to any changes made or proposed by the secretary in the secretary's list of hazardous or toxic chemical substances and materials, or in any standard levels of safe exposure established or proposed from time to time by the secretary, as the same are published in the federal register. The director shall provide a copy of the updated list and lead exposure information to the Joint Committee on Government and Finance by December 1 each year.
(b) Any employer of ten or more employees using or producing any listed hazardous chemical substance or material shall conspicuously post a warning notice in the work area where any such substance or material is used, to read substantially as follows:
WARNING NOTICE

............................................................... (Name of hazardous chemical substance or material) is used at this work site.
Common symptoms of overexposure include the following:
....................
Name of Employer
Any notice required to be posted with regard to a mobile work site may be posted on the container or containers of the hazardous substance or material or in some other conspicuous place.
The employer shall include in the notice those common symptoms of overexposure that: (1) Are published with the standard levels of safe exposure; or (2) are certified to the employer by a physician employed for that purpose. Good faith reliance upon the source of information will be sufficient notice of the common symptoms.
(c) Any employer whose employees may come in contact with lead as defined in twenty-nine Code of Federal Regulations 1910.1025, Subpart Z, shall reasonably investigate the possibility of lead exposure to employees. Upon a determination of the presence of lead, the employer shall take all reasonable and necessary steps to minimize exposure to employees, and the employer shall conspicuously post a warning notice in the work area where any lead exposure may occur, to read substantially as follows:
WARNING NOTICE

.................................................................
Lead has been detected at this work site. There is a possibility of lead exposure at this work site and all reasonable and necessary steps must be followed to minimize employee exposure including the following:
....................
Name of Employer
The Director of the Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training shall provide, at the request of the employer, the reasonable and necessary steps to minimize worker exposure to lead for inclusion on the warning notice above. Any notice required to be posted with regard to a mobile work site may be posted in a conspicuous place where exposure is possible.
The employer must comply with all requirements of the director and the provisions of twenty-nine Code of Federal Regulations 1910.1025, Subpart Z regarding any known lead hazard.
(d) Any employer having notice of any incident of exposure to a listed hazardous chemical substance or material in excess of its standard level of safe exposure published by the director shall, within ten days thereof, report to the director the circumstances of the incident and provide a copy of the report to the employee.
(e) Any person or corporation that violates the provisions of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than $100 nor more than $1,000 for each violation.



NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require mine operators to provide notice of hazardous chemical substances and lead exposure to its employees.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.
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