In a good-news development for Arizona employers – including contractors – yesterday the Labor Department announced that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) “will withdraw its proposal to … revoke final approval of Arizona’s State Plan for occupational safety and health.”
The decision leaves the state plan in place, and worker safety enforcement will remain in the hands of the Arizona Division of Occupational Safety and Health (ADOSH).
OSHA announced its threatened takeover in October 2021, subject to the results of a public comment period that was set to expire July 5, 2022. On that date, according to the Labor Department, the state advised OSHA that it had completed “significant actions” to address OSHA’s concerns, and OSHA extended the comment period.
“With today’s announcement,” the Labor Department announcement stated, “OSHA will withdraw its proposal to reconsider the final approval status of the Arizona State Plan, despite recent public reports of a downward trend in inspections in the plan’s enforcement program … and the agency is actively working with the Arizona State Plan to address these issues.”
