The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has made the materials for the upcoming Small Business Advocacy Review (SBAR) panel (also known as a SBREFA panel) on Tree Care Operations publicly available on its webpage at https://www.osha.gov/dsg/tcsbrefa/index.html. These materials include:
- Final PIRFA OSHA Small Business Advocacy Review Panel March 13, 2020
- PIRFA Treecare Operations Appendices Only March 13, 2020
- Tree Care Issues Document
OSHA has also scheduled teleconferences for small entities to discuss the possible rulemaking for April 7, 8, 16, and 17.
OSHA’s potential tree care standard could cover employers whose employees perform daily tree care operations, such as pruning, maintaining, repairing, or removing trees, as well as other companies, municipalities, and organizations that occasionally cut or prune trees as a secondary part of their primary operations (e.g., residential and commercial construction and remodeling, landscaping, golf course maintenance, power and pipeline clearing, campgrounds and resorts, crane operators, certain agricultural operations, etc.).
OSHA is still selecting small entity representatives from the regulated sectors if you are interested in participating in the panel process. OSHA will also provide a public, listen-in only teleconference number for members of the public who wish to listen to the discussions. For additional information, please contact Bruce Lundegren, Assistant Chief Counsel at bruce.lundegren@sba.gov or (202) 205-6144.