Limitations on OSHA’s Citation and Penalty Authority

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Expand OSHA Enforcement Authority for Workplace Safety

AKA “Protect Small Businesses from Overregulation”


Which agency/agencies promulgated the regulation? *
Department of Labor (DOL), Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
Which title, parts, and/or sections of the Code of Federal Regulations (C.F.R.) should be rescinded? *
Rescind or revise the following enforcement-limiting provisions: 29 CFR §1903.8(b) – Restricts per-instance citations by grouping related violations under a single count. 29 CFR §1904.1 & §1904.2 – Exempts employers with 10 or fewer employees, and entire NAICS-coded industries, from injury and illness recordkeeping. 29 CFR §1903.15(d) – Defines penalty calculation factors that can reduce fines, even for serious and repeated hazards. Does not formally codify egregious case handling or per-violation fines.
What is your name?
—OPTIONAL--
Is your proposed rescission a notice of proposed rulemaking, final rule, direct final rule, interim final rule, or interpretive rule? *
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
What is the name of the regulation being rescinded, if applicable? *
Limitations on OSHA’s Citation and Penalty Authority
Please provide a short summary of the justifications for the rescission. *
OSHA’s hands are tied by outdated rules that limit how often it can cite violations, how much it can penalize employers, and which workplaces must report injuries. These aren’t worker protections—they’re shields for repeat violators. Rescinding these constraints would restore the agency’s ability to prevent harm, especially in high-risk industries and historically excluded small workplaces.
Please insert the address of the agency. [NPRM, DFR, and IFR only]
U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration 200 Constitution Ave NW Washington, D.C. 20210
Please insert the contact information for the agency. *
OSHA Office of Communications Phone: 1-800-321-6742 Email: osha.complaints@dol.gov
What is the background for the regulation being rescinded? *
Over the past several decades, OSHA enforcement authority has been narrowed through internal rulemaking. The agency’s ability to issue per-instance citations, enforce meaningful penalties, and require reporting from all employers has been undermined. These changes were not required by statute and can be reversed through rulemaking to re-align with OSHA’s original public safety mission.
Explain the reasons for the rescission. *
Every worker deserves a safe job—regardless of industry or employer size. OSHA’s ability to hold employers accountable is weakened by grouped violations, exempted workplaces, and penalty reductions. These regulatory rollbacks protect employers, not employees. By restoring per-instance citations and expanding recordkeeping requirements, OSHA can better prevent serious harm and hold repeat offenders accountable.
Describe the text of the relevant C.F.R. provisions as it will exist after the rescission. *
Revised provisions shall: Authorize per-employee or per-instance citations in cases of willful or repeated violations where employer knowledge is demonstrated (§1903.8). Eliminate recordkeeping exemptions for employers with fewer than 11 employees and expand reporting obligations to all NAICS industries (§1904.1, §1904.2). Codify OSHA’s authority to classify egregious violations and apply full per-violation penalties, with adjusted language in §1903.15(d) reflecting updated maximums as allowed by 29 U.S.C. §666.
Please insert the name of the current agency head. *
Lori Chavez-DeRemer
Please insert the title of the agency head. *
Secretary of Labor

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