The Obama administration released finalized fuel efficiency standards for medium and heavy-duty trucks that require up to a 25% reduction in carbon emissions for big tractor-trailers over the next 10 years, and smaller improvements for delivery trucks, school buses and other large vehicles.
Last month, the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously rejected a request by industry groups to overturn a Department of Energy (DOE) rule setting energy efficiency standards for commercial refrigerators.
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published its final rule implementing the paid sick leave executive order requiring federal contractors to provide up to seven days' paid sick leave to their employees. The final rule will go into effect for new solicitations issued on or after January 1, 2017.
On November 17, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) released its long-awaited final rule update to the general industry walking-working surfaces standard specific to slip, trip and fall hazards.
On Wednesday, November 17, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas issued a permanent injunction against the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) persuader rule in the case brought by several business organizations.
The OSHA silica rule, issued in March, cuts the current permissible exposure limit for silica in half and requires companies to implement costly engineering controls and a host of ancillary provisions
About 4 million workers would have become eligible for overtime pay under the rule which would have doubled the Fair Labor Standards Act’s (FLSA’s) salary threshold from $23,660 to $47,892 a year for full-time executive, administrative and professional workers.
The final rule reduces the permissible exposure limit (PEL) for beryllium to 0.2 micrograms per cubic meter of air over an eight-hour time-weighted average.
The silica letter, which garnered the support of over 80 House lawmakers, highlights their deep concerns with the regulatory burdens of OSHA’s silica rule on businesses in their states including, foundries, construction, brick manufacturers, the maritime industry, and many more.
In February, AFS delivered a letter to key members of Congress outlining some of the industry’s top burdensome rules. In particular, the burden of environmental regulation falls disproportionately on manufacturers, and it is heaviest on small manufacturers because their compliance costs often are not affected by economies of scale.