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PalletCentral • November-December 2022 35 the current OSHA rule – except that MSHA does not give credit for the use of PPE and respiratory protection! All exposure limits must be maintained using engineering and administration/work practice controls. • Requiring Safety Programs for Surface Mobile Equipment. MSHA anticipates issuing a Final Rule in July 2023, which would apply to mine operators and to visitors who bring mobile equipment on site (contractors, haulers, delivery personnel). ere is currently an Enhanced Enforcement Program, in advance of this final rule, targeting things like delivery and pickup trucks brought on site by contractors that are found to have any defects affecting safety, or where unsafe operation is observed (such as lack of seatbelt use or failure to chock equipment parked on a grade). • Testing, Evaluation, and Approval of Electric Motor driven mine equipment (to allow use of voluntary consensus standards). A final rule anticipated in June 2023. Other Significant U.S. Department of Labor Rulemaking Activities OSHA and MSHA both increased their civil penalties in January 2023 (effective on anything not yet assessed as of January 15, 2023, even where the violations occurred in 2022). Federal OSHA's maximum penalties for willful and repeat violations are now be $156,259 (up from $145,027) while serious, OTS and failure to abate sanctions rose to $15,625 (from $14,502). As noted above, MSHA's maximum penalty is now $313,790 per violation, even where the cited party is an independent contractor or trucking company. e U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division also anticipates issuing a final rule in May 2023, to rescind the January 2021 rule regarding classification of independent contractors, thus reinstating the previous classification. is will make it more difficult to call an individual a contractor, and there will be stiff penalties from DOL (and the IRS) for misclassification. While this regulatory outlook may appear burdensome, the DOL and OSHA are making up for time and restoring worker protections that were rolled back under the Trump Administration. Can anything be done about it? e first piece of OSHA-related legislation introduced by the GOP House of Representatives was HR 69, the "NOSHA Act" – introduced on

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