OSHA Issues a Flurry of Proposed Rules

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently proposed some sweeping changes to longstanding regulations.

OSHA published a whopping 25 proposed rules and one final rule on July 1, 2025. The proposed rules encompass several different topics related to worker health and safety. Some of the proposals will impact very narrow groups of employers and industries, and a few may have a substantial impact on a large number of U.S. employers. OSHA’s commentary on these changes indicates a goal of removing unnecessary regulatory burdens on employers, while also streamlining OSHA’s regulatory process.

The only finalrule put into place (and effective immediately) eliminates the need for OSHA’s administrator to seek opinions of the Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health before publishing, changing, or revoking standards that apply to construction work.

Below are a few high notes from some of the more broadly applicable proposed regulations. Remember that OSHA’s rulemaking process requires them to publish these proposed changes and allow time for public commentary and feedback. The links above and below lead to the Federal Register site, where the full details of the suggested changes can be accessed along with the feedback submission form.

Highlights of Notable Proposed Rules

• Application of the General Duty Clause: This could be the change that causes the most stir and elicits the most feedback. While the General Duty Clause is fundamentally intended to protect employees – it’s been maligned by employers for years due to how it’s been utilized by some overzealous inspectors. It serves as a catch-all when an employer may not have violated any one specific standard. The proponents of this change claim that the General Duty Clause “should not apply to hazards that are inherent and inseparable from the core nature of a professional activity,” such as professional sports and entertainment.

• Ending COVID-19 recordkeeping and reporting requirements in healthcare: OSHA wants to eliminate reporting requirements, citing the end of the public health emergency, decreased cases, and a general sense that this data collection is not as helpful as it may have been previously.

• Amending Med Eval Requirements for Respirators: OSHA is suggesting removal of the requirement for medical clearance of an employee before they can wear an N95, P100 or similar filtering facepiece respirators, and loose-fitting powered air-purifying respirators (PAPRs). All other types of respirators will still require adherence to OSHA’s current medical evaluation criteria.

• Construction Illumination: This recommendation would revoke the current standard, which requires that active construction areas are lit either naturally or artificially. Their opinion is that poor lighting presents such an obvious hazard that the standard is unnecessary.

• Reporting of Musculoskeletal Disorders: Once again, the proposal to include work-related musculoskeletal disorders on the OSHA 300 Log has been rescinded.

As always, if you have questions or concerns about OSHA in general, or how proposed changes may impact your business, we’d encourage you to reach out to one of our Safety Specialists or your client services manager at Spooner Inc.