On March 17, 2009, OSHA will hold a public hearing to receive comments on its proposed rule designed to increase the protection provided for employees against hazards associated with the use of cranes and derricks in construction activities. The hearing will be held in the Frances Perkins Building, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, N.W. Conference Room 6, Room C-5320, Washington, D.C. 20210. The hearing will commence at 10:00 a.m. on March 17, 2009 and, if necessary, will continue on March 18, 2009 at 9:00 a.m.

If a party is interested in providing testimony during the hearing, it must notify OSHA in writing no later than February 13, 2009. OSHA has also asked for each party’s testimony to be no more than 10 minutes. If a party needs more than 10 minutes to present testimony or will submit documentary evidence at the hearing, it must provide OSHA with copies of the full testimony and all documentary evidence by March 3, 2009.

The notice of intention to appear at the hearing, hearing testimony, and documentary evidence may be submitted in three ways: 1) post the comments electronically through the Federal eRulemaking Portal, 2) send three copies to the OSHA Docket Office, Technical Data Center, Room N-2625, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C., 20210, or 3) if less than 10 pages, fax the comments to 202-693-1648. Each submission must include the sender’s name, date, subject, and Docket Number for this rulemaking (OSHA-2007-0066).