BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                  AB 326
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   January 8, 2014

                     ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT
                               Roger Hernández, Chair
                   AB 326 (Morrell) - As Amended:  January 6, 2014
           
          SUBJECT  :   Occupational safety and health standards: reporting.

           SUMMARY  :   Makes a technical change to specified reporting  
          requirements related to occupational safety and health to  
          replace the term "telegraph" with "e-mail."

           EXISTING LAW  provides that in every case involving a serious  
          injury or illness or death, the employer shall also make an  
          immediate report to the Division of Occupational Safety and  
          Health (DOSH).  Existing law specifies that such a report shall  
          be made by telephone or "telegraph."

           FISCAL EFFECT :   Unknown

           COMMENTS  :   As introduced, this bill proposed to modify the  
          state law reporting requirements for specified occupational  
          safety and health incidents to mirror federal law.  However, the  
          bill failed passage in this committee.

          Subsequently, the author and other members of this Committee  
          wrote a letter to the Director of the Department of Industrial  
          Relations (DIR) seeking comment on the current reporting  
          requirements and their relation to federal law.

          By letter dated October 22, 2013, the Director of DIR responded  
          and explained why she did not feel that the current state law  
          reporting requirement needed to be changed.  However, her letter  
          did state the following:

               "Cal/OSHA and the Department of Industrial Relations both  
               agree that the regulation is due to be modernized, such as  
               replacing 'telegraph' with 'e-mail.'  We do not agree,  
               however, that it should be watered down to the federal  
               standard."

          Therefore, the author has amended this bill to delete the prior  
          contents and simply make the aforementioned update to the  
          reporting requirement to replace the term "telegraph" with  
          "e-mail."








                                                                  AB 326
                                                                  Page  2


           REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION  :   

           Support 
           
          None on file.

           Opposition 
           
          None on file.


           Analysis Prepared by  :    Ben Ebbink / L. & E. / (916) 319-2091