OSHA estimates the costs associated with the additional training
required for these employees as involving resources (including labor
costs or other expenditures) equivalent to 1.5 hours of employee time
plus 12 minutes of supervisory time plus 3 minutes of clerical time per
employee for all affected industries, except Ornamental Shrub and Tree
Services [5].\543\ For establishments in the Ornamental Shrub and Tree
Services industry, OSHA estimates that providing additional training
involves resources (including labor costs or other expenditures)
equivalent to 0.75 hours of employee time plus 6 minutes of supervisory
time plus 3 minutes of clerical time per employee [id.].
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \543\ Consistent with this estimate, one commenter, Siemens
Power Generation, Inc., noted that its employees already receive 4--
8 hours of electrical safety training per year (Ex. 0163). The
commenter indicated that the additional time OSHA allotted for
training was not sufficient for its workers. In response, the Agency
states that the assigned 1.5 hours additional training is an average
for most workers, including workers in the commenter's industry, and
that the allotted time should be sufficient to address the hazards
for workers in that industry. The Agency also emphasizes that this
estimate covers training on the new elements of the standard, not an
entire safety training course.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    OSHA estimates that the average cost of compliance for providing
the additional training will be 20 per employee for establishments in
the Ornamental Shrub and Tree Services industry and will range from 55
to 73 per employee in all other affected industries.
    OSHA accounted for new hires using a 3- to 53-percent turnover
rate, depending on the industry, and accounted for additional costs
associated with the transition to the final rule in the first-year by
halving the

applicable turnover rate for each industry. OSHA notes that it
increased the estimated turnover rate for Ornamental Shrub and Tree
Services from 31 percent to 53 percent based on comments received from
the Tree Care Industry Association (Exs. 0419, 0503). Table 33 shows
the estimated turnover rates for the various affected industry
segments.\544\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \544\ The FEA carries over the assumption, presented in the
original CONSAD analysis and carried through the PRIA, of additional
one-time training costs related to turnover. OSHA received no
comments on this approach. The consideration of turnover here is to
account for potential transitional costs related to the incremental
increase in the time it takes to train new employees. In any event,
inclusion of these costs results, at most, in a more conservative
(and perhaps overestimated) estimate of costs.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Based on research conducted by CONSAD, OSHA estimates that most
establishments in affected industries already are providing training
that fully complies with the requirements of the final rule [5]. These
establishments will not incur any costs for training under the final
rule.
    OSHA estimated the rates of current compliance with the final
requirements for each affected industry. Within each industry, the
Agency estimated rates of current compliance separately for
establishments based on their size and whether they have a unionized
workforce. In the Ornamental Shrub and Tree Services industry,
estimated rates of current compliance range from 50 to 75 percent. In
all other affected industries, the estimated rates of current
compliance range from 75 to 98 percent [5].
    The total estimated one-time cost of compliance for providing
training that meets the requirements of the final rule is 0.6 million.
When OSHA annualized this nonrecurring one-time cost at a rate of 7
percent over 10 years, it results in total estimated annualized costs
of approximately 0.1 million, as shown in Table 33. Table 33 also shows
the costs of compliance for each affected industry.

     Table 33--Annualized One-Time Costs for Providing Additional Training to Employees Already Receiving Training in Accordance With Existing Sec.
                                                                        1910.269
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                % workers     Average                   Annualized
                                                                           Employees     Turnover    in first-     cost per    Compliance     one-time
             Industry code                        Industry name             affected    rate  (%)       year       affected     rate  (%)    compliance
                                                                              (%)                    transition    employee                     costs
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NAICS 234910...........................  Water, Sewer, and Pipeline                95           16            8          $61   90/75/95/85        $1,082
                                          Construction.
NAICS 234920...........................  Power and Communication                   95           16            8           61   90/75/95/85        28,521
                                          Transmission Line Construction.
NAICS 234930...........................  Industrial Nonbuilding                   100           16            8           62   90/75/95/85         1,413
                                          Structure Construction.
NAICS 234990...........................  All Other Heavy Construction...           95           16            8           55   90/75/95/85         5,984
NAICS 235310...........................  Electrical Contractors.........           95           11            6           66   90/75/95/85        21,348
NAICS 235910...........................  Structural Steel Erection                100           11            6           66   90/75/95/85           384
                                          Contractors.
NAICS 235950...........................  Building Equipment and Other             100           11            6           66   90/75/95/85           360
                                          Machine Installation
                                          Contractors.
NAICS 235990...........................  All Other Special Trade                  100           11            6           56   90/75/95/85           938
                                          Contractors.
NAICS 221110...........................  Electric Power Generation......          100            3            2           73   95/95/98/98         8,023
NAICS 221120...........................  Electric Power Transmission,             100            3            2           73   95/95/98/98        13,608
                                          Control, and Distribution.
NAICS 2211.............................  Major Publicly Owned Utilities.          100            3            2           73         95/98         1,829
Various................................  Industrial Power Generators....          100            3            2           73            98         3,651
SIC 0783...............................  Ornamental Shrub and Tree                100           53           27           20         50/75        14,191
                                          Services.
                                                                         -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total..............................  ...............................  ...........  ...........  ...........  ...........  ............       101,332
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notes: (1) Totals may not equal the sum of the components due to rounding.
(2) For most NAICSs, compliance rates are for small unionized establishments, small nonunionized establishments, large unionized establishments, and
  large nonunionized establishments, respectively. Major Publicly Owned Utilities (NAICS 2211) and Ornamental Shrub and Tree Services (SIC 0783) only
  have compliance rates for small and large establishments, and Industrial Power Generators only have a compliance rate for large establishments.
Sources: CONSAD [5], U.S. Census [43, 44, 45, 46].

One-Time Costs for Additional Training for Employees Not Already
Receiving Training in Accordance with Existing Sec.  1910.269
    Companies that perform construction work associated with electric
power generation, transmission, and distribution systems generally are
also able and willing to perform (and do perform) similar work
involving the repair and maintenance of such systems. The distinction
between construction work and repair or maintenance work can be
difficult to make in some situations. For example, the distinction may
hinge on whether a particular piece of equipment is regarded as an
upgrade or a ``replacement-in-kind.''
    Since the work is often almost identical, companies are not likely
to restrict themselves to only repair or maintenance work, or to only
construction work, with regard to potential jobs involving electric
power generation, transmission, and distribution. Thus, it is
reasonable to assume that any company involved in such work will have
their employees trained as required by the existing OSHA standard
addressing this type of work in general industry (Sec.  1910.269).
    Small business representatives from the affected industries
providing

comments to OSHA on a draft of the proposed rule generally indicated
that construction contractors follow and comply with Sec.  1910.269 for
all of their work, including construction work. But some small business
representatives indicated that there are some companies that follow the
existing standards for construction work in Subpart V, rather than the
standards for general industry work in Sec.  1910.269 [29].
    When performing construction jobs covered by existing Subpart V,
employers may be able to avoid costs associated with complying with
Sec.  1910.269 requirements unrelated to training. However, those
employers would still incur training costs if they perform maintenance
jobs, which are covered by existing Sec.  1910.269. Thus, before the
compliance deadlines for the final rule, compliance with the training
requirements of Sec.  1910.269 in particular is likely, even if a
specific job involves only construction work and the employer follows
the relevant provisions of Subpart V.
    The number of firms, if any, that do only construction work as
defined by OSHA, and, therefore, avoid providing a basic training
regimen for employees under existing Sec.  1910.269, is difficult to
estimate. One Small Entity Representative (SER) estimated that about 10
to 30 percent of contractors involved in electric power transmission
and distribution work may exclusively do construction; another
representative stated that it did not know of any contractor firms that
do exclusively construction work [29].
    It is unlikely that contractors performing electric power
generation, transmission, or distribution work meet both of the
following criteria: (1) know and expect that, for all projects
performed, only construction work will be done such that they do not
need to train employees as required by existing Sec.  1910.269 and (2)
have employees work without providing them with what many consider to
be minimum basic safety training applicable to this type of work, as
specified in the training requirements in existing Sec.  1910.269. Only
contractors meeting both of these criteria will incur costs under the
final rule for training employees who are not already receiving
training in accordance with existing Sec.  1910.269.
    In the development of the final rule, OSHA was not able to identify
any employers that performed work covered by Subpart V and did not
perform work covered by Sec.  1910.269. However, carrying over
assumptions presented in the PRIA, OSHA calculated costs based on an
estimate that 5 percent of the affected construction employees performs
no work covered by existing Sec.  1910.269, primarily in response to
the recommendations of the SBREFA Panel, as discussed in the Initial
Regulatory Flexibility Analysis. Therefore, for purposes of estimating
the costs of compliance associated with this final rule, OSHA estimates
that 5 percent of the affected employees in several construction
industries will need to receive the training required by existing Sec.
1910.269 for their employers to achieve full compliance.
    Specifically, OSHA estimates that 5 percent of the affected
employees in the following industries will require this training:
Water, Sewer, and Pipeline Construction; Power and Communication
Transmission Line Construction; All Other Heavy Construction; and
Electrical Contractors. OSHA also accounted for new hires using an 11-
to 16-percent turnover rate, depending on the industry, and accounted
for additional costs associated with the transition to the final rule
in the first-year by halving the applicable turnover rate for each
industry.\545\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \545\ For a discussion of why the FEA carried over the
assumption, presented in the original CONSAD analysis and through
the PRIA, of additional one-time training costs related to turnover,
see supra, footnote 545.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    One commenter stated:

    While many contractors may be doing work covered by Sec.
1910.269 a good many of them don't think they do or are not aware of
it. Many if not all of their employees have never received training
required by Sec.  1910.269. We believe that OSHA's estimate of 5% of
contractor employees will need this training is way off. [Ex. 0186]

    The contractors to which the commenter is referring are already
legally obligated to comply with training under Sec.  1910.269. These
are costs the employers in question should already be bearing. The
costs in this section only capture employers not currently required to
comply with Sec.  1910.269.
    OSHA estimates the costs associated with the additional training
necessary to achieve full compliance with the final rule for employees
not already trained in accordance with Sec.  1910.269 as involving
resources (including labor costs or other expenditures) equivalent to
24.75 hours of employee time plus 3 minutes of clerical time per
employee in the affected industries.\546\ The Agency also includes a
cost for supervisor training not accounted for in the PRIA, with one
supervisor trained for every five workers. The Agency updated the
assumptions contained in the PRIA to reflect current costs and assumes
that these employees will receive their training in a training course
at $1,149 per person [28]. OSHA also updated the travel allowance of
$90 included in the PRIA to $99 using the Bureau of Economic Analysis'
Implicit Price Deflator for Gross Domestic Product [32]. The Agency
estimates that the average cost of compliance per affected employee for
the required training will range from $2,198 to $2,387 in the affected
industries. OSHA estimates current compliance of zero for this part of
the analysis [5]. Commenters did not question this assumption.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \546\ CONSAD estimated the additional training would be
equivalent to 24 hours, rather than 24.75 hours, of employee time
[5]. OSHA's estimate (which it developed in the PRIA) reflects
additional transitional elements associated with these one-time
costs.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Thus, the Agency estimates the total one-time cost of compliance
for providing additional training for employees not already trained in
accordance with Sec.  1910.269 to be $9.2 million. When OSHA annualized
this nonrecurring one-time cost at a rate of 7 percent over 10 years,
it resulted in estimated total annualized costs of approximately $2.7
million, as shown in Table 34. Table 34 also shows the costs of
compliance for each affected industry.
Annual Costs for Additional Training for Employees Not Already Covered
by Sec.  1910.269
    As noted earlier, OSHA included training costs based on an estimate
that 5 percent of the affected construction workforce performs no work
covered by Sec.  1910.269. Specifically, OSHA estimates that these
training costs would affect 5 percent of the relevant workforce in the
following industries: Water, Sewer, and Pipeline Construction; Power
and Communication Transmission Line Construction; All Other Heavy
Construction; and Electrical Contractors.
    OSHA estimated the annual costs associated with this additional
training for new affected employees as involving resources (including
labor costs or other expenditures) equivalent to 24 hours of supervisor
and worker time plus 3 minutes of clerical time per employee. OSHA
estimates that the average cost of compliance per affected employee for
the required training would range from $2,198 to $741,783 in the
affected industries.
    The Agency estimated the number of affected employees in each
establishment needing training each year by determining the
corresponding workforce turnover rate. OSHA estimated the workforce
turnover rate associated with the relevant occupational category for
each

potentially affected industry. The estimated turnover rates among
employees performing electric power generation, transmission, and
distribution work ranged from 11 to 16 percent in the affected
construction industries [5].
    For the establishments and employees affected by the expansion of
the scope of this training requirement, OSHA estimated current
compliance to be zero [5].
    The total estimated annual cost of compliance for providing
additional training for employees not already covered by Sec.  1910.269
(and not already provided with such training) was about $0.0 million.
Summing the annualized one-time costs and annual costs results in total
costs of approximately $0.0 million, as shown in Table 34.

  Table 34--Annualized One-Time Costs and Annual Costs for Additional Training for Employees Not Already Receiving Training in Accordance With Existing
                                                                     Sec.   1910.269
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                             % workers                                 Annualized               Total,
                                                      Employees   Turnover   in first-   Average cost per  Compliance   one-time     Annual   annualized
        Industry code              Industry name       affected  rate  (%)     year          affected       rate  (%)  compliance    costs    and annual
                                                         (%)                transition     employee\*\                    costs                  costs
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NAICS 234910................  Water, Sewer, and               5         16           8     $2,314/$26,730       25671     $52,400         $0          $0
                               Pipeline Construction.
NAICS 234920................  Power and                       5         16           8      2,314/741,783      772533   1,514,316          0           0
                               Communication
                               Transmission Line
                               Construction.
NAICS 234930................  Industrial Nonbuilding          0         NA          NA                 NA           0           0          0           0
                               Structure
                               Construction.
NAICS 234990................  All Other Heavy                 5         16           8      2,198/150,006      156411     306,417          0           0
                               Construction.
NAICS 235310................  Electrical Contractors          5         11           6      2,387/466,573      339587     806,160          0           0
NAICS 235910................  Structural Steel                0         NA          NA                 NA           0           0          0           0
                               Erection Contractors.
NAICS 235950................  Building Equipment and          0         NA          NA                 NA           0           0          0           0
                               Other Machine
                               Installation
                               Contractors.
NAICS 235990................  All Other Special               0         NA          NA                 NA           0           0          0           0
                               Trade Contractors.
NAICS 221110................  Electric Power                  0         NA          NA                 NA           0           0          0           0
                               Generation.
NAICS 221120................  Electric Power                  0         NA          NA                 NA           0           0          0           0
                               Transmission,
                               Control, and
                               Distribution.
NAICS 2211..................  Major Publicly Owned            0         NA          NA                 NA           0           0          0           0
                               Utilities.
Various.....................  Industrial Power                0         NA          NA                 NA           0           0          0           0
                               Generators.
SIC 0783....................  Ornamental Shrub and            0         NA          NA                 NA           0           0          0           0
                               Tree Services.
                                                     ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total...................  ......................  .........  .........  ..........  .................     1294201   2,679,293          0           0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*The first value is the one-time cost; the second value is the annual cost.
Notes: (1) Totals may not equal the sum of the components due to rounding.
(2) ``NA'' = Not Applicable.
(3) For most NAICSs, compliance rates are for small unionized establishments, small nonunionized establishments, large unionized establishments, and
  large nonunionized establishments, respectively. Major Publicly Owned Utilities (NAICS 2211) and Ornamental Shrub and Tree Services (SIC 0783) only
  have compliance rates for small and large establishments, and Industrial Power Generators only have a compliance rate for large establishments.
Sources: CONSAD [5], U.S. Census [43, 44, 45, 46].

6. One-Time Costs for Training Qualified Employees in the Use of Fall
Protection
    The final rule requires qualified employees climbing or changing
location on poles, towers, or similar structures to use fall protection
equipment unless the employer can demonstrate that climbing or changing
location with fall protection is infeasible or creates a greater hazard
than climbing or changing location without it. This provision requires
the use of new types of fall protection equipment, such as positioning
straps with built-in anchorage straps by qualified workers who climb
poles to work on electric equipment. Qualified employees will need to
receive brief training--OSHA estimates an hour--in the use of the new
fall protection equipment. To estimate the ratio of workers who climb
or change location on poles, towers, or similar structures to all
workers in that industry, OSHA divided the number of line installers
and repairers (51,440) in NAICS 221100 (Electric Power Generation,
Transmission and Distribution) by the total employment in that NAICS
(395,570) [39, 40]. OSHA assumed that the resulting value of 0.13 was
similar across all affected NAICSs.\547\ In addition to the 13 percent
of existing workers affected by this requirement, OSHA accounted for
turnover and the first-year transition to the final rule, as previously
noted.\548\ The compliance rate for this training is necessarily the
same as the compliance rate estimated for upgrading fall protection
equipment, that is, 50 percent across all affected NAICS. This approach
results in estimated total one-time costs of $0.4 million and
annualized one-time compliance costs of $0.07 million, as shown in
Table 35. Table 35 also shows the costs of compliance for each affected
industry.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \547\ OSHA's estimates of the one-time costs for training
qualified employees in the use of fall protection and the costs for
upgrading positioning straps as part of work-positioning equipment
are conservative, as OSHA based these estimates on the total number
of line installers and repairers, including underground power-line
installers and repairers, who generally do not need to climb or
change location on poles, towers, or similar structures. Employers
will generally neither need to provide and ensure the use of, nor
provide training on, the newly required type of work-positioning
equipment for this subset of workers.
    \548\ For a discussion of why the FEA carried over the
assumption, presented in the original CONSAD analysis and through
the PRIA, of additional one-time training costs related to turnover,
see supra, footnote 545.

                           Table 35--Annualized One-Time Costs for Training in Use of Fall Protection for Qualified Employees
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                % workers     Average                     Annualized
                                                                          Employees     Turnover    in first-     cost per     Compliance      one-time
             Industry code                        Industry name            affected    rate  (%)       year       affected      rate (%)      compliance
                                                                             (%)                    transition    employee                      costs
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NAICS 234910...........................  Water, Sewer, and Pipeline                0           NA           NA           NA              NA           $0
                                          Construction.
NAICS 234920...........................  Power and Communication                  13           16            8          $44     50/50/50/50       15,159
                                          Transmission Line
                                          Construction.
NAICS 234930...........................  Industrial Nonbuilding                    0           NA           NA           NA              NA            0
                                          Structure Construction.
NAICS 234990...........................  All Other Heavy Construction..            0           NA           NA           NA              NA            0
NAICS 235310...........................  Electrical Contractors........            0           NA           NA           NA              NA            0
NAICS 235910...........................  Structural Steel Erection                 0           NA           NA           NA              NA            0
                                          Contractors.
NAICS 235950...........................  Building Equipment and Other              0           NA           NA           NA              NA            0
                                          Machine Installation
                                          Contractors.
NAICS 235990...........................  All Other Special Trade                   0           NA           NA           NA              NA            0
                                          Contractors.
NAICS 221110...........................  Electric Power Generation.....           13            3            2           52     50/50/50/50       18,235
NAICS 221120...........................  Electric Power Transmission,             13            3            2           52     50/50/50/50       31,159
                                          Control, and Distribution.
NAICS 2211.............................  Major Publicly Owned Utilities           13            3            2           52           50/50        4,166
Various................................  Industrial Power Generators...            0            0            0           NA              NA            0
SIC 0783...............................  Ornamental Shrub and Tree                 0           NA           NA           NA              NA            0
                                          Services.

    Total..............................  ..............................  ...........  ...........  ...........  ...........  ..............       68,719
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notes: (1) Totals may not equal the sum of the components due to rounding.
(2) ``NA'' = Not Applicable.
(3) For most NAICSs, compliance rates are for small unionized establishments, small nonunionized establishments, large unionized establishments, and
  large nonunionized establishments, respectively. Major Publicly Owned Utilities (NAICS 2211) and Ornamental Shrub and Tree Services (SIC 0783) only
  have compliance rates for small and large establishments, and Industrial Power Generators only have a compliance rate for large establishments.
Sources: BLS [39, 40], CONSAD [5], U.S. Census [43, 44, 45, 46].

7. Costs To Comply With Existing Sec.  1910.269 (Other Than Training)
for Employers Not Already Covered by Sec.  1910.269
    As described earlier, OSHA believes that construction contractors
that perform work involving electric power generation, transmission, or
distribution generally comply with the requirements of Sec.  1910.269.
Nevertheless, for purposes of estimating the costs of compliance
associated with this final rule, OSHA estimated costs associated with
complying with existing requirements in Sec.  1910.269 for some
construction establishments. Specifically, OSHA estimates that the
compliance costs associated with achieving full compliance with the
requirements of existing Sec.  1910.269 for the construction industry
will be equivalent to that represented by 5 percent of the relevant
workforce not being in compliance with the requirements of existing
Sec.  1910.269, which OSHA introduced in the general industry standards
in 1994. In the PRIA, OSHA identified the affected employees as being
in the following industries: Water, Sewer, and Pipeline Construction;
Power and Communication Transmission Line Construction; All Other Heavy
Construction; and Electrical Contractors. No commenters objected to
this approach.
    In the analysis of the proposed rule published in 2005, OSHA
estimated the resources necessary to achieve compliance with the
relevant requirements to average about $64 per employee.\549\ This cost
is equivalent to that associated with compliance with existing Sec.
1910.269, as supported by the public record developed during
promulgation of that standard (59 FR 4320). There were no comments on
the PRIA questioning this estimate but OSHA has updated it from $64 in
2005 dollars to $70 in 2009 dollars to account for inflation, using the
Bureau of Economic Analysis' Implicit Price Deflator for Gross Domestic
Product [32].
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \549\ OSHA derived this cost, which represents a composite of
the various annualized nontraining costs divided by the number of
affected employees, from the regulatory impact analysis supporting
the 1994 Sec.  1910.269 rulemaking.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Thus, the total estimated annual costs associated with achieving
compliance with the nontraining requirements of existing Sec.  1910.269
for the construction industry is $0.2 million, as shown in Table 36.
Table 36 also shows the costs of compliance for each affected
industry.\550\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \550\ This estimated cost increased over that estimated cost in
the PRIA because OSHA updated the unit cost and the estimates of
power workers in the affected industries (see the approach outlined
under the heading ``Profile of Affected Industries'').

 Table 36--Annual Costs To Comply With Existing Sec.   1910.269 (Other Than Training) for Employees Not Already
                                           Covered by Sec.   1910.269
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                             Average
                                                               Employees     cost per    Compliance     Annual
          Industry code                  Industry name          affected     affected    rates  (%)   compliance
                                                                  (%)        employee                   costs
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NAICS 234910.....................  Water, Sewer, and                    5          $70      0/0/0/0       $4,427
                                    Pipeline Construction.
NAICS 234920.....................  Power and Communication              5           70      0/0/0/0      121,855
                                    Transmission Line
                                    Construction.
NAICS 234930.....................  Industrial Nonbuilding               0           NA           NA           NA
                                    Structure Construction.
NAICS 234990.....................  All Other Heavy                      5           70      0/0/0/0       25,941
                                    Construction.
NAICS 235310.....................  Electrical Contractors...            5           70      0/0/0/0       76,067
NAICS 235910.....................  Structural Steel Erection            0           NA           NA           NA
                                    Contractors.
NAICS 235950.....................  Building Equipment and               0           NA           NA           NA
                                    Other Machine
                                    Installation Contractors.
NAICS 235990.....................  All Other Special Trade              0           NA           NA           NA
                                    Contractors.
NAICS 221110.....................  Electric Power Generation            0           NA           NA           NA
NAICS 221120.....................  Electric Power                       0           NA           NA           NA
                                    Transmission, Control,
                                    and Distribution.
NAICS 2211.......................  Major Publicly Owned                 0           NA           NA           NA
                                    Utilities.
Various..........................  Industrial Power                     0           NA           NA           NA
                                    Generators.
SIC 0783.........................  Ornamental Shrub and Tree            0           NA           NA           NA
                                    Services.
                                                             ---------------------------------------------------
    Total........................  .........................  ...........  ...........  ...........      228,289
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notes: (1) Totals may not equal the sum of the components due to rounding.
(2) ``NA'' = Not Applicable.
(3) For most NAICSs, compliance rates are for small unionized establishments, small nonunionized establishments,
  large unionized establishments, and large nonunionized establishments, respectively. Major Publicly Owned
  Utilities (NAICS 2211) and Ornamental Shrub and Tree Services (SIC 0783) only have compliance rates for small
  and large establishments, and Industrial Power Generators only have a compliance rate for large
  establishments.
Sources: CONSAD [5], U.S. Census [43, 44, 45, 46].

8. Annual Costs for Required Communications Between Host Employers and
Contract Employers
    The final rule requires specific communications between host
employers and contract employers. These requirements would apply for
each project performed by a contractor.\551\ For a complete discussion
of the host-contractor provisions of the final rule, see relevant
discussion for Sec.  1926.950(c) in Section V, Summary and Explanation
of the Final Rule, earlier in this preamble.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \551\ Final Sec.  1926.968 defines ``contract employer'' as
``[a]n employer, other than a host employer, that performs work
covered by Subpart V of this part under contract.'' That section
also defines ``host employer'' as ``[a]n employer that operates, or
that controls the operating procedures for, an electric power
generation, transmission, or distribution installation on which a
contract employer is performing work covered by Subpart V of this
part.'' Thus, under the final rule the contract employer (also
called ``contractor'' in the FEA) is not always under contract to a
host employer. However, to simplify the analysis of costs under the
final rule, the FEA assumes that every contract employer is working
under contract to a host employer. This simplifying assumption
should have a negligible effect on costs since contract employers
will almost always be working for host employers and, in the
remaining cases, the host employer and the contract employer (which
is working for a different entity) must still exchange information.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Contractors perform an estimated 4,596,731 projects for host
employers annually. Contractors in establishments classified in the
Power and Communication Transmission Line Construction industry perform
about 1,701,656 of those projects, and contractors in establishments
classified in the Electrical Contractors industry perform another
1,247,104 of those projects [5, updated by OSHA].\552\ OSHA estimates
that the requirements for communications between host employers and
contract employers will affect 50 percent of projects performed by
contractors from small establishments and 100 percent of projects
performed by contractors from large establishments. Furthermore, OSHA
estimates that between 50 and 90 percent of these projects are already
in compliance.\553\ This compliance rate results in a total of 932,061
projects that will incur costs under the rule. The final requirements
will not affect projects performed by host employers without the use of
contract employers, so only projects performed by contract employers
result in costs for host employers. To calculate the projects for which
hosts will incur costs, OSHA relied on CONSAD's [5] estimate of the
percentage of projects performed using contractors, as shown in Table
37.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \552\ OSHA used CONSAD's approach to estimating the number of
projects. That is, the estimated number of projects per year for a
given industry is equal to the number of crews (that is, the number
of power workers divided by the crew size) multiplied by the number
of projects per crew per day (that is, one project), multiplied by
the number of workdays per year (250). For most industries, OSHA
estimates that a crew consists of three power workers at small
establishments and six power workers at large establishments. For
Ornamental Shrub and Tree Services (SIC 0783), however, OSHA
estimates that a crew consists of two workers at a small
establishment and four workers at a large establishment [5].
    \553\ OSHA notes that there are no costs associated with the
provision in the final rule requiring the contract employer and the
host employer to coordinate their work rules and procedures so that
each employee of the contract employer and the host employer is
protected. Because such coordination is essential for the reliable
operation of electric power generation, transmission, and
distribution systems, OSHA anticipates that host employers and
contract employers are virtually in 100-percent compliance already.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Some projects will be sufficiently simple, straightforward, and
routine as to avoid the need for additional communication beyond what
was already occurring between host employers and their contractors
before the promulgation of the final rule. The new communication
requirements will not affect an estimated 50 percent of the projects
performed by establishments with fewer than 20 employees [5]. OSHA
determined that these requirements will affect all projects performed
by establishments with 20 or more employees [id.]
    OSHA estimated the costs associated with these provisions as
involving resources (including labor costs or other expenditures)
equivalent to 10 minutes of supervisory time each for the host employer
and the contractor on affected projects involving establishments with
fewer than 20 employees and involving resources equivalent to 15
minutes of supervisory time each for the host employer and the
contractor on affected projects involving establishments with 20 or
more employees [5].\554\ OSHA also

estimates that the average cost of compliance for contractors
associated with the host-contractor provisions will range from $4.87 to
$10.62 per affected project. The corresponding cost of compliance for
utilities (host employers) associated with these requirements range
from $8.43 to $12.65 per affected project.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \554\ OSHA's estimates include the time for gathering, as well
as disseminating, the required information. The Agency believes that
host employers will most likely gather the required information for
each contract as a whole, instead of gathering the information for
each project, as this approach to gathering information would be the
most cost-effective approach. Thus, the costs of gathering
information would be distributed over all projects covered by each
contract. Information on the safety aspects of the project should
flow from the purely technical aspects of the project, for which
consultation should be a logical outcome, thereby resulting in
limited and incidental additional burden.
    The final rule's time estimates are likely conservative. OSHA
retained its estimates from the proposal. However, OSHA also revised
the host-contractor requirements in the final rule in response to
numerous comments, including comments from the Small Business
Administration's Office of Advocacy (Ex. 0207). The revisions should
lower compliance burdens and reduce costs for host employers and
contract employers.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    OSHA estimates that the communications required by the final rule
already occur for most affected projects. Employers involved in an
estimated 50 percent of the affected projects performed by smaller
establishments are already in compliance with the final requirements,
and an estimated 75 to 90 percent of the affected projects performed by
larger contractors are also already in compliance. These projects will
incur no additional costs to achieve compliance with the final host-
contractor provisions. No commenter questioned these estimates of
current compliance, originally developed by CONSAD for the PRIA [5].
    Thus, OSHA estimates the total annual cost of compliance associated
with the final host-contractor provisions to be approximately $17.8
million, as shown in Table 37. This total represents an increase from
the PRIA due to a general increase in the number of contractor projects
performed annually; furthermore, for reasons discussed in the summary
and explanation for final Sec.  1926.950(c), in Section V, Summary and
Explanation of the Final Rule, earlier in this preamble, the increase
also results from accounting for the percentage of projects affected in
the Ornamental Shrub and Tree Services industry. Table 37 also shows
the costs of compliance for each affected industry.
    EEI questioned OSHA's cost estimate for the host-contractor
requirements in the proposed rule (Ex. 0501). EEI's first objection was
that ``CONSAD gave no attention to the host-contractor provisions when
assessing the risk to be addressed by the standard.''
    OSHA does not find that the extent to which the host-contractor
provisions obviate risk has any bearing on the reasonableness of the
estimated cost of complying with these provisions.
    EEI's second objection was that ``the nature of such communications
varies widely [depending on] the nature of the particular work being
performed, and the relative size of the owners and contractors
involved.''
    As explained previously under the summary and explanation for final
Sec.  1926.950(c), in Section V, Summary and Explanation of the Final
Rule, earlier in this preamble, OSHA revised the host-contractor
provisions to more clearly define the information that hosts and
contractors must exchange. With the host-contractor requirements now
more clearly defined, OSHA believes that the 10 to 15 minutes of
supervisory time used to estimate the costs of these provisions are
reasonable. The Agency notes that neither EEI nor any other commenter
provided specific information that would enable the Agency to revise
its estimate.

                                Table 37--Annual Costs for Required Communications Between Host Employers and Contractors
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                             Projects
                                                Contractor   affected               Contractor   Host % of     Host     Cost per   Cost per     Annual
      Industry code           Industry name      projects      (%)      Compliance   projects   contractor   projects   project    project    compliance
                                                 performed    small/    rate  (%)    affected      work      affected    (small     (large      costs
                                                 annually*    large                                                      est.)      est.)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                       Contractors
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NAICS 234910.............  Water, Sewer, and        65,078     50/100  50/50/75/75      16,270          NA         NA      $7.06     $10.59     $150,214
                            Pipeline
                            Construction.
NAICS 234920.............  Power and             1,701,656     50/100  65/65/90/90     208,292          NA         NA       7.06      10.59    1,891,463
                            Communication
                            Transmission Line
                            Construction.
NAICS 234930.............  Industrial               78,017     50/100  50/50/75/75      19,504          NA         NA       7.05      10.57      204,286
                            Nonbuilding
                            Structure
                            Construction.
NAICS 234990.............  All Other Heavy         410,541     50/100  50/50/75/75     102,635          NA         NA       6.97      10.45      894,356
                            Construction.
NAICS 235310.............  Electrical            1,247,104     50/100  50/50/75/75     311,776          NA         NA       7.08      10.62    2,702,235
                            Contractors.
NAICS 235910.............  Structural Steel         21,066     50/100  50/50/75/75       5,267          NA         NA       7.04      10.57       47,763
                            Erection
                            Contractors.
NAICS 235950.............  Building Equipment       19,739     50/100  50/50/75/75       4,935          NA         NA       7.08      10.62       44,957
                            and Other Machine
                            Installation
                            Contractors.
NAICS 235990.............  All Other Special        62,701     50/100  50/50/75/75      15,675          NA         NA       6.92      10.39      124,535
                            Trade Contractors.
SIC 0783.................  Ornamental Shrub        990,830     50/100        50/75     247,707          NA         NA       4.87       7.30    1,749,688
                            and Tree Services.
                                               ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Contractor Subtotal..  ...................   4,596,731  .........  ...........     932,061  ..........  .........  .........  .........    7,809,497
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                     Host Employers
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NAICS 221110.............  Electric Power       ..........  .........  ...........  ..........          23    217,357       8.43      12.65    2,397,541
                            Generation.
NAICS 221120.............  Electric Power       ..........  .........  ...........  ..........          62    579,649       8.43      12.65    6,393,786
                            Transmission,
                            Control, and
                            Distribution.

NAICS 2211...............  Major Publicly       ..........  .........  ...........  ..........           6     51,823       8.43      12.65      571,626
                            Owned Utilities.
Various..................  Industrial Power     ..........  .........  ...........  ..........           9     83,233         NA      12.65      648,391
                            Generators.
                                               ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Various Host Employer  ...................  ..........  .........  ...........  ..........  ..........    932,061  .........  .........   10,011,344
     Subtotal.
                                               ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total................  ...................  ..........  .........  ...........  ..........  ..........    932,061  .........  .........   17,820,841
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* The table excludes projects performed directly by host employer utilities as they do not involve communications between host employers and
  contractors. The costs to utilities consist of costs to communicate with contractors on the projects contractors perform for utilities.
Notes: (1) Totals may not equal the sum of the components due to rounding.
(2) ``NA'' = Not Applicable.
(3) For most NAICSs, compliance rates are for small unionized establishments, small nonunionized establishments, large unionized establishments, and
  large nonunionized establishments, respectively. Major Publicly Owned Utilities (NAICS 2211) and Ornamental Shrub and Tree Services (SIC 0783) only
  have compliance rates for small and large establishments, and Industrial Power Generators only have a compliance rate for large establishments.
Sources: CONSAD [5], U.S. Census [43, 44, 45, 46].

9. Annual Costs Associated With Expanded Requirements for Job Briefings
    The final rule expands existing requirements for employers to
conduct job briefings before employees begin work on affected projects.
Specifically, the final rule requires affected employers to provide the
employee in charge of the job with all available information that
relates to the determination of existing characteristics and conditions
that the crew must complete.
    OSHA estimates that employers perform 9,953,249 projects in the
construction, utility, power generation, and line-clearance tree-
trimming industries annually [5, updated by OSHA]. Of these employers,
the industries with the highest annual compliance costs, the Power and
Communication Transmission Line Construction industry and the
Electrical Contractors industry, perform an estimated 1,701,656
projects and 1,247,104 projects, respectively (id.). While the final
rule potentially affects 100 percent of all 9,953,249 projects, between
85 and 98 percent of the projects are already in compliance [5].
    Employers can achieve compliance with the final rule through the
following small addition to routine communications that already take
place regularly between employers and employees involved in the
affected projects. Specifically, OSHA estimates the costs of compliance
associated with the final job-briefing requirement to involve resources
(including labor costs or other expenditures) equivalent to 5 minutes
of supervisory time and 5 minutes of employee time for each employee on
each affected project [5].\555\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \555\ Consistent with the assumption on the number of total
employees per project, the costs also reflect one supervisor per
project, plus two regular employees per project at small
establishments, and five regular employees at large establishments,
except in Ornamental Shrub and Tree Services (SIC 0783), where it is
one regular employee at small establishments and three at large
establishments. OSHA's cost estimate is probably overly
conservative. OSHA believes that it should not, on average, take any
additional time (over the time already required to conduct a job
briefing under existing Sec.  1910.269) for the employee in charge
to brief the rest of the employees about the information the
employer must supply the employee in charge pursuant to the final
rule. In fact, in some cases, the final rule could reduce the time
needed to conduct a job briefing. For example, if the employer tells
the employee in charge that a utility pole on the job is cracked and
that the pole's ability to support additional weight is suspect, the
employee in charge would no longer need to go over the pole
inspection in as much detail, although the employee in charge would
have to discuss pole-bracing procedures, during the job briefing. If
the employer had not reported this information, the employee in
charge would cover the pole inspection, but not bracing procedures,
during the job briefing. However, after the employees discovered the
crack, the employee in charge would need to hold a second job
briefing (and expend additional time) to go over the bracing
procedures.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Thus, OSHA estimates that the average cost of compliance associated
with the final requirements for job briefings will be $8.48 to $21.21
per affected project performed by utilities, other power generators,
and construction contractors. The estimated average cost of compliance
for projects performed by establishments in the Ornamental Shrub and
Tree Services industry is about $4.20 to $7.75 per project.
    For the PRIA, based on research by CONSAD, OSHA estimated that
employers already provide the required information to the employee in
charge for most affected projects. Commenters on the proposal did not
question these assumptions. OSHA estimates that employers (other than
utilities and other power generators) involved in an estimated 85
percent of the affected projects performed by establishments with fewer
than 20 employees are already in compliance with the final
requirements, while employers (other than utilities and other power
generators) involved in an estimated 95 percent of the affected
projects performed by establishments with 20 or more employees also are
already in compliance with the final requirements [5]. Among utilities
and other power generators, an estimated 95 percent to 98 percent of
the potentially affected projects involve employers already fully in
compliance with the final provisions [id.]. For projects already in
compliance, employers will incur no additional costs to achieve
compliance with the final rule [id.].
    The total estimated annual cost of compliance associated with the
final requirement to provide information to the employee in charge is,
thus, approximately $6.7 million, as shown in Table 38. Table 38 also
shows the costs of compliance for each affected industry.

                                                  Table 38--Annual Costs Associated With Job Briefings
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                Projects     Cost per     Cost per
                                                                           Projects     affected     project      project      Compliance       Annual
             Industry code                        Industry name           performed    (%) small/     (small       (large       rate  (%)     compliance
                                                                           annually      large        est.)        est.)                        costs
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NAICS 234910...........................  Water, Sewer, and Pipeline           65,078      100/100        $9.29       $17.92     85/85/95/95      $70,743
                                          Construction.
NAICS 234920...........................  Power and Communication           1,701,656      100/100         9.29        17.92     85/85/95/95    1,777,657
                                          Transmission Line
                                          Construction.
NAICS 234930...........................  Industrial Nonbuilding               78,017      100/100         9.28        17.92     85/85/95/95       70,999
                                          Structure Construction.
NAICS 234990...........................  All Other Heavy Construction..      410,541      100/100         8.48        15.98     85/85/95/95      424,921
NAICS 235310...........................  Electrical Contractors........    1,247,104      100/100         9.79        19.16     85/85/95/95    1,545,162
NAICS 235910...........................  Structural Steel Erection            21,066      100/100         9.77        19.14     85/85/95/95       24,717
                                          Contractors.
NAICS 235950...........................  Building Equipment and Other         19,739      100/100         9.79        19.16     85/85/95/95       23,197
                                          Machine Installation
                                          Contractors.
NAICS 235990...........................  All Other Special Trade              62,701      100/100         8.58        16.26     85/85/95/95       71,957
                                          Contractors.
NAICS 221110...........................  Electric Power Generation.....    1,582,025      100/100        11.01        21.21     95/95/98/98      675,284
NAICS 221120...........................  Electric Power Transmission,      2,689,805      100/100        11.01        21.21     95/95/98/98    1,144,815
                                          Control, and Distribution.
NAICS 2211.............................  Major Publicly Owned Utilities      360,869      100/100        11.01        21.21           95/98      153,887
Various................................  Industrial Power Generators...      723,820      100/100        21.21        21.21              98      306,992
SIC 0783...............................  Ornamental Shrub and Tree           990,830      100/100         4.20         7.75           85/95      407,227
                                          Services.
                                                                        --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total..............................  ..............................    9,953,249  ...........  ...........  ...........  ..............    6,697,557
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notes: (1) Totals may not equal the sum of the components due to rounding.
(2) For most NAICSs, compliance rates are for small unionized establishments, small nonunionized establishments, large unionized establishments, and
  large nonunionized establishments, respectively. Major Publicly Owned Utilities (NAICS 2211) and Ornamental Shrub and Tree Services (SIC 0783) only
  have compliance rates for small and large establishments, and Industrial Power Generators only have a compliance rate for large establishments.
Sources: CONSAD [5], U.S. Census [43, 44, 45, 46].

10. Costs Associated With Arc-Hazard Assessment
    Paragraph (g)(1) of final Sec.  1926.960 requires the employer to
assess employee workplace exposures to hazards from flames or from
electric arcs. Paragraph (g)(2) of final Sec.  1926.960 requires the
employer to make a reasonable estimate, for each exposed employee, of
the incident heat energy associated with hazards from electric arcs.
The FEA estimates the cost for both provisions simultaneously in this
section because, as part of the effort to calculate incident energy,
the employer necessarily must assess the hazards to employees. The FEA
also uses the term ``arc-hazard assessment'' to refer to both
requirements.
    For the proposed rule, the PRIA used an approach based on the
CONSAD report [5], calculating annual costs on a per-project and per-
employee basis. Some commenters questioned this approach, which
projected a cost of $2 per project. (See, for example, Exs. 0208,
0505.) OSHA modified the PRIA methodology for arc-hazard assessment and
instead is calculating primarily one-time costs on a per-firm basis.
OSHA modified the methodology because it is not necessary to
recalculate the costs for each project; the Agency believes that,
except with respect to power generation installations as discussed
later, a system-wide calculation is a more logical outcome of the
rule.\556\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \556\ Since employers do not need to perform extensive
recalculations of their systems annually, as assumed in the PRIA,
the estimated annualized cost of this provision is substantially
less than the estimated cost in the PRIA.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    OSHA also is not accounting for costs to contractors in the final
rule (a second modification from the PRIA). The Agency believes that,
as utilities will need to perform the calculations on their own systems
either in-house or using engineering consultants, utilities will
provide information on potential heat energy to contractors, even
though the final rule does not explicitly require utilities to do so.
Otherwise, host employers would incur costs associated with those
estimates twice, once when the host employer generates the estimate and
a second time when the contractor passes the costs of generating the
estimate back to the host employer.
    As in the PRIA, OSHA estimates that 75 percent of small utilities
and 85 percent of large utilities already performed the necessary
calculations and will not incur costs under the rule. For the remaining
utilities, which will have to estimate the available heat energy that
would result from electric arcs, the approach will likely vary
depending on the size of the utility. OSHA believes that small
utilities would likely hire a consultant to perform the calculations
for them, while large utilities would likely use commercially available
software and perform the calculations in-house.
    OSHA estimates that the 25 percent of small utilities that do not
already perform the calculations will hire a consultant to provide
estimates of incident-heat-energy exposures. OSHA estimates that it
will take a consultant 28 hours to perform the calculations at a rate
of $250 per hour, for an average cost of $7000 per affected utility and
a total of approximately $1.2 million for all affected small
utilities.\557\ When OSHA annualized this cost at 7 percent over 10
years, it results in annualized costs for affected small utilities of
approximately $0.03 million.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \557\ While small utilities have the option of using the tables
OSHA provides, this FEA conservatively assumed they will use the
more expensive option of hiring consultants.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Large utilities are more likely than small utilities to face
situations not

covered by the tables in Appendix E. These utilities can perform the
calculations using several different methods. The proposed rule allowed
employers to use Allen Privette's Heat Flux Calculator, a free software
program widely available on the Internet, to perform the calculations.
After considering comments from rulemaking participants, OSHA
determined that the Heat Flux Calculator is not a reasonable method for
estimating incident energy regardless of exposure or voltage. (See the
discussion of final Sec.  1926.960(g)(2) in Section V, Summary and
Explanation of the Final Rule, earlier in this preamble.) Many
utilities already use a more reliable means of calculating incident
heat energy, but some utilities will have to buy software to estimate
incident heat energy. OSHA estimates that 15 percent of large utilities
will need to purchase software, at a cost of approximately $2,500 per
firm [7].
    For the large utilities buying software, an engineer will have to
input parameters into the software to determine the incident-heat
energy that would result from electric arcs. These parameters include
fault current, the expected length of the electric arc, the distance
from the arc to the employee, and the clearing time for the fault. OSHA
estimates that performing this task for all affected large-utility
employees will require 500 engineering hours per affected firm, at the
estimated hourly rate for an engineer of $47.17. This determination
results in engineering costs of $25,970 per affected firm, and total
engineering costs for all affected firms of $6.5 million. Consistent
with the ratio of engineering time to clerical time used in the PRIA,
these same firms will also incur clerical costs, equivalent to 25 hours
of clerical time at a wage of $28.75 per hour, or $719 per utility.
This determination results in total clerical costs for all affected
firms of approximately $0.2 million. Summing software, engineering
labor, and clerical labor costs for all affected large firms results in
total costs of $6.7 million and annualized costs of $2.1 million.
    TVA estimated that costs should be about $300 per employee (Ex.
0213). The PRIA estimated 2 hours of engineering time per employee and
$2 per project.\558\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \558\ OSHA believes that (with the exception of power generation
facilities, as discussed later) it likely overestimated the cost of
performing the calculations, particularly with respect to
distribution installations. This belief is based in part on expert
opinion provided to ERG, which suggested that the calculations would
require substantially fewer hours than indicated by TVA [8].
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The Agency concluded that, because electric utilities will likely
perform calculations on a per-circuit, rather than per-project or per-
employee, basis and because the number of circuits operated by a
utility is generally proportional to the size of that utility, the
costs should be based on the number of hours the utility will take to
perform the calculations as determined by the size of the utility.
Consequently, the per-employee basis used by TVA and the per-employee
and per-project basis used by the PRIA are generally unsuitable for
estimating costs related to calculating incident energy.
    However, TVA's description of the methodology it used in
calculating incident energy suggests that TVA included costs associated
with lowering incident energy at a nuclear power generation plant. As
explained in the summary and explanation for final Sec.
1926.960(g)(5), in Section V, Summary and Explanation of the Final
Rule, earlier in this preamble, OSHA believes that any such measures
requiring substantial expenditures are likely to be necessary only for
electric power generation installations. To account for the costs of
adopting incident-energy-control measures for electric power generation
installations, OSHA included costs for reducing incident-energy
exposures that, when combined with OSHA's estimated costs for
calculating incident energy, correspond to TVA's estimate of $300 per
employee for firms in industries with generation installations.
    Thus, OSHA included costs in this FEA to account for additional
engineering controls that employers with power generation installations
might need to implement to reduce the incident energy of particular
circuits to no more than 100 cal/cm\2\ (the maximum level for which
protective clothing and equipment are generally available). Such
engineering controls might include installing current-limiting devices,
resetting circuit breaker trip devices, and using remote control
operating and test equipment.
    To estimate the cost of these potential engineering controls, OSHA
relied on the TVA estimate that the arc-hazard assessment will cost
about $300 per employee. For each relevant industry affected by the
need to implement these potential controls (the utilities in the
Electric Power Generation industry (NAICS 221100), all Industrial Power
Generators (Various NAICS), and Major Publicly-Owned Utilities (NAICS
2211) judged to operate power generation installations), TVA's total
estimated costs for the arc-hazard assessment were higher than the
costs estimated by OSHA for this assessment. OSHA attributed the
difference in cost between the two estimates to the additional
engineering controls that OSHA identified for the final rule. TVA
stated in its comments to the proposed rule that TVA based its
estimates ``on all circuits'' (including, presumably, circuits that
require a reduction in incident energy using engineering controls) and
that its estimates did not include the cost of purchasing arc-flash
protective equipment (Ex. 0213).
    To account for the additional engineering control costs, OSHA
increased the cost of the arc-hazard assessments (which include the
cost for engineering controls) for utilities having power generation
installations above what OSHA already estimated for the assessment so
that the total averaged $300 per power worker employee, consistent with
TVA's cost estimate. (For example, for a given industry, if the cost of
the arc-hazard assessment, without the engineering controls adjustment,
amounted to $150 per employee, OSHA increased the cost by $150 per
employee to account for the adjustment.) OSHA also assumed that
existing compliance rates associated with these engineering controls
are identical to the compliance rates estimated for the unadjusted arc-
hazard assessment (that is, the compliance rate estimated for the arc-
hazard assessment without the addition of engineering controls).
    To calculate the percentage of firms in the Major Publicly-Owned
Utilities industry that operate generating plants (and thus power
generation installations), OSHA first cross-referenced OSHA's estimate
of 277 firms that are in the Major Publicly-Owned Utilities industry
against the 2008 EIA Form 860 database, which provides a nationwide
census of generating plants by owner [49]. This comparison showed that
106 of the firms that are in the Major Publicly-Owned Utilities
industry and that are under the scope of the final rule own generating
plants. OSHA then assumed that the distribution by size of this subset
would mirror that of the entire Major Publicly-Owned Utilities
population, resulting in an estimated 13 small firms and 93 large firms
that are Major Publicly-Owned Utilities with generating facilities.
    As indicated in Table 39, the Agency estimates that the annualized
one-time cost for these engineering controls is approximately $26,737
for small firms and $2,123,110 for large firms, for a total of
$2,149,847 for all affected firms.
    Summing software costs, engineering labor, clerical labor,
consulting, and incident-energy reduction costs for both

small and large firms results in total estimated costs for all affected
firms of $10.6 million. When this one-time cost is annualized at a 7-
percent interest rate over 10 years, the resulting annualized costs are
approximately $1.5 million as shown in Table 39. Table 39 also shows
the costs of compliance for each affected industry.
    TVA asserted that the costs associated with arc-hazard assessments
recur annually (Ex. 0213). TVA indicated that performing such a
calculation, while time consuming initially, is not nearly as time
consuming when performed on an ongoing basis. TVA suggested the ongoing
cost would be only 3 percent of the initial cost (id.).
    As explained later, the Agency took a more conservative approach by
assuming annual ongoing costs of 10 percent of the initial cost. This
approach includes an annual assessment to examine any changes in
conditions and the costs of a potential recalculation of the system.
(See Table 40.)
    One commenter suggested that liability costs would rise due to
consultants underestimating incident heat energy (Ex. 0178).
    OSHA believes that this comment is speculative and without merit.
Moreover, as a practical matter, the typical consultant would likely
carry personal liability insurance and, therefore, factors this cost
into his or her consulting fees (which the Agency is assuming will be
$250 an hour, on average). Also, the commenter did not establish why
these determinations present a new source of liability, as firms
(whether consultants or utilities) that perform such calculations now
are liable for any flawed estimates given to others.
    Another commenter suggested that electrical contractors may find it
especially demanding to comply with the arc-hazard assessment provision
because of the difficulties involved in training a highly mobile
workforce to understand a constantly changing variety of electrical
systems and because of the difficulties resulting from contractors'
working for a variety of utilities (Ex. 0501).
    OSHA believes that the commenter's concerns are groundless. First,
as stated earlier, the Agency accounted for any costs related to
training and included in its calculations the costs specific to each
affected industry. Second, as also stated earlier, the Agency expects
that host employers will pass information related to potential heat-
energy hazards to the contractors during the exchange of information
between host employers and contract employers, as doing so is in their
economic self-interest. As such, varying work situations and a mobile
workforce should not pose major issues for contractors.\559\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \559\ The commenter also stated that electrical contractors
would incur a special burden in conjunction with the final rule's
arc-flash protective equipment requirements. As discussed later, the
Agency is costing eight pairs of flame-resistant clothing, which
should be sufficient to cover the different situations contractors
might face.

                                        Table 39--Annualized One-Time Costs Associated With Arc-Hazard Assessment
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                Firms using                             Incident-       Total
                                                                            Compliance   consultant   Consulting     Total        energy     annualized
              Industry code                        Industry name            rate  (%)      (% of      hours per    consulting   reduction   costs--small
                                                                                small)        firm        costs        costs         firms
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                       Small Firms
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NAICS 234910............................  Water, Sewer, and Pipeline                NA           NA           NA           NA           NA            NA
                                           Construction.
NAICS 234920............................  Power and Communication                   NA           NA           NA           NA           NA            NA
                                           Transmission Line Construction.
NAICS 234930............................  Industrial Nonbuilding                    NA           NA           NA           NA           NA            NA
                                           Structure Construction.
NAICS 234990............................  All Other Heavy Construction...           NA           NA           NA           NA           NA            NA
NAICS 235310............................  Electrical Contractors.........           NA           NA           NA           NA           NA            NA
NAICS 235910............................  Structural Steel Erection                 NA           NA           NA           NA           NA            NA
                                           Contractors.
NAICS 235950............................  Building Equipment and Other              NA           NA           NA           NA           NA            NA
                                           Machine Installation
                                           Contractors.
NAICS 235990............................  All Other Special Trade                   NA           NA           NA           NA           NA            NA
                                           Contractors.
NAICS 221110............................  Electric Power Generation......           75           25           28     $553,000      $25,461       $82,360
NAICS 221120............................  Electric Power Transmission,              75           25           28      563,500           NA        80,230
                                           Control, and Distribution.
NAICS 2211..............................  Major Publicly Owned Utilities.           75           25           28       57,750        1,276         8,404
Various.................................  Industrial Power Generators....           NA           NA           NA           NA           NA             0
SIC 0783................................  Ornamental Shrub and Tree                 NA           NA           NA           NA           NA            NA
                                           Services.
                                                                          ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total...............................  ...............................  ...........  ...........  ...........    1,174,250       26,737       170,994
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

                                                            Table 39--Annualized One-Time Costs Associated With Arc-Hazard Assessment
                                                                                [Continued]
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                        Firms
                                                                     purchasing   Software      Total     Firms with  Engineering     Total      Clerical      Total     Incident-      Total
        Industry code               Industry name        Compliance    software   cost per    software   engineering   hours per   engineering   hours per   clerical     energy     annualized
                                                          rate  (%)     (% of       firm        cost      hours  (%       firm         costs       firm        costs     reduction  costs--large
                                                                       large)                             of large)                                                        costs        firms
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                Large Firms
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NAICS 234910................  Water, Sewer, and                  NA          NA          NA          NA           NA           NA           NA          NA          NA          NA           NA
                               Pipeline Construction.
NAICS 234920................  Power and Communication            NA          NA          NA          NA           NA           NA           NA          NA          NA          NA           NA
                               Transmission Line
                               Construction.
NAICS 234930................  Industrial Nonbuilding             NA          NA          NA          NA           NA           NA           NA          NA          NA          NA           NA
                               Structure Construction.
NAICS 234990................  All Other Heavy                    NA          NA          NA          NA           NA           NA           NA          NA          NA          NA           NA
                               Construction.
NAICS 235310................  Electrical Contractors...          NA          NA          NA          NA           NA           NA           NA          NA          NA          NA           NA
NAICS 235910................  Structural Steel Erection          NA          NA          NA          NA           NA           NA           NA          NA          NA          NA           NA
                               Contractors.
NAICS 235950................  Building Equipment and             NA          NA          NA          NA           NA           NA           NA          NA          NA          NA           NA
                               Other Machine
                               Installation Contractors.
NAICS 235990................  All Other Special Trade            NA          NA          NA          NA           NA           NA           NA          NA          NA          NA           NA
                               Contractors.
NAICS 221110................  Electric Power Generation          85          15      $2,500    $116,250           15          500   $1,207,532          25     $33,424  $1,388,374     $390,909
NAICS 221120................  Electric Power                     85          15       2,500     341,250           15          500    3,544,692          25      98,115          NA      567,240
                               Transmission, Control,
                               and Distribution.
NAICS 2211..................  Major Publicly Owned               85          15       2,500      91,500           15          500      950,445          25      26,308      82,382      163,825
                               Utilities.
Various.....................  Industrial Power                   85          15       2,500      73,875           15          500      767,367          25      21,240     652,353      215,679
                               Generators.
SIC 0783....................  Ornamental Shrub and Tree          NA          NA          NA          NA           NA           NA           NA          NA          NA          NA           NA
                               Services.
                                                        ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total...................  .........................  ..........  ..........  ..........     622,875  ...........  ...........    6,470,036  ..........     179,088   2,123,110    1,337,652
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

     Table 39--Annualized One-Time Costs Associated With Arc-Hazard
                               Assessment
                               [Continued]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                Total
                                                              annualized
         Industry code                 Industry name          costs--all
                                                                firms
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                All Firms
------------------------------------------------------------------------
NAICS 234910..................  Water, Sewer, and Pipeline            NA
                                 Construction.
NAICS 234920..................  Power and Communication               NA
                                 Transmission Line
                                 Construction.
NAICS 234930..................  Industrial Nonbuilding                NA
                                 Structure Construction.
NAICS 234990..................  All Other Heavy                       NA
                                 Construction.
NAICS 235310..................  Electrical Contractors.....           NA
NAICS 235910..................  Structural Steel Erection             NA
                                 Contractors.
NAICS 235950..................  Building Equipment and                NA
                                 Other Machine Installation
                                 Contractors.
NAICS 235990..................  All Other Special Trade               NA
                                 Contractors.
NAICS 221110..................  Electric Power Generation..      473,269
NAICS 221120..................  Electric Power                   647,470
                                 Transmission, Control, and
                                 Distribution.
NAICS 2211....................  Major Publicly Owned             172,228
                                 Utilities.
Various.......................  Industrial Power Generators      215,679
SIC 0783......................  Ornamental Shrub and Tree             NA
                                 Services.
                                                            ------------
    Total.....................  ...........................    1,508,646
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notes: (1) Totals may not equal the sum of the components due to
  rounding.
(2) ``NA'' = Not Applicable.
(3) All Industrial Power Generators are large establishments.
Sources: ERG estimates, Cress [7], U.S. Census [43, 44, 45, 46].

    OSHA also accounted for the periodic costs associated with updating
arc-hazard assessments, as necessary. As explained in discussion of
final Sec.  1926.960(g)(2) in Section V, Summary and Explanation of the
Final Rule, earlier in this preamble, while commenters' concerns that
employers would need to constantly update their incident-energy
estimates are baseless, periodic updates may be necessary under certain
limited circumstances. As mentioned earlier, OSHA estimates that this
periodic labor cost is equal to 10 percent of the total one-time
consulting, engineering, and clerical costs indicated in Table 39. When
OSHA annualized the present value of this recurring labor cost \560\ at
7 percent over 10 years, total annualized costs for all affected
industries are $0.7 million. When OSHA included these periodic costs
with the one-time arc-hazard assessment costs calculated earlier, total
annualized arc-hazard assessment costs are approximately $2.2 million,
as shown in Table 40.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \560\ OSHA computed the present value for 9 years of costs,
beginning with the year after the arc-hazard assessment provision
goes into effect and lasting through year 10.

                     Table 40--Total Annualized Costs Associated With Arc-Hazard Assessment
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                Total
                                                   Annual labor    Present value       Total      annualized arc-
       Industry code            Industry name     costs (years 2- of labor costs    annualized        hazard
                                                        10)        (years 2-10)    updating cost    assessment
                                                                                costs
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NAICS 234910...............  Water, Sewer, and                NA              NA              NA              NA
                              Pipeline
                              Construction.
NAICS 234920...............  Power and                        NA              NA              NA              NA
                              Communication
                              Transmission Line
                              Construction.
NAICS 234930...............  Industrial                       NA              NA              NA              NA
                              Nonbuilding
                              Structure
                              Construction.
NAICS 234990...............  All Other Heavy                  NA              NA              NA              NA
                              Construction.
NAICS 235310...............  Electrical                       NA              NA              NA              NA
                              Contractors.
NAICS 235910...............  Structural Steel                 NA              NA              NA              NA
                              Erection
                              Contractors.
NAICS 235950...............  Building Equipment               NA              NA              NA              NA
                              and Other Machine
                              Installation
                              Contractors.
NAICS 235990...............  All Other Special                NA              NA              NA              NA
                              Trade Contractors.
NAICS 221110...............  Electric Power             $179,396      $1,092,340        $155,525        $628,793
                              Generation.
NAICS 221120...............  Electric Power              420,631       2,561,221         364,660       1,012,130
                              Transmission,
                              Control, and
                              Distribution.
NAICS 2211.................  Major Publicly              103,450         629,909          89,685         261,913
                              Owned Utilities.
Various....................  Industrial Power             78,861         480,183          68,367         284,046
                              Generators.
SIC 0783...................  Ornamental Shrub                 NA              NA              NA              NA
                              and Tree Services.
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Total..................  ...................         782,337       4,763,654         678,237       2,186,883
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notes: (1) Totals may not equal the sum of the components due to rounding.
(2) ``NA'' = Not Applicable.
Source: ERG estimate.

Costs for Providing Arc-Flash Protective Equipment
    The final rule requires affected employers to ensure that employees
exposed to certain hazards wear flame-resistant clothing. The final
rule also requires employers to ensure that each employee exposed to
electric-arc hazards wears clothing with an arc rating greater than or
equal to the applicable estimate of incident heat energy. Generally,
the arc-rated clothing must cover the employee's entire body, although
there are limited situations in which the final rule does not require
arc-rated protection for the employee's hands, feet, or head. As
previously mentioned in this analysis, OSHA uses the term ``flame-
resistant clothing'' to refer generally to the flame-resistant and arc-
rated clothing, and the term ``arc-flash protective equipment'' to
refer to the flame-resistant and arc-rated clothing and equipment,
required by Sec.  1926.960(g).
    OSHA estimated the average costs associated with providing the
clothing that will be necessary to achieve full compliance with the
final rule to involve resources equivalent to those associated with the
following case example. An employer could generally achieve compliance
with the final rule's clothing provisions by purchasing eight sets of
flame-resistant clothing per employee and one switching coat or flash
suit for every three employees.
    OSHA estimated a single set of flame-resistant clothing to cost
$191.75 [13]; and, with eight sets provided for each employee (at a
total cost of $1,534.00 per employee), the Agency assumed that the
useful life of this apparel was 4 years [5]. OSHA estimated a switching
coat or flash suit to cost about $226.00 [19] and to have an expected
life of 10 years [5]. Because use of the switching coat or flash suit
will be intermittent, OSHA estimated that employers will need to
provide only one switching coat or flash suit for every three affected
employees [5].
    Frank Brockman of the Farmers Rural Electric Cooperative
Corporation commented on the costs of flame-resistant apparel (Ex.
0173). Mr. Brockman estimated that the cost of flame-resistant clothing
would be in excess of $1,000 per employee.
    OSHA notes that the cost estimate used in this FEA ($1,534.00 per
employee for flame-resistant clothing exclusive of switching coats) is
consistent with Mr. Brockman's estimate.
    Employers generally will substitute flame-resistant clothing for
clothing that the employee or the employer would already be providing.
OSHA did not include in this analysis the savings associated with
employees' no longer needing to purchase and launder the clothing that
employees would otherwise wear.
    The final rule does not require employers to launder protective
clothing for employees. To the extent that employers choose to begin
laundering clothing or provide laundering services for employees in
conjunction with providing flame-resistant clothing, the cost is not
attributable to this final rule; and OSHA regards any such costs as
transfers from employers to employees rather than additional costs to
society.
    Based on research conducted by CONSAD, OSHA estimates that most
establishments in all affected industries already provide employees
with flame-resistant clothing that fully complies with the requirements
of the final rule [5]. These establishments, therefore, will incur no
additional costs to achieve compliance with the final rule's
requirements for flame-resistant clothing.
    For each affected industry, OSHA estimated rates of current
compliance with the final requirements to provide arc-rated clothing.
Within each industry, the Agency estimated rates of current compliance
separately for establishments based on their size. Among construction
contractors, the estimated average rate of current compliance for
establishments with fewer than 20 employees is 50 percent. The average
rate of current compliance among construction-contractor establishments
with 20 or more employees is an estimated 75 percent. Among electric
utilities and other electric power generators, current compliance is an
estimated 80 percent for establishments with fewer than 20 employees
and 90 percent for establishments with 20 or more employees [5].
    In his comments, Frank Brockman of the Farmers Rural Electric
Cooperatives Corporation estimated that the flame-resistant clothing
provision of the rule would affect 25 percent of the relevant
workforce, for an implied compliance rate of 75 percent (Ex. 0173).
This estimate is similar to the compliance estimates developed by
CONSAD [5], which range from 50 percent to 90 percent depending on the
industry and establishment size, for an industry-wide average of 78-
percent compliance.
    The total estimated annualized cost of compliance for providing
flame-resistant clothing is approximately $15.6 million, as shown in
Table 41. The total estimated annualized cost of compliance for
providing switching coats or flash suits is approximately $0.4 million
as shown in Table 42. Table 41 and Table 42 also show the costs of
compliance for each affected industry. Together, the total estimated
annualized cost of providing flame-resistant apparel and switching
coats is approximately $16.0 million.
    In addition to clothing and switching coats or flash suits, the
final rule requires the provision of face and head protection for
workers in certain circumstances, typically when the workers perform
energized work on equipment in enclosures and when work involves
exposures to three-phase arcs. OSHA did not estimate costs in
connection with face and head protection for the PRIA. To estimate the
number of affected Electrical Power-Line Installers and Repairers (SOC
49-9051) for the final rule, OSHA calculated the number of line
installers and repairers (that is, 51,440) as a percentage of total
employment in NAICS 221100--Electric Power Generation, Transmission and
Distribution (that is, 395,570) [39, 40], and assumed that this
percentage (that is, 13 percent) was similar across all affected NAICS.
OSHA believes that none of these workers currently use arc-rated face
and head protection. To estimate the number of affected Electrical and
Electronics Repairers working in generating stations, substations, and
in-service relays (SOC 49-2095), OSHA calculated the number of
Electrical and Electronics Repairers (that is, 17,240) as a percentage
of total employment in NAICS 221100--Electric Power Generation,
Transmission and Distribution (that is, 395,570) [40, 41] and assumed
that this percentage (that is, 4 percent) was similar across all
affected NAICSs. OSHA believes that the use of arc-rated face and head
protection is fairly common by these workers and estimates current
compliance among the affected industry groups to range from 50 to 90
percent (equivalent to the compliance rates for flame-resistant
clothing (Table 41) and switching coats or flash suits (Table 42).
    Based on publicly available information from vendors of electrical
protective equipment, OSHA estimates that a faceshield costs $86.50
(with a useful life of 2 years), and that head protection such as a
balaclava costs $29.75 (with a useful life of 2 years) [11, 12].
Testimony suggesting that faceshields might run $60 and that balaclava
might run $30 corroborates these cost estimates (Tr. 479).
    When OSHA annualized the costs of arc-rated face and head
protection at a 7-percent interest rate over the useful

life of the equipment, the resulting total estimated costs are
approximately $0.9 million for faceshields and $0.3 million for head
protection, as shown in Table 43 and Table 44, and Table 45 and Table
46, respectively. These tables also show the costs of compliance for
each affected industry.
    Summing the costs for flame-resistant clothing, switching coats or
flash suits, faceshields, and head protection results in total
estimated annualized costs of approximately $17.2 million.\561\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \561\ While the final rule added some minor cost elements to the
costs estimated in the proposal, the higher estimated cost of
protective clothing in the FEA, relative to the PRIA, is due
primarily to the higher estimated unit cost for the eight pairs of
flame-resistant clothing.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Using Mr. Brockman's (Ex. 0173) approach to calculating costs for
flame-resistant clothing, along with OSHA's estimate of the number of
affected workers, results in a ``Brockman'' estimate of $48.9
million.\562\ However, Mr. Brockman did not annualize his estimated
costs. Doing so using an interest rate of 7 percent over the 4-year
expected life of flame-resistant clothing \563\ results in an
annualized cost estimate of $14.4 million. OSHA notes that this
estimate is less than both OSHA's estimate of annualized costs for
flame-resistant clothing alone $15.6 million) and OSHA's estimate of
annualized costs for all arc-flash protective equipment ($17.3
million). As such, OSHA's estimate is entirely reasonable.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \562\ In his comments, Mr. Brockman calculated costs for workers
in all affected establishments. This approach was erroneous,
however, because the protective-clothing provisions of the final
rule do not cover employees in the Ornamental Shrub and Tree
Services industry. OSHA excluded the tree-care employees from Mr.
Brockman's calculation to arrive at a corrected estimate, using Mr.
Brockman's analysis, of $48.9 million.
    \563\ Mr. Brockman apparently estimated a cost for flame-
resistant clothing only, but not other equipment such as switching
coats or flash suits, as Mr. Brockman's estimate referred only to
OSHA's proposed 4-year useful-life estimate for flame-resistant
clothing, not OSHA's proposed 10-year useful-life estimate for
switching coats or flash suits (Ex. 0173; 70 FR 34915-34916).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    One commenter emphasized that workers typically wear multiple
layers of clothing and complained that the proposal would require
additional costs for the various layers of clothing (Ex. 0186).
    The final rule clarifies that only the outer layer of clothing must
be flame-resistant.
    Another commenter suggested the cost analysis should account for
``selecting and fitting'' of apparel (Ex. 0240).
    The commenter's use of the terms ``selecting and fitting'' here is
somewhat ambiguous; in any event, the Agency already accounted for the
key informational element in selecting and fitting apparel--the arc-
hazard assessment. OSHA believes that once employers perform this
assessment, any other elements of selecting and fitting clothing (such
as selecting brand or vendor or size) is a negligible part of the
overall cost.
    Some commenters argued that flame-resistant clothing required
special laundering and that this would be an additional cost. (See, for
example, Ex. 0186.)
    OSHA concludes that there is no additional cost associated with
laundering the flame-resistant clothing required by the final rule.
First, as stated, the final rule does not require employers to launder
protective clothing for employees; and, therefore, while employers may
choose to launder protective clothing for their employees, the rule
does not impose the cost of laundering on employers. Second, according
to the record, employers or their employees can generally follow the
manufacturers' care instructions that come with the clothing (Tr. 305--
306, 1373--1374), and there is generally no additional cost to
employees over that of laundering normal (that is, non-flame-resistant)
clothing. Even if employees needed some training on how to care for
flame-resistant clothing to ensure that the clothing does not lose its
flame-resistant properties (as some commenters argued (Ex. 0186)), the
training provisions of the final rule (costed previously in this
analysis) would cover this cost (that is, the Agency assumes all
employers will give their employees the requisite training to come into
compliance with the standard).
    One commenter argued that the life of flame-resistant clothing was
less than the 4-year period used by OSHA in its calculations (Ex.
0173). A witness at the 2006 public hearing testified that the life of
flame-resistant clothing varied considerably and might well last more
than 4 years; this witness spoke of the enhanced durability of newer
flame-resistant materials that were emerging at the time of the hearing
(Tr. 1374). (See, also, Tr. 1192.) One commenter believed that OSHA
should assume that employees require a slightly larger number of sets
of clothing (Ex. 0186). Other commenters stated that less clothing
would be adequate (Ex. 0099; Tr. 387, 828, 1374). Another commenter
mentioned a possible range of 5 to 14 sets (Tr. 309).\564\ Other
commenters stated that the estimate does not take into account all
types of clothing required, such as winter wear (see, for example, Ex.
0173).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \564\ OSHA examined the effect of changing the costs for flame-
resistant clothing using either end of this range--the costs range
from $9.8 million for 5 sets to $27.3 million for 14 sets (with
OSHA's estimate of $15.6 million for 8 sets between the two ends).
As discussed under the heading ``Economic Feasibility and Impacts,''
later in this section of the preamble, costs must increase
substantially beyond this range to raise an issue regarding economic
feasibility.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    OSHA notes that its estimate of eight sets is in the middle of the
number of sets recommended by the commenters. Moreover, as indicated in
the PRIA, OSHA significantly increased its initial estimate of clothing
costs in response to comments from SERs during the SBREFA Panel
process. For the FEA, the Agency is basing its estimates on a cost of
$1,534.00 per employee for eight sets of flame-resistant clothing
(using the estimated cost of $191.75 per set), or on an annualized cost
of approximately $452.88 per employee. The Agency believes this final
estimate is reasonable and captures the average cost of all flame-
resistant clothing required by the new provisions of the final
standard. In this regard, the record indicates that annual employee
stipends to cover all flame-resistant clothing typically run $125--250
(Tr. 828). This evidence supports the conclusion that OSHA's estimate
is reasonable, if not conservative.

                  Table 41--Annualized Costs Associated With Providing Flame-Resistant Clothing
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                Useful
                                                                     Sets of               life of
                                           Employees   Compliance      FRC      Cost per   FRC with   Annualized
      Industry code        Industry name    affected   rates  (%)    provided    set of    8 sets/    compliance
                                              (%)                      per        FRC      employee     costs
                                                                     employee              (years)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NAICS 234910............  Water, Sewer,          100   50/50/75/75          8    $191.75          4     $176,836
                           and Pipeline
                           Construction.
NAICS 234920............  Power and              100   50/50/75/75          8     191.75          4    4,623,876
                           Communication
                           Transmission
                           Line
                           Construction.
NAICS 234930............  Industrial             100   50/50/75/75          8     191.75          4      211,993
                           Nonbuilding
                           Structure
                           Construction.
NAICS 234990............  All Other Heavy        100   50/50/75/75          8     191.75          4    1,115,554
                           Construction.
NAICS 235310............  Electrical             100   50/50/75/75          8     191.75          4    3,388,729
                           Contractors.
NAICS 235910............  Structural             100   50/50/75/75          8     191.75          4       57,243
                           Steel Erection
                           Contractors.
NAICS 235950............  Building               100   50/50/75/75          8     191.75          4       53,637
                           Equipment and
                           Other Machine
                           Installation
                           Contractors.
NAICS 235990............  All Other              100   50/50/75/75          8     191.75          4      170,375
                           Special Trade
                           Contractors.
NAICS 221110............  Electric Power         100   80/80/90/90          8     191.75          4    1,719,508
                           Generation.
NAICS 221120............  Electric Power         100   80/80/90/90          8     191.75          4    2,923,654
                           Transmission,
                           Control, and
                           Distribution.
NAICS 2211..............  Major Publicly         100         80/90          8     191.75          4      392,232
                           Owned
                           Utilities.
Various.................  Industrial             100            90          8     191.75          4      786,729
                           Power
                           Generators.
SIC 0783................  Ornamental              NA            NA         NA         NA         NA           NA
                           Shrub and Tree
                           Services.
                                          ----------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total...............  ...............  .........  ............  .........  .........  .........   15,620,365
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notes: (1) Totals may not equal the sum of the components due to rounding.
(2) ``NA'' = Not Applicable.
(3) For most NAICSs, compliance rates are for small unionized establishments, small nonunionized establishments,
  large unionized establishments, and large nonunionized establishments, respectively. Major Publicly Owned
  Utilities (NAICS 2211) and Ornamental Shrub and Tree Services (SIC 0783) only have compliance rates for small
  and large establishments, and Industrial Power Generators only have a compliance rate for large
  establishments.
Sources: CONSAD [5], Grainger [13], U.S. Census [43, 44, 45, 46].

               Table 42--Annualized Costs Associated With Providing Switching Coats or Flash Suits
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                Useful
                                                                    Switching   Cost per   life of
                                           Employees                 coat or   switching  switching   Annualized
      Industry code        Industry name    affected   Compliance     flash     coat or    coat or    compliance
                                              (%)      rates  (%)    suit per    flash      flash       costs
                                                                     employee     suit       suit
                                                                                (years)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NAICS 234910............  Water, Sewer,          100   50/50/75/75       0.33    $226.00         10       $4,146
                           and Pipeline
                           Construction.
NAICS 234920............  Power and              100   50/50/75/75       0.33     226.00         10      108,414
                           Communication
                           Transmission
                           Line
                           Construction.
NAICS 234930............  Industrial             100   50/50/75/75       0.33     226.00         10        4,971
                           Nonbuilding
                           Structure
                           Construction.
NAICS 234990............  All Other Heavy        100   50/50/75/75       0.33     226.00         10       26,156
                           Construction.
NAICS 235310............  Electrical             100   50/50/75/75       0.33     226.00         10       79,454
                           Contractors.
NAICS 235910............  Structural             100   50/50/75/75       0.33     226.00         10        1,342
                           Steel Erection
                           Contractors.
NAICS 235950............  Building               100   50/50/75/75       0.33     226.00         10        1,258
                           Equipment and
                           Other Machine
                           Installation
                           Contractors.
NAICS 235990............  All Other              100   50/50/75/75       0.33     226.00         10        3,995
                           Special Trade
                           Contractors.
NAICS 221110............  Electric Power         100   80/80/90/90       0.33     226.00         10       40,317
                           Generation.
NAICS 221120............  Electric Power         100   80/80/90/90       0.33     226.00         10       68,550
                           Transmission,
                           Control, and
                           Distribution.
NAICS 2211..............  Major Publicly         100         80/90       0.33     226.00         10        9,197
                           Owned
                           Utilities.
Various.................  Industrial             100            90       0.33     226.00         10       18,446
                           Power
                           Generators.
SIC 0783................  Ornamental              NA            NA         NA         NA         NA           NA
                           Shrub and Tree
                           Services.
                                          ----------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total...............  ...............  .........  ............  .........  .........  .........      366,245
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notes: (1) Totals may not equal the sum of the components due to rounding.
(2) ``NA'' = Not Applicable.
(3) For most NAICSs, compliance rates are for small unionized establishments, small nonunionized establishments,
  large unionized establishments, and large nonunionized establishments, respectively. Major Publicly Owned
  Utilities (NAICS 2211) and Ornamental Shrub and Tree Services (SIC 0783) only have compliance rates for small
  and large establishments, and Industrial Power Generators only have a compliance rate for large
  establishments.
Sources: CONSAD [5], Lab Safety Supply [18], U.S. Census [43, 44, 45, 46].

 Table 43--Annualized Costs Associated With Providing Arc-Rated Faceshield for Electrical Power-Line Installers
                                                  and Repairers
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                           Useful life
                                                  Employees     Cost per        of       Compliance   Annualized
       Industry code            Industry name      affected    faceshield   faceshield    rate (%)    compliance
                                                     (%)                     (years)                    costs
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NAICS 234910...............  Water, Sewer, and             0           NA            2           NA           NA
                              Pipeline
                              Construction.
NAICS 234920...............  Power and                    13       $86.50            2      0/0/0/0     $216,130
                              Communication
                              Transmission Line
                              Construction.
NAICS 234930...............  Industrial                    0           NA           NA           NA           NA
                              Nonbuilding
                              Structure
                              Construction.
NAICS 234990...............  All Other Heavy               0           NA           NA           NA           NA
                              Construction.
NAICS 235310...............  Electrical                    0           NA           NA           NA           NA
                              Contractors.
NAICS 235910...............  Structural Steel              0           NA           NA           NA           NA
                              Erection
                              Contractors.
NAICS 235950...............  Building Equipment            0           NA           NA           NA           NA
                              and Other Machine
                              Installation
                              Contractors.
NAICS 235990...............  All Other Special             0           NA           NA           NA           NA
                              Trade Contractors.
NAICS 221110...............  Electric Power               13        86.50            2      0/0/0/0      233,674
                              Generation.
NAICS 221120...............  Electric Power               13        86.50            2      0/0/0/0      399,296
                              Transmission,
                              Control, and
                              Distribution.
NAICS 2211.................  Major Publicly               13        86.50            2          0/0       53,391
                              Owned Utilities.
Various....................  Industrial Power              0           NA           NA           NA           NA
                              Generators.
SIC 0783...................  Ornamental Shrub              0           NA           NA           NA           NA
                              and Tree Services.
                                                ----------------------------------------------------------------
    Total..................  ..................  ...........  ...........  ...........  ...........      902,492
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notes: (1) Totals may not equal the sum of the components due to rounding.
(2) ``NA'' = Not Applicable.
(3) For most NAICSs, compliance rates are for small unionized establishments, small nonunionized establishments,
  large unionized establishments, and large nonunionized establishments, respectively. Major Publicly Owned
  Utilities (NAICS 2211) and Ornamental Shrub and Tree Services (SIC 0783) only have compliance rates for small
  and large establishments, and Industrial Power Generators only have a compliance rate for large
  establishments.
Sources: BLS [39, 40], Grainger [11], U.S. Census [43, 44, 45, 46].

    Table 44--Annualized Costs Associated With Providing Arc-Rated Faceshield for Electrical and Electronics
                  Repairers Working in Generating Stations, Substations, and in-Service Relays
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                           Useful life
                                                  Employees     Cost per        of       Compliance   Annualized
       Industry code            Industry name      affected    faceshield   faceshield    rate (%)    compliance
                                                     (%)                     (years)                    costs
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NAICS 234910...............  Water, Sewer, and             0           NA           NA           NA           NA
                              Pipeline
                              Construction.
NAICS 234920...............  Power and                     4       $86.50            2  50/50/75/75      $21,289
                              Communication
                              Transmission Line
                              Construction.
NAICS 234930...............  Industrial                    0           NA           NA           NA           NA
                              Nonbuilding
                              Structure
                              Construction.
NAICS 234990...............  All Other Heavy               0           NA           NA           NA           NA
                              Construction.
NAICS 235310...............  Electrical                    0           NA           NA           NA           NA
                              Contractors.
NAICS 235910...............  Structural Steel              0           NA           NA           NA           NA
                              Erection
                              Contractors.
NAICS 235950...............  Building Equipment            0           NA           NA           NA           NA
                              and Other Machine
                              Installation
                              Contractors.
NAICS 235990...............  All Other Special             0           NA           NA           NA           NA
                              Trade Contractors.
NAICS 221110...............  Electric Power                4        86.50            2  80/80/90/90        7,917
                              Generation.
NAICS 221120...............  Electric Power                4        86.50            2  80/80/90/90       13,461