On Nov. 22, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced it has extended the compliance date for the electronic reporting provisions of its Electronic Injury Reporting and Anti-Retaliation final rule (also known as Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses) to Dec. 15. This is a two-week extension from the Dec. 1 compliance date in the proposed rule. The final rule regarding the delay of the compliance date was published in the Federal Register on Nov. 24.
 
Under the final rule, certain employers are required to electronically submit the information from their completed 2016 Form 300A by Dec. 15. The rule, which was finalized on May 12, 2016, will make the submission of the injury and illness forms mandatory and exclusively electronic for most employers. According to the news release, in 2018 OSHA intends to publish a notice of proposed rulemaking to reconsider, revise, or remove other portions of the final rule.

In the news release, OSHA stated that the further delay is “to allow affected employers additional time to become familiar with a new electronic reporting system launched on August 1, 2017.” On Aug. 1, OSHA launched the Injury Tracking Application, which is the web-based form employers can use to submit their injury and illness data. The launch occurred right after OSHA closed the comment period on delaying the electronic reporting portion of the final rule from July 1 to Dec. 1. 

The news release also states, “Unless an employer is under federal jurisdiction, the following OSHA-approved State Plans have not yet adopted the requirement to submit injury and illness reports electronically: California, Maryland, Minnesota, South Carolina, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. Establishments in these states are not currently required to submit their summary data through the ITA. Similarly, state and local government establishments in Illinois, Maine, New Jersey, and New York are not currently required to submit their data through the ITA.”

The following information on electronic reporting is available on the U.S. Department of Labor’s website:

• Establishments with 250 or more employees in industries covered by the recordkeeping regulation must submit information from their 2016 Form 300A by Dec. 15, 2017. These same employers will be required to submit information from all 2017 forms (300A, 300, and 301) by July 1, 2018. Beginning in 2019 and every year thereafter, the information must be submitted by March 2.

• Establishments with 20-249 employees in certain high-risk industries must submit information from their 2016 Form 300A by Dec. 15, 2017, and their 2017 Form 300A by July 1, 2018. Beginning in 2019 and every year thereafter, the information must be submitted by March 2.

Note: The anti-retaliation provisions of the final rule went into effect on Dec. 1, 2016. 

In 2016, ABC filed a lawsuit against the final rule, which remains pending. 

This article is intended for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice or opinion.