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Statement of Need: The existing standards for walking/working surfaces were originally adopted in 1971 under Section 6(a) rulemaking procedures. These standards are now out of date, restrict technological innovation, and contain gaps in coverage. Currently, there are also no standards for personal fall protection systems that cover all general industry applications. This rulemaking action will thus revise and update OSHA's existing regulations for walking/working surfaces (29 CFR Part 1910, Subpart D) and add new coverage for personal fall protection systems to the current personal protective equipment standards (29 CFR Part 1910, Subpart I). The revised rules will be written in plain English so that they will be easier for employers and employees to understand. ^PThe new standard will use a performance-oriented approach to permit flexibility in the means of compliance and to encourage innovation. New criteria for personal fall protection systems will be added to allow these systems to be used as additional alternatives to provide fall protection and to ensure that this type of equipment functions properly and is used correctly. ^PThe legal basis for this action is that employees in general industry are exposed to a significant risk of falls, both falls on the same level and falls from an elevation. However, this action is not specifically required by statute, and is not required by court order. ^PThe new standard will reduce risks to workers by providing clearer, up-to-date requirements to minimize fall hazards. The standard will also cover new areas of fall protection such as special surfaces and manhole steps, and the use of qualified climbers. The new standard will also recognize personal fall protection systems as an acceptable option for fall protection, as well as provide the criteria to ensure that such systems will safely stop a worker's fall.

Alternatives: The following alternatives were considered for analysis: ^P1. Retaining the existing regulation unchanged. A number of the existing requirements are specification-oriented provisions that in some situations are inappropriate, unnecessarily costly, and inflexible. For example, the existing standard mandates guardrails for most roof perimeters and requires that fixed ladders on most towers and other structures be fitted with cages or ladder safety devices; but in some limited circumstances, such requirements are unnecessarily restrictive. Also, personal fall protection systems, which are suited to many difficult fall protection situations, are not permitted under the existing rule. ^P2. Issuing the final rule without an exemption for qualified climbers. This option would require that all fixed ladders over 24 feet in height utilize cages or ladder-safety devices. Under this option, the benefits of the standard would be about the same as they are for the version reflected in the final rule, but the first-year capital cost of compliance would be increased by more than a factor of eleven. ^P3. Issuing the revised final rule as a final standard, including the exemption for qualified climbers, requirements for fall protection systems, and other flexible provisions for such protective devices as guardrails. OSHA believes that this alternative will result in the greatest amount of employee protection at the least cost to employers of all the alternatives considered.

Anticipated Costs and Benefits: Modifications to existing requirements are expected to involve annual costs of less than $20 million. Benefits include the prevention of dozens of fatalities and thousands of injuries associated with falls and other work-surface-related incidents.

Risks: Nearly all workplaces and employees covered by the OSHA general-industry standards are affected by the standards for walking and working surfaces. These standards cover about 84 million workers. Examples of walking and working surfaces included in these standards are stairs, step bolts, manhole steps, ramps, ladders, floors, fall-protection systems, scaffolds, and mobile ladder stands. ^PThe Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported from the 1987 and 1988 annual surveys that falls accounted for 12 percent of all deaths of employees in workplaces with 11 or more employees. ^PThe National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) publication, "Fatal Injuries to Workers in the United States, 1980-1989: A Decade of Surveillance," reports that deaths from falls are the fourth leading cause of occupational fatalities, accounting for 10 percent of all deaths in the workplace. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, falls are the second largest cause of occupational fatalities, next after death due to over-the-road motor vehicle accidents. Falls are also second only to motor vehicle accidents as a cause of brain injuries. ^POSHA has determined that hazards associated with walking and working surfaces persist and must be addressed with improved standards. OSHA's preliminary regulatory impact analysis estimated that as many as 105,000 disabling injuries and 132 fatalities that occur annually are potentially preventable by compliance with the revised final rule. ^PA number of special studies have also been conducted to gain a better understanding of the nature and causes of employee injuries, and the methods required for reducing their numbers. One such study on ladders, conducted by BLS, indicated that in about 55 percent of ladder-related accidents where employee injuries occurred, the ladder either moved, slipped, fell or broke. The study also indicated that ladders were not secured or braced in about 50 percent of these injury incidents. Furthermore, in nearly 60 percent of the incidents, employees were carrying something in their hands at the time of the incident. The final standard will address these problems by requiring design criteria and employee training in the use of ladders. Another study of scaffold fatalities and catastrophes developed by OSHA indicated that 90 percent of fatally injured employees were performing their normal job activities at the time of the accident, and 55 percent of these employees were performing their basic or primary work tasks.