Raising fuel economy standards will also raise the price of new vehicles and prevent families from purchasing newer, safer cars and trucks, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Deputy Administrator (NHTSA) Heidi King told Congress on Thursday. “We know that newer cars are safer and cleaner than older cars. We also know that consumers can choose whether to keep their older car or to purchase a newer, safer, cleaner car."

A California solar panel installation company has been fined $193,905 by the state’s workplace safety watchdog agency, after one of its employees was seriously injured in a fall. Cal/OSHA cited Anaheim-based Nexus Energy Systems, Inc. for failing to provide required fall protection for its workers.

The Affordable Clean Energy (ACE) rule finalized by the EPA this week is coming in for heavy criticism from leading health and environmental organizations, who are calling it “a dangerous replacement” for the Clean Power Plan. "EPA's decision to finalize the ACE rule means that more Americans will experience illness and early death – plain and simple. Furthermore, this rule will allow power plants across the nation to continue to be a major source of emissions that are driving climate change."

The U.S. Department of Transportation is in the midst of building a regulatory framework in order to “retain United States leadership and enable the limitless potential and possibilities of commercial space.” That’s the message delivered by Acting Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Daniel K. Elwell recently in Le Bourget, France, to an aerospace industry Commercial Space Panel at the Paris Air Show.

The Trump administration’s efforts to weaken a mining safety rule was reversed last week by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. A three-judge panel ruled that allowing mine operators flexibility in when they can conduct inspections of mines for hazardous conditions would violate the Mine Act’s no-less-protection standard.

OSHA has cited Southern Tire Mart LLC – based in Columbia, Mississippi – for failing to protect employees from serious safety hazards after a worker suffered fatal injuries while attempting to mount a monster truck tire rim at the company’s retreading facility in Fort Worth, Texas. The company faces $341,195 in fines.

To help promote ongoing motor carrier compliance, J. J. Keller — the nation’s leader in transportation regulatory compliance — has unveiled its NEW transport daily insight skill for Amazon Alexa. Linked to their popular transportation newsletters as part of the J. J. Keller Compliance Library, this intuitive Alexa skill delivers on-demand, transport-related compliance tips each day — and enabling it is quick and easy!

In OSHA’s 48-year-old history, the agency has experienced desperate hours on a regular schedule. The agency opened its door in 1971. Before the decade was out a “STOP OSHA” lobbying movement was underway. In 1979, Republican Senator Richard Schweiker of Pennsylvania proposed an “OSHA Improvements Act” which would have exempted from inspections all employers, large or small, regardless of industry, with good safety records. It was defeated in 1980.

By July 1, facilities that manufacture, process or otherwise use toxic chemicals specified by EPCRA 313 must file their annual Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) report. “For those facilities required to comply, J.J. Keller’s Toxic Release Inventory Reporting Service can help them prepare and file their TRI reports quickly and accurately,” said Steve Murray, vice president of editorial & consulting services at J.J. Keller & Associates, Inc.