OSHA seeks five-month delay in e-filing rule

Agency seeks time to reconsider provisions

The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration wants to give employers another five months before having to comply with its rule requiring them to report injury and illness data to the agency electronically.

The “Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses” rule was scheduled to take effect on July 1, but the agency said on June 27 it will delay implementation until Dec. 1.

The agency said the delay would give it time to review and reconsider the rule. The agency said it also plans to issue a separate proposal to revise or remove other provisions in the final rule.

It also said the delay would give employers extra time to review the rule.

Industry groups, among them the National Association of Home Builders, filed a lawsuit earlier this year challenging the constitutionality of the rule.

They say that creation of a public database of injury data could reveal proprietary information about a company's activities.