THE COHEN GROUP
  Environmental Health & Safety Consulting Services

The Cohen Group Newsletter - Volume 18  Issue 2, Article 3.  May 2007

 Do the Cal/OSHA Work Activity Permit Rules Apply to Public Employers?
By Mark Golembiewski, CIH

If a company performs construction work involving trenches and excavations, or erects, dismantles or demolishes tall buildings, structures or scaffolding, then that employer must comply with the Cal/OSHA regulations that govern who must secure permits from the Division for such work activities and how those permits are obtained.  These regulations were revised last September and became effective on October 29, 2006.  But The Cohen Group has recently received a number of inquiries from public entities, such as municipal utility districts, asking do these rules also apply to their work?

The short answer is no.  If employees of a public utility district or any other government agency are digging a trench deeper than 5 feet into which an employee will descend, for example, the district or agency does not have to obtain a DOSH permit to perform that work.  But if a private contractor has been hired by the district or agency to perform that same work, then the contractor would need to be in possession of an appropriate DOSH work permit prior to initiating the trenching activity. 

The Cal/OSHA regulations, as set forth in Subchapter 2, Article 2, Section 341, “Permit Requirements,” subsection (e), specifically exempt:

      a.       Government Bodies -- the United States of America, its officers or agencies, State of California, county, city and county, city or district;
b.       Any public utility district subject to the jurisdiction of the Public Utilities Commission; and
c.        Construction of trenches and excavations for the purpose of performing emergency repairs to underground facilities

from the provisions of the permit requirements contained in Section 341.  So the regulations are quite clear that public entities are not covered by the revised permit rules.

To reiterate from our September 2006 newsletter, private employers who perform the following construction tasks at jobsites in California are required to be permitted (i.e., “Annual Permit”) from the Cal/OSHA district office closest to their headquarters, as well as give notice to the district office closest to the project, before they initiate any of the following work activities:

·         Construction of trenches or excavations which are 5 feet or deeper and into which a person is required to descend;

·         Construction of any building, structure, scaffolding or falsework (including tower cranes) more than 3 stories high, or equivalent;

·         Demolition of any building or structure, or the dismantling of scaffolding or falsework (including tower cranes) more than 3 stories high, or equivalent; or

·         The underground use of diesel engines in mines and tunnels.

If you are working for a public agency and are using a private contractor to perform any of these work activities, make sure the contractor presents you with a copy of his Annual Permit and documentation that notice was given to the local district office prior to starting the job.  Contractors who perform excavation and trenching work or erect scaffolding on a regular basis will typically hold annual permits for such work.  Please see our September 2006 newsletter for further details or contact us if you have any questions.