42 U.S.C. § 2282c — Worker health and safety rules for Department of Energy nuclear facilities

submitted 80 years ago by Pub. L. 107-314 to r/title-42-THE-PUBLIC-HEALTH-AND-WELFARE · 613 words · no verdicts yet

in plain englishAI-generated · not legal advice

The Energy Secretary must issue flexible worker-safety rules for covered nuclear facilities, may impose civil or contract penalties for violations, and must choose only one penalty type for a violation.

(a) After notice and comment under title 5, section 553, the Secretary shall issue industrial and construction health-and-safety rules for Energy facilities operated by indemnified contractors. Subject to (3), protection must be substantially equivalent to current protection. The rules do not apply to Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program facilities or activities under Executive Order 12344. The Secretary shall allow flexibility to tailor rules to work hazards, account for facilities expected to close and be demolished or transferred for reuse, and efficiently and promptly achieve Energy national-security missions. This subsection does not change enforcement or application of any other health-and-safety law, rule, order, or contract duty. (b) A person with an indemnification agreement, or its subcontractor or supplier, whose employee violates a subsection (a) rule is subject to a civil penalty up to $70,000 per violation. Each day of a continuing violation is separate. (c) Each contract with an indemnified Energy contractor must reduce fees or payments appropriately for a contractor or employee violation and state violation degrees and reductions. (d) For one violation, the Secretary shall pursue civil penalties under (b) or contract penalties under (c), not both. For an entity described in section 2282a(d), combined annual penalties cannot exceed Energy’s fees to that entity that year. The Secretary shall ensure a contractor is not penalized under both this section and section 2282a for the same violation.

the actual law source: uscode.house.gov ↗public domain

(a) Regulations required

(1) In general

The Secretary shall promulgate regulations for industrial and construction health and safety at Department of Energy facilities that are operated by contractors covered by agreements of indemnification under section 2210(d) of this title, after public notice and opportunity for comment under section 553 of title 5 (commonly known as the “Administrative Procedure Act”). Such regulations shall, subject to paragraph (3), provide a level of protection for workers at such facilities that is substantially equivalent to the level of protection currently provided to such workers at such facilities.

(2) Applicability

The regulations promulgated under paragraph (1) shall not apply to any facility that is a component of, or any activity conducted under, the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program provided for under Executive Order No. 12344, dated February 1, 1982 (as in force pursuant to section 1634 of the Department of Defense Authorization Act, 1985 (Public Law 98–525)).

(3) Flexibility

In promulgating the regulations under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall include flexibility—

(A)

to tailor implementation of such regulations to reflect activities and hazards associated with a particular work environment;

(B)

to take into account special circumstances at a facility that is, or is expected to be, permanently closed and that is expected to be demolished, or title to which is expected to be transferred to another entity for reuse; and

(C)

to achieve national security missions of the Department of Energy in an efficient and timely manner.

(4) No effect on health and safety enforcement

This subsection does not diminish or otherwise affect the enforcement or the application of any other law, regulation, order, or contractual obligation relating to worker health and safety.

(b) Civil penalties

(1) In general

A person (or any subcontractor or supplier of the person) who has entered into an agreement of indemnification under section 2210(d) of this title (or any subcontractor or supplier of the person) that violates (or is the employer of a person that violates) any regulation promulgated under subsection (a) shall be subject to a civil penalty of not more than $70,000 for each such violation.

(2) Continuing violations

If any violation under this subsection is a continuing violation, each day of the violation shall constitute a separate violation for the purpose of computing the civil penalty under paragraph (1).

(1) In general

The Secretary shall include in each contract with a contractor of the Department who has entered into an agreement of indemnification under section 2210(d) of this title provisions that provide an appropriate reduction in the fees or amounts paid to the contractor under the contract in the event of a violation by the contractor or contractor employee of any regulation promulgated under subsection (a).

(2) Contents

The provisions shall specify various degrees of violations and the amount of the reduction attributable to each degree of violation.

(d) Coordination of penalties

(1) Choice of penalties

For any violation by a person of a regulation promulgated under subsection (a), the Secretary shall pursue either civil penalties under subsection (b) or contract penalties under subsection (c), but not both.

(2) Maximum amount

In the case of an entity described in subsection (d) of section 2282a of this title, the total amount of civil penalties under subsection (b) and contract penalties under subsection (c) in a fiscal year may not exceed the total amount of fees paid by the Department of Energy to that entity in that fiscal year.

(3) Coordination with section 2282a of this title

The Secretary shall ensure that a contractor of the Department is not penalized both under this section and under section 2282a of this title for the same violation.

Source credit: (Aug. 1, 1946, ch. 724, title I, § 234C, as added Pub. L. 107–314, div. C, title XXXI, § 3173(a), Dec. 2, 2002, 116 Stat. 2743.)

history & why it existsrecord from the source credit

1946Enacted · Pub. L. 107-314 · 116 Stat. 2743

A history note hasn’t been published yet. The record shows enactment by Pub. L. 107-314 on 1946-08-01.

all 0 arguments · sorted by: best

no arguments yet — make the first case