The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) revised the Federal Agency Targeting Inspection Program (FEDTARG) directive for the current fiscal year.

FEDTARG is a safety inspection program that targets federal agencies with plenty of lost time cases. It began in 2008 following recommendations from the Government Accountability Office, which had audited OSHA.

Revisions to FEDTARG 2012 include:

• Following inspection procedures in the OSHA Field Operations Manual
• Citing a reference to general duty requirements for federal agencies
• Clarifying the process that created a secondary inspection list
• Clarifying how Area Directors decide to make extra inspections at establishments with multiple service/operations and/or office-only operating locations
• Citing cases where a Regional Administrator can ask for the approval of the Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA to remove establishments from an inspection list.

The FEDTARG 2012 directive describes inspection lists, scheduling and inspection procedures, and inspection codings within the Integrated Management Information System (IMIS) and the OSHA Information System (OIS).

The directive also cites provisions wherein federal establishments can use “alternate and supplementary standards” to create local emphasis programs, which presumably include government training courses for employees.

Read the full text here.