GOP senators warn Biden admin against issuing ETS

GOP Senators Roger Marshall M.D., Richard Burr and Tim Scott sent a letter to Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Acting Director Shalanda Young on Monday, warning them against issuing a nationwide Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS).

The US senators announced on Tuesday they had sent a letter and warned Biden administration of the negative effects that the ETS will have on the economic recovery of the country.

The Department of Labor sent a draft ETS to OMB on April 27. OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs will review the draft for at least two weeks.

According to a press release issued by Dr. Marshall’s office, the senators said that since the weekly average of new cases is low and vaccinations are on the rise, an ETS will only hinder recovery.

“With the national seven-day average of new cases at nearly a quarter of where they were at the beginning of the year, and vaccinations across the country on the rise, an ETS only adds burdensome regulations that slow reopening and run counter to the frequently changing guidance from the Centers for Disease Control,” says the news release. “The U.S. government can achieve similar workplace safety outcomes through updating guidance, continued education and employer outreach, and increased technical assistance without hindering America’s economic comeback.”

The letter says in the first paragraph, “An ETS is an extraordinary remedy, designed for situations where workers face a grave danger of such a magnitude that the agency can bypass the public’s right to notice and comment.”

The Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has only issued nine ETS since the agency was created. The courts have overturned five of them for not meeting the issuance requirements. OSHA issued its last ETS back in 1983.