OSHA Fines to Rise by August 1

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is not the only federal agency that is authorized to "catch up" on inflation by increasing its fines on Aug. 1, but it's the one agency that's been the most vocal over the years, with administrator David Michaels doing the cheerleading for higher penalty levels. This past November President Obama signed into law the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015, which authorizes agencies to publish interim final rules no later than July 1, 2016, for new penalty levels that must take effect on Aug. 1. Since OSHA often issues its fines months after conducting an inspection, the new fines can be assessed on businesses inspected on or after Feb. 1 of this year so long as they're issued on Aug. 1 or later.