CHAPTER 2. Process Safety Management Standards [7855. - 7873.]

Cal. Labor Code - LAB 2.

in effect

Cal. Labor Code - LAB § 7855. Section 7855.

The purpose of this chapter is to prevent or minimize the consequences of catastrophic releases of toxic, flammable, or explosive chemicals. The establishment of process safety management standards are intended to eliminate, to a substantial degree, the risks to which workers are exposed in refineries, chemical plants, and other related manufacturing facilities.

Cal. Labor Code - LAB § 7856. Section 7856.

(a) By March 31, 2014, the board shall adopt process safety management standards for refineries, chemical plants, and other manufacturing facilities, as specified in Codes 28 (Chemical and Allied Products) and 29 (Petroleum Refining and Related Industries) of the Manual of Standard Industrial Classification Codes, published by the United States Office of Management and Budget, 1987 Edition, that handle regulated substances as defined in subdivision (i) of Section 25532 of the Health and Safety Code and pose a significant likelihood of accident risk, as determined by the board. Alternately, upon making a finding that there is a significant likelihood of risk to employees at a facility not included in Codes 28 and 29 resulting from the presence of acutely hazardous materials or explosives as identified in Part 172 (commencing with Section 172.1) of Title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations, the board may require that these facilities be subject to the jurisdiction of the standards provided for in this section. When adopting these standards, the board shall give priority to facilities and areas of facilities where the potential is greatest for preventing severe or catastrophic accidents because of the size or nature of the process or business. The standards adopted pursuant to this section shall require that injury prevention programs of employers subject to this part and implemented pursuant to Section 6401.7 include the requirements of this part. (b) By January 1, 2026, the division shall propose, and the board shall consider for adoption, regulations that implement this part for refineries.

Cal. Labor Code - LAB § 7857. Section 7857.

The process safety management standards shall include provisions dealing with the items prescribed by Sections 7858 to 7868, inclusive, of this chapter.

Cal. Labor Code - LAB § 7858. Section 7858.

The employer shall develop and maintain a compilation of written safety information to enable the employer and the employees operating the process to identify and understand the hazards posed by processes involving acutely hazardous and flammable material. The employer shall provide for employee participation in this process. This safety information shall be communicated to employees involved in the processes, and shall include information pertaining to hazards of acutely hazardous and flammable materials used in the process, information pertaining to the technology of the process, and information pertaining to the equipment in the process. A copy of this information and communication shall be accessible to all workers who perform any duties in or near the process area.

Cal. Labor Code - LAB § 7859. Section 7859.

The employer shall perform a hazard analysis for identifying, evaluating, and controlling hazards involved in the process. The employer shall provide for the participation of knowledgeable operating employees in these analyses. The final report containing the results of the hazardous analysis for each process shall be available, in the respective work area, for review by any person working in that area. Upon request of any worker or any labor union representative of any worker in the area, the employer shall provide or make available a copy of any risk management prevention program prepared for that facility pursuant to Article 2 (commencing with Section 25531) of Chapter 6.95 of Division 20 of the Health and Safety Code. The board, when adopting a standard or standards pertaining to this section, may authorize employers to submit risk management prevention programs prepared pursuant to Article 2 (commencing with Section 25531) of Chapter 6.95 of Division 20 of the Health and Safety Code to satisfy related requirements in whole or in part.

Cal. Labor Code - LAB § 7860. Section 7860.

(a) The employer shall develop and implement written operating procedures that provide clear instructions for safely conducting activities involved in each process consistent with the process safety information. (b) A copy of the operating procedures shall be readily accessible to employees or to any other person who works in or near the process area. (c) The operating procedures shall be reviewed as often as necessary to assure that they reflect current operating practice, including changes that result from changes in process chemicals, technology, and equipment, and changes to facilities.

Cal. Labor Code - LAB § 7861. Section 7861.

(a) Each employee whose primary duties include the operating or maintenance of a process, and each employee prior to assuming operations and maintenance duties in a newly assigned process, shall be trained in an overview of the process and in the operating procedures as specified in Section 7860. The training shall include emphasis on the specific safety and health hazards, procedures, and safe practices applicable to the employee’s job tasks. (b) Refresher and supplemental training shall be provided to each operating or maintenance employee, or both, and other worker necessary to ensure safe operation of the facility and on a recurring regular schedule as determined adequate by the board. (c) The employer shall ensure that each worker necessary to ensure safe operation of the facility has received and successfully completed training as specified by this section. The employer, after the initial or refresher training shall prepare a certification record which contains the identity of the employee, the date of training, and the signature of the person conducting the training. Testing procedures shall be established by each employer to ensure competency in job skill levels and safe and healthy work practices.

Cal. Labor Code - LAB § 7862. Section 7862.

(a) The employer shall inform contractors performing work on, or near, a process of the known potential fire, explosion, or toxic release hazards related to the contractor’s work and the process, and require that contractors have trained their employees to a level adequate to safely perform their job. The employer shall also inform contractors of any applicable safety rules of the facility, and assure that the contractors have so informed their employees. (b) The employer shall explain to contractors the applicable provisions of the emergency action plan required by Section 7868. (c) Contractors shall assure that their employees have received training to safely perform their jobs and that these employees will adhere to all applicable work practices and safety rules of the facility.

Cal. Labor Code - LAB § 7863. Section 7863.

The employer shall perform a prestartup safety review for new facilities and for modified facilities for which the modification necessitates a change in the process safety information. These reviews shall include knowledgeable operating employees.

Cal. Labor Code - LAB § 7864. Section 7864.

The employer shall establish and implement written procedures and inspection and testing programs to maintain the ongoing integrity of process equipment. These programs shall include a process for allowing employees to identify and report potentially faulty or unsafe equipment, and to record their observations and suggestions in writing. The employer shall respond regarding the disposition of the employee’s concerns contained in the reports in a timely manner.

Cal. Labor Code - LAB § 7865. Section 7865.

The employer shall develop and implement a written procedure governing the issuance of “hot work” permits. “Hot work” includes electric or gas welding, cutting, brazing, or similar flame- or spark-producing operations.

Cal. Labor Code - LAB § 7866. Section 7866.

The employer shall establish and implement written procedures to manage changes, except for replacements in kind, to process chemicals, technology, and equipment, and to make changes to facilities.

Cal. Labor Code - LAB § 7867. Section 7867.

The employer shall establish a written procedure for investigating every incident which results in, or, as determined by board criteria, could reasonably have resulted in, a major accident in the workplace. The procedure shall, at a minimum, require that a written report be prepared and be provided to all employees whose work assignments are within the facility where the incident occurred at the time the incident occurred and shall also include establishing a method for dealing with findings and recommendations.

Cal. Labor Code - LAB § 7868. Section 7868.

The employer shall establish and implement an emergency action plan. The employer may use the business plan for emergency response submitted pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 25503.5 and subdivision (b) of Section 25505 of the Health and Safety Code if it meets the standards adopted by the board.

Cal. Labor Code - LAB § 7870. Section 7870.

Notwithstanding the availability of federal funds to carry out the purposes of this part, the division shall annually fix and collect reasonable fees for consultation, inspection, adoption of standards, and other duties conducted pursuant to this part. The fees shall be adopted by March 31, 2014. All revenue collected from these fees shall be deposited into the Occupational Safety and Health Fund. The fees shall be sufficient to support, at a minimum, the annual cost of 15 positions. The expenditure of these funds shall be subject to appropriation by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act or other measure.

Cal. Labor Code - LAB § 7872. Section 7872.

(a) As used in this section and in Section 7873, “turnaround” means a planned, periodic shutdown, total or partial, of a refinery process unit or plant to perform maintenance, overhaul, and repair operations and to inspect, test, and replace process materials and equipment. “Turnaround” does not include unplanned shutdowns that occur due to emergencies or other unexpected maintenance matters in a process unit or plant. “Turnaround” also does not include routine maintenance, where routine maintenance consists of regular, periodic maintenance on one or more pieces of equipment at a refinery process unit or plant that may require shutdown of that equipment. (b) Every September 15, every refinery employer shall submit to the division a full schedule of planned turnarounds for all affected units for the following calendar year. (c) At the request of the division, at least 60 days prior to the shutdown of a process unit or plant as part of a planned turnaround, a refinery employer shall provide access onsite and allow the division to review the following documentation for the process unit or plant scheduled to be shut down for that turnaround: (1) All corrosion reports and risk-based inspection reports generated since the last turnaround. (2) Process hazard analyses generated since the last turnaround. (3) Boiler permit schedules. (4) All management of change records related to repairs, design modifications, and process changes implemented since the last turnaround or scheduled to be completed in the planned turnaround referenced in this subdivision and identified in subdivision (b). (5) Work orders scheduled to be completed in the planned turnaround referenced in this subdivision and identified in subdivision (b). (6) All temporary repairs made since the last turnaround, including, but not limited to, clamps and encapsulations. As used in this section, “temporary repairs” means repairs made to piping systems in order to restore sufficient integrity to continue safe operation until permanent repairs can be scheduled. (7) Notification and description of all repairs, design modifications, or process changes described in a corrosion report, risk-based inspection report, process hazard analysis, boiler permit schedule, management of change record, work order, or other document listed in paragraphs (1) to (6), inclusive, that the refinery employer has deferred to a subsequent operational period or turnaround. (d) The division may request additional information as necessary to perform its responsibilities in this part pursuant to Section 6314. (e) At the request of the division, at least 30 days before the shutdown of a process unit or plant as part of a planned turnaround, a refinery employer shall provide access onsite and allow the division to review any changes to the information or documents reviewed by the division pursuant to subdivision (c) and relevant supporting documents. (f) At the division’s request, a refinery employer shall provide the division with physical copies, or, at the division’s discretion, electronic copies if available, of the documentation reviewed by the division pursuant to subdivisions (c), (d), and (e). (g) By agreement with a refinery employer, the division may modify the reporting period as to any individual item of information. (h) This section is not intended to limit or increase the division’s authority in Part 1 (commencing with Section 6300) to prohibit use of a place of employment, machine, device, apparatus, or equipment or any part thereof that constitutes an imminent hazard to employees. (i) The Legislature finds and declares that the purpose of this section is to improve the ability of the state to conduct inspections of refining operations.

Cal. Labor Code - LAB § 7873. Section 7873.

(a) As used in this section, “trade secret” means a trade secret as defined in subdivision (f) of Section 7924.510 of the Government Code or Section 1061 of the Evidence Code, and shall include the schedule submitted to the division pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 7872 of this code, and the scheduling, duration, layout, configuration, and type of work to be performed during a turnaround. Upon completion of a turnaround, the scheduling and duration of that turnaround shall no longer be considered a trade secret. The wages, hours, benefits, job classifications, and training standards for employees performing work for refinery employers is not a trade secret. (b) (1) If a refinery employer believes that information submitted to the division pursuant to Section 7872 may involve the release of a trade secret, the refinery employer shall nevertheless provide this information to the division. The refinery employer, at the time of submission, may identify all or a portion of the information submitted to the division as trade secret and, to the extent feasible, segregate records designated as trade secret from the other records. (2) Subject to subdivisions (c), (d), and (g), the division shall not release to the public any information designated as a trade secret by the refinery employer pursuant to paragraph (1). (c) (1) Upon the receipt of a request for the release of information to the public that includes information that the refinery employer has notified the division is a trade secret pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (b), the division shall notify the refinery employer in writing of the request by certified mail, return receipt requested. (2) The division shall release the requested information to the public, unless both of the following occur: (A) Within 30 days of receipt of the notice of the request for information, the refinery employer files an action in an appropriate court for a declaratory judgment that the information is subject to protection as a trade secret, as defined in subdivision (a), and promptly notifies the division of that action. (B) Within 120 days of receipt of the notice of the request for information, the refinery employer obtains an order prohibiting disclosure of the information to the public and promptly notifies the division of that action. (3) This subdivision shall not be construed to allow a refinery employer to refuse to disclose the information required pursuant to this section to the division. (d) Except as provided in subdivision (c), any information that has been designated as a trade secret by a refinery employer shall not be released to any member of the public, except that the information may be disclosed to other officers or employees of the division when relevant in any proceeding of the division. (e) (1) The refinery employer filing an action pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (c) shall provide notice of the action to the person requesting the release of the information at the same time that the defendant in the action is served. (2) A person who has requested the release of information that includes information that the refinery employer has notified the division is a trade secret pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) may intervene in an action by the refinery employer filed pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (c). The court shall permit that person to intervene. (f) The public agency shall not bear the court costs for any party named in litigation filed pursuant to this section. (g) This section shall not be construed to prohibit the exchange of trade secrets between local, state, or federal public agencies or state officials when those trade secrets are relevant and reasonably necessary to the exercise of their authority. (h) If the person requesting the release of information identified by a refinery employer as a trade secret files an action against the division to order disclosure of that information, the division shall promptly notify the refinery employer in writing of the action by certified mail, return receipt requested. The refinery employer may intervene in an action filed by the person requesting the release of trade secrets identified by the refinery employer. The court shall permit the refinery employer to intervene. (i) An officer or employee of the division who, by virtue of that employment or official position, has possession of, or has access to, trade secret information, and who, knowing that disclosure of the information to the general public is prohibited by this section, knowingly and willfully discloses the information in any manner to a person that the officer or employee knows is not entitled to receive it, is guilty of a misdemeanor. A contractor with the division and an employee of the contractor, who has been furnished information as authorized by this section, shall be considered an employee of the division for purposes of this section.

Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026