| Action Summary |
On February 14, 2007, federal OSHA published a revision of its electrical installation standard for general industry, 29 CFR Part 1910, subpart S, which the Safety and Health Codes Board subsequently adopted at its June 26, 2007 meeting. In this current action, federal OSHA corrected two typographical errors were also corrected in Table S-3 of §1910.303 of the final rule. Federal OSHA corrected “2.81" and “9.01,” the first entries under the column heads “m” and “ft,” to read “2.8" and “9.0", respectively.
Following promulgation of the final rule in 2007, federal OSHA received numerous questions from the public concerning the application of §1910.304(b)(3)(ii), questions stemming from the structure of the text of the provision, questions concerning whether the standard recognizes all forms of ground-fault protection devices, and questions about whether the standard requires Ground Fault Circuit Interrupters (GFCI) to be used with branch circuits supplying temporary lighting.
Federal OSHA determined that §1910.304(b)(3)(ii) was intended to apply to temporary wiring installations used during the performance of construction-like activities, including certain maintenance, remodeling, or repair activities, involving buildings, structures or equipment.
In response to questions about temporary wiring, federal OSHA stated that, for purposes of §1910.304(b)(3)(ii), it considers as “temporary wiring” the use of more than one extension cord (connected in series or otherwise) to be a permanent outlet, or the temporary connection of more than one piece of utilization equipment to an extension cord set that is connected to a permanent receptacle outlet. Federal OSHA notes that this temporary wiring would only be covered by §1910.304(b)(3)(ii) if it is used during “construction-like activities.”
Additionally, federal OSHA decided that §1910.304(b)(3)(ii) applies only to branch circuits, which are “the circuit conductors between the final overcurrent device (circuit breaker or fuse) protecting the circuit and the outlets”.
It also determined that §1910.304(b)(3)(ii)(A) requires ground-fault circuit interrupters (GFCI) for personnel protection and as electric equipment which must be approved by nationally recognized testing laboratories (NRTL).
Lastly, federal OSHA determined that the standard requires GFCI protection for temporary circuits supplying lighting only when those circuits also supply receptacles.
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