Contact:	Caroline Fuller (202) 543-1440 c.fuller@att.net
For Release:	Immediate News Bulletin 06.18 July 19, 2006

ASA Signs Hexavalent Chromium Letter to OSHA

WASHINGTON, D.C., July 19, 2006 - The Automotive Service Association (ASA) has signed a coalition letter to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requesting compliance guidance with respect to air monitoring and hexavalent chromium Cr(VI) exposure. The letter was sent to Edwin G. Foulke Jr., assistant secretary of labor.

The guidance request is specific to welding procedure associated with employee exposure to Cr(VI). According to rules 29 CFR 1910.1026(d)(3) and 29 CFR 1926.1126(d)(3), the use of "objective data" is sufficient to recognize whether employees are exposed to Cr(VI).

Objective data is defined in the standard as:

"information such as air monitoring data from industrywide surveys or calculations based on the composition or chemical and physical properties of a substance demonstrating the employee exposure to chromium (VI) associated with a particular product or material or a specific process, operation or activity. The data must reflect workplace conditions closely resembling the processes, types of material, control methods, work practices and environmental conditions in the employer's current operations."

This definition is listed under 29 CFR 1910.1026(b) and 29 CFR 1926.1126(b).

The coalition developed an air monitoring protocol to consistently collect objective data specific for air monitoring, taking advantage of the objective data option to fulfill the November 2006 compliance deadline.

Along with other coalition partners, ASA is asking that OSHA comply with this request prior to the November 2006 deadline.

ASA is actively pursuing another meeting with OSHA to discuss the hexavalent chromium regulation and how it relates to painting vehicles in body shops.

To view a copy of the coalition letter and the air monitoring protocol sent to OSHA, please visit ASA's legislative Web site at www.TakingTheHill.com.

The Automotive Service Association is the largest not-for-profit trade association of its kind dedicated to and governed by independent automotive service and repair professionals. ASA serves an international membership base that includes numerous affiliate, state and chapter groups from both the mechanical and collision repair segments of the automotive service industry. ASA's headquarters is in Bedford, Texas.

ASA advances professionalism and excellence in the automotive repair industry through education, representation and member services. For additional information about ASA, including past news releases, go to www.asashop.org, or visit ASA's legislative Web site at www.TakingTheHill.com.

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