SECTION 295.2. Definitions

The following words and terms, when used in these sections, shall have the following meanings unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

(1) Act--The Hazard Communication Act, the Health and Safety Code, Chapter 502.

(2) Appropriate hazard warning--Any words, pictures, symbols, or combination thereof appearing on a label or other appropriate form of warning which convey the health and physical hazards, including the target organ effects of the chemical(s) in the container(s).

(3) Appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) or protective equipment -Equipment that is provided to an employee by the employer and provides a level of protection to chemicals to which the employee may be exposed that will be adequate to ensure their health and safety based on current industry standards. In determining the selection of PPE, the employer shall consider all routes of entry, permeability of PPE materials, the duties being performed by the employee, the hazardous chemicals present, and such other factors as may affect the performance of the equipment. The employer must ensure that the provided equipment fits the individual employee and is functional for its intended use as described by the manufacturer's specifications.

(4) Asphyxiation--A death or injury from suffocation that is caused by a chemical and which is due to interference with the oxygen supply of the blood, other than drowning.

(5) Categories of hazardous chemicals--A grouping of hazardous chemicals with similar hazard properties.

(6) Commissioner of Health--the director of the Texas Department of Health, as referenced in the Health and Safety Code, §502.003(8).

(7) Container--Any bag, barrel, bottle, box, can, cylinder, drum, reaction vessel, storage tank, or the like that contains a hazardous chemical or contains multiple smaller containers of an identical hazardous chemical. The term "container" does not mean pipes or piping systems, nor does it mean engines, fuel tanks, or other operating systems in a vehicle. A primary container is the one in which the hazardous chemical is received from the supplier. A secondary container is one to which the hazardous chemical is transferred after receipt from the supplier.

(8) Department--The Texas Department of Health.

(9) Emergency service organization--Any organization established to provide the following services for the general public: fire prevention and suppression, hazardous materials response operations, or emergency medical services. An emergency service organization may consist of volunteer members or be a unit of a political subdivision of the state with compensated employees.

(10) Employee education and training program--Actual instruction, regardless of the technology or method used to deliver it, provided by the employer to employees as required by the Act, §502.009. This program is the instruction of employees and records of training, as opposed to a written plan for training.

(11) Employer--The overall organizational public entity rather than individual facilities or workplaces. Examples of public employers are an entire state agency, a county, a city, a public school district, a public university, a public college or community college, a river authority, a public hospital, or a volunteer emergency service organization. Each university, college, or community college in a university or college system shall be considered as a separate employer under the Act.

(12) Handle--To touch, move, or manipulate hazardous chemicals.

(13) Health hazard--A chemical for which there is statistically significant evidence based on at least one study conducted in accordance with established scientific principles that acute or chronic health effects may occur in exposed employees. The term "health hazard" includes chemicals which are carcinogens, toxic or highly toxic agents, reproductive toxins, irritants, corrosives, sensitizers, hepatotoxins, nephrotoxins, neurotoxins, agents which act on the hematopoietic system, and agents which damage the lungs, skin, eyes, or mucous membranes.

(14) Label--Any written, printed, or graphic material displayed on or affixed to containers of hazardous chemicals.

(15) OSHA Standard--The Hazard Communication Standard of the United States Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Title 29 Code of Federal Regulations, 1910.1200.

(16) Stationary process container--A tank, vat, or other such container which holds different hazardous chemicals at different times.

(17) Workplace--A contiguous facility that is staffed 20 hours or more per week, unless such a facility is subdivided by the employer. Normally this subdivision would be a building, cluster of buildings or other structures, or complex of buildings, but could be for a portion of a building if the employer chooses. Noncontiguous properties are always separate workplaces unless they are temporary workplaces, in which case they can be either work areas of a headquarters workplace or separate workplaces, at the discretion of the employer.

(18) Written hazard communication program--A document which describes an employer's program for compliance with those requirements of the Act imposed on the employer.

Source Note: The provisions of this §295.2 adopted to be effective February 28, 1986, 11 TexReg 852; amended to be effective October 16, 1987, 12 TexReg 335; amended to be effective September 1, 1999, 24 TexReg 3711; amended to be effective July 3, 2003, 28 TexReg 4914