The Senate voted 15-15 on House Bill 93, which was one of a few measures the governor's Workplace Safety Task Force recommended to deal with Wyoming's worst-in-the-nation record for workplace fatalities.
"I think it sends a message that we don't care about worker safety," said bill sponsor Rep. Mary Throne, D-Cheyenne. "No one (in industry) is against this bill because they recognize the importance of safety -- except 15 members of the Senate."
Killing it, Sessions said, sends the message to the "people on the bottom rung of the mineral industry" that they are "throwaway people."
There are 17.1 deaths per 100,000 workers in the state; the national average is four per 100,000.
Sen. Eli Bebout, however, said the fines would be unfair and crippling to small businesses.
Throne said the fines were to be an incentive to get employers interested in bringing in safety regulators to collaborate on safety needs.
The fines proposed in the bill were the same as fines in a pending bill in the U.S. House of Representatives. The federal legislation would raise fines imposed by the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
The state of Wyoming, under agreement with OSHA, operates an occupational safety and health program. The program operates under the umbrella of the Worker Safety and Compensation Division within the Wyoming Department of Employment.
If Congress raises the fines, Wyoming will be forced to raise its fines, Throne said
The fines proposed in the bill were the same as fines in a pending bill in the U.S. House of Representatives. The federal legislation would raise fines imposed by the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
The state of Wyoming, under agreement with OSHA, operates an occupational safety and health program. The program operates under the umbrella of the Worker Safety and Compensation Division within the Wyoming Department of Employment.
If Congress raises the fines, Wyoming will be forced to raise its fines, Throne said
Go to the full story in Wyoming Tribune Eagle (via Cal-OSHA)