Political Quotes

“I have my remarks prepared, but there is something that I heard the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. McIntosh) say relating to the case involving Mr. Roberts, the owner of a small company which installs pipelines in Indiana. We have been doing some research on this matter, and I would just like to report the results of our research and see if it is out of variance with the information which the gentleman from Indiana has. The inspections which he mentioned took place in 1987 and 1989, during the administrations of Ronald Reagan and George Bush. According to OSHA records, Mr. Roberts' company was not assessed any fine for any of the 3 paperwork violations uncovered during the inspection. Those violations included 'no written hazard communication program,' 'no hazard warning labels on hazardous chemicals being worked with,' and 'no material safety data sheets for hazardous chemicals.' Instead, Mr. Roberts was fined after OSHA inspectors found substantive violations during 3 separate inspections, including violations determined to be serious. The first inspection on December 2, 1987 found 10 violations involving, among other things, flammable and combustible liquids and electrical hazards. On May 10, 1989, OSHA found 7 more violations, including actual safety violations. The third inspection on November 9, 1989 found 4 serious violations. It was only then, after the third inspection, that the company was fined.”