Senator McLEOD proposed the following amendment (147R001.KMM.MSM):

Amend the joint resolution, as and if amended, on page 3, line 18, by inserting an appropriately numbered new SECTION to read:

/SECTION__. (A) Within thirty days after the effective date of this joint resolution, the Director of the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation shall promulgate emergency regulations to establish a mandatory, temporary standard for covered entities or covered individuals to control, prevent, and mitigate the spread of Coronavirus disease 2019 to and among employees and employers. This standard shall apply to every employer, employee, and place of employment within the jurisdiction of the South Carolina Occupational Safety and Health Administration (SC OSHA).

(B) This standard must be designed to supplement and enhance existing SC OSHA laws, rules, regulations, and standards applicable directly or indirectly to coronavirus disease-related hazards, such as, but not limited to, those dealing with personal protective equipment, respiratory protective equipment, sanitation, access to employee exposure and medical records, occupational exposure to hazardous chemicals in laboratories, and hazard communication. This standard must mandate the use of personal face coverings or masks to the extent possible and other personal protective equipment when appropriate.

(C) This standard must be applied to a place of employment based on the exposure risk level presented by coronavirus virus-related and disease-related hazards present or job tasks undertaken by employees at the place of employment. These risk levels must be designated as very high, high, medium, or lower exposure risk. This standard must recognize that:

(1) various hazards or job tasks at the same place of employment can be designated as very high, high, medium, or lower exposure risk for the purposes of the application of the requirements of this standard; and

(2) various required job tasks can prohibit an employee from being able to observe physical distancing from other persons.

(D) This standard must provide that, to the extent that an employer actually complies with a recommendation contained in the recommendations of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), whether mandatory or non-mandatory, to mitigate coronavirus virus-related and disease-related hazards or job tasks addressed by this standard, and provided that the CDC recommendation provides equivalent or greater protection than a provision of this standard, the employer's actions must be considered in compliance with this standard. An employer's actual compliance with a recommendation contained in the CDC recommendation, whether mandatory or non-mandatory, to mitigate coronavirus virus-related and disease-related hazards or job tasks addressed by this standard must be considered evidence of reasonable adherence to public health guidance for the purposes contained in SECTION 4.

(E) The Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, and any appropriate occupational licensing board, are authorized to utilize standard enforcement actions against a covered entity or covered individual that violates a provision of the regulations promulgated pursuant to this SECTION. /