Wyo. Code R. 053-0014-11
OSHA - Practice & Procedure
Chapter 11: Information Dissemination
Effective Date: 10/26/2020 to Current
Rule Type: Current Rules & Regulations
Reference Number: 053.0014.11.10262020
(a) Any open case may be subject to an order by the Commission to any district court for enforcement action pursuant to Wyoming Statute §27-11-106 (a). Prior to the time a case is closed, the investigatory file of that case will not be released to any person not connected with the Department and authorized by the Administrator in accordance with Wyoming Statute §16-4-203 (b)(i), which allows denial of inspection of any record that is an investigatory file compiled for any law enforcement or prosecution purpose.
(b) Once the Notice of Violation is completed and penalties are proposed, if applicable, the original Notice of Violation and Proposed Penalties shall be forwarded to the employer and handled in accordance with the procedures prescribed in Chapter 3, Practice and Procedure: Enforcement.
(i) Statistical data (e.g., number of violations noted, proposed penalty, etc.) broken out by the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) shall be available through the Integrated Management Information System. Individuals shall not be identified in these statistics.
(c) A case is considered closed when a consent agreement signed by the Employer has been entered into the investigation file; the case has been referred to a hearing officer for contested case proceedings, all citations have been vacated, the citations have not been contested and a Final Order of the Commission or court has been rendered, or, if no citation will be issued. Following closure of the case, that portion of the file that includes trade secrets, personal identity or statements protected by informant's privilege, intra-agency notes and memorandum, personal notes and opinions of the investigating officer, and other confidential information, may not be released, in accordance with W.S. §16-4-203(b)(v) and W.S. §16-4-203(d)(v), except as provided in Section 1(d) of this Chapter.
(d) All information on individuals maintained by this Department shall remain confidential except in the following disclosures:
(i) To officers or employees who have a clearly established need for the record in order to carry out legal duties of administering or enforcing the laws of the federal government, the State of Wyoming, or any of its political subdivisions.
(ii) To another governmental agency for civil or criminal law enforcement activity, providing the regulating agency has made a prior written request to this Department specifying the particular record and the enforcement activity for which it is sought.
(iii) To other agencies or organizations with the authorization of the Administrator unless the transfer is part of the “routine use” of the record as enumerated or implied in the Department’s statutes or regulations.
(iv) To a recipient who has provided the Department with written assurance that the record will be used in a manner solely for statistical research and the record is to be transferred in a form that is not individually identifiable.
(v) To the individual to whom the record pertains or to their designated representative(s) upon written request.
(vi) To a court of competent jurisdiction upon order to this Department.
(a) Information is processed by reproduction and is transferred only as accorded by Department policy. Any additional copying may be deemed a breach of confidence of the Department employee and subject them to disciplinary action.
(b) The “need to know” policy does not refer to anyone outside the Department unless stipulated on the document or unless authorized in the processing of such information.
(i) If so authorized in writing by the individual, their legal representative may have copies of pertinent information contained in the file.
(ii) If the case is contested, a Notice of Intent to Contest shall be forwarded to the Chairman of the Commission in accordance with Rules of the Department of Workforce Services, OSHA, Chapter 1 Practice and Procedure, Introduction and Chapter 6, Practice and Procedure: Informal Conferences, Hearings and Contested Cases.
(c) Information collected on an individual for a specific purpose may be used only for that purpose unless approval is given by the individual.
(i) In the event of litigation, the court may subpoena the file.
(d) In the event copies are forwarded to other than the individual, a document indicating to whom the copies were sent shall be maintained in the file.
(i) Copies of the Notice of Violation pertaining to a complaint must be sent to the employee or employee representative if the inspection was generated by a formal employee complaint and the issues of the complaint were found to be violations.
(ii) The original Notice of Violation must be posted at the site of violation in accordance with Rules of the Department of Workforce Services, OSHA Chapter 4, Practice and Procedure: Recording, Reporting and Posting Requirements, for the purpose of employee notification. The Proposed Penalty, if applicable, need not be posted.
(iii) The copy of the Notice of Violation maintained on file will be used as a source of statistical data. Such data shall be accessible to the U.S. Department of Labor. Individuals shall not be identified on these reports.
(e) The Department shall respond to requests for access to a record within a reasonable time period, not to exceed thirty (30) calendar days, specifying whether access will be granted and the time, place, and circumstances of access; or, if access cannot be accomplished and the reason why. The person requesting access may be accompanied by another person of their choosing or may be represented by another person with the requestor’s written authorization. Access will be provided at the requestor’s expense and at the cost provided in Section 3 of these rules.
(f) The Department shall allow an individual to physically handle all of the contents of a file that pertains to them, subject to the supervision of a Department employee and in a manner consistent with these rules. The individual shall not have access to information that would reveal the identity of any informant concerning the investigation or any inter-agency or intra-agency memorandums or letters which would not be available by law to a private party in litigation with the agency.
(g) Individuals have the right to receive copies of such records at their own expense at the rate set by the Department to cover the cost of copying and compiling the requested information. All requests are subject to a minimum of one (1) hour for research.
(h) The Department may request appropriate identification of the inquirer to be presented at the time of access.
Repeal (2020)
(a) Whenever there is doubt as to whether information should be transferred, opened or disseminated in any way, only the Administrator has the authority of decision.
(b) Any questions regarding the legality of any department function will be referred to the Administrator for course of action.