madam speaker , i yield myself such time as i may consume . 
h.r. 739 specifically creates a legal loophole for bypassing the obligation on an employer 's part to meet a 15-day deadline for contesting osha citations . 
as such , the bill promotes increased litigation . 
given that the osha commission already has the authority to review any missed deadlines on a case-by-case basis , such litigation is completely unnecessary . 
that bears repeating . 
at present , the osha commission relies on its longstanding practice of reviewing , on a case-by-case basis , any missed deadlines . 
so what is the rationale for this bill ? 
h.r. 739 is not only superfluous and offers nothing productive that is positive and new ; it also negatively serves to delay the timely correction of workplace safety violations and hazards . 
the 15-business-day timeline for an employer 's response was set to encourage speedy removal of work site hazards as well as the expeditious handling of cases . 
it establishes a reasonable time frame for protecting all the parties . 
it protects the employers as well as the workers . 
by contrast , h.r. 739 will needlessly place some workers at greater risk of on-the-job injuries or fatalities . 
let me give you a few concrete examples to illustrate the risk . 
in march 2003 , osha began an inspection of strack , incorporated , a pipeline company in atlanta , georgia . 
osha inspectors had seen strack employees working in a trench that was up to 12 feet deep . 
yet a trench box , designed to protect workers , had been left on higher ground and more than 100 feet away from the site . 
in may 2003 , osha issued strack , inc . 
a willful citation with a proposed fine of $ 44 , 000 for failure to use a trench box . 
fortunately in this case , the hazards were corrected before anyone was killed . 
as an osha inspector put it , cave-ins occur quickly and without warning ; and then it is too late to protect workers . 
when it comes to trenching , failure to correct hazards in the 15-day required period can have fatal consequences . 
as jeffrey walters of cincinnati , ohio , testified before me last year , his only son patrick died in a cave-in on june 14 , 2002 , only weeks after osha cited the firm patrick worked for , which is moeves plumbing , for willful trenching violations . 
in fact , moeves plumbing had been inspected by osha 13 times before patrick 's death . 
moreover , another worker had died while digging trenches for the same plumbing company several years before patrick died in the same way . 
all of this is to say that speedy correction of work site hazards cited by osha can often mean the difference between life and death . 
thus , when osha finds a safety violation , it clearly merits immediate attention . 
i urge my colleagues to vote `` no '' on this bill again . 
madam speaker , i yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from new jersey ( mr. andrews ) xz4000080 . 
