H.R. 4443 — Asunción Valdivia Heat Illness, Injury, and Fatality Prevention Act of 2025

This section requires each employer to (1) furnish employment and a place of employment free from conditions that may reasonably be anticipated to cause death or serious physical harm from heat stress; and (2) comply with standards, regulations, rules, and orders promulgated under this Act.

This section requires the Secretary of Labor to promulgate an occupational safety and health standard establishing the maximum feasible program of protective measures to prevent employee heat-related illness and injury from heat stress, based on the best available evidence and prioritizing worker protection. The standard may include (1) engineering controls (e.g., ventilation, insulation, climate control); (2) administrative controls (e.g., work schedules); (3) employer-provided personal protective equipment (e.g., cooling vests); (4) health protocols (e.g., symptom monitoring, emergency response, medical removal); (5) training for employees and supervisors on heat illness recognition and response; (6) employer heat illness prevention plans developed with employee participation; and (7) standard measures such as access to toilets, drinking water, and eye-washing facilities. For employers unable to reduce heat stress below hazardous levels using engineering controls or personal protective equipment, the standard must require core practices including employer-provided cool potable water, periodic paid rest breaks, access to shade or cool-down areas, acclimatization policies, and related implementation measures. The Secretary may revise the standard based on evolving evidence or technology, presume feasibility of equivalent state-plan requirements in effect for at least one year, cluster employers by relevant categories (e.g., industry, heat sources), and ensure employee pay protection during required activities such as rest breaks or training. (As background, under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, the Secretary promulgates standards reasonably necessary to protect employee health and safety, which are enforceable against most private-sector employers affecting commerce.)

This section establishes implementation and enforcement mechanisms for worker heat protection standards under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSH Act) framework. Specifically, it (1) provides that such standards and any rules, regulations, or orders promulgated under the Act have the same legal effect as OSH Act standards, rules, regulations, or orders; (2) sets a four-year statute of limitations for citations of violations and directs the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission to grant substantial deference to the Secretary of Labor's reasonable interpretations; (3) authorizes the Secretaries of Labor and Health and Human Services to prescribe recordkeeping and reporting regulations with the same authority as under OSH Act Section 8 (29 U.S.C. 657), including consolidation into existing requirements while treating violations as distinct; and (4) applies OSH Act whistleblower protections (Section 11(c), 29 U.S.C. 660(c)), allowing employees to file complaints within 180 days and pursue district court actions (with reasonable attorney's fees and costs) if the Secretary does not notify them of a determination within 90 days or declines to act.

This section establishes general provisions that (1) include a severability clause preserving the remainder of the Act and its application to other persons or circumstances if any provision or application is held invalid and (2) authorize appropriations of such sums as necessary for each fiscal year to carry out the Act.

This section directs the Secretary of Labor to update the National Agricultural Workers Survey (NAWS)—an ongoing Department of Labor survey of crop farmworkers' demographics, employment, and health—with questions, as determined by the Secretary, to identify the incidence and prevalence of heat-related illness and injury and to assess the impact of heat safety standards and enforcement under this Act. Within one year of enactment, the Secretary must submit a report on implementation to the House Committee on Education and Workforce and the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

This section provides definitions for nine terms used in the Act, incorporating the meanings of "employee" and "employer" from the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 652(6) and (5), respectively), "Commission" as the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission, "Institute" as the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, and "Secretary" as the Secretary of Labor. It further defines (1) "heat stress" as the load of heat a person experiences due to sources of heat or heat retention (including metabolic heat, environmental factors, and clothing or personal protective equipment) or the presence of heat in a work setting; (2) "heat-related illness" as a material impairment of health due to heat stress; (3) "heat-related injury" as an injury caused by exposure to heat or sources of heat or resulting from heat stress; and (4) "worker heat protection standard" as a standard regulating employee exposure to heat stress and preventing heat-related illness and injury through conditions or practices reasonably necessary for safe and healthful employment.