OSHA: Federal agency violated safety policies at Texas plant

AMARILLO, Texas (AP) — Federal work-safety investigators say another federal agency violated safe handling policies at a helium plant in the Texas Panhandle. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration said in a statement Thursday that it has issued 21 notices of unsafe working conditions to the U.S. Bureau of Land Management. The citations involved the handling of chemical materials at the bureau’s Cliffside Helium Enrichment Unit in Amarillo. OHSA says it is the first time it has invoked its egregious violation policy in citing unsafe conditions at a federal facility. Monetary penalties are not assessed to federal agencies for failing to comply with OSHA standards.