California Board Rejects Changes to Refinery Worker Safety Rules -- Occupational Health & Safety

**Alt text:** Two refinery workers in hard hats and high-vis gear look at a plant facility. One holds a tablet, and the other waves towards the complex.

California Board Rejects Changes to Refinery Worker Safety Rules

Existing requirements for worker involvement and reviews of refinery hazards will remain in place.

By Danielle Naidu
Sep 29, 2026

Refinery workers in California will remain covered by the state's existing process safety management requirements after the California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board rejected proposed revisions to the rules.

The board voted unanimously against changes to Title 8, Section 5189.1, which governs process safety management at petroleum refineries. The proposed revisions followed litigation by the Western States Petroleum Association and a settlement involving the association and the California attorney general's office.

The decision leaves in place requirements adopted in 2017, including provisions covering worker participation, damage mechanism reviews and hierarchy of hazard control analyses.

Those requirements followed a 2012 fire at Chevron's Richmond refinery that sent a large smoke cloud across the San Francisco Bay Area. The United Steelworkers said refinery workers, residents, the BlueGreen Alliance and other organizations subsequently advocated for stronger state safety regulations.

The union supported the board's decision, arguing that the proposed changes would have reduced worker participation in refinery safety processes.

About the Author

Danielle Naidu is assistant editor for Security Today, Campus Security Today, Occupational Health & Safety and Environmental Protection Online.

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