The permanent rule isn’t coming any time soon. OSHA renewed its Heat-Related Hazards National Emphasis Program on April 10, 2026, two days after the previous NEP expired. The updated directive runs five years. The 2024 proposed permanent standard, by contrast, has not moved since the comment window closed.
For construction employers, the practical answer is: nothing actually changes on the jobsite, but the enforcement posture stays intact. Heat-related inspections — both programmed and complaint-driven — will continue under the NEP, and the same fact patterns that triggered citations in 2024 and 2025 will keep triggering them now.
What’s in limbo
The proposed federal rule Heat Injury and Illness Prevention in Outdoor and Indoor Work Settings would require written heat plans, mandatory acclimatization, and two-tier triggers at 80°F and 90°F heat index. It applies to general industry, construction, agriculture, and maritime.
The comment period closed in early 2025. Industry groups split sharply. ABC and AGC raised concerns about workability around variable jobsite conditions and the cost of mandatory paid rest breaks, while labor and public health groups pushed for a stricter trigger. The text hasn’t moved publicly since.
What contractors should do now
If your firm built out a heat plan in 2024 anticipating the rule, keep it. OSHA’s NEP inspectors use the General Duty Clause to cite heat hazards, and a written plan is the cleanest defense. The basics:
- Written program identifying responsible person, training, water/rest/shade, and emergency response
- Acclimatization schedule for new hires and returning workers (typical: 20% on day one, ramp over 14 days)
- Heat index monitoring with documented action triggers
- Documented training in workers’ primary language
The exposure math hasn’t changed. Roofing, drywall, plastering, and concrete crews are still the hottest jobs on the jobsite, and immigrant workers — who make up 34% of all construction labor and well over 60% in those trades — bear the bulk of heat stress risk.
Bottom line
A renewed NEP gives OSHA cover to keep inspecting without a final rule. The political risk to the permanent standard means contractors should plan for “NEP plus state action” — California, Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Maryland, Minnesota, and Nevada already have their own heat rules — rather than waiting for a federal endpoint.
Source: Ogletree Deakins, “OSHA’s Heat Program to Expire While Heat Standard Stalls”