In May 2025, Mackenzie, chair of the House Workforce Protections subcommittee, held a hearing titled, “Reclaiming OSHA’s mission.” During the hearing, Mackenzie claimed that OSHA had engaged in what he claimed was regulatory overreach during the Biden administration and that OSHA had focused on things “that OSHA should not have been doing.” Mackenzie questioned OSHA’s work at the same time the Trump administration planned to shut down 11 OSHA area offices and started terminating the vast majority of workers at the National Institute For Occupational Safety And health (NIOSH), a research agency that was vital to OSHA’s work. During the hearing, former OSHA Deputy Assistant Secretary Jordan Barab testified that in fiscal year 2024, before Trump’s attacks on the agency, OSHA only had 1,800 inspectors, which meant there was one inspector for every 84,937 workers in the U.S. They said this meant it would take 185 years for OSHA to inspect every workplace in the country once.
One of the things Mackenzie highlighted as overreach was OSHA’s expansion of its Severe Violator Enforcement Program, which sought to hold companies accountable for willfully or repeatedly violating worker safety standards. Another was the expansion of OSHA’S instance by instance policy, which was designed to hold employers that continue to fail to address worker safety hazards accountable. Another was OSHA’s proposed heat standard, which sought to require that employers provide water and rest breaks for their employees when temperatures surpassed certain levels, like 80 and 90 degrees. Mackenzie claimed the rule was “unworkable” and echoed industry talking points that it represented a “one size fits all” approach.
However, one of the things Mackenzie championed as something OSHA should focus on was creating a federal tree care standard. A witness Mackenzie called to testify was the president of Arborist Enterprises in Lancaster, PA who testified on behalf of the Tree Care Industry Association. Then in June 2025, a little more than one month after Mackenzie’s hearing, the Tree Care Industry Association’s PAC donated $1,000 to Mackenzie’s congressional campaign.
PRESS RELEASE: "Mackenzie Holds Hearing On Reclaiming OSHA's Mission" [Press Release – U.S. House Committee on Education and Workforce, 5/15/25]
Mackenzie: “However, In Recent Years, We've Seen A Regulatory Approach That In Many Cases May Have Gone Beyond OSHA's Statutory Authority Under The Occupational Safety And Health Act.” According to a U.S. House Education and Workforce subcommittee hearing chaired by Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, "MACKENZIE: OSHA enforcement efforts include monetary and even criminal penalties, all with the goal of protecting workers. That mission is critically important. However, in recent years, we've seen a regulatory approach that in many cases may have gone beyond OSHA's statutory authority under the Occupational Safety and Health Act. While these actions may have been well-intentioned, they often created confusion or imposed overly broad mandates that didn't meet the realities of the industries affected, especially for small businesses." [Hearing – U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce, Subcommittee on Workforce Protections, 5/15/25] (video)
HEADLINE: "Trump Guts Agency Critical To Worker Safety As Temperatures Rise" [Inside Climate News, 4/11/25]
The Trump Administration Planned To Close 11 Area OSHA Offices. According to Inside Climate News, "And now the administration plans to close 11 area offices of the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration, or OSHA, which issues regulations to protect workers from hazardous conditions like extreme heat. And at the beginning of the month, it started terminating the vast majority of workers at an obscure research agency that is vital to OSHA’s work: the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, or NIOSH." [Inside Climate News, 4/11/25]
April 2025: The Trump Administration Started Terminating The Vast Majority Of Workers At The National Institute For Occupational Safety And Health (NIOSH), A Research Agency That Was Vital To OSHA’s Work. According to Inside Climate News, "And at the beginning of the month, it started terminating the vast majority of workers at an obscure research agency that is vital to OSHA’s work: the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, or NIOSH. Roughly 1,300 employees work for NIOSH, long housed within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC. Earlier this month, at least two-thirds of the staff received ‘reduction in force’ notices, alerting them that their jobs would be terminated." [Inside Climate News, 4/11/25]
NIOSH Was The Only Federal Agency That Was Mandated To Produce Research And Recommendations On Preventing Work-Related Injury, Illness, And Death. According to Inside Climate News, "NIOSH is the only federal agency mandated to produce research and recommendations to prevent work-related injury, illness and death. The agency provides the scientific basis for all the health and safety regulations that protect America’s tens of millions of workers. It also issues guidelines for hazards that lack OSHA standards, including exposure to extreme heat." [Inside Climate News, 4/11/25]
HEADLINE: "Trump’s Safety Research Cuts Heighten Workplace Risks, Federal Workers Warn" [The Guardian, 5/27/25]
Former OSHA Deputy Assistant Secretary Jordan Barab Said In FY 2024 OSHA Only Had 1,800 Inspectors, Which Was One For Every 84,937 Workers. According to Inside Climate News, "Barab told the committee he objected to the title of the hearing. ‘OSHA’s problem is not overreach, but rather underreach,’ he said. It’s a tiny agency with a minuscule budget and an enormous mission to ensure the work safety of 11.8 million workplaces covering 161 million workers, Barab said. In fiscal year 2024, OSHA had only 1,800 inspectors, one for every 84,937 workers, Barab told the committee. ‘If OSHA was to inspect every workplace in the country, just once, it would take 185 years, almost two centuries, and it only promises to get worse.’ OSHA has lost 10 percent of its staff due to early retirements offered by the administration, and there is very little likelihood that any of these positions will be refilled, Barab said. ‘This is hardly a recipe for reclaiming OSHA’s mission.’" [Inside Climate News, 5/15/25]
Former OSHA Deputy Assistant Secretary Jordan Barab Said It Would Have Taken OSHA 185 Years To Inspect Every Workplace In The Country Once With Its FY 2024 Workforce. According to Inside Climate News, "Barab told the committee he objected to the title of the hearing. ‘OSHA’s problem is not overreach, but rather underreach,’ he said. It’s a tiny agency with a minuscule budget and an enormous mission to ensure the work safety of 11.8 million workplaces covering 161 million workers, Barab said. In fiscal year 2024, OSHA had only 1,800 inspectors, one for every 84,937 workers, Barab told the committee. ‘If OSHA was to inspect every workplace in the country, just once, it would take 185 years, almost two centuries, and it only promises to get worse.’ OSHA has lost 10 percent of its staff due to early retirements offered by the administration, and there is very little likelihood that any of these positions will be refilled, Barab said. ‘This is hardly a recipe for reclaiming OSHA’s mission.’" [Inside Climate News, 5/15/25]
Mackenzie Criticized The Expansion Of The Severe Violator Enforcement Program, Claiming It “May Reflect A View Of Employers As Adversaries Rather Than Partners In Workplace Safety." According to a U.S. House Education and Workforce subcommittee hearing chaired by Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, "MACKENZIE: And the proposed heat standard, while addressing a real concern, takes a one size fits all approach that fails to account for a wide range of conditions and different industries and regions. We've also seen an expansion of enforcement tools such as the Severe Violator Enforcement Program and the instance by instance citation policy that may reflect a view of employers as adversaries rather than partners in workplace safety." [Hearing – U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce, Subcommittee on Workforce Protections, 5/15/25] (video)
Mackenzie Criticized The Expansion Of OSHA’s Instance By Instance Citation Policy, Claiming It “May Reflect A View Of Employers As Adversaries Rather Than Partners In Workplace Safety." According to a U.S. House Education and Workforce subcommittee hearing chaired by Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, "MACKENZIE: And the proposed heat standard, while addressing a real concern, takes a one size fits all approach that fails to account for a wide range of conditions and different industries and regions. We've also seen an expansion of enforcement tools such as the Severe Violator Enforcement Program and the instance by instance citation policy that may reflect a view of employers as adversaries rather than partners in workplace safety." [Hearing – U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce, Subcommittee on Workforce Protections, 5/15/25] (video)
HEADLINE: "Republicans Attack Rules Designed To Keep Workers Safe From Heat" [Inside Climate News, 5/15/25]
Mackenzie Claimed The OSHA Heat Standard Proposed By The Biden Administration Was “Unworkable” Across The Country. According to a U.S. House Education and Workforce subcommittee hearing chaired by Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, "RYAN MACKENZIE: Thank you. Under Committee Rule 9, we will now ask questions of the witnesses for five minutes and I'll recognize myself first. First, Mr. Parson. If the Department of Labor were to move forward with establishing a heat standard, your written testimony calls for a performance oriented approach to mitigate heat related hazards. What are the benefits of that kind of approach versus the approach that the Biden administration proposed under their heat standard? JAKE PARSON: Yeah, thank you for the question. It -- it really provides flexibility. A performance oriented approach would tie specific standards to specific areas and help industry craft a solution that makes sense for where they are. And so an overall standard sets it up really to fail and the record keeping associated with it and the time taken to administer it would almost be impossible. So it's -- it's not a novel idea necessarily for -- for OSHA. Most employers take great care and looking after heat of heat exhaustion of their employees as it is. And so a real local performance based approach makes a lot more sense. RYAN MACKENZIE: Well, I appreciate that. Again, I think we share the desire for worker safety and having standards in place to protect against heat related hazards. But again, I think you correctly identified the lack of flexibility, the overzealous paperwork requirements that kind of bog down this proposal and ultimately make it unworkable across the country." [Hearing – U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce, Subcommittee on Workforce Protections, 5/15/25] (video)
Mackenzie Claimed The Proposed OSHA Heat Standard Was A One Size Fits All Approach That “Fails To Account For A Wide Range Of Conditions And Different Industries And Regions.” According to a U.S. House Education and Workforce subcommittee hearing chaired by Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, "MACKENZIE: And the proposed heat standard, while addressing a real concern, takes a one size fits all approach that fails to account for a wide range of conditions and different industries and regions. We've also seen an expansion of enforcement tools such as the Severe Violator Enforcement Program and the instance by instance citation policy that may reflect a view of employers as adversaries rather than partners in workplace safety." [Hearing – U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce, Subcommittee on Workforce Protections, 5/15/25] (video)
Natural Resources Defense Council Heat And Climate Expert Juanita Constable Said The Heat Rule Was Intentionally Designed To Give Employers Compliance Flexibility. According to Inside Climate News, "OSHA’s draft heat standard is intentionally designed to give employers compliance flexibility, Juanita Constible, a heat and climate expert with the Natural Resources Defense Council, told Inside Climate News. ‘In other words, the standard is the equivalent of telling employers to put on some pants, not to put on pants of a specific size, fabric, color and style,’ Constible said. ‘And employers need to have a written plan for how they’re going to provide those protections, rather than simply hoping for the best.’" [Inside Climate News, 5/15/25]
Mackenzie Claimed The Tree Care Industry Had Petitioned For The Creation Of A Federal Standard For Two Decades And They Relied On A Patchwork Of Standards. According to a U.S. House Education and Workforce subcommittee hearing chaired by Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, "MACKENZIE: That's a misguided perspective. Obviously, small businesses succeed when their employers succeed and most of their employers take workplace safety very seriously. OSHA's mission is too important to be undermined by overreach as the nature of work continues to change. Broad based regulatory efforts can unintentionally create more problems than they solve. That's why today's conversation is so critically important. For instance, this tree care industry has petitioned for the creation of a federal tree care standard for nearly two decades. This is one of the most dangerous industries in the nation, but workers currently rely on a patchwork of standards that do not adequately address the unique challenges of the work being performed." [Hearing – U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce, Subcommittee on Workforce Protections, 5/15/25] (video)
6/20/25: Mackenzie Accepted $1,000 From The Tree Care Industry Association’s PAC.
| RECIPIENT | CONTRIBUTOR | CITY/STATE | DATE | AMOUNT |
| Mackenzie for Congress Committee | Tree Care Industry Association, Inc., PAC (The Voice for Trees PAC) | Manchester, NH | 6/20/25 | $1,000 |
[FEC, Mackenzie for Congress Committee, Receipts, Viewed 8/12/25]