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APPENDIX B TO §1910.1020 - AVAILABILITY OF NIOSH REGISTRY OF TOXIC EFFECTS OF
CHEMICAL SUBSTANCES (RTECS)(NON-MANDATORY)

The final regulation, 29 CFR 1910.1020, applies to all employee exposure and medical records,
and analyses thereof, of employees exposed to toxic substances or harmful physical agents
(paragraph (b)(2)). The term toxic substance or harmful physical agent is defined by paragraph
(c)(13) to encompass chemical substances, biological agents, and physical stresses for which there
is evidence of harmful health effects. The regulation uses the latest printed edition of the
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Registry of Toxic Effects of
Chemical Substances (RTECS) as one of the chief sources of information as to whether evidence
of harmful health effects exists. If a substance is listed in the latest printed RTECS, the regulation
applies to exposure and medical records (and analyses of these records) relevant to employees
exposed to the substance.

It is appropriate to note that the final regulation does not require that employers purchase a copy
of RTECS, and many employers need not consult RTECS to ascertain whether their employee
exposure or medical records are subject to the rule. Employers who do not currently have the
latest printed edition of the NIOSH RTECS, however, may desire to obtain a copy. The RTECS is
issued in an annual printed edition as mandated by section 20(a)(6) of the Occupational Safety
and Health Act (29 U.S.C. 669(a)(6)).

The introduction to the 1980 printed edition describes the RTECS as follows:
“The 1980 edition of the Registry of Toxic Effects of Chemical Substances, formerly known as the
Toxic Substances list, is the ninth revision prepared in compliance with the requirements of
Section 20(a)(6) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (Public Law 91-596). The
original list was completed on June 28, 1971, and has been updated annually in book format.
Beginning in October 1977, quarterly revisions have been provided in microfiche. This edition of
the Registry contains 168,096 listings of chemical substances; 45,156 are names of different
chemicals with their associated toxicity data and 122,940 are synonyms. This edition includes
approximately 5,900 new chemical compounds that did not appear in the 1979 Registry.(p. xi)

“The Registry’s purposes are many, and it serves a variety of users. It is a single source document
for basic toxicity information and for other data, such as chemical identifiers and information
necessary for the preparation of safety directives and hazard evaluations for chemical
substances. The various types of toxic effects linked to literature citations provide researchers and
occupational health scientists with an introduction to the toxicological literature, making their
own review of the toxic hazards of a given substance easier. By presenting data on the lowest
reported doses that produce effects by several routes of entry in various species, the Registry
furnishes valuable information to those responsible for preparing safety data sheets for chemical
substances in the workplace. Chemical and production engineers can use the Registry to identify
the hazards which may be associated with chemical intermediates in the development of final
products, and thus can more readily select substitutes or alternate processes which may be less
hazardous. Some organizations, including health agencies and chemical companies, have
included the NIOSH Registry accession numbers with the listing of chemicals in their files to
reference toxicity information associated with those chemicals. By including foreign language
chemical names, a start has been made toward providing rapid identification of substances

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