WASHINGTON, Aug. 1, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Today, the National Safety Council issued the following statement in response to the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee’s passage of legislation that keeps funding steady for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). The Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, which passed out of committee by a vote of 26-3, maintains FY2026 funding for OSHA at the FY2025 level and slightly increases FY2026 funding for NIOSH over the FY2025 level. The bill now moves to the full Senate.
“The National Safety Council applauds the Senate Appropriations Committee on its decisive vote to keep funding steady for OSHA and NIOSH,” said Lorraine Martin, CEO of NSC. “We urge the House and full Senate to approve these funding levels, which are necessary to keep America safe at work.”
The committee’s report language accompanying the bill shines a spotlight on several safety issues, including opioid use in the workplace and heat-related injuries. In expressing concern over the prevalence of opioid use in the workplace, the committee cited NSC data showing that while 75% of employers reported seeing opioid use impact their workplace, only 17% reported being well-prepared to address it. The committee encourages the Secretary of Labor to issue guidance to employers on providing opioid overdose reversal medication and training in the workplace. Learn more about workplace unintentional overdose deaths here: injuryfacts.nsc.org/work/safety-topics/overdose-deaths/
Uncertainty over NIOSH’s budget in particular has swirled for months, with an 80% budget cut proposed in June by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In the report, the committee recognized the vital role NIOSH plays in protecting American workers as “the only Federal agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of work-related illness and injury” and directed the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention “to ensure work continues in NIOSH research centers nationwide.”
About the National Safety Council
The National Safety Council is America’s leading nonprofit safety advocate – and has been for over 110 years. As a mission-based organization, we work to eliminate the leading causes of preventable death and injury, focusing our efforts on the workplace and roadways. We create a culture of safety to not only keep people safer at work, but also beyond the workplace so they can live their fullest lives.
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SOURCE National Safety Council
