From this page you will find links to OSHA-related resources designed to help you unravel the massive amount of government codes that make up both the federal and state levels of OSHA.
Remember, only specific sections of the federal code has been used to write exam questions. OSHA covers every trade and every industry. For example, if you're doing plumbing work, why would you need to know about explosives safety?
If you landed on this page after seeing an (a) and (b) option for buying a book containing the federal OSHA code sections (29 CFR 1926), we hope that you will take the time to read our recommendations and experiences with providers we have delt with in the past.
Keep in mind that OSHA regulations apply to a wide range of industries, contractors and business functions. On our site, we prefer to stay focused on the codes that only apply to the construction industry.
There are three (3) sources of printed codes that we show on our web pages and are listed in PSI bulletins:
Reference #1 is in the process of being removed from our web pages. It's on older pages because it was shown as an option in the majority of PSI exam bulletins. After doing searches on the GPO website, we were unable to easily find printed copies of the code that were construction industry specific. Their site is set up mainly for attorneys and bureaucrats writing new codes or doing research for court cases. In other words, not contractor friendly.
Reference #2 above is critical in the sense that in the table of contents, you will find the specific sub-sections of the federal code that PSI says they will use to write exam questions, but, they will not give the student a call-out in the exam content table shown in the bulletin for the code sub-section that is specific to their exam. It's left up to the student to figure out which subsections apply. We provide two versions (PSI and MANCOMM) of a guide we've created as tool to help students with that process.
Some states, like North Carolina, have their own program set up for OSHA code variations, meaning that they use the federal codes and modify them to their liking.
Link to North Carolina code books for OSHA:
If you’re taking an exam for North Carolina licensing, you must use their version of the OSHA codes.
If you're taking an exam administered by PSI, the bulletin usually lists sources 1 and 2 above. Sometimes they also say that you can use any online book seller. In most cases, this book can be taken into an exam location. Read your exam bulletin CAREFULLY.
In some newer PSI bulletins, a more up-to-date version of the federal codes published by MANCOMM.com is allowed. A direct link to the book purchase page is shown below. The MANCOMM.com version is preferred because it is kept up-to-date where the PSI version is at least ten years old.
The MANCOMM.com version can be used as a daily “on-site” reference. The PSI version can only be used for taking a PSI exam. If you order the PSI version from their web site, you'll find that you'll get overcharged for shipping and delivery is slow. You should allow at least three weeks delivery time. This makes no sense to us since a USPS priority mailing only takes three days.
MANCOMM.com offers three versions of bindings; three-ring (loose leaf), spiral (lay flat) and paperback. Note that if the OSHA printed code (CFR 1926) is allowed in an exam, any three-ring “loose leaf” copies may be confiscated.
Updated: 8/18/24
