Chapter 3.3. Occupational Safety and Health Appeals Board

Article 4. Hearing

§376.3. Official Notice.

(a) In reaching a decision, official notice may be taken, either before or after submission of the proceeding for decision, of any generally accepted technical or scientific matter within the field of occupational safety and health, and determinations, rulings, orders, findings and decisions, required by law to be made by the Division, the Appeals Board or the Standards Board.

(b) The Appeals Board shall take official notice of those matters set forth in Section 451 of the Evidence Code, including but not limited to:

(1) The decisional, constitutional, and public statutory law of this State and of the United States and the provisions of any county or city charter;

(2) The contents of each occupational safety and health standard and order or notice of the repeal of such standard and order;

(3) The true signification of all English words and phrases and of all legal expressions;

(4) Facts and propositions of generalized knowledge that are so universally known that they cannot reasonably be the subject of dispute.

(c) The Appeals Board may take official notice of those matters set forth in Section 452 of the Evidence Code, including but not limited to:

(1) Regulations and legislative enactments issued by or under the authority of the United States or any public entity in the United States;

(2) Official acts of the legislative, executive, and judicial departments of the United States and of any state of the United States;

(3) Records of any court of this state or any court of record of the United States or of any state of the United States;

(4) Facts and propositions that are of such common knowledge within California that they cannot reasonably be the subject of dispute;

(5) Facts and propositions that are not reasonably subject to dispute and are capable of immediate and accurate determination by resort to sources of reasonably indisputable accuracy.

(d) Each party shall give notice of a request to take official notice and be given reasonable opportunity on request to present information relevant to

(1) the propriety of taking official notice, and

(2) the tenor of the matter to be noticed.

NOTE: Authority cited: Sections 148.7, 149.5 and 6603(a), Labor Code. Reference: Sections 451, 452 and 455, Evidence Code; Section 11515, Government Code; Sections 148.7, 149.5 and 6603(a), Labor Code.