# employee exposure records — How long federal regulations require records to be kept: retention periods, what starts the clock, and who they bind

For employee exposure records, regulation is 29 CFR 1910.1020; regulator / programme is OSHA; retention period is at least thirty (30) years; who it binds is each employer; exceptions and notes is background data to environmental monitoring need only be retained for one (1) year where summary data are kept 30 years; material safety data sheets need not be retained where a record of substance identity, where and when used, is kept 30 years, recorded from its source on 2026-08-11.

- **Regulation:** 29 CFR 1910.1020 _(verified: appears in the quote below)_
- **Regulator / programme:** OSHA _(our reading, not quoted from the source)_
- **Record type:** employee exposure records _(verified: appears in the quote below)_
- **Retention period:** at least thirty (30) years _(verified: appears in the quote below)_
- **Who it binds:** each employer
- **Exceptions and notes:** background data to environmental monitoring need only be retained for one (1) year where summary data are kept 30 years; material safety data sheets need not be retained where a record of substance identity, where and when used, is kept 30 years

## What the source says

> Each employee exposure record shall be preserved and maintained for at least thirty (30) years, except that:

## Source

- https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-29/subtitle-B/chapter-XVII/part-1910/subpart-Z/section-1910.1020

Last verified: 2026-08-11. Review by: 2027-08-11.
Part of [How long federal regulations require records to be kept: retention periods, what starts the clock, and who they bind](https://referencesource.org/record-retention-periods-federal/).