Most of what you said is correct. The standards put out by NFPA and IEEE are consensus safety standards. In most cases (NEC for instance is an exception), you are free to implement or IGNORE the recommendation of the standard. It is as 70E states, simply a guide written by a peer reviewed consensus process.
It is not a LAW or regulation (with some exceptions such as NEC). In a court room it can be used as a written version of an "expert opinion" to support a technical claim just as case law is used as an "expert opinion" in support of a legal claim.
It is also contractual. For instance, I require contractors to construct equipment to meet the NEC standard. Controls should be designed using NFPA 79. Burners follow NFPA 85 or 86 depending on the type of equipment. Even if I don't specify NFPA 85/86, my company's insurance carrier will require it. Simply referencing the standard is far easier than writing your own detailed specification for a contract.
An example of where I deviate is that for instance, NETA MTS in particular is extremely self serving to its membership of electrical testing companies. I specify NETA ATS (acceptance testing standard) but there are dozens of clauses that I do not use. For instance NETA ATS would have you unwire and perform a resistance test on every single wire including control wiring before energizing equipment. Another example is that NETA ATS/MTS specifies using infrared, milliohm, or torque wrenches for testing joint tightness. Retorquing the same fastener always leads to lower values even if properly torqued within days to hours. Milliohm tests, though popular in some circles, do not have anything resembling a standard.
MattB wrote:
1. Who writes the NFPA standards?
2. Who writes the NFPA “Informational Notes”?
3. Who writes the NFPA Annexes?
4. Who writes the NFPA Handbook?
As explained in the introductory material, the NFPA Committees write this stuff. If you look in the introductory material, the names and backgrounds of every committee member are listed. During each review cycle, NFPA members can submit proposals for changes to the standard. The Committee reviews these (there are hundreds) and accepts or denies them. The results of this process are published.
This is the case in MOST cases. I believe that the NEC Handbook is written by an outside entity.
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5. What is the technical and legal significance and weight of each of these categories (standards, informational notes, annexes and handbooks)?
Just as with anything else. The standard has the highest weight. It has regulatory weight for some standards such as NFPA 70 (NEC) or the life safety code (101) which are adopted as electrical and fire codes in most states. Others are considered an authoritative opinion on a subject from a legal perspective because they are recognized as a peer reviewed process as a consensus safety standard. The notes, annexes, and handbook are there purely as supportive or explanatory material. They have the same weight as for instance the Congressional Record or the Federalist Papers in terms of gleaning the "intent" out of the standard when it is not clear. For instance in Article 200, there is a laundry list of preventative maintenance requirements. The section refers to both NFPA 70B and NETA MTS for guidance on implementation. It is clear that this is guidance or information. It does not require you to follow it. In a similar way, NEC refers to 70E as guidance on methods for dealing with arc flash hazards. That certainly in some ways "validates" NFPA 70E as a consensus safety standard over a competing standard, but doesn't make 70E "law" in and of itself.
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6. Are each of these reviewed by the same committees?
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No.
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7. How do I get on these committees?
By vote at the annual meetings.
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8. Which of these committees are open to the public?
None. Members only. But membership is open to almost anyone that pays dues.
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9. Does OHSA only reference the standard in their litigation or does it reference the notes, annexes and handbooks as well?
Haven't seen an actual citation yet. MSHA definitely cites a standard and may reference the a consensus safety standard (but not the supporting material) in their citation.
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10. Should I ask more than ten questions? How many questions can one person ask in one post?
I would strongly suggest you stick to one TOPIC even if it is a multipart question. So what you covered above seems to pertain to one topic.