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OSHA crane operator: construction crane rules

Practice questions and study guides on OSHA's construction crane and derrick rules: power line safety, inspections, operation and work area control, signals, signal person qualifications, operator certification and evaluation, and hoisting personnel.

Fact-checked against official sources · Last checked

What these pages cover, and what they don't

The real test or credential

Under 29 CFR 1926.1427 the employer must ensure each operator is trained, certified or licensed, and evaluated. Certification comes from an accredited crane operator testing organization or an audited employer program, or a State or local license where one applies.

Our pages

These pages cover nine sections of 29 CFR 1926 Subpart CC. Certification bodies give written and practical tests with their own content, which we do not use.

Checked against these official pages on November 6, 2026. Practice here does not replace the official training or test.

Scope and sources

Everything here comes from the current eCFR text of nine sections of 29 CFR 1926 Subpart CC (1926.1401, 1408, 1412, 1417, 1419, 1424, 1427, 1428 and 1431). Other sections of Subpart CC, such as assembly, ground conditions and rigger qualification, are not covered yet. Under 1926.1427, an operator is licensed by a State or local government where that applies, or otherwise certified by an accredited crane operator testing organization or through an audited employer program. Certification exams use their own content, which we do not use. These pages help you study the rule; they are not a course. Your State may run its own OSHA-approved plan with its own rules, so check them too. goraedu is not a crane operator testing organization, does not certify or qualify operators, and our questions are not a certification exam. Not affiliated with or endorsed by OSHA, the U.S. Department of Labor or any certification body.

Key rules, in the regulation's words

  • Before operating near power lines, the employer must determine whether the equipment, load line or load could get closer than 20 feet to a line at maximum working radius, and if so use one of three options.

    “Determine if any part of the equipment, load line or load (including rigging and lifting accessories), if operated up to the equipment's maximum working radius in the work zone, could get closer than 20 feet to a power line. If so, the employer must meet the requirements in Option (1), Option (2), or Option (3) of this section, as follows:”
    29 CFR 1926.1408(a)(2)

  • Under Option (3), the utility owner/operator must provide the requested voltage information within two working days.

    “Where Option (3) of this section is used, the utility owner/operator of the power lines must provide the requested voltage information within two working days of the employer's request.”
    29 CFR 1926.1408(c)

Sources

goraedu is not a crane operator testing organization, does not certify or qualify operators, and our questions are not a certification exam. Not affiliated with or endorsed by OSHA, the U.S. Department of Labor or any certification body. Found an error? See our contact page.