I 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3697 

To honor the Nation’s fallen miners by requiring improved mine safety 

practices and compliance in order to prevent future mine accidents. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

DECEMBER 16, 2011 

Mrs. CAPITO introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the Committee on the Budget, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 

Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within 

the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To honor the Nation’s fallen miners by requiring improved 

mine safety practices and compliance in order to prevent 

future mine accidents. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Mine Safety Accountability and Improved Protection 

6 Act’’. 

7 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

8 this Act is as follows: 


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Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. References. 

TITLE I—ADDITIONAL INSPECTION AND INVESTIGATION 

AUTHORITY 

Sec. 101. Establishment of National Mine Safety Board for certain investigations. 

Sec. 102. Subpoena authority and miner rights during investigations. 

Sec. 103. Designation of miner representative. 

Sec. 104. Additional amendments relating to inspections and investigations. 

TITLE II—ENHANCED ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITY 

Sec. 201. Significant and substantial violations. 

Sec. 202. A pattern of recurring noncompliance or accidents. 

Sec. 203. Injunctive Authority. 

Sec. 204. Revocation of approval of plans. 

Sec. 205. Challenging decisions related to the approval of a coal or other mine 

plan. 

TITLE III—PENALTIES 

Sec. 301. Civil penalties. 

Sec. 302. Civil and criminal liability of officers, directors, and agents. 

Sec. 303. Criminal penalties. 

Sec. 304. Conference process for appealing penalties; delinquent payments and 

prejudgment interest. 

TITLE IV—WORKER RIGHTS AND PROTECTIONS 

Sec. 401. Protection from retaliation. 

Sec. 402. Protection from loss of pay. 

TITLE V—MODERNIZING HEALTH AND SAFETY STANDARDS 

Sec. 501. Pre-shift review of mine conditions. 

Sec. 502. Atmospheric monitoring systems. 

Sec. 503. Technology related to respirable dust. 

Sec. 504. Refresher training on miner rights and responsibilities. 

Sec. 505. Authority to mandate additional training. 

Sec. 506. Certification of personnel. 

TITLE VI—ADDITIONAL MINE SAFETY PROVISIONS 

Sec. 601. Definitions. 

Sec. 602. Assistance to States. 

Sec. 603. Amendments relating to eligibility for scholarship program. 

Sec. 604. Additional training of mine inspectors. 

Sec. 605. Report on staffing needs of the Mine Safety and Health Administration. 

Sec. 606. Budget neutrality; offset. 


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1 SEC. 2. REFERENCES. 

2 Wherever in this Act an amendment is expressed as 

3 an amendment to a section or other provision, the ref4 erence shall be considered to be made to a section or other 

5 provision of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 

6 1977 (30 U.S.C. 801 et seq.). 

7 TITLE I—ADDITIONAL INSPEC8 TION AND INVESTIGATION 

9 AUTHORITY 

10 SEC. 101. ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL MINE SAFETY 

11 BOARD FOR CERTAIN INVESTIGATIONS. 

12 Section 103(b) (30 U.S.C. 813(b)) is amended— 

13 (1) by striking ‘‘(b) For the purpose’’ and in14 serting the following: 

15 ‘‘(b) ACCIDENT INVESTIGATIONS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For the purpose’’; and 

17 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘(2) ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL MINE

19 SAFETY BOARD FOR CERTAIN ACCIDENT INVESTIGA20 TIONS.— 

21 ‘‘(A) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is estab22 lished an independent board to be known as the 

23 National Mine Safety Board (in this paragraph 

24 referred to as the ‘Board’) consisting of 5 mem25 bers, including a Chairperson, who shall be ap26 pointed by the President, by and with the adVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:05 Dec 23, 2011 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3697.IH H3697

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1 vice and consent of the Senate. Members of the 

2 Board shall be appointed on the basis of tech3 nical qualification, professional standing, and 

4 demonstrated knowledge of mine safety, acci5 dent reconstruction, safety engineering, and 

6 human factors. The terms of office of members 

7 of the Board shall be 5 years. Any member of 

8 the Board, including the Chairperson, may be 

9 removed for inefficiency, neglect of duty, or 

10 malfeasance in office. The Chairperson shall be 

11 the Chief Executive Officer of the Board and 

12 shall exercise the executive and administrative 

13 functions of the Board. 

14 ‘‘(B) INVESTIGATION OF CERTAIN ACCI15 DENTS.—For any accident involving 3 or more 

16 deaths, the Board shall conduct an independent 

17 investigation to— 

18 ‘‘(i) assess and identify any factors 

19 that caused the accident, including defi20 ciencies in safety management systems, 

21 regulations, enforcement, industry prac22 tices or guidelines, or organizational fail23 ures; 

24 ‘‘(ii) identify and evaluate any con25 tributing actions or inactions of— 


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1 ‘‘(I) the operator; 

2 ‘‘(II) any contractors or other 

3 persons engaged in mining-related 

4 functions at the site; 

5 ‘‘(III) any State agency with 

6 oversight responsibilities; 

7 ‘‘(IV) any agency or office within 

8 the Department of Labor; or 

9 ‘‘(V) any other person or entity 

10 (including equipment manufacturers); 

11 ‘‘(iii) review the findings and conclu12 sions of the investigation conducted by the 

13 Secretary under paragraph (1); 

14 ‘‘(iv) prepare a report that— 

15 ‘‘(I) includes the findings regard16 ing the causal factors described in 

17 clauses (i) and (ii); 

18 ‘‘(II) identifies any strengths and 

19 weaknesses in the Secretary’s inves20 tigation; and 

21 ‘‘(III) includes recommendations, 

22 including interim recommendations 

23 where appropriate, to industry, labor 

24 organizations, State and Federal 

25 agencies, or Congress, regarding polVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:05 Dec 23, 2011 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3697.IH H3697

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1 icy, regulatory, enforcement, adminis2 trative, or other changes, which in the 

3 judgment of the Panel, would prevent 

4 a recurrence at other mines; and 

5 ‘‘(v) publish such findings and rec6 ommendations (excluding any portions 

7 which the Attorney General requests that 

8 the Board withhold in relation to a crimi9 nal referral) and hold public meetings to 

10 inform the mining community and families 

11 of affected miners of the Board’s findings 

12 and recommendations. 

13 ‘‘(C) SUBPOENA POWER AND ADMINISTRA14 TION OF OATHS.—In carrying out its authority, 

15 the National Mine Safety Board may issue sub16 poenas (in accordance with Rule 45 of the Fed17 eral Rules of Civil Procedure) for the attend18 ance and testimony of witnesses and the pro19 duction of information, including all relevant 

20 data, papers, books, documents, items of phys21 ical evidence, and administer oaths. Witnesses 

22 summoned shall be paid the same fees and 

23 mileage that are paid witnesses in the courts of 

24 the United States. In case of contumacy or re25 fusal to obey a subpoena served upon any perVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:05 Dec 23, 2011 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3697.IH H3697

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1 son under this section, the district court of the 

2 United States for any district in which such 

3 person is found or resides or transacts business, 

4 upon application by the United States and after 

5 notice to such person, shall have jurisdiction to 

6 issue an order requiring such person to appear 

7 and give testimony before the Board or to ap8 pear and produce documents before the Board, 

9 or both, and any failure to obey such order of 

10 the court may be punished by such court as a 

11 contempt thereof. 

12 ‘‘(D) HEARINGS; APPLICABILITY OF CER13 TAIN FEDERAL LAW.—The Board shall have the 

14 authority to conduct public hearings or meet15 ings, but shall not be subject to the Federal Ad16 visory Committee Act. All public hearings of the 

17 Board shall be subject to the requirements 

18 under section 552b of title 5, United States 

19 Code. 

20 ‘‘(E) MEMORANDUM OF UNDER21 STANDING.—Not later than 90 days after the 

22 appointment of the Board under subparagraph 

23 (A), the Secretary and the Board shall conclude 

24 and publically issue a memorandum of under25 standing that— 


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1 ‘‘(i) outlines administrative arrange2 ments which will facilitate a coordination 

3 of efforts between the Secretary and the 

4 Board, ensures that the Secretary’s inves5 tigation under paragraph (1) is not de6 layed or otherwise compromised by the ac7 tivities of the Board, and establishes a 

8 process to resolve any conflicts between 

9 such investigations; 

10 ‘‘(ii) ensures that Board members or 

11 staff will be able to participate in inves12 tigation activities (such as mine inspections 

13 and interviews) related to the Secretary’s 

14 investigation and will have full access to 

15 documents that are assembled or produced 

16 in such investigation, and ensures that the 

17 Secretary will make all of the authority 

18 available to such Secretary under this sec19 tion, including subpoena authority, to ob20 tain information and witnesses which may 

21 be requested by such Board; and 

22 ‘‘(iii) establishes such other arrange23 ments as are necessary to implement this 

24 paragraph.’’. 


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1 SEC. 102. SUBPOENA AUTHORITY AND MINER RIGHTS DUR2 ING INVESTIGATIONS. 

3 Section 103(b)(1) (as amended by section 101) (30 

4 U.S.C. 813(b)) is further amended— 

5 (1) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘the Sec6 retary may’’ and all that follows through ‘‘oaths.’’ 

7 and inserting: ‘‘the Secretary may sign and issue 

8 subpoenas for the attendance and testimony of wit9 nesses and the production of information, including 

10 all relevant data, papers, books, documents, and 

11 items of physical evidence, and administer oaths, 

12 and, after notice, hold public hearings.’’; and 

13 (2) in the last sentence by striking ‘‘docu14 ments’’ and inserting ‘‘information, including data, 

15 papers, books, documents, and items of physical evi16 dence’’. 

17 SEC. 103. DESIGNATION OF MINER REPRESENTATIVE. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 103(f) (30 U.S.C. 813(f)) 

19 is amended by inserting before the last sentence the fol20 lowing: ‘‘Each operator shall require each miner employed 

21 by the operator to designate a next of kin or other rep22 resentative of the miner’s choosing at the time of employ23 ment. Such representative shall act on the miner’s behalf 

24 for purposes of this subsection if the miner is entrapped 

25 or otherwise prevented as the result of an accident in such 

26 mine from acting on the miner’s own behalf. A miner may 


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1 designate a different representative to the operator at any 

2 time. Should a miner who has not designated such a rep3 resentative be entrapped or otherwise prevented from des4 ignating a representative as the result of an accident in 

5 such mine, such miner’s closest relative may act on behalf 

6 of such miner in designating such a representative.’’. 

7 (b) APPLICATION TO MINERS ALREADY EM8 PLOYED.—Not later than 60 days after the date of enact9 ment of this Act, each operator of a mine shall obtain from 

10 each miner employed by such operator on such date of 

11 enactment a designated next of kin or other representa12 tive, in accordance with section 103(f) of the Federal Mine 

13 Safety and Health Act of 1977. 

14 SEC. 104. ADDITIONAL AMENDMENTS RELATING TO IN15 SPECTIONS AND INVESTIGATIONS. 

16 (a) HOURS OF INSPECTIONS.—Section 103(a) (30 

17 U.S.C. 813(a)) is amended by inserting after the third 

18 sentence the following: ‘‘Such inspections shall be con19 ducted during the various shifts and days of the week dur20 ing which miners are normally present in the mine to en21 sure that the protections of this Act are afforded to all 

22 miners working all shifts.’’. 

23 (b) INJURY AND ILLNESS REPORTING.—Section 

24 103(d) (30 U.S.C. 813(d)) is amended by striking the last 

25 sentence and inserting the following: ‘‘The records to be 


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1 kept and made available by the operator of the mine shall 

2 include man-hours worked and occupational injuries and 

3 illnesses, and shall be maintained separately for each mine 

4 and be reported at a frequency determined by the Sec5 retary, but at least annually. Operators shall be respon6 sible for reporting all miners working at such mine under 

7 their direct supervision.’’. 

8 (c) CONFLICT OF INTEREST IN THE REPRESENTA9 TION OF MINERS.—Section 103(a) (30 U.S.C. 813(a)) is 

10 amended by adding at the end the following: ‘‘During in11 spections and investigations under this section, and during 

12 any litigation under this Act, no attorney shall represent 

13 or purport to represent both the operator of a coal or other 

14 mine and any other individual, unless such individual has 

15 willfully and voluntarily waived all actual and reasonably 

16 foreseeable conflicts of interest resulting from such rep17 resentation. The Secretary is authorized to take such ac18 tions as the Secretary considers appropriate to ascertain 

19 whether such individual has willfully and voluntarily 

20 waived all such conflicts of interest. If the Secretary finds 

21 that such an individual cannot be represented adequately 

22 by such an attorney due to such conflicts of interest, the 

23 Secretary may petition the appropriate United States Dis24 trict Court which shall have jurisdiction to disqualify such 

25 attorney as counsel to such individual in the matter. The 


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1 Secretary may make such a motion as part of an ongoing 

2 related civil action or as a miscellaneous action.’’. 

3 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 103(e) (30 

4 U.S.C. 813(e)) is amended by inserting ‘‘or the National 

5 Mine Safety Board’’ after ‘‘Welfare’’. 

6 TITLE II—ENHANCED 

7 ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITY 

8 SEC. 201. SIGNIFICANT AND SUBSTANTIAL VIOLATIONS. 

9 Section 104(d)(1) (30 U.S.C. 814(d)(1)) is amend10 ed— 

11 (1) in the first sentence— 

12 (A) by striking ‘‘any mandatory health or 

13 safety standard’’ and inserting ‘‘any provision 

14 of this Act, including any mandatory health or 

15 safety standard or regulation promulgated 

16 under this Act’’; and 

17 (B) by striking ‘‘such mandatory health or 

18 safety standards’’ and inserting ‘‘such provi19 sions, regulations, or mandatory health or safe20 ty standards’’; 

21 (2) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘any 

22 mandatory health or safety standard’’ and inserting 

23 ‘‘any provision of this Act, including any mandatory 

24 health or safety standard or regulation promulgated 

25 under this Act,’’; and 


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1 (3) by inserting after the first sentence the fol2 lowing: ‘‘For purposes of this Act, a violation of a 

3 provision of this Act, including any mandatory 

4 health or safety standard or regulation promulgated 

5 under this Act, is of such nature as could signifi6 cantly and substantially contribute to the cause and 

7 effect of a safety or health hazard if there is a sub8 stantial probability such violation could result in se9 rious injury, illness, or death.’’. 

10 SEC. 202. A PATTERN OF RECURRING NONCOMPLIANCE OR 

11 ACCIDENTS. 

12 Section 104(e) (30 U.S.C. 814(e)) is amended to read 

13 as follows: 

14 ‘‘(e) PATTERN OF RECURRING NONCOMPLIANCE OR

15 ACCIDENTS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) DETERMINATION OF PATTERN STATUS.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary deter18 mines that an operator has a possible pattern 

19 of violations of mandatory health or safety 

20 standards based upon the initial screening cri21 teria promulgated in accordance with subpara22 graph (B), the Secretary shall provide the oper23 ator written notice pursuant to subparagraph 

24 (D). If, upon any inspection within 90 days 

25 after the issuance of such notice, an authorized 


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1 representative of the Secretary finds any viola2 tion of a mandatory health or safety standard 

3 which could significantly and substantially con4 tribute to the cause and effect of a coal or other 

5 mine safety or health hazard the operator shall 

6 be placed in pattern status. 

7 ‘‘(B) REGULATIONS ESTABLISHING INITIAL

8 SCREENING CRITERIA FOR POSSIBLE PLACE9 MENT IN PATTERN STATUS.— 

10 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary 

11 shall issue regulations establishing initial 

12 screening criteria for determining whether 

13 to place a mine on pattern status under 

14 this subsection. The criteria in such regu15 lations shall be based on the following fac16 tors, each assigned appropriate weight as 

17 determined by the Secretary: 

18 ‘‘(I) Citations for significant and 

19 substantial violations; 

20 ‘‘(II) Orders under section 

21 104(b) of the Act for not abating sig22 nificant and substantial violations; 

23 ‘‘(III) Citations and withdrawal 

24 orders under section 104(d) of the 


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1 Act, resulting from the operator’s un2 warrantable failure to comply; 

3 ‘‘(IV) Imminent danger orders 

4 under section 107(a) of the Act; 

5 ‘‘(V) Orders under section 104(g) 

6 of the Act requiring withdrawal of 

7 miners who have not received training 

8 and who the inspector declares to be 

9 a hazard to themselves and others; 

10 ‘‘(VI) Enforcement measures, 

11 other than section 104(e) of the Act, 

12 which have been applied at the mine; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(VII) Other information that 

15 demonstrates a serious safety or 

16 health management problem at the 

17 mine such as accident, injury, and ill18 ness records. 

19 ‘‘(ii) REVIEW.—At least 2 times each 

20 year, the Secretary will review the compli21 ance and accident, injury, and illness 

22 records of mines to determine if any mines 

23 meet the criteria established in the regula24 tions promulgated under this subpara25 graph. 


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1 ‘‘(C) MINE CATEGORIES.—Regulations 

2 promulgated under subparagraph (B) may be 

3 determined and maintained for different types 

4 of mines, according to the following classifica5 tions: 

6 ‘‘(i) Underground coal mines; 

7 ‘‘(ii) Surface coal mines; 

8 ‘‘(iii) Underground metal mines; 

9 ‘‘(iv) Surface metal mines; and 

10 ‘‘(v) Non-metal mines. 

11 ‘‘(D) ISSUANCE OF NOTICE.— 

12 ‘‘(i) ISSUANCE.—When a mine has a 

13 pattern of violations, the Secretary will 

14 issue a pattern of violations notice to the 

15 mine operator that specifies the basis for 

16 the Secretary’s action. The Secretary will 

17 also provide a copy of the notice to the 

18 representative of miners. 

19 ‘‘(ii) POSTING.—The mine operator 

20 shall post a copy of the notice on the mine 

21 bulletin board and in a conspicuous place 

22 near each staffed entrance onto the mine 

23 property. The notice shall remain posted at 

24 the mine until it is terminated. 


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1 ‘‘(E) MITIGATING CIRCUMSTANCES.—Not2 withstanding the criteria established under sub3 paragraph (B), if, after conducting an assess4 ment of a coal or other mine that otherwise 

5 qualifies for pattern status, the Secretary cer6 tifies that there are mitigating circumstances 

7 wherein the operator is in the process of reduc8 ing elevated risks to the health or safety of 

9 miners and is implementing sufficient measures 

10 to ensure such elevated risk will not recur, the 

11 Secretary may deem such mine to not be in pat12 tern status under this subsection. The Sec13 retary shall issue any such certification of such 

14 mitigating circumstances that would preclude 

15 the placement of a mine in pattern status as a 

16 written finding, which shall, not later than 10 

17 days after the certification is made, be— 

18 ‘‘(i) published in the Federal Register; 

19 and 

20 ‘‘(ii) transmitted to the Committee on 

21 Education and the Workforce of the House 

22 of Representatives and the Committee on 

23 Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of 

24 the Senate. 


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1 ‘‘(2) ACTIONS FOLLOWING PLACEMENT OF

2 MINE IN PATTERN STATUS.—For any coal or other 

3 mine that is in pattern status, the Secretary shall— 

4 ‘‘(A) notify the operator of such mine that 

5 the mine is being placed in pattern status; 

6 ‘‘(B) issue an order requiring such oper7 ator to cause all persons to be withdrawn from 

8 such mine while the Secretary conducts a com9 plete inspection of the mine to identify any haz10 ards or violations that could be immediately 

11 harmful to the safety or health of the miners; 

12 ‘‘(C) require, as a condition of reopening 

13 the mine, that— 

14 ‘‘(i) all violations or other conditions 

15 in the mine identified by the Secretary 

16 have been or are being fully abated or cor17 rected; and 

18 ‘‘(ii) the operator file a remediation 

19 plan as described in paragraph (3); and 

20 ‘‘(D) require that the number of regular 

21 inspections of such mine required under section 

22 103 be increased by an amount determined by 

23 the Secretary to be sufficient to ensure that all 

24 hazardous conditions have been addressed and 


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1 that a program is in place to prevent a reoccur2 rence of such conditions. 

3 ‘‘(3) REMEDIATION PLAN.— 

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An operator of a mine 

5 placed in pattern status shall submit to the Sec6 retary a remediation plan for approval by the 

7 Secretary to— 

8 ‘‘(i) institute and implement an effec9 tive health and safety management pro10 gram that specifically addresses the issues 

11 that gave rise to the placement of the mine 

12 in pattern status; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) facilitate any effort by the Sec14 retary to communicate directly with miners 

15 employed at the mine outside the presence 

16 of the mine operators or its agents, for the 

17 purpose of obtaining information about 

18 mine conditions, health and safety prac19 tices, advising miners of their rights under 

20 this Act, and to assist the efforts of the 

21 operator in developing or implementing the 

22 remediation plan. 

23 ‘‘(B) EXPEDITED REVIEW.—The opera24 tor’s remediation plan shall be evaluated for apVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:05 Dec 23, 2011 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00019 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3697.IH H3697

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1 proval by the Secretary on an expedited basis, 

2 in accordance with section 105(d). 

3 ‘‘(C) PLAN DISPUTE RESOLUTION.— 

4 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Any dispute be5 tween the Secretary and an operator with 

6 respect to the content of the operator’s 

7 plan under paragraph (3) or any refusal by 

8 the Secretary to approve such plan shall be 

9 resolved on an expedited basis. 

10 ‘‘(ii) DISPUTES.—In the event of a 

11 dispute or refusal to approve a plan, the 

12 Secretary shall issue a citation which shall 

13 be immediately referred to the Commis14 sion. The Secretary and the operator shall 

15 submit all relevant material regarding the 

16 dispute to the Commission within 15 days 

17 of the date of the referral. The Commis18 sion shall render its decision with respect 

19 to the plan content dispute within 15 days 

20 of the receipt of the submission. 

21 ‘‘(iii) FURTHER APPEALS.—Any party 

22 adversely affected by a decision under this 

23 subparagraph may pursue all further avail24 able appeal rights with respect to the situ25 ation involved, except that inclusion of the 


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1 disputed provision in the plan will not be 

2 limited by such appeal unless such relief is 

3 requested by the operator and permitted by 

4 the Commission. 

5 ‘‘(4) PERFORMANCE EVALUATION.— 

6 ‘‘(A) PERFORMANCE BENCHMARKS.—The 

7 Secretary shall evaluate the performance of 

8 each operator whose mine is in pattern status 

9 every 90 days during which the mine is pro10 ducing and determine if, for such 90-day pe11 riod— 

12 ‘‘(i) the rate of citations for such mine 

13 for significant and substantial violations— 

14 ‘‘(I) is, on average, in the top 

15 performing 35th percentile of such 

16 rates, respectively, for all mines of 

17 similar size and type; and 

18 ‘‘(II) has been reduced by 70 

19 percent since such mine was placed on 

20 pattern status; and 

21 ‘‘(ii) the accident and injury rates at 

22 such mine are, on average, in the top per23 forming 35th percentile of such rates, re24 spectively, for all mines of similar size and 

25 type. 


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1 ‘‘(B) REISSUANCE OF PRODUCTION LIMI2 TATION.—If an operator being evaluated fails 

3 to achieve the performance benchmarks de4 scribed in subparagraph (A), the Secretary may 

5 re-impose the conditions under paragraph 

6 (2)(B) to remedy any recurring conditions that 

7 led to pattern status under this subsection, and 

8 may require modification of the remediation 

9 plan, as necessary, to protect the health and 

10 safety of miners. 

11 ‘‘(5) TERMINATION OF PATTERN STATUS.— 

12 ‘‘(A) PERFORMANCE BENCHMARKS.—The 

13 Secretary shall remove an operator of a coal or 

14 other mine from pattern status if, for a period 

15 of 180 days during which the mine is pro16 ducing— 

17 ‘‘(i) the rate of citations for such mine 

18 for significant and substantial violations— 

19 ‘‘(I) is, on average, in the top 

20 performing 25th percentile of such 

21 rates, respectively, for all mines of 

22 similar size and type; and 

23 ‘‘(II) has been reduced by 70 

24 percent since such mine was placed on 

25 pattern status; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) the accident and injury rates at 

2 such mine are, on average, in the top per3 forming 25th percentile of such rates, re4 spectively, for all mines of similar size and 

5 type. 

6 ‘‘(B) CONTINUATION OF PATTERN STA7 TUS.—Should the mine operator fail to meet 

8 the performance benchmarks described in sub9 paragraph (A), the Secretary shall extend the 

10 mine’s placement in pattern status until such 

11 benchmarks are achieved. 

12 ‘‘(6) EXPEDITED HEARING.—The operator of a 

13 mine whose mine is placed in a pattern status under 

14 this section shall have the right to an expedited 

15 hearing, within 10 days of providing notice to the 

16 Commission to contest the validity of any enforce17 ment action that has contributed to the mine being 

18 identified under this section, notwithstanding wheth19 er the enforcement action was previously the subject 

20 of a notice of contest pursuant to section 105 or has 

21 been deemed a final order of the Commission. 

22 ‘‘(7) LIMITATION ON APPLICATION.—The provi23 sions of this subsection shall not apply, for a period 

24 of 12 months, following the acquisition of a mine by 

25 a purchaser. 


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1 ‘‘(8) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days 

2 after the date of enactment of the Mine Safety Ac3 countability and Improved Protection Act, the Sec4 retary shall issue proposed regulations to implement 

5 the provisions of this subsection. Not later than 1 

6 year after the date of enactment of such Act, the 

7 Secretary shall issue final regulations to implement 

8 this subsection. 

9 ‘‘(9) PUBLIC DATABASE AND INFORMATION.— 

10 The Secretary shall establish and maintain a pub11 lically available electronic database containing the 

12 data used to determine pattern status for all coal or 

13 other mines. Such database shall be searchable, shall 

14 have the capacity to provide comparative data about 

15 the health and safety at mines of similar sizes and 

16 types. The Secretary shall also make publicly avail17 able— 

18 ‘‘(A) a list of all mines the Secretary 

19 places in pattern status, updated not less fre20 quently than quarterly; and 

21 ‘‘(B) the metrics, including percentile in22 formation, used for the purposes of the per23 formance benchmarks and threshold criteria de24 scribed in paragraphs (4) and (5). 


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1 ‘‘(10) OPERATOR FEES FOR ADDITIONAL IN2 SPECTIONS.— 

3 ‘‘(A) ASSESSMENT AND COLLECTION.—Be4 ginning 120 days after the date of enactment of 

5 the Mine Safety Accountability and Improved 

6 Protection Act, the Secretary shall assess and 

7 collect fees, in accordance with this paragraph, 

8 from each coal or other mine in pattern status 

9 for the costs of additional inspections under 

10 this subsection. The Secretary shall issue, by 

11 rule, a schedule of fees to be assessed against 

12 coal or other mines of varying types and sizes, 

13 and shall collect and assess amounts under this 

14 paragraph based on the schedule. 

15 ‘‘(B) MINES IN PATTERN STATUS INSPEC16 TION FUND.—There is established in the Treas17 ury of the United States a separate account for 

18 the deposit of fees collected under this para19 graph to be known as the Mines in Pattern Sta20 tus Inspection Fund. The Secretary shall de21 posit any fees collected pursuant to subpara22 graph (A) into the fund. 

23 ‘‘(C) USE.—Amounts in the Mines in Pat24 tern Status Inspection Fund shall be available 

25 to the Secretary, as provided in subparagraph 


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1 (D), for making expenditures to carry out the 

2 additional inspections required under paragraph 

3 (2)(D). 

4 ‘‘(D) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIA5 TIONS.—In addition to any other amounts ap6 propriated, there is authorized to be appro7 priated from the Mines in Pattern Status In8 spection Fund to the Assistant Secretary for 

9 Mine Safety and Health for each fiscal year in 

10 which fees are collected under subparagraph 

11 (A) an amount equal to the total amount col12 lected during the previous fiscal year from fees 

13 assessed pursuant to this paragraph. Such 

14 amounts are authorized to remain available 

15 until expended. 

16 ‘‘(E) CREDITING AND AVAILABILITY OF

17 FEES.—Fees authorized and collected under 

18 this paragraph shall be available for obligation 

19 only to the extent and in the amount provided 

20 in advance in appropriations Acts.’’. 

21 SEC. 203. INJUNCTIVE AUTHORITY. 

22 Section 108(a)(2) is amended to read as follows: 

23 ‘‘(2) The Secretary may institute a civil action for 

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1 trict court of the United States for the district in which 

2 the coal or other mine is located or in which the operator 

3 of such mine has his principal office whenever the Sec4 retary believes that the operator of a coal or other mine 

5 is engaged in a pattern of violation of this Act, or of any 

6 mandatory health or safety standards of this Act, or regu7 lation promulgated under this Act, which constitutes a 

8 continuing hazard to the health or safety of miners.’’. 

9 SEC. 204. REVOCATION OF APPROVAL OF PLANS. 

10 Section 105 (30 U.S.C. 815) is amended by adding 

11 at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(e) REVOCATION OF APPROVAL OF PLANS.—If the 

13 Secretary finds that any program or plan of an operator, 

14 or part thereof, that was approved by the Secretary under 

15 this Act is based on inaccurate information or that cir16 cumstances that existed when such plan was approved 

17 have materially changed and that continued operation of 

18 such mine under such plan constitutes a hazard to the 

19 safety or health of miners, the Secretary shall revoke the 

20 approval of such program or plan and provide the operator 

21 with a detailed explanation containing the specific reasons 

22 that approval was revoked.’’. 


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1 SEC. 205. CHALLENGING DECISIONS RELATED TO THE AP2 PROVAL OF A COAL OR OTHER MINE PLAN. 

3 Section 105 (30 U.S.C. 815) is further amended by 

4 adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(f) PROCESS FOR APPROVAL OF AND CHALLENGING

6 DECISIONS RELATED TO THE APPROVAL OF A COAL OR

7 OTHER MINE PLAN.— 

8 ‘‘(1) PROPOSED PROGRAMS, PLANS, AND PLAN

9 REVISION PROCESS.— 

10 ‘‘(A) SUBMISSION FOR APPROVAL.—Any 

11 operator’s proposed program, plan, or plan revi12 sion, which is subject to approval by the Sec13 retary under this Act, and implementing stand14 ards and regulations, shall be submitted in writ15 ing to the appropriate district manager of the 

16 Mine Safety and Health Administration (in this 

17 subsection referred to as the ‘district man18 ager’). When revisions to a previously approved 

19 plan are proposed by a mine operator, only pro20 posed revised pages, maps, and sketches are re21 quired to be submitted, unless otherwise speci22 fied by the district manager. Written comments 

23 may be submitted by representatives of the 

24 miners relative to plan or revisions submitted. 

25 Such program, plan, or plan revision shall be 

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1 proval by the district manager, pursuant to the 

2 following provisions: 

3 ‘‘(B) NOTIFICATION OF APPROVAL OR DE4 NIAL OF PROPOSED PROGRAM, PLAN OR PLAN

5 REVISION.—The district manager shall notify 

6 the mine operator, in writing, of the approval or 

7 denial of the proposed program, plan or plan 

8 revision. A copy of the district manager’s writ9 ten notification shall be mailed to the represent10 ative of miners by the district manager. 

11 ‘‘(C) FAILURE OF THE DISTRICT MANAGER

12 TO PROVIDE WRITTEN NOTIFICATION.—If the 

13 district manager fails to notify a mine operator, 

14 in writing, of the approval or denial of any pro15 posed program or plan within 30 days of the 

16 mine operator’s submission, such proposed pro17 gram or plan shall be deemed approved. If a 

18 district manager fails to notify a mine operator, 

19 in writing, of the approval or denial of approval 

20 of any proposed plan revision within 7 days of 

21 the mine operator’s submission, such proposed 

22 program or plan shall be deemed approved. 

23 ‘‘(D) SPECIFICATION OF DEFICIENCIES

24 AND RECOMMENDED CHANGES.—When ap25 proval of any proposed program, plan or plan 


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1 revision is denied, the district manager’s writ2 ten notification shall— 

3 ‘‘(i) specify the deficiencies in the 

4 mine operator’s proposed program, plan, or 

5 plan revision; 

6 ‘‘(ii) recommend changes to eliminate 

7 the specified deficiencies in the proposed 

8 program, plan, or plan revision; and 

9 ‘‘(iii) provide an opportunity for the 

10 operator to schedule a meeting with the 

11 district manager to discuss any specified 

12 deficiencies in the proposed program, plan, 

13 or plan revision. 

14 ‘‘(E) PROCESS FOLLOWING MEETING.— 

15 Following any meeting between the operator 

16 and the district manager regarding any pro17 posed program, plan, or plan revision, the dis18 trict manager shall provide the mine operator 

19 with a reasonable time period to resubmit the 

20 proposed program, plan, or plan revision. 

21 ‘‘(2) PLAN DISPUTE RESOLUTION.— 

22 ‘‘(A) CONTEST.—In the event a district 

23 manager denies approval of an operator’s pro24 posed program, plan, or plan revision, the oper25 ator may contest the decision of the district 


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1 manager to the Secretary. Any dispute between 

2 the Secretary and an operator with respect to 

3 the content of any program, plan or plan revi4 sion of the mine operator shall be resolved on 

5 an expedited basis. 

6 ‘‘(B) DISPUTES.—In the event of a dispute 

7 described in subparagraph (A), any technical ci8 tation issued by the Secretary shall be imme9 diately referred to the Commission. The Sec10 retary and the mine operator shall submit all 

11 relevant material regarding the dispute to the 

12 Commission within 15 days of the date of the 

13 referral. The Commission shall render its deci14 sion with respect to the plan content dispute 

15 within 15 days of the receipt of the submission. 

16 ‘‘(C) FURTHER APPEALS.—A party ad17 versely affected by a decision under subpara18 graph (B) may pursue all further available ap19 peal rights with respect to the citation involved, 

20 except that inclusion of the disputed provision 

21 of the plan shall not be limited by such appeal 

22 unless such relief is requested by the operator 

23 and permitted by the Commission.’’. 


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1 TITLE III—PENALTIES 

2 SEC. 301. CIVIL PENALTIES. 

3 (a) MAXIMUM CIVIL PENALTIES.—Section 110(a)(1) 

4 (30 U.S.C. 820(a)(1)) is amended by inserting ‘‘including 

5 any regulation promulgated under this Act,’’ after ‘‘this 

6 Act,’’. 

7 (b) INCREASED CIVIL PENALTIES DURING PATTERN

8 STATUS.—Section 110(b) (30 U.S.C. 820(b)) is amended 

9 by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(3) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, 

11 an operator of a coal or other mine that is in pattern sta12 tus under section 104(e) and that fails to meet the per13 formance benchmarks set forth by the Secretary under 

14 section 104(e)(5)(A) during any performance review of the 

15 mine following the first performance review shall be as16 sessed an increased civil penalty for any violation of this 

17 Act, including any mandatory health or safety standard 

18 or regulation promulgated under this Act. Such increased 

19 penalty shall be twice the amount that would otherwise 

20 be assessed for the violation under this Act, including the 

21 regulations promulgated under this Act, subject to the 

22 maximum civil penalty established for the violation under 

23 this Act. This paragraph shall apply to violations at such 

24 mine that occur during the period beginning after the 

25 failed performance review following the first performance 


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1 review, and ending when the Secretary determines at a 

2 subsequent performance review that the mine meets the 

3 performance benchmarks under section 104(e)(5)(A).’’. 

4 (c) CIVIL PENALTY FOR RETALIATION.—Section 

5 110(a) (30 U.S.C. 820(a)) is further amended— 

6 (1) by redesignating paragraph (4) as para7 graph (5); and 

8 (2) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol9 lowing: 

10 ‘‘(4) If any person violates section 105(c), the Sec11 retary shall propose, and the Commission shall assess, a 

12 civil penalty of not less than $10,000 or more than 

13 $100,000 for the first occurrence of such violation, and 

14 not less than $20,000 or more than $200,000 for any sub15 sequent violation, during any 3-year period.’’. 

16 SEC. 302. CIVIL AND CRIMINAL LIABILITY OF OFFICERS, DI17 RECTORS, AND AGENTS. 

18 Section 110(c) (30 U.S.C. 820(c)) is amended to read 

19 as follows: 

20 ‘‘(c) CIVIL AND CRIMINAL LIABILITY OF OFFICERS, 

21 DIRECTORS, AND AGENTS.—Whenever an operator vio22 lates a provision of this Act, including any mandatory 

23 health or safety standard or regulation promulgated under 

24 this Act, or willfully violates or fails or refuses to comply 

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1 porated in a final decision issued under this Act, any di2 rector, officer, or agent of such operator who willfully au3 thorized, ordered, or carried out such violation, failure, or 

4 refusal, or any policy or practice that contributed to the 

5 occurrence of a fatality shall be subject to the same civil 

6 penalties, fines, and imprisonment that may be imposed 

7 upon a person under this section.’’. 

8 SEC. 303. CRIMINAL PENALTIES. 

9 (a) WILLFUL VIOLATIONS.—Section 110(d) (30 

10 U.S.C. 820(d)) is amended by striking ‘‘$500,000’’ and 

11 inserting ‘‘$1,000,000’’. 

12 (b) CRIMINAL PENALTY FOR RETALIATION.—Section 

13 110(d) is further amended— 

14 (1) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘Any operator’’; 

15 and 

16 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(2) Whoever willfully takes any action that is di18 rectly or indirectly harmful to any person, including action 

19 that interferes with the lawful employment or livelihood 

20 of any person, because such person has provided an au21 thorized representative of the Secretary, the National 

22 Mine Safety Board, or another law enforcement officer 

23 with any information related to the existence of a health 

24 or safety violation or an unhealthful or unsafe condition, 

25 policy, or practice under this Act shall be fined under title 


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1 18, United States Code, imprisoned for not more than 5 

2 years, or both.’’. 

3 (c) ADVANCE NOTICE OF INSPECTIONS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 110(e) (30 U.S.C. 

5 820(e)) is amended— 

6 (A) by striking ‘‘Unless’’ and inserting 

7 ‘‘(1) Unless’’; and 

8 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(2) Unless otherwise authorized by this Act, any op10 erator, agent or contractor of any operator, miner, inspec11 tor, employee of the Administration, or State mine inspec12 tor, that willfully gives, causes to give, or attempts to give 

13 or cause to give advance notice of any inspection to be 

14 conducted under this Act shall be fined under title 18, 

15 United States Code, imprisoned for not more than 5 years, 

16 or both.’’. 

17 (2) POSTING OF ADVANCE NOTICE PEN18 ALTIES.—Section 109 (30 U.S.C. 819) is amended 

19 by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(e) POSTING OF ADVANCE NOTICE PENALTIES.— 

21 Each operator of a coal or other mine shall post, on the 

22 bulletin board described in subsection (a) and in a con23 spicuous place near each staffed entrance onto the mine 

24 property, a notice stating, in a form and manner to be 

25 prescribed by the Secretary— 


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1 ‘‘(1) that giving, causing to give, or attempting 

2 to give or cause to give advance notice of any inspec3 tion to be conducted under this Act is unlawful pur4 suant to section 110(e); and 

5 ‘‘(2) the maximum penalties for a violation 

6 under such subsection.’’. 

7 (d) FALSE STATEMENTS AND REPRESENTATIONS.— 

8 Section 110(f) (30 U.S.C. 820(f)) is amended by striking 

9 ‘‘$10,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$50,000’’. 

10 SEC. 304. CONFERENCE PROCESS FOR APPEALING PEN11 ALTIES; DELINQUENT PAYMENTS AND PRE12 JUDGMENT INTEREST. 

13 (a) CONFERENCE PROCESS.—Section 110 (30 U.S.C. 

14 820) is amended by— 

15 (1) redesignating subsection (l) as subsection 

16 (m); and 

17 (2) by inserting after subsection (k) the fol18 lowing: 

19 ‘‘(l) OPERATOR CONFERENCE PROCESS.— 

20 ‘‘(1) RIGHT TO REVIEW.—Prior to the assess21 ment of any penalty assessed under this section, the 

22 operator shall be afforded the opportunity to review 

23 with a designated Conference Litigation Representa24 tive of the Secretary each citation and order issued 

25 during an inspection. 


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1 ‘‘(2) REQUEST FOR CONFERENCE; TIMELINE.— 

2 Upon receipt of a citation or order issued under this 

3 Act the operator shall have 15 days to request the 

4 review described in paragraph (1) of any citation or 

5 order issues during an inspection. The conference re6 quest must include a brief statement of the reason 

7 why each citation or order should be afforded a con8 ference. Within 15 days following receipt of a re9 quest by the operator the Conference Litigation Rep10 resentative shall schedule a meeting to review the ci11 tations or orders subject to the request. The Con12 ference Litigation Representative shall consider all 

13 relevant information submitted in a timely manner 

14 with respect to the violations or orders. 

15 ‘‘(3) DECISION OF CONFERENCE LITIGATION

16 REPRESENTATIVE.—Within 15 days following the 

17 conduct of conference, the Conference Litigation 

18 Representative shall issue a decision affirming, 

19 modifying, or vacating the citations or orders that 

20 were the subject of the conference. The decision 

21 shall be communicated to the operator, the issuing 

22 inspector, and the district manager responsible for 

23 the district within which the mine is located. In 

24 making a decision, the Conference Litigation Rep25 resentative shall consult, as needed, with the DirecVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:05 Dec 23, 2011 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00037 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3697.IH H3697

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1 tor of the Mine Safety and Health Administration, 

2 Office of Accountability, to which each Conference 

3 Litigation Representative shall report.’’. 

4 (b) PRE-FINAL ORDER INTEREST.—Section 110(j) 

5 (30 U.S.C. 820(j)) is amended by striking the second and 

6 third sentences and inserting the following: ‘‘Pre-final 

7 order interest on such penalties shall begin to accrue on 

8 the date the operator contests a citation issued under this 

9 Act, including any mandatory health or safety standard 

10 or regulation promulgated under this Act, and shall end 

11 upon the issuance of the final order. Such pre-final order 

12 interest shall be calculated at the current underpayment 

13 rate determined by the Secretary of the Treasury pursu14 ant to section 6621 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 

15 and shall be compounded daily. Post-final order interest 

16 shall begin to accrue 30 days after the date a final order 

17 of the Commission or the court is issued, and shall be 

18 charged at the rate of 8 percent per annum.’’. 

19 (c) ENSURING PAYMENT OF PENALTIES.— 

20 (1) AMENDMENT.—Section 110 (30 U.S.C. 

21 820) is further amended by adding after subsection 

22 (l) (as added by subsection (a)) the following: 

23 ‘‘(m) ENSURING PAYMENTS OF PENALTIES.— 

24 ‘‘(1) DELINQUENT PAYMENT LETTER.—If the 

25 operator of a coal or other mine fails to pay any civil 


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1 penalty assessment that has become a final order of 

2 the Commission or a court within 90 days after such 

3 assessment became a final order, the Secretary shall 

4 send the operator a letter advising the operator of 

5 the consequences under this subsection of such fail6 ure to pay. The letter shall also advise the operator 

7 of the opportunity to enter into or modify a payment 

8 plan with the Secretary based upon a demonstrated 

9 inability to pay, the procedure for entering into such 

10 plan, and the consequences of not entering into or 

11 not complying with such plan. 

12 ‘‘(2) WITHDRAWAL ORDERS FOLLOWING FAIL13 URE TO PAY.—If an operator that receives a letter 

14 under paragraph (1) has not paid the assessment by 

15 the date that is 180 days after such assessment be16 came a final order and has not entered into a pay17 ment plan with the Secretary, the Secretary shall 

18 issue an order requiring such operator to cause all 

19 persons, except those referred to in section 104(c), 

20 to be withdrawn from, and to be prohibited from en21 tering, the mine that is covered by the final order 

22 described in paragraph (1), until the operator pays 

23 such assessment in full (including interest and ad24 ministrative costs) or enters into a payment plan 

25 with the Secretary. If such operator enters into a 


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1 payment plan with the Secretary and at any time 

2 fails to comply with the terms specified in such pay3 ment plan, the Secretary shall issue an order requir4 ing such operator to cause all persons, except those 

5 referred to in section 104(c), to be withdrawn from 

6 the mine that is covered by such final order, and to 

7 be prohibited from entering such mine, until the op8 erator rectifies the noncompliance with the payment 

9 plan in the manner specified in such payment 

10 plan.’’. 

11 (2) APPLICABILITY AND EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

12 The amendment made by paragraph (1) shall apply 

13 to all unpaid civil penalty assessments under the 

14 Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 (30 

15 U.S.C. 801 et seq.), except that, for any unpaid civil 

16 penalty assessment that became a final order of the 

17 Commission or a court before the date of enactment 

18 of this Act, the time periods under section 110(n) of 

19 the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 (as 

20 amended) (30 U.S.C. 820(n)) shall be calculated as 

21 beginning on the date of enactment of this Act in22 stead of on the date of the final order. 


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1 TITLE IV—WORKER RIGHTS AND 

2 PROTECTIONS 

3 SEC. 401. PROTECTION FROM RETALIATION. 

4 Section 105(c) (30 U.S.C. 815(c)) is amended to read 

5 as follows: 

6 ‘‘(c) PROTECTION FROM RETALIATION.— 

7 ‘‘(1) RETALIATION PROHIBITED.— 

8 ‘‘(A) RETALIATION FOR COMPLAINT OR

9 TESTIMONY.—No person shall discharge or in 

10 any manner discriminate against or cause to be 

11 discharged or cause discrimination against or 

12 otherwise interfere with the exercise of the stat13 utory rights of any miner or other employee of 

14 an operator, representative of miners, or appli15 cant for employment, because— 

16 ‘‘(i) such miner or other employee, 

17 representative, or applicant for employ18 ment— 

19 ‘‘(I) has filed or made a com20 plaint, or is about to file or make a 

21 complaint, including a complaint noti22 fying the operator or the operator’s 

23 agent, or the representative of the 

24 miners at the coal or other mine of an 


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1 alleged danger or safety or health vio2 lation in a coal or other mine; 

3 ‘‘(II) instituted or caused to be 

4 instituted, or is about to institute or 

5 cause to be instituted, any proceeding 

6 under or related to this Act or has 

7 testified or is about to testify in any 

8 such proceeding or because of the ex9 ercise by such miner or other em10 ployee, representative, or applicant for 

11 employment on behalf of him or her12 self or others of any right afforded by 

13 this Act; 

14 ‘‘(III) has testified or is about to 

15 testify before Congress or any Federal 

16 or State proceeding related to safety 

17 or health in a coal or other mine; or 

18 ‘‘(IV) refused to violate any pro19 vision of this Act; or 

20 ‘‘(ii) such miner is the subject of med21 ical evaluations and potential transfer 

22 under a standard published pursuant to 

23 section 101. 

24 ‘‘(B) RETALIATION FOR REFUSAL TO PER25 FORM DUTIES.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—No person shall 

2 discharge or in any manner discriminate 

3 against a miner or other employee of an 

4 operator for refusing to perform the min5 er’s or other employee’s duties if the miner 

6 or other employee has a good-faith and 

7 reasonable belief that performing such du8 ties would pose a safety or health hazard 

9 to the miner or other employee or to any 

10 other miner or employee. 

11 ‘‘(ii) STANDARD.—For purposes of 

12 clause (i), the circumstances causing the 

13 miner’s or other employee’s good-faith be14 lief that performing such duties would pose 

15 a safety or health hazard shall be of such 

16 a nature that a reasonable person, under 

17 the circumstances confronting the miner or 

18 other employee, would conclude that there 

19 is such a hazard. In order to qualify for 

20 protection under this paragraph, the miner 

21 or other employee, when practicable, shall 

22 have communicated or attempted to com23 municate the safety or health concern to 

24 the operator and have not received from 


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1 the operator a response reasonably cal2 culated to allay such concern. 

3 ‘‘(2) COMPLAINT.—Any miner or other em4 ployee or representative of miners or applicant for 

5 employment who believes that he or she has been 

6 discharged, disciplined, or otherwise discriminated 

7 against by any person in violation of paragraph (1) 

8 may file a complaint with the Secretary alleging 

9 such discrimination not later than 90 days after the 

10 later of— 

11 ‘‘(A) the last date on which an alleged vio12 lation of paragraph (1) occurs; or 

13 ‘‘(B) the date on which the miner or other 

14 employee or representative knows or should rea15 sonably have known that such alleged violation 

16 occurred. 

17 ‘‘(3) INVESTIGATION AND HEARING.— 

18 ‘‘(A) COMMENCEMENT OF INVESTIGATION

19 AND INITIAL DETERMINATION.—Upon receipt 

20 of such complaint, the Secretary shall forward 

21 a copy of the complaint to the respondent, and 

22 shall commence an investigation within 15 days 

23 of the Secretary’s receipt of the complaint, and, 

24 as soon as practicable after commencing such 

25 investigation, make the determination required 


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1 under subparagraph (B) regarding the rein2 statement of the miner or other employee. 

3 ‘‘(B) REINSTATEMENT.—If the Secretary 

4 finds that such complaint was not frivolously 

5 brought, the Commission, on an expedited basis 

6 upon application of the Secretary, shall order 

7 the immediate reinstatement of the miner or 

8 other employee until there has been a final 

9 Commission order disposing of the underlying 

10 complaint of the miner or other employee. If ei11 ther the Secretary or the miner or other em12 ployee pursues the underlying complaint, such 

13 reinstatement shall remain in effect until the 

14 Commission has disposed of such complaint on 

15 the merits, regardless of whether the Secretary 

16 pursues such complaint by filing a complaint 

17 under subparagraph (D) or the miner or other 

18 employee pursues such complaint by filing an 

19 action under paragraph (4). If neither the Sec20 retary nor the miner or other employee pursues 

21 the underlying complaint within the periods 

22 specified in paragraph (4), such reinstatement 

23 shall remain in effect until such time as the 

24 Commission may, upon motion of the operator 

25 and after providing notice and an opportunity 


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1 to be heard to the parties, vacate such com2 plaint for failure to prosecute. 

3 ‘‘(C) INVESTIGATION.—Such investigation 

4 shall include interviewing the complainant 

5 and— 

6 ‘‘(i) providing the respondent an op7 portunity to submit to the Secretary a 

8 written response to the complaint and to 

9 present statements from witnesses or pro10 vide evidence; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) providing the complainant an op12 portunity to receive any statements or evi13 dence provided to the Secretary and rebut 

14 any statements or evidence. 

15 ‘‘(D) ACTION BY THE SECRETARY.—If, 

16 upon such investigation, the Secretary deter17 mines that the provisions of this subsection 

18 have been violated, the Secretary shall imme19 diately file a complaint with the Commission, 

20 with service upon the alleged violator and the 

21 miner or other employee or representative of 

22 miners alleging such discrimination or inter23 ference and propose an order granting appro24 priate relief. 


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1 ‘‘(E) ACTION OF THE COMMISSION.—The 

2 Commission shall afford an opportunity for a 

3 hearing (in accordance with section 554 of title 

4 5, United States Code, but without regard to 

5 subsection (a)(3) of such section) and there6 after shall issue an order, based upon findings 

7 of fact, affirming, modifying, or vacating the 

8 Secretary’s proposed order, or directing other 

9 appropriate relief. Such order shall become final 

10 30 days after its issuance. The complaining 

11 miner or other employee, representative, or ap12 plicant for employment may present additional 

13 evidence on his or her own behalf during any 

14 hearing held pursuant to this paragraph. 

15 ‘‘(F) RELIEF.—The Commission shall have 

16 authority in such proceedings to require a per17 son committing a violation of this subsection to 

18 take such affirmative action to abate the viola19 tion and prescribe a remedy as the Commission 

20 considers appropriate, including— 

21 ‘‘(i) the rehiring or reinstatement of 

22 the miner or other employee with back pay 

23 and interest and without loss of position or 

24 seniority, and restoration of the terms, 


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1 rights, conditions, and privileges associated 

2 with the complainant’s employment; 

3 ‘‘(ii) any other compensatory and con4 sequential damages sufficient to make the 

5 complainant whole, and exemplary dam6 ages where appropriate; and 

7 ‘‘(iii) expungement of all warnings, 

8 reprimands, or derogatory references that 

9 have been placed in paper or electronic 

10 records or databases of any type relating 

11 to the actions by the complainant that 

12 gave rise to the unfavorable personnel ac13 tion, and, at the complainant’s direction, 

14 transmission of a copy of the decision on 

15 the complaint to any person whom the 

16 complainant reasonably believes may have 

17 received such unfavorable information. 

18 ‘‘(4) NOTICE TO AND ACTION OF COMPLAIN19 ANT.— 

20 ‘‘(A) NOTICE TO COMPLAINANT.—Not 

21 later than 90 days after the receipt of a com22 plaint filed under paragraph (2), the Secretary 

23 shall notify, in writing, the miner or other em24 ployee, applicant for employment, or representaVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:05 Dec 23, 2011 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00048 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3697.IH H3697

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1 tive of miners of his determination whether a 

2 violation has occurred. 

3 ‘‘(B) ACTION OF COMPLAINANT.—If the 

4 Secretary, upon investigation, determines that 

5 the provisions of this subsection have not been 

6 violated, the complainant shall have the right, 

7 within 30 days after receiving notice of the Sec8 retary’s determination, to file an action in his 

9 or her own behalf before the Commission, 

10 charging discrimination or interference in viola11 tion of paragraph (1). 

12 ‘‘(C) HEARING AND DECISION.—The Com13 mission shall afford an opportunity for a hear14 ing (in accordance with section 554 of title 5, 

15 United States Code, but without regard to sub16 section (a)(3) of such section), and thereafter 

17 shall issue an order, based upon findings of 

18 fact, dismissing or sustaining the complainant’s 

19 charges and, if the charges are sustained, 

20 granting such relief as it deems appropriate as 

21 described in paragraph (3)(D). Such order shall 

22 become final 30 days after its issuance. 

23 ‘‘(5) BURDEN OF PROOF.—In adjudicating a 

24 complaint pursuant to this subsection, the Commis25 sion may determine that a violation of paragraph (1) 


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1 has occurred only if the complainant demonstrates 

2 that any conduct described in paragraph (1) with re3 spect to the complainant was a contributing factor 

4 in the adverse action alleged in the complaint. A de5 cision or order that is favorable to the complainant 

6 shall not be issued pursuant to this subsection if the 

7 respondent demonstrates by clear and convincing 

8 evidence that the respondent would have taken the 

9 same adverse action in the absence of such conduct. 

10 ‘‘(6) ATTORNEYS’ FEES.—Whenever an order is 

11 issued sustaining the complainant’s charges under 

12 this subsection, a sum equal to the aggregate 

13 amount of all costs and expenses, including attor14 ney’s fees, as determined by the Commission to have 

15 been reasonably incurred by the complainant for, or 

16 in connection with, the institution and prosecution of 

17 such proceedings shall be assessed against the per18 son committing such violation. The Commission 

19 shall determine whether such costs and expenses 

20 were reasonably incurred by the complainant without 

21 reference to whether the Secretary also participated 

22 in the proceeding. 

23 ‘‘(7) EXPEDITED PROCEEDINGS; JUDICIAL RE24 VIEW.—Proceedings under this subsection shall be 

25 expedited by the Secretary and the Commission. Any 


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1 order issued by the Commission under this sub2 section shall be subject to judicial review in accord3 ance with section 106. Violations by any person of 

4 paragraph (1) shall be subject to the provisions of 

5 sections 108 and 110(a)(4). 

6 ‘‘(8) PROCEDURAL RIGHTS.—The rights and 

7 remedies provided for in this subsection may not be 

8 waived by any agreement, policy, form, or condition 

9 of employment, including by any pre-dispute arbitra10 tion agreement or collective bargaining agreement. 

11 ‘‘(9) SAVINGS.—Nothing in this subsection shall 

12 be construed to diminish the rights, privileges, or 

13 remedies of any employee who exercises rights under 

14 any Federal or State law or common law, or under 

15 any collective bargaining agreement.’’. 

16 SEC. 402. PROTECTION FROM LOSS OF PAY. 

17 Section 111 (30 U.S.C. 821) is amended to read as 

18 follows: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 111. ENTITLEMENT OF MINERS. 

20 ‘‘(a) PROTECTION FROM LOSS OF PAY.— 

21 ‘‘(1) WITHDRAWAL ORDER.—If a coal or other 

22 mine or area of such mine is closed by an order 

23 issued under section 103, 104, 107, 108, or 110 all 

24 miners who are idled by such order shall be entitled 

25 to full compensation by the operator at their regular 


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1 rates of pay and in accordance with their regular 

2 schedules of pay for the remainder of the current 

3 shift and the next 8 hour shift for which they are 

4 idled. Nothing in this section shall prevent the oper5 ator of a coal or other mine from transferring min6 ers from the area of the mine effected by the with7 drawal order to another area of the mine not under 

8 the withdrawal order. 

9 ‘‘(2) REFUSAL TO COMPLY.—Whenever an op10 erator violates or fails or refuses to comply with any 

11 order issued under section 103, 104, 107, 108, or 

12 110, all miners employed at the affected mine who 

13 would have been withdrawn from, or prevented from 

14 entering, such mine or area thereof as a result of 

15 such order shall be entitled to full compensation by 

16 the operator at their regular rates of pay, in addi17 tion to pay received for work performed after such 

18 order was issued, for the period beginning when 

19 such order was issued and ending when such order 

20 is complied with, vacated, terminated, or up to 10 

21 days. 

22 ‘‘(b) ENFORCEMENT.— 

23 ‘‘(1) COMMISSION ORDERS.—The Commission 

24 shall have authority to order compensation due 

25 under this section upon the filing of a complaint by 


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1 a miner or his representative and after opportunity 

2 for hearing subject to section 554 of title 5, United 

3 States Code. Whenever the Commission issues an 

4 order sustaining the complaint under this subsection 

5 in whole or in part, the Commission shall award the 

6 complainant reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs. 

7 ‘‘(2) FAILURE TO PAY COMPENSATION DUE.— 

8 Consistent with the authority of the Secretary to 

9 order miners withdrawn from a mine under this Act, 

10 the Secretary shall order a mine that has been sub11 ject to a withdrawal order under section 103, 104, 

12 107, 108, or 110, and has reopened, to be closed 

13 again if compensation in accordance with the provi14 sions of this section is not paid by the end of the 

15 next regularly scheduled payroll period following the 

16 lifting of a withdrawal order.’’. 

17 TITLE V—MODERNIZING 

18 HEALTH AND SAFETY STAND19 ARDS 

20 SEC. 501. PRE-SHIFT REVIEW OF MINE CONDITIONS. 

21 Section 303(d) (30 U.S.C. 863(d)) is amended by 

22 adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(3)(A) Not later than 30 days after the issuance of 

24 the interim final rules promulgated under subparagraph 

25 (C), each operator of an underground coal mine shall imVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:05 Dec 23, 2011 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00053 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3697.IH H3697

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1 plement a communication program at the underground 

2 coal mine to ensure that each miner entering the mine 

3 is made aware, at the start of such miner’s shift, of the 

4 current conditions of the mine, including— 

5 ‘‘(i) any conditions that are hazardous; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) the general conditions of that miner’s as7 signed working section or other area. 

8 ‘‘(B) Not later than 90 days after the date of enact9 ment of the Mine Safety Accountability and Improved 

10 Protection Act, the Secretary shall promulgate interim 

11 final rules implementing the requirements of subpara12 graphs (A) and (B).’’. 

13 SEC. 502. ATMOSPHERIC MONITORING SYSTEMS. 

14 Section 317 (30 U.S.C. 877) is amended by adding 

15 at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(u) ATMOSPHERIC MONITORING SYSTEMS.— 

17 ‘‘(1) NIOSH RECOMMENDATIONS.—Not later 

18 than 1 year after the date of enactment of the Mine 

19 Safety Accountability and Improved Protection Act, 

20 the Director of the National Institute for Occupa21 tional Safety and Health, acting through the Office 

22 of Mine Safety and Health Research, in consulta23 tion, including through technical working groups 

24 with operators, vendors, State mine safety agencies, 

25 the Secretary, and labor representatives of miners, 


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1 shall issue recommendations to the Secretary regard2 ing— 

3 ‘‘(A) how to ensure that atmospheric moni4 toring systems are utilized in the underground 

5 coal mining industry to maximize the health 

6 and safety of underground coal miners; and 

7 ‘‘(B) the implementation of redundant sys8 tems, such as the bundle tubing system, that 

9 can continuously monitor the mine atmosphere 

10 following incidents such as fires, explosions, en11 trapments, and inundations. 

12 ‘‘(2) ATMOSPHERIC MONITORING SYSTEM REG13 ULATIONS.—Not later than 1 year following the re14 ceipt of the recommendations described in paragraph 

15 (1), the Secretary shall promulgate regulations re16 quiring that each operator of an underground coal 

17 mine install atmospheric monitoring systems, con18 sistent with such recommendations, that— 

19 ‘‘(A) protect miners where the miners nor20 mally work and travel; 

21 ‘‘(B) provide real-time information regard22 ing methane and carbon monoxide levels, and 

23 airflow direction, as appropriate, with sensing, 

24 annunciating, and recording capabilities; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) can, to the maximum extent prac2 ticable, withstand explosions and fires.’’. 

3 SEC. 503. TECHNOLOGY RELATED TO RESPIRABLE DUST. 

4 Section 202(d) (30 U.S.C. 842(d)) is amended by 

5 striking ‘‘of Health and Human Services’’. 

6 SEC. 504. REFRESHER TRAINING ON MINER RIGHTS AND 

7 RESPONSIBILITIES. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 115(a)(3) (30 U.S.C. 

9 825(a)(3)) is amended to read as follows: 

10 ‘‘(3) all miners shall receive not less than 9 

11 hours of refresher training not less frequently than 

12 once every 12 months, and such training shall in13 clude one hour of training on the statutory rights 

14 and responsibilities of miners and their representa15 tives under this Act and other applicable Federal 

16 and State law, pursuant to a program of instruction 

17 developed by the Secretary and delivered by the 

18 mine operator or by a trainer approved by the Sec19 retary;’’. 

20 (b) TIMING OF INITIAL STATUTORY RIGHTS TRAIN21 ING.—Notwithstanding section 115 of the Federal Mine 

22 Safety and Health Act (as amended by subsection (a)) (30 

23 U.S.C. 825) or the health and safety training program ap24 proved under such section, an operator shall ensure that 

25 all miners already employed by the operator on the date 


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1 of enactment of this Act shall receive the one hour of stat2 utory rights and responsibilities training described in sec3 tion 115(a)(3) of such Act not later than 180 days after 

4 such date. 

5 SEC. 505. AUTHORITY TO MANDATE ADDITIONAL TRAINING. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 115 (30 U.S.C. 825) is 

7 further amended by redesignating subsection (e) as sub8 section (f) and inserting after subsection (d) the following: 

9 ‘‘(e) AUTHORITY TO MANDATE ADDITIONAL TRAIN10 ING.—The Secretary is authorized to require that an oper11 ator of a coal mine provide additional training beyond 

12 what is otherwise required by law, and specifying the time 

13 within which such training shall be provided, if the Sec14 retary finds that— 

15 ‘‘(1)(A) an operator has shown a history of in16 adequately training its miners in mine health and 

17 safety; 

18 ‘‘(B) a serious or fatal accident has occurred at 

19 such mine; or 

20 ‘‘(C) such mine has experienced accident and 

21 injury rates, citations for violations of this Act (in22 cluding mandatory health or safety standards or reg23 ulations promulgated under this Act), citations for 

24 significant and substantial violations, or withdrawal 


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1 orders issued under this Act at a rate above the av2 erage for mines of similar size and type; and 

3 ‘‘(2) additional training would benefit the 

4 health and safety of miners at the mine.’’. 

5 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 104(g)(2) 

6 (30 U.S.C. 814(g)(2)) is amended by striking ‘‘under 

7 paragraph (1)’’ both places it appears and inserting 

8 ‘‘under paragraph (1) or under section 115(e)’’. 

9 SEC. 506. CERTIFICATION OF PERSONNEL. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title I is further amended by add11 ing at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘SEC. 118. CERTIFICATION OF PERSONNEL. 

13 ‘‘(a) CERTIFICATION REQUIRED.—Any person who is 

14 authorized or designated by the operator of a coal mine 

15 to perform any duties or provide any training that this 

16 Act, including a mandatory health or safety standard or 

17 regulation promulgated pursuant to this Act, requires to 

18 be performed or provided by a certified, registered, quali19 fied, or otherwise approved person, shall be permitted to 

20 perform such duties or provide such training only if such 

21 person has a current certification, registration, qualifica22 tion, or approval to perform such duties or provide such 

23 training consistent with the requirements of this section. 

24 ‘‘(b) ESTABLISHMENT OF CERTIFICATION REQUIRE25 MENTS AND PROCEDURES.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

2 the date of enactment of the Mine Safety Account3 ability and Improved Protection Act, the Secretary 

4 shall issue mandatory standards to establish— 

5 ‘‘(A) requirements for such certification, 

6 registration, qualification, or other approval, in7 cluding the experience, examinations, and ref8 erences that may be required as appropriate; 

9 ‘‘(B) time limits for such certifications and 

10 procedures for obtaining and renewing such cer11 tification, registration, qualification, or other 

12 approval; and 

13 ‘‘(C) procedures and criteria for revoking 

14 such certification, registration, qualification, or 

15 other approval, including procedures that en16 sure that the Secretary responds to requests for 

17 revocation. 

18 ‘‘(2) COORDINATION WITH STATES.—In devel19 oping such standards, the Secretary shall consult 

20 with States that have miner certification programs 

21 to ensure effective coordination with existing State 

22 standards and requirements for certification. The 

23 standards required under paragraph (1) may provide 

24 that the certification, registration, qualification, or 

25 other approval of the State in which the coal or 


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1 other mine is located satisfies the requirement of 

2 subsection (a) if the State’s program of certification, 

3 registration, qualification, or other approval is no 

4 less stringent than the standards established by the 

5 Secretary under paragraph (1). 

6 ‘‘(c) OPERATOR FEES FOR CERTIFICATION.— 

7 ‘‘(1) ASSESSMENT AND COLLECTION.—Begin8 ning 180 days after the date of enactment of the 

9 Mine Safety Accountability and Improved Protection 

10 Act, the Secretary shall assess and collect fees, in 

11 accordance with this subsection, from each operator 

12 for each person certified under this section. Fees 

13 shall be assessed and collected in amounts deter14 mined by the Secretary as necessary to fund the cer15 tification programs established under this section. 

16 ‘‘(2) MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH CERTIFI17 CATION FUND.—There is established in the Treasury 

18 of the United States a separate account for the de19 posit of fees collected under this subsection to be 

20 known as the Mine Safety and Health Certification 

21 Fund. The Secretary shall deposit any fees collected 

22 pursuant to paragraph (1) into the fund. 

23 ‘‘(3) USE.—Amounts in the Mine Safety and 

24 Health Certification Fund shall be available to the 

25 Secretary, as provided in paragraph (4), for making 


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1 expenditures to carry out the certification programs 

2 established under this subsection. 

3 ‘‘(4) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—In 

4 addition to funds appropriated under section 114, 

5 there is authorized to be appropriated from the Mine 

6 Safety and Health Certification Fund to the Assist7 ant Secretary for Mine Safety and Health for each 

8 fiscal year in which fees are collected under para9 graph (1) an amount equal to the total amount col10 lected during the previous fiscal year from fees as11 sessed pursuant to this subsection. Such amounts 

12 are authorized to remain available until expended. 

13 ‘‘(5) CREDITING AND AVAILABILITY OF FEES.— 

14 Fees authorized and collected under this subsection 

15 shall be available for obligation only to the extent 

16 and in the amount provided in advance in appropria17 tions Acts. 

18 ‘‘(d) CITATION; WITHDRAWAL ORDER.—Any oper19 ator who permits a person to perform any of the health 

20 or safety related functions described in subsection (a) 

21 without a current certification which meets the require22 ments of this section shall be considered to have com23 mitted an unwarrantable failure under section 104(d)(1), 

24 and the Secretary shall issue an order requiring that the 


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1 miner be withdrawn or reassigned to duties that do not 

2 require such certification.’’. 

3 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 318 (30 

4 U.S.C. 878) is amended— 

5 (1) by striking subsections (a) and (b); 

6 (2) in subsection (c), by redesignating para7 graphs (1) through (3) as subparagraphs (A) 

8 through (C), respectively; 

9 (3) in subsection (g), by redesignating para10 graphs (1) through (4) as subparagraphs (A) 

11 through (D), respectively; and 

12 (4) by redesignating subsections (c) through (j) 

13 as paragraphs (1) through (8), respectively. 

14 TITLE VI—ADDITIONAL MINE 

15 SAFETY PROVISIONS 

16 SEC. 601. DEFINITIONS. 

17 (a) DEFINITION OF OPERATOR.—Section 3(d) is 

18 amended to read as follows: 

19 ‘‘(d) ‘operator’ means— 

20 ‘‘(1) any owner, lessee, or other person that— 

21 ‘‘(A) operates or supervises a coal or other 

22 mine; or 

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1 ational decisions that affect, directly or indi2 rectly, the health or safety at such mine; or 

3 ‘‘(2) any independent contractor performing 

4 services or construction at such mine;’’. 

5 (b) DEFINITION OF AGENT.—Section 3(e) (30 U.S.C. 

6 802(e)) is amended by striking ‘‘the miners’’ and inserting 

7 ‘‘any miner’’. 

8 (c) DEFINITION OF MINER.—Section 3(g) (30 U.S.C. 

9 802(g)) is amended by inserting after ‘‘or other mine’’ the 

10 following: ‘‘, and includes any individual who is not cur11 rently working in a coal or other mine but would be cur12 rently working in such mine, but for an accident in such 

13 mine’’. 

14 (d) DEFINITION OF SIGNIFICANT AND SUBSTANTIAL

15 VIOLATIONS.—Section 3 (30 U.S.C. 802) is further 

16 amended— 

17 (1) in subsection (m), by striking ‘‘and’’ after 

18 the semicolon; 

19 (2) in subsection (n), by striking the period at 

20 the end and inserting a semicolon; 

21 (3) in subsection (o), by striking the period at 

22 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

23 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(p) ‘significant and substantial violation’ means a 

25 violation of this Act, including any mandatory health or 


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1 safety standard or regulation promulgated under this Act, 

2 that is of such nature as could significantly and substan3 tially contribute to the cause and effect of a coal or other 

4 mine safety or health hazard as described in section 

5 104(d) and there is a substantial probability that such a 

6 violation could result in death.’’. 

7 SEC. 602. ASSISTANCE TO STATES. 

8 Section 503 (30 U.S.C. 953(a)) is amended— 

9 (1) in subsection (a)— 

10 (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), 

11 by striking ‘‘, in coordination with the Sec12 retary of Health, Education, and Welfare and 

13 the Secretary of the Interior,’’; 

14 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘and’’ 

15 after the semicolon; 

16 (C) in paragraph (3), by striking the pe17 riod and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

18 (D) by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(4) to assist such State in developing and im20 plementing any certification program for coal or 

21 other mines required for compliance with section 

22 118.’’; and 

23 (2) in subsection (h), by striking ‘‘$3,000,000 

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1 ceeding fiscal year’’ and inserting ‘‘$20,000,000 for 

2 each fiscal year’’. 

3 SEC. 603. AMENDMENTS RELATING TO ELIGIBILITY FOR 

4 SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM. 

5 Section 515 (30 U.S.C. 964) is amended— 

6 (1) in subsection (b)(3), by striking subpara7 graph (B) and redesignating subparagraphs (C) and 

8 (D) as subparagraphs (B) and (C), respectively; 

9 (2) in subsection (c)(3), by striking subpara10 graph (B) and redesignating subparagraphs (C) and 

11 (D) as subparagraphs (B) and (C), respectively; and 

12 (3) in subsection (d)(3)— 

13 (A) in subparagraph (A), by inserting 

14 ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon; and 

15 (B) by striking subparagraph (B) and re16 designating subparagraph (C) as subparagraph 

17 (B). 

18 SEC. 604. ADDITIONAL TRAINING OF MINE INSPECTORS. 

19 Beginning during the 1 year period after the date of 

20 enactment of this Act, and each year thereafter, the Sec21 retary of Labor shall require that each mine inspector con22 ducting inspections under the Federal Mines Safety and 

23 Health Act of 1977 receive a full additional week of train24 ing, in addition to the training that was provided to or 


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1 required of such inspectors prior to the date of enactment 

2 of this Act. 

3 SEC. 605. REPORT ON STAFFING NEEDS OF THE MINE SAFE4 TY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION. 

5 Not later than 90 days after the date of the enact6 ment of this Act, the Secretary of Labor shall transmit 

7 a report to Congress detailing any specific need for addi8 tional inspectors or other employees of the Mine Safety 

9 and Health Administration in order for the Administra10 tion to carry out and fulfill the purposes of this Act. Such 

11 report shall include specific requests for additional appro12 priations, if so determined by the Secretary. 

13 SEC. 606. BUDGET NEUTRALITY; OFFSET. 

14 (a) OFFSET.—Prior to being appropriated, additional 

15 amounts authorized by the amendments made by this Act 

16 shall be fully offset by a reduction to another appropria17 tion, as the House and Senate Committees on Appropria18 tions consider appropriate. 

19 (b) BUDGET CONTROL ACT.—Nothing in this Act or 

20 the amendments made by this Act shall be interpreted to 

21 violate the budgetary caps enacted in the Budget Control 

22 Act of 2011 (Public Law 112–25). 

Æ 


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