I 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5432 

To amend the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 to improve 

the safety of miners. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 19, 2006 

Mrs. CAPITO (for herself, Mr. RAHALL, and Mr. MOLLOHAN) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the 

Workforce 

A BILL 

To amend the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 

to improve the safety of miners. 

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. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Mine Improvement and 

5 New Emergency Response Act of 2006’’ or the ‘‘MINER 

6 Act’’. 

7 SEC. 2. EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS. 

8 Section 316 of the Federal Mine Safety and Health 

9 Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 876) is amended— 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
2 

•HR 5432 IH

1 (1) in the section heading by adding at the end 

2 the following: ‘‘AND EMERGENCY RESPONSE

3 PLANS’’; 

4 (2) by inserting ‘‘(a)’’ after the section designa5 tion; 

6 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(b)(1) Each underground coal mine operator shall 

8 carry out on a continuing basis a program to improve acci9 dent preparedness and response at each mine. Not later 

10 than 60 days after the date of enactment of the Mine Im11 provement and New Emergency Response Act of 2006, 

12 each underground coal operator shall develop and adopt 

13 a written accident response plan that complies with this 

14 subsection with respect to each mine of the operator, and 

15 shall periodically update such plan to reflect changes in 

16 the operation of the mine, advances in technology, or other 

17 relevant considerations. Each such operator shall make 

18 the accident response plan available to the miners and the 

19 miners’ representatives. Such accident response plan 

20 shall— 

21 ‘‘(A) provide for the evacuation of all individ22 uals endangered by an emergency; and 

23 ‘‘(B) provide for the maintenance of individuals 

24 trapped underground in the event that miners are 

25 not able to evacuate the mine. 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
3 

•HR 5432 IH

1 ‘‘(2) The accident response plan developed under 

2 paragraph (1) shall be subject to review and approval by 

3 the Secretary. The Secretary shall periodically review each 

4 such plan not less than once every 6 months and in such 

5 reviews shall consider all comments submitted by miners 

6 and miners’ representatives and intervening advancements 

7 in science and technology. In determining whether to ap8 prove a particular plan the Secretary shall take into con9 sideration all comments submitted by miners or their rep10 resentatives and must determine that the plan— 

11 ‘‘(A) affords miners a level of safety at least 

12 consistent with the existing standards, including 

13 standards mandated by law and regulation; 

14 ‘‘(B) reflects the most credible scientific re15 search; 

16 ‘‘(C) is technologically feasible, makes use of 

17 current commercially available technology, and ac18 counts for the specific physical characteristics of the 

19 mine; and 

20 ‘‘(D) reflects the improvements in mine safety 

21 gained from experience under this Act and other 

22 worker safety and health laws. 

23 ‘‘(3) To be approved under paragraph (2), an acci24 dent response plan shall include the following: 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
4 

•HR 5432 IH

1 ‘‘(A) The plan shall provide for a redundant 

2 means of communications with the surface and res3 cue teams for persons underground, such as sec4 ondary telephone or equivalent two-way communica5 tion. 

6 ‘‘(B) Consistent with commercially available 

7 technology and with the physical constraints, if any, 

8 of the mine, the plan shall provide for above ground 

9 personnel to determine the current, or immediately 

10 pre-accident, location of all underground personnel. 

11 any system so utilized shall be functional, reliable, 

12 and calculated to remain serviceable in a post-acci13 dent setting. 

14 ‘‘(C) The plan shall provide for— 

15 ‘‘(i) emergency supplies of breathable air 

16 for individuals trapped underground sufficient 

17 to maintain such individuals for a sustained pe18 riod of time; 

19 ‘‘(ii) caches of self-rescuers of not less than 

20 2 hours for each miner to be kept in escape 

21 ways from the deepest work areas to the sur22 face at a distance of no further than an average 

23 miner could walk in 30 minutes; 

24 ‘‘(iii) a maintenance schedule for checking 

25 the reliability of self rescuers, retiring older 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
5 

•HR 5432 IH

1 self-rescuers first, and introducing new self-res2 cuer technology, such as units with interchange3 able air or oxygen cylinders not requiring doff4 ing to replenish airflow and units with supplies 

5 great than 60 minutes, as they are approved by 

6 the Secretary and become available on the mar7 ket; and 

8 ‘‘(iv) training for each miner in proper 

9 procedures for donning self-rescuers to be con10 ducted not less than once per quarter, switching 

11 from one unit to another, and ensuring proper 

12 fit. 

13 ‘‘(D) The plan shall provide for the use of 

14 flame-resistant directional lifelines or equivalent sys15 tems in escapeways to enable evacuation. Such re16 quirement shall apply upon the replacement of exist17 ing lifelines, or, in the case of lifelines in working 

18 sections, upon the earlier of the replacement of such 

19 lifelines or 3 years after the date of enactment of 

20 the Mine Improvement and New Emergency Re21 sponse Act of 2006. 

22 ‘‘(E) The plan shall provide a training program 

23 for emergency procedures described in the plan 

24 which will not diminish the requirements for mandaVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:20 May 24, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5432.IH H5432

ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
6 

•HR 5432 IH

1 tory health and safety training currently required 

2 under section 115. 

3 ‘‘(F) The plan shall set out procedures for co4 ordination and communication between the operator, 

5 mine rescue teams, and local emergency response 

6 personnel and make provisions for familiarizing local 

7 rescue personnel with surface functions that may be 

8 required in the course of mine rescue work. 

9 ‘‘(G) The plan shall provide for— 

10 ‘‘(i) the implementation, not later than 3 

11 years after the date of enactment of the Mine 

12 Improvement and New Emergency Response 

13 Act of 2006, of post-accident communication 

14 between underground and surface personnel via 

15 a wireless two-way medium, and 

16 ‘‘(ii) an electronic tracking system permit17 ting surface personnel to determine the location 

18 of any persons trapped underground. 

19 If such two-way communication and electronic track20 ing system cannot reasonably be implemented, the 

21 plan shall set forth the reasons such a system or 

22 systems cannot be adopted and shall state the opera23 tor’s alternative means of compliance. Such alter24 native shall approximate, as closely as possible, the 

25 degree of functional utility and safety protection 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
7 

•HR 5432 IH

1 provided by the wireless two-way medium and track2 ing system referred to in this subpart. The Secretary 

3 may make additional plan requirements with respect 

4 to any of the content matters. 

5 ‘‘(4)(A) Any dispute between the Secretary and an 

6 operator with respect to the content of the operator’s plan 

7 or any refusal by the Secretary to approve such a plan 

8 shall be resolved on an expedited basis. In the event of 

9 such a dispute or refusal, the Secretary shall issue a tech10 nical citation which shall be immediately referred to a De11 partment of Labor Administrative Law Judge. The Sec12 retary and the operator shall submit all relevant material 

13 regarding the dispute to the Administrative Law Judge 

14 within 15 days of the date of the referral. The Administra15 tive Law Judge shall render his or her decision with re16 spect to the plan content dispute within 15 days of the 

17 receipt of the submission. 

18 ‘‘(B) A party adversely affected be a decision under 

19 clause (ii) may pursue all further available appeal rights 

20 with respect to the citation involved, except that inclusion 

21 of the disputed provision in the plan will not be limited 

22 by such appeal unless such relief is requested by the oper23 ator and permitted by the Administrative Law Judge. 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
8 

•HR 5432 IH

1 ‘‘(C) Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to 

2 modify the authority of the Secretary to issue citations 

3 or orders as provided for in this Act. 

4 ‘‘(5) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, 

5 nothing in this section, and no response and preparedness 

6 plan developed under this section, shall be approved if it 

7 reduces the protection afforded miners by an existing 

8 mandatory health or safety standard.’’. 

9 SEC. 3. INCIDENT COMMAND AND CONTROL. 

10 Title I of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act 

11 of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 811 et seq.) is amended by adding 

12 at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘LIMITATION ON CERTAIN LIABILITY FOR RESCUE

14 OPERATIONS

15 ‘‘SEC. 116. (a) No person shall bring an action 

16 against any covered individual or his or her regular em17 ployer for an injury (or death) sustained as a result of 

18 carrying out activities relating to mine accident rescue or 

19 recovery operations. This subsection shall not apply where 

20 the action that is alleged to result in the injury (or death) 

21 was the result of gross negligence, reckless conduct, or ille22 gal conduct or, where the regular employer (as such term 

23 is used in this Act) is the operator of the mine at which 

24 the rescue activity takes place. 

25 ‘‘(b) For purposes of subsection (a), the term ‘cov26 ered individual’ means an individual (1) who is a member 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
9 

•HR 5432 IH

1 of a mine rescue team or who is otherwise a volunteer with 

2 respect to a mine accident; and (2) who is carrying out 

3 activities relating to mine accident rescue or recovery oper4 ations. 

5 ‘‘(c) For purposes of subsection (a), the term ‘regular 

6 employer’ means the entity that is the covered employee’s 

7 legal or statutory employer pursuant to applicable State 

8 law.’’. 

9 SEC. 4. MINE RESCUE TEAMS. 

10 Section 115(e) of the Federal Mine Safety and 

11 Health Safety Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 825 (e)) is amend12 ed— 

13 (1) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after the subsection des14 ignation; and 

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

16 ‘‘(2) The Secretary shall issue regulations with re17 gard to mine rescue teams which shall be finalized and 

18 in effect not later than 18 months after the date of enact19 ment of the Mine Improvement and New Emergency Re20 sponse Act of 2006. Such regulations shall provide for the 

21 following: 

22 ‘‘(A) That such regulations shall not be con23 strued to waive operator training requirements appli24 cable to existing mine rescue teams. 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
10 

•HR 5432 IH

1 ‘‘(B) That the Mine Safety and Health Admin2 istration shall establish, and update every 5 years 

3 thereafter, criteria to certify the qualifications of 

4 mine rescue teams. 

5 ‘‘(C)(i) That the operator of each underground 

6 coal mine have an employee knowledgeable in mine 

7 emergency response who is employed at the mine on 

8 each shift at each underground mine and make 

9 available two certified mine rescue teams whose 

10 members— 

11 ‘‘(I) are familiar with the operations of 

12 such coal mine; 

13 ‘‘(II) participate at least annually in two 

14 local mine rescue contests; 

15 ‘‘(III) participate at least annually in mine 

16 rescue training at the underground coal mine 

17 covered by the mine rescue team; 

18 ‘‘(IV) are available at the mine within one 

19 hour ground travel time from the mine rescue 

20 station; 

21 ‘‘(V) are knowledgeable about the oper22 ations and ventilation of the covered mines; and 

23 ‘‘(VI) are compromised of individuals with 

24 a minimum of 3 years underground coal mine 

25 experience that shall have occurred within the 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
11 

•HR 5432 IH

1 10-year period preceding their employment on 

2 the contract mine rescue team. 

3 ‘‘(ii) For the purpose of complying with clause 

4 (i), an operator with more than 36 employees shall 

5 employee at least one team that is either an indi6 vidual mine site rescue team or a multi-employer 

7 composite team as described in subclause (II) of this 

8 clause. The second team required by this subpara9 graph may be any of the following: 

10 ‘‘(I) An individual mine site mine rescue 

11 team. 

12 ‘‘(II) A multi-employer composite team 

13 that is made up of team members who are 

14 knowledgeable about the operations and ventila15 tion of the covered mines and who train on a 

16 semi-annual basis at the covered underground 

17 coal mine, and which— 

18 ‘‘(aa) provides coverage for multiple 

19 operators that have team members which 

20 include at least two active employees from 

21 each of the covered mines; 

22 ‘‘(bb) provides coverage for multiple 

23 mines owned by the same operator which 

24 members include at least two active em25 ployees from each mine; or 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
12 

•HR 5432 IH

1 ‘‘(cc) is a State-sponsored mine rescue 

2 team comprised of at least two active em3 ployees from each of the covered mines. 

4 ‘‘(III) A commercial mine rescue team pro5 vided by contract through a third-party vendor 

6 or a mine rescue team provided by another coal 

7 company if such team— 

8 ‘‘(aa) trains on a quarterly basis at 

9 covered underground coal mines; 

10 ‘‘(bb) is knowledgeable about the op11 erations and ventilation of the covered 

12 mines; and 

13 ‘‘(cc) is compromised of individuals 

14 with a minimum of 3 years underground 

15 coal mine experience that shall have oc16 curred within the 10-year period preceding 

17 their employment on the contract mine res18 cue team. 

19 ‘‘(IV) A State-sponsored team made up of 

20 State employees.’’. 

21 SEC. 5. PROMPT INCIDENT NOTIFICATION. 

22 Section 103(j) of the Federal Mine Safety and Health 

23 Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 813(j)) is amended by inserting 

24 after the first sentence the following: ‘‘For purposes of the 

25 preceding sentence, the notification required shall be proVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:20 May 24, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5432.IH H5432

ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
13 

•HR 5432 IH

1 vided by the operator within 15 minutes of the time at 

2 which the operator realizes that the death of an individual 

3 at the mine, or an injury or entrapment of an individual 

4 at the mine which has a reasonable potential to cause 

5 death, has occurred.’’. 

6 SEC. 6. NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY 

7 AND HEALTH. 

8 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Section 22 of the Occupa9 tional Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 671) 

10 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(h)(1) There shall be permanently established within 

12 the Institute an Office of Mine Safety and Health for the 

13 purpose of enhancing the development of new mine safety 

14 technology and technological applications and to expedite 

15 the commercial availability and implementation of such 

16 technology in mining environments. The office shall be ad17 ministered by an Associate Director to be appointed by 

18 the Director. 

19 ‘‘(2) In addition to all purposes and authorities pro20 vided for under this section, the office of mine safety and 

21 health shall be responsible for research, development, and 

22 testing of new technologies and equipment designed to en23 hance mine safety and health. to carry out such functions 

24 the director of the institute, acting through the office, 

25 shall have the authority to— 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
14 

•HR 5432 IH

1 ‘‘(A) award competitive grants to institutions 

2 and private entities to encourage the development 

3 and manufacture of mine safety equipment; 

4 ‘‘(B) award contracts to educational institutions 

5 or private laboratories for the performance of prod6 uct testing or related work with respect to new mine 

7 technology and equipment; and 

8 ‘‘(C) establish an interagency working group as 

9 provided for in paragraph (4). 

10 ‘‘(3) To be eligible to receive a grant under the au11 thority provided for under paragraph (2), an entity or in12 stitution shall— 

13 ‘‘(A) submit to the Director of the Institute an 

14 application at such time, in such manner, and con15 taining such information as the Director may re16 quire; and 

17 ‘‘(B) include in the application under subpara18 graph (A), a description of the mine safety equip19 ment to be developed and manufactured under the 

20 grant and a description of the reasons that such 

21 equipment would otherwise not be developed or man22 ufactured. including reasons relating to the limited 

23 potential commercial market for such equipment. 

24 ‘‘(4)(A) The Director of the Institute, in carrying out 

25 paragraph (2)(D) shall establish an interagency working 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
15 

•HR 5432 IH

1 group to share technology and technological research and 

2 developments that could be utilized to enhance mine safety 

3 and accident response. 

4 ‘‘(B) The working group under subparagraph (A) 

5 shall be chaired by the Associate Director of the Office 

6 who shall appoint the members of the working group, 

7 which may include representatives of other Federal agen8 cies or departments as determined appropriate by the As9 sociate Director. 

10 ‘‘(C) The working group under subparagraph (A) 

11 shall conduct an evaluation of research conducted by, and 

12 the technological developments of, agencies and depart13 ments who are represented on the working group that may 

14 have applicability to mine safety and accident response 

15 and make recommendations to the Director for the further 

16 development and eventual implementation of such tech17 nology. 

18 ‘‘(5) Not later than 1 year after the establishment 

19 of the Office under this subsection, and annually there20 after, the Director of the Institute shall submit to the 

21 Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of 

22 the Senate and the Committee on Education and the 

23 Workforce of the House of Representatives a report that, 

24 with respect to the year involved, described the new mine 

25 safety technologies and equipment that have been studied, 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
16 

•HR 5432 IH

1 tested, and certified for use, and with respect to those in2 stances of technologies and equipment that have been con3 sidered but not yet certified for use, there reasons there4 fore. 

5 ‘‘(6) There is authorized to be appropriated, such 

6 sums as may be necessary to enable the Institute and the 

7 office of Mine Safety and Health to carry out this sub8 section.’’. 

9 SEC. 7. REQUIREMENT CONCERNING FAMILY LIAISONS. 

10 The Secretary of Labor shall establish a policy that— 

11 (1) requires the temporary assignment of an in12 dividual Department of Labor official to be a liaison 

13 between the Department and the families of victims 

14 of mine tragedies involving multiple deaths; 

15 (2) requires the Mine Safety and Health Ad16 ministration to be as responsive as possible to re17 quests from the families of mine accident victims for 

18 information relating to mine accidents; and 

19 (3) requires that in such accidents, such Ad20 ministration shall serve as the primary communi21 cator with the operator, miners’ families, the press, 

22 and the public. 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
17 

•HR 5432 IH

1 SEC. 8. PENALTIES. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 110 of the Federal Mine 

3 Safety and Health Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 820) is amend4 ed— 

5 (1) in subsection (a)— 

6 (A) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after the subsection 

7 designation; and 

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

9 ‘‘(2) The operator of a coal mine who fails to 

10 provide timely notification to the Secretary as 

11 required under section 103(j) (relating to the 

12 15 minute requirement) shall be assessed a civil 

13 penalty by the Secretary of not less than 

14 $5,000 and not more than $60,000.’’; 

15 (2) by adding at the end of subsection (b) the 

16 following: ‘‘Violations under this section that are 

17 deemed to be flagrant may be assessed a civil pen18 alty of not more than $220,000. For purposes of the 

19 preceding sentence, the term ‘flagrant’ with respect 

20 to a violation means a reckless of repeated failure to 

21 make reasonable efforts to eliminate a known viola22 tion of a mandatory health or safety standard that 

23 substantially and proximately caused, or reasonably 

24 could have been expected to cause, death or serious 

25 bodily injuries.’’; and 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
18 

•HR 5432 IH

1 (3) by redesignating subsections (e) through (l) 

2 as subsections (f) through (m), respectively and in3 serting after subsection (d) the following: 

4 ‘‘(e)(1) Any operator who willfully violates a manda5 tory health or safety standard, or knowingly violates or 

6 fails or refuses to comply with any order issued under sec7 tion 104 and section 107, or any order incorporated in 

8 a final decision issued under this title, except an order 

9 incorporated in a decision under paragraph (1) or section 

10 105(c), shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine of 

11 not more than $250,000, or by imprisonment for not more 

12 than one year, or by both, except that if the conviction 

13 is for a violation committed after the first conviction of 

14 such operator under this Act, punishment shall be by a 

15 fine of not more than $500,000, or by imprisonment for 

16 not more than five years, or both. 

17 ‘‘(2) The minimum penalty for any citation issued 

18 under section 104(d)(1) shall be $2,000. The minimum 

19 penalty for a failure or refusal to comply with any order 

20 issued under section 104(d)(2) shall be $4,000. 

21 ‘‘(3) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to 

22 prevent an operator from obtaining a review, in accord23 ance with section 106, of an order imposing a penalty de24 scribed in this subsection. If a court, in making such reVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:20 May 24, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00018 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5432.IH H5432

ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
19 

•HR 5432 IH

1 view, sustains the order, the court shall apply the min2 imum penalties required under this subsection.’’. 

3 (b) REGULATIONS.—Not later than December 31, 

4 2006, the Secretary of Labor shall promulgate final regu5 lations with respect to the penalties provided for under 

6 the amendments made by this section. 

7 SEC. 9. FINE COLLECTIONS. 

8 Section 108(a)(1)(A) of the Federal Mine Safety and 

9 Health Safety Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 818(a)(1)(A)) is 

10 amended by inserting before the comma, the following: ‘‘, 

11 or fails or refuses to comply with any order or decision, 

12 including a civil penalty assessment order, that is issued 

13 under this Act’’. 

14 SEC. 10. SEALING OF ABANDONED AREAS. 

15 Not later than 18 months after the issuance by the 

16 Mine Safety and Health Administration of a final report 

17 on the Sago Mine accident or the date of enactment of 

18 the Mine Improvement and New Emergency Response Act 

19 of 2006, whichever occurs earlier, the Secretary of Labor 

20 shall finalize mandatory heath and safety standards relat21 ing to the sealing of abandoned areas in underground coal 

22 mines. Such health and safety standards shall provide for 

23 an increase in the 20 psi standard currently set forth in 

24 section 7335(a)(2) of title 30, Code of Federal Regula25 tions. 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
20 

•HR 5432 IH

1 SEC. 11. TECHNICAL STUDY PANEL AND SCHOLARSHIP 

2 PROGRAM. 

3 Title V of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act 

4 of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 951 et seq.) is amended by adding 

5 at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 514. TECHNICAL STUDY PANEL. 

7 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a Tech8 nical Study Panel (referred to in this section as the 

9 ‘Panel’) which shall provide independent scientific and en10 gineering review and recommendations with respect to the 

11 utilization of belt air and the composition and fire retard12 ant properties of belt materials in underground coal min13 ing. 

14 ‘‘(b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Panel shall be composed 

15 of— 

16 ‘‘(1) two individuals to be appointed by the Sec17 retary of Health and Human Services, in consulta18 tion with the Director of the National Institute for 

19 Occupational Safety and Health and the Associate 

20 Director of the Office of Mine Safety; 

21 ‘‘(2) two individuals to be appointed by the Sec22 retary of Labor, in consultation with the Assistant 

23 Secretary for Mine Safety and Health; and 

24 ‘‘(3) two individuals, one to be appointed jointly 

25 by the majority leaders of the Senate and House of 

26 Representatives and one to be appointed jointly by 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
21 

•HR 5432 IH

1 the minority leader of the Senate and House of Rep2 resentatives, each to be appointed prior to the sine 

3 die adjournment of the second session of the 109th 

4 Congress. 

5 ‘‘(c) QUALIFICATIONS.—Four of the six individuals 

6 appointed to the Panel under subsection (b) shall possess 

7 a masters or doctoral level degree in mining engineering 

8 or another scientific field demonstrably related to the sub9 ject of the report. No individual appointed to the Panel 

10 shall be an employee of any coal or other mine, or of any 

11 labor organization, or of any State or Federal agency pri12 marily responsible for regulating the mining industry. 

13 ‘‘(d) REPORT.— 

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

15 the date on which all members of the Panel are ap16 pointed under subsection (b), the Panel shall pre17 pare and submit to the Secretary of Labor, the Sec18 retary of Health and Human Services, the Com19 mittee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

20 of the Senate, and the Committee on Education and 

21 the Workforce of the House of Representatives a re22 port concerning the utilization of belt air and the 

23 composition and fire retardant properties of belt ma24 terials in underground coal mining. 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
22 

•HR 5432 IH

1 ‘‘(2) RESPONSE BY SECRETARY.—Not later 

2 than 180 days after the receipt of the report under 

3 paragraph (1), the Secretary of Labor shall provide 

4 a response to the Committee on Health, Education, 

5 Labor, and Pensions of the Senate, and the Com6 mittee on Education and the Workforce of the 

7 House of Representatives containing a description of 

8 the actions, if any, that the Secretary intends to 

9 take based upon the report, including proposing reg10 ulatory changes, and the reasons for such actions. 

11 ‘‘(e) COMPENSATION.—Members appointed to the 

12 panel, while carrying out the duties of the Panel shall be 

13 entitled to receive compensation, per diem in lieu of sub14 sistence, and travel expenses in the same manner and 

15 under the same conditions as that prescribed under section 

16 208(c) of the Public Health Service Act. 

17 ‘‘SEC. 515. SCHOLARSHIPS. 

18 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Education 

19 (referred to in this section as the ‘Secretary’), in consulta20 tion with the Secretary of Labor and the Secretary of 

21 Health and Human Services, shall establish a program to 

22 provide scholarships to eligible individuals to increase the 

23 skilled workforce for both private sector coal mine opera24 tors and mine safety inspectors and other regulatory per25 sonnel for the Mine Safety and Health Administration. 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
23 

•HR 5432 IH

1 ‘‘(b) FUNDAMENTAL SKILLS SCHOLARSHIPS.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Under the program under 

3 subsection (a), the Secretary may award scholarship 

4 to fully or partially pay the tuition costs of eligible 

5 individuals enrolled in 2-year associate’s degree pro6 grams at community colleges or other colleges and 

7 that focus on providing the fundamental skills and 

8 training that is of immediate use to a beginning coal 

9 miner. 

10 ‘‘(2) SKILLS.—The skills described in para11 graph (1) shall include basic math, basic health and 

12 safety, business principles, management and super13 visory skills, skills related to electric circuitry, skills 

14 related to heavy equipment operations, and skills re15 lated to communications. 

16 ‘‘(3) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a 

17 scholarship under this subsection an individual 

18 shall— 

19 ‘‘(A) have a high school diploma or a 

20 GED; 

21 ‘‘(B) have at least two years experience in 

22 full-time employment in mining or mine-related 

23 activities; 

24 ‘‘(C) submit to the Secretary an applica25 tion at such time, in such manner, and conVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:20 May 24, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5432.IH H5432

ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
24 

•HR 5432 IH

1 taining such information as the Secretary deter2 mines; and 

3 ‘‘(D) demonstrate an interest in working in 

4 the field of mining and performing an intern5 ship with the Mine Safety and Health Adminis6 tration or the Institute for Occupational Safety 

7 and Health Office of Mine Safety. 

8 ‘‘(c) MINE SAFETY INSPECTOR SCHOLARSHIPS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Under the program under 

10 subsection (a), the Secretary may award scholarship 

11 to fully or partially pay the tuition costs of eligible 

12 individuals enrolled in undergraduate bachelor’s de13 gree programs at accredited colleges or universities 

14 that provide the skills needed to become mine safety 

15 inspectors. 

16 ‘‘(2) SKILLS.—The skills described in para17 graph (1) include skills developed through programs 

18 leading to a degree in mining engineering, civil engi19 neering, mechanical engineering, electrical engineer20 ing, industrial engineering, environmental engineer21 ing, industrial hygiene, occupational health and safe22 ty, geology, chemistry, or other fields of study re23 lated to mine safety and health work. 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
25 

•HR 5432 IH

1 ‘‘(3) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a 

2 scholarship under this subsection an individual 

3 shall— 

4 ‘‘(A) have a high school diploma or a 

5 GED; 

6 ‘‘(B) have at least 5 years experience in 

7 full-time employment in mining or mining-re8 lated activities; 

9 ‘‘(C) submit to the Secretary an applica10 tion at such time, in such manner, and con11 taining such information as the Secretary deter12 mines; and 

13 ‘‘(D) agree to be employed for a period of 

14 at least 5 years at the Mine Safety and Health 

15 Administration or, to repay, on a pro-rated 

16 basis, the funds received under this program, 

17 plus interest, at a rate established by the Sec18 retary upon the issuance of the scholarship. 

19 ‘‘(d) ADVANCED RESEARCHER SCHOLARSHIPS.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Under the program under 

21 subsection (a), the Secretary may award scholar22 ships to fully or partially pay the tuition costs of eli23 gible individuals enrolled in undergraduate bach24 elor’s degree, masters degree, and Ph.D. degree pro25 grams at accredited colleges or universities that proVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:20 May 24, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5432.IH H5432

ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
26 

•HR 5432 IH

1 vide the skills needed to augment and advance re2 search in mine safety and to broaden, improve, and 

3 expand the universe of candidates for mine safety in4 spector and other regulatory positions in the Mine 

5 Safety and Health Administration. 

6 ‘‘(2) SKILLS.—The skills described in para7 graph (1) include skills developed through programs 

8 leading to a degree is mining engineering, civil engi9 neering, mechanical engineering, electrical engineer10 ing industrial engineering, environmental engineer11 ing, industrial hygiene, occupational health and safe12 ty, geology, chemistry, or other fields of study re13 lated to mine safety and health work. 

14 ‘‘(3) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a 

15 scholarship under this subsection an individual 

16 shall— 

17 ‘‘(A) have a bachelor’s degree or equivalent 

18 from an accredited 4-year institution; 

19 ‘‘(B) have at least 5 years experience in 

20 full-time employment in underground mining or 

21 mining-related activities; and 

22 ‘‘(C) submit to the Secretary an applica23 tion at such time, in such manner, and con24 taining such information as the secretary deter25 mines. 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
27 

•HR 5432 IH

1 ‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

2 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 

3 necessary to carry out this section.’’. 

4 SEC. 12. RESEARCH CONCERNING REFUGE ALTERNATIVES. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the National In6 stitute of Occupational Safety and Health shall provide 

7 for the conduct of research, including field tests, con8 cerning the utility, practicality, survivability, and cost of 

9 various refuge alternatives in an underground coal mine 

10 environment, including commercially available portable 

11 refuge chambers. 

12 (b) REPORT.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months 

14 after the date of enactment of this Act, the National 

15 Institute for Occupational Safety and Health shall 

16 prepare and submit to the Secretary of Labor, the 

17 Secretary of Health and Human Services, the Com18 mittee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

19 of the Senate, and the Committee on Education and 

20 the Workforce of the House of Representatives a re21 port concerning the results of the research con22 ducted under subsection (a), including any field 

23 tests. 

24 (2) RESPONSE BY SECRETARY.—Not later than 

25 180 days after the receipt of the report under paraVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:20 May 24, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5432.IH H5432

ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
28 

•HR 5432 IH

1 graph (1), the Secretary of Labor shall provide a re2 sponse to the Committee on Health, Education, 

3 Labor, and Pensions of the Senate, and the Com4 mittee on Education and the Workforce of the 

5 House of Representatives containing a description of 

6 the actions, if any, that the Secretary intends to 

7 take based upon the report, including proposing reg8 ulatory changes, and the reasons for such actions. 

9 SEC. 13. SAGO MINE SAFETY GRANTS. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Labor shall es11 tablish a program to award competitive grants for edu12 cation and training to carry out the purposes of this sec13 tion. 

14 (b) PURPOSES.—It is the purpose of this section, to 

15 provide for the funding of education and training pro16 grams to better identify, avoid, and prevent unsafe work17 ing conditions in and around mines. 

18 (c) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a grant 

19 under this section, an entity shall— 

20 (1) be a public or private nonprofit entity; and 

21 (2) submit to the Secretary of Labor an appli22 cation at such time, in such manner, and containing 

23 such information as the Secretary may require. 

24 (d) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts received under a 

25 grant under this section shall be used to establish and imVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:20 May 24, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5432.IH H5432

ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
29 

•HR 5432 IH

1 plement education and training programs, or to develop 

2 training materials or employers and miners, concerning 

3 safety and health topics in mines, as determined appro4 priate by the Mine Safety and Health Administration. 

5 (e) AWARDING OF GRANTS.— 

6 (1) ANNUAL BASIS.—Grants under this section 

7 shall be awarded on an annual basis. 

8 (2) SPECIAL EMPHASIS.—In awarding grants 

9 under this section, the Secretary of Labor shall give 

10 special emphasis to programs and materials that tar11 get workers in smaller mines, including training 

12 miners and employers about new Mine Safety and 

13 Health Administration standards, high risk activi14 ties, or hazards identified by such Administration. 

15 (3) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this 

16 section, the Secretary of Labor shall give priority to 

17 the funding of pilot and demonstration projects that 

18 the Secretary determines will provide opportunities 

19 for broad applicability for mine safety. 

20 (f) EVALUATION.—The Secretary of Labor shall use 

21 not less than 1 percent of the funds made available to 

22 carry out this section in a fiscal year to conduct evalua23 tions of the projects funded under grants under this sec24 tion. 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
30 

•HR 5432 IH

1 (g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

2 authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec3 essary to carry out this section 

Æ 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS