I 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5788 

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 

JULY 20, 2010 

Mrs. CAPITO introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Education and Labor 

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: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. References. 


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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. Rock dust standards. 

Sec. 503. Atmospheric monitoring systems. 

Sec. 504. Technology related to respirable dust. 

Sec. 505. Refresher training on miner rights and responsibilities. 

Sec. 506. Authority to mandate additional training. 

Sec. 507. 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. 

1 SEC. 2. REFERENCES. 

2 Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in 

3 this Act an amendment is expressed as an amendment to 

4 a section or other provision, the reference shall be considVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:29 Jul 21, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5788.IH H5788

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1 ered to be made to a section or other provision of the Fed2 eral Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 801 

3 et seq.). 

4 TITLE I—ADDITIONAL INSPEC5 TION AND INVESTIGATION 

6 AUTHORITY 

7 SEC. 101. ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL MINE SAFETY 

8 BOARD FOR CERTAIN INVESTIGATIONS. 

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

10 (1) by striking ‘‘(b) For the purpose’’ and in11 serting the following: 

12 ‘‘(b) ACCIDENT INVESTIGATIONS.— 

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

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

15 ‘‘(2) ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL MINE

16 SAFETY BOARD FOR CERTAIN ACCIDENT INVESTIGA17 TIONS.— 

18 ‘‘(A) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is estab19 lished an independent board to be known as the 

20 National Mine Safety Board (in this paragraph 

21 referred to as the ‘Board’) consisting of 5 mem22 bers, including a Chairperson, who shall be ap23 pointed by the President, by and with the ad24 vice and consent of the Senate. Members of the 

25 Board shall be appointed on the basis of techVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:29 Jul 21, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5788.IH H5788

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1 nical qualification, professional standing, and 

2 demonstrated knowledge of mine safety, acci3 dent reconstruction, safety engineering, and 

4 human factors. The terms of office of members 

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

6 the Board, including the Chairperson, may be 

7 removed for inefficiency, neglect of duty, or 

8 malfeasance in office. The Chairperson shall be 

9 the Chief Executive Officer of the Board and 

10 shall exercise the executive and administrative 

11 functions of the Board. 

12 ‘‘(B) INVESTIGATION OF CERTAIN ACCI13 DENTS.—For any accident involving 3 or more 

14 deaths, the Board shall conduct an independent 

15 investigation to— 

16 ‘‘(i) assess and identify any factors 

17 that caused the accident, including defi18 ciencies in safety management systems, 

19 regulations, enforcement, industry prac20 tices or guidelines, or organizational fail21 ures; 

22 ‘‘(ii) identify and evaluate any con23 tributing actions or inactions of— 

24 ‘‘(I) the operator; 


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1 ‘‘(II) any contractors or other 

2 persons engaged in mining-related 

3 functions at the site; 

4 ‘‘(III) any State agency with 

5 oversight responsibilities; 

6 ‘‘(IV) any agency or office within 

7 the Department of Labor; or 

8 ‘‘(V) any other person or entity 

9 (including equipment manufacturers); 

10 ‘‘(iii) review the findings and conclu11 sions of the investigation conducted by the 

12 Secretary under paragraph (1); 

13 ‘‘(iv) prepare a report that— 

14 ‘‘(I) includes the findings regard15 ing the causal factors described in 

16 clauses (i) and (ii); 

17 ‘‘(II) identifies any strengths and 

18 weaknesses in the Secretary’s inves19 tigation; and 

20 ‘‘(III) includes recommendations, 

21 including interim recommendations 

22 where appropriate, to industry, labor 

23 organizations, State and Federal 

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1 trative, or other changes, which in the 

2 judgment of the Panel, would prevent 

3 a recurrence at other mines; and 

4 ‘‘(v) publish such findings and rec5 ommendations (excluding any portions 

6 which the Attorney General requests that 

7 the Board withhold in relation to a crimi8 nal referral) and hold public meetings to 

9 inform the mining community and families 

10 of affected miners of the Board’s findings 

11 and recommendations. 

12 ‘‘(C) 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 ‘‘(D) 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 Section 103(f) (30 U.S.C. 813(f)) is amended by in19 serting before the last sentence the following: ‘‘If any 

20 miner is entrapped or otherwise prevented as the result 

21 of an accident in such mine from designating such a rep22 resentative directly, such miner’s closest relative may act 

23 on behalf of such miner in designating such a representa24 tive. If any miner is not currently working in such mine 

25 as the result of an accident in such mine, but would be 


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1 currently working in such mine but for such accident, such 

2 miner may designate such a representative.’’. 

3 SEC. 104. ADDITIONAL AMENDMENTS RELATING TO IN4 SPECTIONS AND INVESTIGATIONS. 

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

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

7 sentence the following: ‘‘Such inspections shall be con8 ducted during the various shifts and days of the week dur9 ing which miners are normally present in the mine to en10 sure that the protections of this Act are afforded to all 

11 miners working all shifts.’’. 

12 (b) INJURY AND ILLNESS REPORTING.—Section 

13 103(d) (30 U.S.C. 813(d)) is amended by striking the last 

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

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

16 include man-hours worked and occupational injuries and 

17 illnesses, and shall be maintained separately for each mine 

18 and be reported at a frequency determined by the Sec19 retary, but at least annually. Operators shall be respon20 sible for reporting all miners working at such mine under 

21 their direct supervision.’’. 

22 (c) CONFLICT OF INTEREST IN THE REPRESENTA23 TION OF MINERS.—Section 103(a) (30 U.S.C. 813(a)) is 

24 amended by adding at the end the following: ‘‘During in25 spections and investigations under this section, and during 


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1 any litigation under this Act, no attorney shall represent 

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

3 mine and any other individual, unless such individual has 

4 willfully and voluntarily waived all actual and reasonably 

5 foreseeable conflicts of interest resulting from such rep6 resentation. The Secretary is authorized to take such ac7 tions as the Secretary considers appropriate to ascertain 

8 whether such individual has willfully and voluntarily 

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

10 that such an individual cannot be represented adequately 

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

12 Secretary may petition the appropriate United States Dis13 trict Court which shall have jurisdiction to disqualify such 

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

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

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

17 TITLE II—ENHANCED 

18 ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITY 

19 SEC. 201. SIGNIFICANT AND SUBSTANTIAL VIOLATIONS. 

20 Section 104(d)(1) (30 U.S.C. 814(d)(1)) is amend21 ed— 

22 (1) in the first sentence— 

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

24 safety standard’’ and inserting ‘‘any provision 

25 of this Act, including any mandatory health or 


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1 safety standard or regulation promulgated 

2 under this Act’’; and 

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

4 safety standards’’ and inserting ‘‘such provi5 sions, regulations, or mandatory health or safe6 ty standards’’; 

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

8 mandatory health or safety standard’’ and inserting 

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

10 health or safety standard or regulation promulgated 

11 under this Act,’’; and 

12 (3) by inserting after the first sentence the fol13 lowing: ‘‘For purposes of this Act, a violation of a 

14 provision of this Act, including any mandatory 

15 health or safety standard or regulation promulgated 

16 under this Act, is of such nature as could signifi17 cantly and substantially contribute to the cause and 

18 effect of a safety or health hazard if there is a sub19 stantial probability such violation could result in se20 rious injury, illness, or death.’’. 

21 SEC. 202. A PATTERN OF RECURRING NONCOMPLIANCE OR 

22 ACCIDENTS. 

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

24 as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(e) PATTERN OF RECURRING NONCOMPLIANCE OR

2 ACCIDENTS.— 

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

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

5 coal or other mine shall be evaluated based on 

6 the regulations promulgated under subpara7 graph (B) to determine whether it meets the 

8 criteria for placement in pattern status set 

9 forth in such regulations. 

10 ‘‘(B) REGULATIONS ESTABLISHING CRI11 TERIA FOR PLACEMENT IN PATTERN STATUS.— 

12 The Secretary shall issue regulations estab13 lishing criteria for determining whether to place 

14 a mine on pattern status under this subsection. 

15 Such criteria shall be based on a numerical 

16 Safe Performance Index shall evaluate mines 

17 according the following factors, each assigned 

18 appropriate weight as determined by the Sec19 retary: 

20 ‘‘(i) The incidence rate of accidents 

21 resulting in no work days lost. 

22 ‘‘(ii) The incidence rate of nonfatal 

23 accidents resulting in work days lost. 

24 ‘‘(iii) A severity measure for all acci25 dents. 


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1 ‘‘(iv) The number of citations for vio2 lations issued per 100 inspection hours. 

3 ‘‘(v) The number of citations issued 

4 for significant and substantial violations 

5 per 100 inspection hours. 

6 ‘‘(vi) The number of orders issued per 

7 1,000 inspection hours. 

8 ‘‘(C) MINE CATEGORIES.—A Safe Per9 formance Index shall be determined and main10 tained for each mine, according to the following 

11 classifications of mine type: 

12 ‘‘(i) underground coal mines; 

13 ‘‘(ii) surface coal mines; 

14 ‘‘(iii) underground metal mines; 

15 ‘‘(iv) surface metal mines; and 

16 ‘‘(v) non-metal mines. 

17 ‘‘(D) MITIGATING CIRCUMSTANCES.—Not18 withstanding the criteria established under sub19 paragraph (B), if, after conducting an assess20 ment of a coal or other mine that otherwise 

21 qualifies for pattern status, the Secretary cer22 tifies that there are mitigating circumstances 

23 wherein the operator is in the process of reduc24 ing elevated risks to the health or safety of 

25 miners and is implementing sufficient measures 


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1 to ensure such elevated risk will not recur, the 

2 Secretary may deem such mine to not be in pat3 tern status under this subsection. The Sec4 retary shall issue any such certification of such 

5 mitigating circumstances that would preclude 

6 the placement of a mine in pattern status as a 

7 written finding, which shall, not later than 10 

8 days after the certification is made, be— 

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

10 and 

11 ‘‘(ii) transmitted to the Committee on 

12 Education and Labor of the House of Rep13 resentatives and the Committee on Health, 

14 Education, Labor, and Pensions of the 

15 Senate. 

16 ‘‘(2) ACTIONS FOLLOWING PLACEMENT OF

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

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

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

20 the mine is being placed in pattern status; 

21 ‘‘(B) issue an order requiring such oper22 ator to cause all persons to be withdrawn from 

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1 ards or violations that could be immediately 

2 harmful to the safety or health of the miners; 

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

4 the mine, that— 

5 ‘‘(i) all violations or other conditions 

6 in the mine identified by the Secretary 

7 have been or are being fully abated or cor8 rected; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) the operator file a remediation 

10 plan as described in paragraph (3); and 

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

12 inspections of such mine required under section 

13 103 be increased by an amount determined by 

14 the Secretary to be sufficient to ensure that all 

15 hazardous conditions have been addressed and 

16 that a program is in place to prevent a reoccur17 rence of such conditions. 

18 ‘‘(3) REMEDIATION PLAN.— 

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

20 placed in pattern status shall submit to the Sec21 retary a remediation plan for approval by the 

22 Secretary to— 

23 ‘‘(i) institute and implement an effec24 tive health and safety management pro25 gram that specifically addresses the issues 


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1 that gave rise to the placement of the mine 

2 in pattern status; and 

3 ‘‘(ii) facilitate any effort by the Sec4 retary to communicate directly with miners 

5 employed at the mine outside the presence 

6 of the mine operators or its agents, for the 

7 purpose of obtaining information about 

8 mine conditions, health and safety prac9 tices, advising miners of their rights under 

10 this Act, and to assist the efforts of the 

11 operator in developing or implementing the 

12 remediation plan. 

13 ‘‘(B) EXPEDITED REVIEW.—The opera14 tor’s remediation plan shall be evaluated for ap15 proval by the Secretary on an expedited basis, 

16 in accordance with section 105(d). 

17 ‘‘(C) PLAN DISPUTE RESOLUTION.— 

18 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Any dispute be19 tween the Secretary and an operator with 

20 respect to the content of the operator’s 

21 plan under paragraph (3) or any refusal by 

22 the Secretary to approve such plan shall be 

23 resolved on an expedited basis. 

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

25 dispute or refusal to approve a plan, the 


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1 Secretary shall issue a citation which shall 

2 be immediately referred to a Commission. 

3 The Secretary and the operator shall sub4 mit all relevant material regarding the dis5 pute to the Commission within 15 days of 

6 the date of the referral. The Commission 

7 shall render his or her decision with re8 spect to the plan content dispute within 15 

9 days of the receipt of the submission. 

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

11 adversely affected by a decision under this 

12 subparagraph may pursue all further avail13 able appeal rights with respect to the situ14 ation involved, except that inclusion of the 

15 disputed provision in the plan will not be 

16 limited by such appeal unless such relief is 

17 requested by the operator and permitted by 

18 the Commission. 

19 ‘‘(4) PERFORMANCE EVALUATION.— 

20 ‘‘(A) PERFORMANCE BENCHMARKS.—The 

21 Secretary shall evaluate the performance of 

22 each operator whose mine is in pattern status 

23 every 90 days during which the mine is pro24 ducing and determine if, for such 90-day pe25 riod— 


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

2 for significant and substantial violations— 

3 ‘‘(I) is, on average, in the top 

4 performing 35th percentile of such 

5 rates, respectively, for all mines of 

6 similar size and type; and 

7 ‘‘(II) has been reduced by 70 

8 percent since such mine was placed on 

9 pattern status; and 

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

11 such mine are, on average, in the top per12 forming 35th percentile of such rates, re13 spectively, for all mines of similar size and 

14 type. 

15 ‘‘(B) REISSUANCE OF PRODUCTION LIMI16 TATION.—If an operator being evaluated fails 

17 to achieve the performance benchmarks de18 scribed in subparagraph (A), the Secretary may 

19 re-impose the conditions under paragraph 

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

21 led to pattern status under this subsection, and 

22 may require modification of the remediation 

23 plan, as necessary, to protect the health and 

24 safety of miners. 

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


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1 ‘‘(A) PERFORMANCE BENCHMARKS.—The 

2 Secretary shall remove an operator of a coal or 

3 other mine from pattern status if, for a period 

4 of 180 days during which the mine is pro5 ducing— 

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

7 for significant and substantial violations— 

8 ‘‘(I) is, on average, in the top 

9 performing 25th percentile of such 

10 rates, respectively, for all mines of 

11 similar size and type; and 

12 ‘‘(II) has been reduced by 70 

13 percent since such mine was placed on 

14 pattern status; and 

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

16 such mine are, on average, in the top per17 forming 25th percentile of such rates, re18 spectively, for all mines of similar size and 

19 type. 

20 ‘‘(B) CONTINUATION OF PATTERN STA21 TUS.—Should the mine operator fail to meet 

22 the performance benchmarks described in sub23 paragraph (A), the Secretary shall extend the 

24 mine’s placement in pattern status until such 

25 benchmarks are achieved. 


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

2 mine whose mine exceeds the safe performance index 

3 threshold under this section shall have the right to 

4 an expedited hearing, within 10 days of providing 

5 notice to the Commission to contest the validity of 

6 any enforcement action that has contributed to the 

7 mine being identified under this section, notwith8 standing whether the enforcement action was pre9 viously the subject of a notice of contest pursuant to 

10 section 105 or has been deemed a final order of the 

11 Commission. 

12 ‘‘(7) LIMITATION ON APPLICATION.—The provi13 sions of this subsection shall not apply, for a period 

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

15 a purchaser. 

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

17 after the date of enactment of the Mine Safety Ac18 countability and Improved Protection Act, the Sec19 retary shall issue proposed regulations to implement 

20 the provisions of this subsection. Not later than 1 

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

22 Secretary shall issue final regulations to implement 

23 this subsection. 

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

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1 lically available electronic database containing the 

2 data used to determine pattern status for all coal or 

3 other mines. Such database shall be searchable, shall 

4 have the capacity to provide comparative data about 

5 the health and safety at mines of similar sizes and 

6 types. The Secretary shall also make publicly avail7 able— 

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

9 places in pattern status, updated not less fre10 quently than quarterly; and 

11 ‘‘(B) the metrics, including percentile in12 formation, used for the purposes of the per13 formance benchmarks and threshold criteria de14 scribed in paragraphs (4) and (5). 

15 ‘‘(10) OPERATOR FEES FOR ADDITIONAL IN16 SPECTIONS.— 

17 ‘‘(A) ASSESSMENT AND COLLECTION.—Be18 ginning 120 days after the date of enactment of 

19 the Mine Safety Accountability and Improved 

20 Protection Act, the Secretary shall assess and 

21 collect fees, in accordance with this paragraph, 

22 from each coal or other mine in pattern status 

23 for the costs of additional inspections under 

24 this subsection. The Secretary shall issue, by 

25 rule, a schedule of fees to be assessed against 


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1 coal or other mines of varying types and sizes, 

2 and shall collect and assess amounts under this 

3 paragraph based on the schedule. 

4 ‘‘(B) MINES IN PATTERN STATUS INSPEC5 TION FUND.—There is established in the Treas6 ury of the United States a separate account for 

7 the deposit of fees collected under this para8 graph to be known as the Mines in Pattern Sta9 tus Inspection Fund. The Secretary shall de10 posit any fees collected pursuant to subpara11 graph (A) into the fund. 

12 ‘‘(C) USE.—Amounts in the Mines in Pat13 tern Status Inspection Fund shall be available 

14 to the Secretary, as provided in subparagraph 

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

16 additional inspections required under paragraph 

17 (2)(D). 

18 ‘‘(D) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIA19 TIONS.—In addition to any other amounts ap20 propriated, there is authorized to be appro21 priated from the Mines in Pattern Status In22 spection Fund to the Assistant Secretary for 

23 Mine Safety and Health for each fiscal year in 

24 which fees are collected under subparagraph 

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1 lected during the previous fiscal year from fees 

2 assessed pursuant to this paragraph. Such 

3 amounts are authorized to remain available 

4 until expended. 

5 ‘‘(E) CREDITING AND AVAILABILITY OF

6 FEES.—Fees authorized and collected under 

7 this paragraph shall be available for obligation 

8 only to the extent and in the amount provided 

9 in advance in appropriations Acts.’’. 

10 SEC. 203. INJUNCTIVE AUTHORITY. 

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

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

13 relief, including permanent or temporary injunction, re14 straining order, or any other appropriate order in the dis15 trict court of the United States for the district in which 

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

17 of such mine has his principal office whenever the Sec18 retary believes that the operator of a coal or other mine 

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

20 mandatory health or safety standards of this Act, or regu21 lation promulgated under this Act, which constitutes a 

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

23 SEC. 204. REVOCATION OF APPROVAL OF PLANS. 

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

25 at the end the following: 


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

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

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

4 this Act is based on inaccurate information or that cir5 cumstances that existed when such plan was approved 

6 have materially changed and that continued operation of 

7 such mine under such plan constitutes a hazard to the 

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

9 approval of such program or plan and provide the operator 

10 with a detailed explanation containing the specific reasons 

11 that approval was revoked.’’. 

12 SEC. 205. CHALLENGING DECISIONS RELATED TO THE AP13 PROVAL OF A COAL OR OTHER MINE PLAN. 

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

15 adding at the end the following: 

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

17 DECISIONS RELATED TO THE APPROVAL OF A COAL OR

18 OTHER MINE PLAN.— 

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

20 REVISION PROCESS.— 

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

22 operator’s proposed program, plan, or plan revi23 sion, which is subject to approval by the Sec24 retary under this Act, and implementing stand25 ards and regulations, shall be submitted in writVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:29 Jul 21, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5788.IH H5788

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1 ing to the appropriate district manager of the 

2 Mine Safety and Health Administration (in this 

3 subsection referred to as the ‘district man4 ager’). When revisions to a previously approved 

5 plan are proposed by a mine operator, only pro6 posed revised pages, maps, and sketches are re7 quired to be submitted, unless otherwise speci8 fied by the district manager. Written comments 

9 may be submitted by representatives of the 

10 miners relative to plan or revisions submitted. 

11 Such program, plan, or plan revision shall be 

12 reviewed and either approved or denied ap13 proval by the district manager, pursuant to the 

14 following provisions: 

15 ‘‘(B) NOTIFICATION OF APPROVAL OR DE16 NIAL OF PROPOSED PROGRAM, PLAN OR PLAN

17 REVISION.—The district manager shall notify 

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

19 denial of the proposed program, plan or plan 

20 revision. A copy of the district manager’s writ21 ten notification shall be mailed to the represent22 ative of miners by the district manager. 

23 ‘‘(C) FAILURE OF THE DISTRICT MANAGER

24 TO PROVIDE WRITTEN NOTIFICATION.—If the 

25 district manager fails to notify a mine operator, 


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1 in writing, of the approval or denial of any pro2 posed program or plan within 30 days of the 

3 mine operator’s submission, such proposed pro4 gram or plan shall be deemed approved. If a 

5 district manager fails to notify a mine operator, 

6 in writing, of the approval or denial of approval 

7 of any proposed plan revision within 7 days of 

8 the mine operator’s submission, such proposed 

9 program or plan shall be deemed approved. 

10 ‘‘(D) SPECIFICATION OF DEFICIENCIES

11 AND RECOMMENDED CHANGES.—When ap12 proval of any proposed program, plan or plan 

13 revision is denied, the district manager’s writ14 ten notification shall— 

15 ‘‘(i) specify the deficiencies in the 

16 mine operator’s proposed program, plan, or 

17 plan revision; 

18 ‘‘(ii) recommend changes to eliminate 

19 the specified deficiencies in the proposed 

20 program, plan, or plan revision; and 

21 ‘‘(iii) provide an opportunity for the 

22 operator to schedule a meeting with the 

23 district manager to discuss any specified 

24 deficiencies in the proposed program, plan, 

25 or plan revision. 


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1 ‘‘(E) PROCESS FOLLOWING MEETING.— 

2 Following any meeting between the operator 

3 and the district manager regarding any pro4 posed program, plan, or plan revision, the dis5 trict manager shall provide the mine operator 

6 with a reasonable time period to resubmit the 

7 proposed program, plan, or plan revision. 

8 ‘‘(2) PLAN DISPUTE RESOLUTION.— 

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

10 manager denies approval of an operator’s pro11 posed program, plan, or plan revision, the oper12 ator may contest the decision of the district 

13 manager to the Secretary. Any dispute between 

14 the Secretary and an operator with respect to 

15 the content of any program, plan or plan revi16 sion of the mine operator shall be resolved on 

17 an expedited basis. 

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

19 described in subparagraph (A), any technical ci20 tation issued by the Secretary shall be imme21 diately referred to a Commission. The Secretary 

22 and the mine operator shall submit all relevant 

23 material regarding the dispute to the Commis24 sion within 15 days of the date of the referral. 

25 The Commission shall render its decision with 


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1 respect to the plan content dispute within 15 

2 days of the receipt of the submission. 

3 ‘‘(C) FURTHER APPEALS.—A party ad4 versely affected by a decision under subpara5 graph (B) may pursue all further available ap6 peal rights with respect to the citation involved, 

7 except that inclusion of the disputed provision 

8 of the plan shall not be limited by such appeal 

9 unless such relief is requested by the operator 

10 and permitted by the Commission.’’. 

11 TITLE III—PENALTIES 

12 SEC. 301. CIVIL PENALTIES. 

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

14 (30 U.S.C. 820(a)(1)) is amended— 

15 (1) by inserting ‘‘including any regulation pro16 mulgated under this Act,’’ after ‘‘this Act,’’; and 

17 (2) by striking ‘‘violation.’’ and inserting ‘‘viola18 tion, except that, in the case of a significant and 

19 substantial violation, the penalty shall be not more 

20 than $150,000 for each such violation.’’. 

21 (b) INCREASED CIVIL PENALTIES DURING PATTERN

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

23 by adding at the end the following: 

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

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1 tus under section 104(e) and that fails to meet the per2 formance benchmarks set forth by the Secretary under 

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

4 mine following the first performance review shall be as5 sessed an increased civil penalty for any violation of this 

6 Act, including any mandatory health or safety standard 

7 or regulation promulgated under this Act. Such increased 

8 penalty shall be twice the amount that would otherwise 

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

10 regulations promulgated under this Act, subject to the 

11 maximum civil penalty established for the violation under 

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

13 mine that occur during the period beginning after the 

14 failed performance review following the first performance 

15 review, and ending when the Secretary determines at a 

16 subsequent performance review that the mine meets the 

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

18 (c) CIVIL PENALTY FOR RETALIATION.—Section 

19 110(a) (30 U.S.C. 820(a)) is further amended— 

20 (1) by redesignating paragraph (4) as para21 graph (5); and 

22 (2) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol23 lowing: 

24 ‘‘(4) If any person violates section 105(c), the Sec25 retary shall propose, and the Commission shall assess, a 


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

2 $100,000 for the first occurrence of such violation, and 

3 not less than $20,000 or more than $200,000 for any sub4 sequent violation, during any 3-year period.’’. 

5 SEC. 302. CIVIL AND CRIMINAL LIABILITY OF OFFICERS, DI6 RECTORS, AND AGENTS. 

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

8 as follows: 

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

10 DIRECTORS, AND AGENTS.—Whenever an operator vio11 lates a provision of this Act, including any mandatory 

12 health or safety standard or regulation promulgated under 

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

14 with any order issued under this Act or any order incor15 porated in a final decision issued under this Act, any di16 rector, officer, or agent of such operator who willfully au17 thorized, ordered, or carried out such violation, failure, or 

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

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

20 penalties, fines, and imprisonment that may be imposed 

21 upon a person under this section.’’. 

22 SEC. 303. CRIMINAL PENALTIES. 

23 (a) INTENT REQUIREMENTS FOR CRIMINAL PEN24 ALTY STANDARDS.—Section 110(d) (30 U.S.C. 820(d)) is 

25 amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘$250,000, or by imprisonment 

2 for not more than one year’’ and inserting 

3 ‘‘$1,000,000, or by imprisonment for not more than 

4 5 years’’; and 

5 (2) by striking ‘‘$500,000, or by imprisonment 

6 for not more than five years’’ and inserting 

7 ‘‘$2,000,000, or by imprisonment for not more than 

8 10 years’’. 

9 (b) CRIMINAL PENALTY FOR RETALIATION.—Section 

10 110(d) is further amended— 

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

12 and 

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

14 ‘‘(2) Whoever willfully takes any action that is di15 rectly or indirectly harmful to any person, including action 

16 that interferes with the lawful employment or livelihood 

17 of any person, because such person has provided an au18 thorized representative of the Secretary or another law en19 forcement officer with any information related to the exist20 ence of a health or safety violation or an unhealthful or 

21 unsafe condition, policy, or practice under this Act shall 

22 be fined under title 18, United States Code, imprisoned 

23 for not more than 10 years, or both.’’. 

24 (c) ADVANCE NOTICE OF INSPECTIONS.— 


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

2 820(e)) is amended— 

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

4 ‘‘(1) Unless’’; and 

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

6 ‘‘(2) Unless otherwise authorized by this Act, any op7 erator, agent or contractor of any operator, miner, inspec8 tor, employee of the Administration, or State mine inspec9 tor, that willfully gives, causes to give, or attempts to give 

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

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

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

13 or both.’’. 

14 (2) POSTING OF ADVANCE NOTICE PEN15 ALTIES.—Section 109 (30 U.S.C. 819) is amended 

16 by adding at the end the following: 

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

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

19 bulletin board described in subsection (a) and in a con20 spicuous place near each staffed entrance onto the mine 

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

22 prescribed by the Secretary— 

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

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1 tion to be conducted under this Act is unlawful pur2 suant to section 110(e); and 

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

4 under such subsection.’’. 

5 SEC. 304. CONFERENCE PROCESS FOR APPEALING PEN6 ALTIES; DELINQUENT PAYMENTS AND PRE7 JUDGMENT INTEREST. 

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

9 820) is amended by— 

10 (1) redesignating subsection (l) as subsection 

11 (m); and 

12 (2) by inserting after subsection (k) the fol13 lowing: 

14 ‘‘(l) OPERATOR CONFERENCE PROCESS.— 

15 ‘‘(1) RIGHT TO REVIEW.—Prior to the assess16 ment of any penalty assessed under this section, the 

17 operator shall be afforded the opportunity to review 

18 with a designated Conference Litigation Representa19 tive of the Secretary each citation and order issued 

20 during an inspection. 

21 ‘‘(2) REQUEST FOR CONFERENCE; TIMBER22 LINE.—Upon receipt of a citation or order issued 

23 under this Act the operator shall have 15 days to re24 quest the review described in paragraph (1) of any 

25 citation or order issues during an inspection. The 


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1 conference request must include a brief statement of 

2 the reason why each citation or order should be af3 forded a conference. Within 15 days following re4 ceipt of a request by the operator the Conference 

5 Litigation Representative shall schedule a meeting to 

6 review the citations or orders subject to the request. 

7 The Conference Litigation Representative shall con8 sider all relevant information submitted in a timely 

9 manner with respect to the violations or orders. 

10 ‘‘(3) DECISION OF CONFERENCE LITIGATION

11 REPRESENTATIVE.—Within 15 days following the 

12 conduct of conference, the Conference Litigation 

13 Representative shall issue a decision affirming, 

14 modifying, or vacating the citations or orders that 

15 were the subject of the conference. The decision 

16 shall be communicated to the operator, the issuing 

17 inspector, and the district manager responsible for 

18 the district within which the mine is located. In 

19 making a decision, the Conference Litigation Rep20 resentative shall consult, as needed, with the Direc21 tor of the Mine Safety and Health Administration, 

22 Office of Accountability, to which each Conference 

23 Litigation Representative shall report.’’. 

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

25 (30 U.S.C. 820(j)) is amended by striking the second and 


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

2 order interest on such penalties shall begin to accrue on 

3 the date the operator contests a citation issued under this 

4 Act, including any mandatory health or safety standard 

5 or regulation promulgated under this Act, and shall end 

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

7 interest shall be calculated at the current underpayment 

8 rate determined by the Secretary of the Treasury pursu9 ant to section 6621 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 

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

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

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

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

14 (c) ENSURING PAYMENT OF PENALTIES.— 

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

16 820) is further amended by adding after subsection 

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

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

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

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

21 penalty assessment that has become a final order of 

22 the Commission or a court within 90 days after such 

23 assessment became a final order, the Secretary shall 

24 send the operator a letter advising the operator of 

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1 ure to pay. The letter shall also advise the operator 

2 of the opportunity to enter into or modify a payment 

3 plan with the Secretary based upon a demonstrated 

4 inability to pay, the procedure for entering into such 

5 plan, and the consequences of not entering into or 

6 not complying with such plan. 

7 ‘‘(2) WITHDRAWAL ORDERS FOLLOWING FAIL8 URE TO PAY.—If an operator that receives a letter 

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

10 the date that is 180 days after such assessment be11 came a final order and has not entered into a pay12 ment plan with the Secretary, the Secretary shall 

13 issue an order requiring such operator to cause all 

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

15 to be withdrawn from, and to be prohibited from en16 tering, the mine that is covered by the final order 

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

18 such assessment in full (including interest and ad19 ministrative costs) or enters into a payment plan 

20 with the Secretary. If such operator enters into a 

21 payment plan with the Secretary and at any time 

22 fails to comply with the terms specified in such pay23 ment plan, the Secretary shall issue an order requir24 ing such operator to cause all persons, except those 

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


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

2 be prohibited from entering such mine, until the op3 erator rectifies the noncompliance with the payment 

4 plan in the manner specified in such payment 

5 plan.’’. 

6 (2) APPLICABILITY AND EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

7 The amendment made by paragraph (1) shall apply 

8 to all unpaid civil penalty assessments under the 

9 Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 (30 

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

11 penalty assessment that became a final order of the 

12 Commission or a court before the date of enactment 

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

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

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

16 beginning on the date of enactment of this Act in17 stead of on the date of the final order. 

18 TITLE IV—WORKER RIGHTS AND 

19 PROTECTIONS 

20 SEC. 401. PROTECTION FROM RETALIATION. 

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

22 as follows: 

23 ‘‘(c) PROTECTION FROM RETALIATION.— 

24 ‘‘(1) RETALIATION PROHIBITED.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) RETALIATION FOR COMPLAINT OR

2 TESTIMONY.—No person shall discharge or in 

3 any manner discriminate against or cause to be 

4 discharged or cause discrimination against or 

5 otherwise interfere with the exercise of the stat6 utory rights of any miner or other employee of 

7 an operator, representative of miners, or appli8 cant for employment, because— 

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

10 representative, or applicant for employ11 ment— 

12 ‘‘(I) has filed or made a com13 plaint, or is about to file or make a 

14 complaint, including a complaint noti15 fying the operator or the operator’s 

16 agent, or the representative of the 

17 miners at the coal or other mine of an 

18 alleged danger or safety or health vio19 lation in a coal or other mine; 

20 ‘‘(II) instituted or caused to be 

21 instituted, or is about to institute or 

22 cause to be instituted, any proceeding 

23 under or related to this Act or has 

24 testified or is about to testify in any 

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1 ercise by such miner or other em2 ployee, representative, or applicant for 

3 employment on behalf of him or her4 self or others of any right afforded by 

5 this Act; 

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

7 testify before Congress or any Federal 

8 or State proceeding related to safety 

9 or health in a coal or other mine; or 

10 ‘‘(IV) refused to violate any pro11 vision of this Act; or 

12 ‘‘(ii) such miner is the subject of med13 ical evaluations and potential transfer 

14 under a standard published pursuant to 

15 section 101. 

16 ‘‘(B) RETALIATION FOR REFUSAL TO PER17 FORM DUTIES.— 

18 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—No person shall 

19 discharge or in any manner discriminate 

20 against a miner or other employee of an 

21 operator for refusing to perform the min22 er’s or other employee’s duties if the miner 

23 or other employee has a good-faith and 

24 reasonable belief that performing such du25 ties would pose a safety or health hazard 


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1 to the miner or other employee or to any 

2 other miner or employee. 

3 ‘‘(ii) STANDARD.—For purposes of 

4 clause (i), the circumstances causing the 

5 miner’s or other employee’s good-faith be6 lief that performing such duties would pose 

7 a safety or health hazard shall be of such 

8 a nature that a reasonable person, under 

9 the circumstances confronting the miner or 

10 other employee, would conclude that there 

11 is such a hazard. In order to qualify for 

12 protection under this paragraph, the miner 

13 or other employee, when practicable, shall 

14 have communicated or attempted to com15 municate the safety or health concern to 

16 the operator and have not received from 

17 the operator a response reasonably cal18 culated to allay such concern. 

19 ‘‘(2) COMPLAINT.—Any miner or other em20 ployee or representative of miners or applicant for 

21 employment who believes that he or she has been 

22 discharged, disciplined, or otherwise discriminated 

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

24 may file a complaint with the Secretary alleging 


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1 such discrimination not later than 90 days after the 

2 later of— 

3 ‘‘(A) the last date on which an alleged vio4 lation of paragraph (1) occurs; or 

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

6 employee or representative knows or should rea7 sonably have known that such alleged violation 

8 occurred. 

9 ‘‘(3) INVESTIGATION AND HEARING.— 

10 ‘‘(A) COMMENCEMENT OF INVESTIGATION

11 AND INITIAL DETERMINATION.—Upon receipt 

12 of such complaint, the Secretary shall forward 

13 a copy of the complaint to the respondent, and 

14 shall commence an investigation within 15 days 

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

16 as soon as practicable after commencing such 

17 investigation, make the determination required 

18 under subparagraph (B) regarding the rein19 statement of the miner or other employee. 

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

21 finds that such complaint was not frivolously 

22 brought, the Commission, on an expedited basis 

23 upon application of the Secretary, shall order 

24 the immediate reinstatement of the miner or 

25 other employee until there has been a final 


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1 Commission order disposing of the underlying 

2 complaint of the miner or other employee. If ei3 ther the Secretary or the miner or other em4 ployee pursues the underlying complaint, such 

5 reinstatement shall remain in effect until the 

6 Commission has disposed of such complaint on 

7 the merits, regardless of whether the Secretary 

8 pursues such complaint by filing a complaint 

9 under subparagraph (D) or the miner or other 

10 employee pursues such complaint by filing an 

11 action under paragraph (4). If neither the Sec12 retary nor the miner or other employee pursues 

13 the underlying complaint within the periods 

14 specified in paragraph (4), such reinstatement 

15 shall remain in effect until such time as the 

16 Commission may, upon motion of the operator 

17 and after providing notice and an opportunity 

18 to be heard to the parties, vacate such com19 plaint for failure to prosecute. 

20 ‘‘(C) INVESTIGATION.—Such investigation 

21 shall include interviewing the complainant 

22 and— 

23 ‘‘(i) providing the respondent an op24 portunity to submit to the Secretary a 

25 written response to the complaint and to 


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1 present statements from witnesses or pro2 vide evidence; and 

3 ‘‘(ii) providing the complainant an op4 portunity to receive any statements or evi5 dence provided to the Secretary and rebut 

6 any statements or evidence. 

7 ‘‘(D) ACTION BY THE SECRETARY.—If, 

8 upon such investigation, the Secretary deter9 mines that the provisions of this subsection 

10 have been violated, the Secretary shall imme11 diately file a complaint with the Commission, 

12 with service upon the alleged violator and the 

13 miner or other employee or representative of 

14 miners alleging such discrimination or inter15 ference and propose an order granting appro16 priate relief. 

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

18 Commission shall afford an opportunity for a 

19 hearing (in accordance with section 554 of title 

20 5, United States Code, but without regard to 

21 subsection (a)(3) of such section) and there22 after shall issue an order, based upon findings 

23 of fact, affirming, modifying, or vacating the 

24 Secretary’s proposed order, or directing other 

25 appropriate relief. Such order shall become final 


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1 30 days after its issuance. The complaining 

2 miner or other employee, representative, or ap3 plicant for employment may present additional 

4 evidence on his or her own behalf during any 

5 hearing held pursuant to this paragraph. 

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

7 authority in such proceedings to require a per8 son committing a violation of this subsection to 

9 take such affirmative action to abate the viola10 tion and prescribe a remedy as the Commission 

11 considers appropriate, including— 

12 ‘‘(i) the rehiring or reinstatement of 

13 the miner or other employee with back pay 

14 and interest and without loss of position or 

15 seniority, and restoration of the terms, 

16 rights, conditions, and privileges associated 

17 with the complainant’s employment; 

18 ‘‘(ii) any other compensatory and con19 sequential damages sufficient to make the 

20 complainant whole, and exemplary dam21 ages where appropriate; and 

22 ‘‘(iii) expungement of all warnings, 

23 reprimands, or derogatory references that 

24 have been placed in paper or electronic 

25 records or databases of any type relating 


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1 to the actions by the complainant that 

2 gave rise to the unfavorable personnel ac3 tion, and, at the complainant’s direction, 

4 transmission of a copy of the decision on 

5 the complaint to any person whom the 

6 complainant reasonably believes may have 

7 received such unfavorable information. 

8 ‘‘(4) NOTICE TO AND ACTION OF COMPLAIN9 ANT.— 

10 ‘‘(A) NOTICE TO COMPLAINANT.—Not 

11 later than 90 days of the receipt of a complaint 

12 filed under paragraph (2), the Secretary shall 

13 notify, in writing, the miner or other employee, 

14 applicant for employment, or representative of 

15 miners of his determination whether a violation 

16 has occurred. 

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

18 Secretary, upon investigation, determines that 

19 the provisions of this subsection have not been 

20 violated, the complainant shall have the right, 

21 within 30 days after receiving notice of the Sec22 retary’s determination, to file an action in his 

23 or her own behalf before the Commission, 

24 charging discrimination or interference in viola25 tion of paragraph (1). 


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1 ‘‘(C) HEARING AND DECISION.—The Com2 mission shall afford an opportunity for a hear3 ing (in accordance with section 554 of title 5, 

4 United States Code, but without regard to sub5 section (a)(3) of such section), and thereafter 

6 shall issue an order, based upon findings of 

7 fact, dismissing or sustaining the complainant’s 

8 charges and, if the charges are sustained, 

9 granting such relief as it deems appropriate as 

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

11 become final 30 days after its issuance. 

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

13 complaint pursuant to this subsection, the Commis14 sion may determine that a violation of paragraph (1) 

15 has occurred only if the complainant demonstrates 

16 that any conduct described in paragraph (1) with re17 spect to the complainant was a contributing factor 

18 in the adverse action alleged in the complaint. A de19 cision or order that is favorable to the complainant 

20 shall not be issued pursuant to this subsection if the 

21 respondent demonstrates by clear and convincing 

22 evidence that the respondent would have taken the 

23 same adverse action in the absence of such conduct. 

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

25 issued sustaining the complainant’s charges under 


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1 this subsection, a sum equal to the aggregate 

2 amount of all costs and expenses, including attor3 ney’s fees, as determined by the Commission to have 

4 been reasonably incurred by the complainant for, or 

5 in connection with, the institution and prosecution of 

6 such proceedings shall be assessed against the per7 son committing such violation. The Commission 

8 shall determine whether such costs and expenses 

9 were reasonably incurred by the complainant without 

10 reference to whether the Secretary also participated 

11 in the proceeding. 

12 ‘‘(7) EXPEDITED PROCEEDINGS; JUDICIAL RE13 VIEW.—Proceedings under this subsection shall be 

14 expedited by the Secretary and the Commission. Any 

15 order issued by the Commission under this sub16 section shall be subject to judicial review in accord17 ance with section 106. Violations by any person of 

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

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

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

21 remedies provided for in this subsection may not be 

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

23 of employment, including by any pre-dispute arbitra24 tion agreement or collective bargaining agreement. 


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

2 be construed to diminish the rights, privileges, or 

3 remedies of any employee who exercises rights under 

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

5 any collective bargaining agreement.’’. 

6 SEC. 402. PROTECTION FROM LOSS OF PAY. 

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

8 follows: 

9 ‘‘SEC. 111. ENTITLEMENT OF MINERS. 

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

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

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

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

14 miners who are idled by such order shall be entitled 

15 to full compensation by the operator at their regular 

16 rates of pay and in accordance with their regular 

17 schedules of pay for the remainder of the current 

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

19 idled. Nothing in this section shall prevent the oper20 ator of a coal or other mine from transferring min21 ers from the area of the mine effected by the with22 drawal order to another area of the mine not under 

23 the withdrawal order. 

24 ‘‘(2) REFUSAL TO COMPLY.—Whenever an op25 erator violates or fails or refuses to comply with any 


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

2 110, all miners employed at the affected mine who 

3 would have been withdrawn from, or prevented from 

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

5 such order shall be entitled to full compensation by 

6 the operator at their regular rates of pay, in addi7 tion to pay received for work performed after such 

8 order was issued, for the period beginning when 

9 such order was issued and ending when such order 

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

11 days. 

12 ‘‘(b) ENFORCEMENT.— 

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

14 shall have authority to order compensation due 

15 under this section upon the filing of a complaint by 

16 a miner or his representative and after opportunity 

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

18 States Code. Whenever the Commission issues an 

19 order sustaining the complaint under this subsection 

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

21 complainant reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs. 

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

23 Consistent with the authority of the Secretary to 

24 order miners withdrawn from a mine under this Act, 

25 the Secretary shall order a mine that has been subVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:29 Jul 21, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00049 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5788.IH H5788

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1 ject to a withdrawal order under section 103, 104, 

2 107, 108, or 110, and has reopened, to be closed 

3 again if compensation in accordance with the provi4 sions of this section is not paid by the end of the 

5 next regularly scheduled payroll period following the 

6 lifting of a withdrawal order.’’. 

7 TITLE V—MODERNIZING 

8 HEALTH AND SAFETY STAND9 ARDS 

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

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

12 adding at the end the following: 

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

14 the interim final rules promulgated under subparagraph 

15 (C), each operator of an underground coal mine shall im16 plement a communication program at the underground 

17 coal mine to ensure that each miner entering the mine 

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

19 current conditions of the mine, including— 

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

21 ‘‘(ii) the general conditions of that miner’s as22 signed working section or other area. 

23 ‘‘(B) Not later than 90 days after the date of enact24 ment of the Mine Safety Accountability and Improved 

25 Protection Act, the Secretary shall promulgate interim 


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1 final rules implementing the requirements of subpara2 graphs (A) and (B).’’. 

3 SEC. 502. ROCK DUST STANDARDS. 

4 (a) STANDARDS.—Section 304(d) (30 U.S.C. 864(d)) 

5 is amended— 

6 (1) by striking ‘‘Where rock’’ and inserting the 

7 following: ‘‘ROCK DUST.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Where rock’’; 

9 (2) by striking ‘‘65 per centum’’ and all that 

10 follows and inserting ‘‘80 percent.’’; and 

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

12 ‘‘(2) METHODS OF MEASUREMENT.— 

13 ‘‘(A) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall, 

14 not later than 180 days after the date of enact15 ment of the Mine Safety Accountability and Im16 proved Protection Act, promulgate an interim 

17 final rule that prescribes methods for sampling 

18 of total incombustible content of coal dust using 

19 direct reading monitors and includes require20 ments for locations, methods, and intervals for 

21 mandatory operator sampling. 

22 ‘‘(B) IN GENERAL.—Each operator of an 

23 underground coal mine accurate samples of the 

24 combined coal dust, rock dust, and other dust 

25 deposited on rock-dusted surfaces, loose coal, 


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1 and other combustible materials in the active 

2 workings of such mines, to ensure that the coal 

3 dust is kept below explosive levels through the 

4 appropriate application of rock dusting. 

5 ‘‘(C) RECOMMENDATIONS.—Not later than 

6 2 years after the date of enactment of the Mine 

7 Safety Accountability and Improved Protection 

8 Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Serv9 ices shall, based upon the latest research, rec10 ommend to the Secretary of Labor any revisions 

11 to the mandatory operator sampling locations, 

12 methods, and intervals included in the interim 

13 final rule described in subparagraph (B) that 

14 may be warranted in light of such research. 

15 Such recommendations shall include an analysis 

16 of the effects of and relationship between meth17 ane and the incombustible content of such com18 bined dusts, and appropriate recommendations 

19 for addressing methane in such context. 

20 ‘‘(D) DIRECT READING MONITORS.—By 

21 the date that is 30 days after the Secretary of 

22 Health and Human Services has certified in 

23 writing that direct reading monitors are com24 mercially available to measure total incombus25 tible content in coal dust and the Department 


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1 of Labor has approved such monitors for use in 

2 underground coal mines, the Secretary shall re3 quire operators to develop a program to conduct 

4 sampling to ensure that sufficient quantities of 

5 rock dust have been deposited on take coal dust 

6 samples using direct reading monitors.’’. 

7 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

8 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and 

9 Human Services, in consultation with the Secretary of 

10 Labor, shall prepare and submit, to the Committee on 

11 Education and Labor of the House of Representatives and 

12 the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pen13 sions of the Senate, a report— 

14 (1) regarding whether any direct reading device 

15 described in section 304(d)(2)(B) of the Federal 

16 Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 

17 864(d)(2)(B)) is sufficiently reliable and accurate 

18 for the enforcement of the mandatory health or safe19 ty standards by the Secretary of Labor under such 

20 Act, and whether additional improvement to such di21 rect reading device, or additional verification regard22 ing reliability and accuracy, would be needed for en23 forcement purposes; and 

24 (2) identifying any limitations or impediments 

25 for such use in underground coal mines. 


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1 SEC. 503. ATMOSPHERIC MONITORING SYSTEMS. 

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

3 at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(u) ATMOSPHERIC MONITORING SYSTEMS.— 

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

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

7 Safety Accountability and Improved Protection Act, 

8 the Director of the National Institute for Occupa9 tional Safety and Health, acting through the Office 

10 of Mine Safety and Health Research, in consulta11 tion, including through technical working groups 

12 with operators, vendors, State mine safety agencies, 

13 the Secretary, and labor representatives of miners, 

14 shall issue recommendations to the Secretary regard15 ing— 

16 ‘‘(A) how to ensure that atmospheric moni17 toring systems are utilized in the underground 

18 coal mining industry to maximize the health 

19 and safety of underground coal miners; and 

20 ‘‘(B) the implementation of redundant sys21 tems, such as the bundle tubing system, that 

22 can continuously monitor the mine atmosphere 

23 following incidents such as fires, explosions, en24 trapments, and inundations. 

25 ‘‘(2) ATMOSPHERIC MONITORING SYSTEM REG26 ULATIONS.—Not later than 1 year following the reVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:29 Jul 21, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00054 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5788.IH H5788

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1 ceipt of the recommendations described in paragraph 

2 (1), the Secretary shall promulgate regulations re3 quiring that each operator of an underground coal 

4 mine install atmospheric monitoring systems, con5 sistent with such recommendations, that— 

6 ‘‘(A) protect miners where the miners nor7 mally work and travel; 

8 ‘‘(B) provide real-time information regard9 ing methane and carbon monoxide levels, and 

10 airflow direction, as appropriate, with sensing, 

11 annunciating, and recording capabilities; and 

12 ‘‘(C) can, to the maximum extent prac13 ticable, withstand explosions and fires.’’. 

14 SEC. 504. TECHNOLOGY RELATED TO RESPIRABLE DUST. 

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

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

17 SEC. 505. REFRESHER TRAINING ON MINER RIGHTS AND 

18 RESPONSIBILITIES. 

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

20 825(a)(3)) is amended to read as follows: 

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

22 hours of refresher training not less frequently than 

23 once every 12 months, and such training shall in24 clude one hour of training on the statutory rights 

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1 tives under this Act and other applicable Federal 

2 and State law, pursuant to a program of instruction 

3 developed by the Secretary and delivered by the 

4 mine operator or by a trainer approved by the Sec5 retary;’’. 

6 (b) TIMING OF INITIAL STATUTORY RIGHTS TRAIN7 ING.—Notwithstanding section 115 of the Federal Mine 

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

9 U.S.C. 825) or the health and safety training program ap10 proved under such section, an operator shall ensure that 

11 all miners already employed by the operator on the date 

12 of enactment of this Act shall receive the one hour of stat13 utory rights and responsibilities training described in sec14 tion 115(a)(3) of such Act not later than 180 days after 

15 such date. 

16 SEC. 506. AUTHORITY TO MANDATE ADDITIONAL TRAINING. 

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

18 further amended by redesignating subsection (e) as sub19 section (f) and inserting after subsection (d) the following: 

20 ‘‘(e) AUTHORITY TO MANDATE ADDITIONAL TRAIN21 ING.—The Secretary is authorized to require that an oper22 ator of a coal provide additional training beyond what is 

23 otherwise required by law, and specifying the time within 

24 which such training shall be provided, if the Secretary 

25 finds that— 


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1 ‘‘(1)(A) a serious or fatal accident has occurred 

2 at such mine; or 

3 ‘‘(B) such mine has experienced accident and 

4 injury rates, citations for violations of this Act (in5 cluding mandatory health or safety standards or reg6 ulations promulgated under this Act), citations for 

7 significant and substantial violations, or withdrawal 

8 orders issued under this Act at a rate above the av9 erage for mines of similar size and type; and 

10 ‘‘(2) additional training would benefit the 

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

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

13 (30 U.S.C. 814(g)(2)) is amended by striking ‘‘under 

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

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

16 SEC. 507. CERTIFICATION OF PERSONNEL. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title I is further amended by add18 ing at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 118. CERTIFICATION OF PERSONNEL. 

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

21 authorized or designated by the operator of a coal mine 

22 to perform any duties or provide any training that this 

23 Act, including a mandatory health or safety standard or 

24 regulation promulgated pursuant to this Act, requires to 

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1 fied, or otherwise approved person, shall be permitted to 

2 perform such duties or provide such training only if such 

3 person has a current certification, registration, qualifica4 tion, or approval to perform such duties or provide such 

5 training consistent with the requirements of this section. 

6 ‘‘(b) ESTABLISHMENT OF CERTIFICATION REQUIRE7 MENTS AND PROCEDURES.— 

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

9 the date of enactment of the Mine Safety Account10 ability and Improved Protection Act, the Secretary 

11 shall issue mandatory standards to establish— 

12 ‘‘(A) requirements for such certification, 

13 registration, qualification, or other approval, in14 cluding the experience, examinations, and ref15 erences that may be required as appropriate; 

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

17 procedures for obtaining and renewing such cer18 tification, registration, qualification, or other 

19 approval; and 

20 ‘‘(C) procedures and criteria for revoking 

21 such certification, registration, qualification, or 

22 other approval, including procedures that en23 sure that the Secretary responds to requests for 

24 revocation. 


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1 ‘‘(2) COORDINATION WITH STATES.—In devel2 oping such standards, the Secretary shall consult 

3 with States that have miner certification programs 

4 to ensure effective coordination with existing State 

5 standards and requirements for certification. The 

6 standards required under paragraph (1) may provide 

7 that the certification, registration, qualification, or 

8 other approval of the State in which the coal or 

9 other mine is located satisfies the requirement of 

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

11 registration, qualification, or other approval is no 

12 less stringent than the standards established by the 

13 Secretary under paragraph (1). 

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

15 ‘‘(1) ASSESSMENT AND COLLECTION.—Begin16 ning 180 days after the date of enactment of the 

17 Mine Safety Accountability and Improved Protection 

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

19 accordance with this subsection, from each operator 

20 for each person certified under this section. Fees 

21 shall be assessed and collected in amounts deter22 mined by the Secretary as necessary to fund the cer23 tification programs established under this section. 

24 ‘‘(2) MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH CERTIFI25 CATION FUND.—There is established in the Treasury 


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1 of the United States a separate account for the de2 posit of fees collected under this subsection to be 

3 known as the Mine Safety and Health Certification 

4 Fund. The Secretary shall deposit any fees collected 

5 pursuant to paragraph (1) into the fund. 

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

7 Health Certification Fund shall be available to the 

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

9 expenditures to carry out the certification programs 

10 established under this subsection. 

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

12 addition to funds appropriated under section 114, 

13 there is authorized to be appropriated from the Mine 

14 Safety and Health Certification Fund to the Assist15 ant Secretary for Mine Safety and Health for each 

16 fiscal year in which fees are collected under para17 graph (1) an amount equal to the total amount col18 lected during the previous fiscal year from fees as19 sessed pursuant to this subsection. Such amounts 

20 are authorized to remain available until expended. 

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

22 Fees authorized and collected under this subsection 

23 shall be available for obligation only to the extent 

24 and in the amount provided in advance in appropria25 tions Acts. 


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1 ‘‘(d) CITATION; WITHDRAWAL ORDER.—Any oper2 ator who permits a person to perform any of the health 

3 or safety related functions described in subsection (a) 

4 without a current certification which meets the require5 ments of this section shall be considered to have com6 mitted an unwarrantable failure under section 104(d)(1), 

7 and the Secretary shall issue an order requiring that the 

8 miner be withdrawn or reassigned to duties that do not 

9 require such certification.’’. 

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

11 U.S.C. 878) is amended— 

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

13 (2) in subsection (c), by redesignating para14 graphs (1) through (3) as subparagraphs (A) 

15 through (C), respectively; 

16 (3) in subsection (g), by redesignating para17 graphs (1) through (4) as subparagraphs (A) 

18 through (D), respectively; and 

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

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

21 TITLE VI—ADDITIONAL MINE 

22 SAFETY PROVISIONS 

23 SEC. 601. DEFINITIONS. 

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

25 amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(d) ‘operator’ means— 

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

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

4 mine; or 

5 ‘‘(B) controls such mine by making or hav6 ing the authority to make management or oper7 ational decisions that affect, directly or indi8 rectly, the health or safety at such mine; or 

9 ‘‘(2) any independent contractor performing 

10 services or construction at such mine;’’. 

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

12 802(e)) is amended by striking ‘‘the miners’’ and inserting 

13 ‘‘any miner’’. 

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

15 802(g)) is amended by inserting after ‘‘or other mine’’ the 

16 following: ‘‘, and includes any individual who is not cur17 rently working in a coal or other mine but would be cur18 rently working in such mine, but for an accident in such 

19 mine’’. 

20 (d) DEFINITION OF SIGNIFICANT AND SUBSTANTIAL

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

22 amended— 

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

24 the semicolon; 


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

2 the end and inserting a semicolon; 

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

4 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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

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

7 violation of this Act, including any mandatory health or 

8 safety standard or regulation promulgated under this Act, 

9 that is of such nature as could significantly and substan10 tially contribute to the cause and effect of a coal or other 

11 mine safety or health hazard as described in section 

12 104(d) and there is a substantial probability that such a 

13 violation could result in death.’’. 

14 SEC. 602. ASSISTANCE TO STATES. 

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

16 (1) in subsection (a)— 

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

18 by striking ‘‘, in coordination with the Sec19 retary of Health, Education, and Welfare and 

20 the Secretary of the Interior,’’; 

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

22 after the semicolon; 

23 (C) in paragraph (3), by striking the pe24 riod and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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


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1 ‘‘(4) to assist such State in developing and im2 plementing any certification program for coal or 

3 other mines required for compliance with section 

4 118.’’; and 

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

6 for fiscal year 1970, and $10,000,000 in each suc7 ceeding fiscal year’’ and inserting ‘‘$20,000,000 for 

8 each fiscal year’’. 

9 SEC. 603. AMENDMENTS RELATING TO ELIGIBILITY FOR 

10 SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM. 

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

12 (1) in subsection (b)(3), by striking subpara13 graph (B) and redesignating subparagraphs (C) and 

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

15 (2) in subsection (c)(3), by striking subpara16 graph (B) and redesignating subparagraphs (C) and 

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

18 (3) in subsection (d)(3)— 

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

20 ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon; and 

21 (B) by striking subparagraph (B) and re22 designating subparagraph (C) as subparagraph 

23 (B). 


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1 SEC. 604. ADDITIONAL TRAINING OF MINE INSPECTORS. 

2 Beginning during the 1 year period after the date of 

3 enactment of this Act, and each year thereafter, the Sec4 retary of Labor shall require that each mine inspector con5 ducting inspections under the Federal Mines Safety and 

6 Health Act of 1977 receive a full additional week of train7 ing, in addition to the training that was provided to or 

8 required of such inspectors prior to the date of enactment 

9 of this Act. 

10 SEC. 605. REPORT ON STAFFING NEEDS OF THE MINE SAFE11 TY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION. 

12 Not later than 90 days after the date of the enact13 ment of this Act, the Secretary of Labor shall transmit 

14 a report to Congress detailing any specific need for addi15 tional inspectors or other employees of the Mine Safety 

16 and Health Administration in order for the Administra17 tion to carry out and fulfill the purposes of this Act. Such 

18 report shall include specific requests for additional appro19 priations, if so determined by the Secretary. 

Æ 


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