Remember, the Affidavits of Annual Labor are NOT verified by the Department of Natural Resources. This information must be used only as reference information. Audit comments should be made regarding the extent of reliance on the information. The mining season for the small scale miner can be a short period during the spring and summer. This is due to the extreme weather conditions and the need for heavy duty equipment to work in the winter months.
Larger operations have more resources and are better able to extend the period of operations.
However, for the individual, this relatively shorter working season should be considered when making an analysis of the numbers of hours worked.