(2) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘any 
mandatory health or safety standard’’ and inserting 
‘‘any provision of this Act, including any mandatory 
health or safety standard or regulation promulgated 
under this Act,’’. 
SEC. 202. A PATTERN OF RECURRING NONCOMPLIANCE OR 
ACCIDENTS. 
Section 104(e) (30 U.S.C. 814(e)) is amended to read 
as follows: 
‘‘(e) PATTERN OF RECURRING NONCOMPLIANCE OR 
ACCIDENTS.— 
‘‘(1) PATTERN STATUS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this 
subsection, a coal or other mine shall be placed 
in pattern status if such mine has, as deter-
mined based on the regulations promulgated 
under paragraph (8)— 
‘‘(i) a pattern of— 
‘‘(I) citations for significant and 
substantial violations; 
‘‘(II) citations and withdrawal or-
ders issued for unwarrantable failure 
to comply with mandatory health and 
safety standards under section 104(d); 
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‘‘(III) citations for flagrant viola-
tions within the meaning of section 
110(b); 
‘‘(IV) withdrawal orders issued 
under any other section of this Act 
(other than orders issued under sub-
sections (j) or (k) of section 103); and 
‘‘(V) accidents and injuries; or 
‘‘(ii) a pattern consisting of any com-
bination of citations, orders, accidents, or 
injuries described in subclauses (I) through 
(V). 
‘‘(B) MITIGATING CIRCUMSTANCES.—Not-
withstanding subparagraph (A), if the Sec-
retary, after conducting an assessment of a coal 
or other mine that otherwise qualifies for pat-
tern status, certifies that there are mitigating 
circumstances wherein the operator has already 
implemented remedial measures that have re-
duced risks to the health and safety of miners 
to the point that such risks are no longer ele-
vated and has taken sufficient measures to en-
sure such elevated risk will not recur, the Sec-
retary may deem such mine to not be in pattern 
status under this subsection. The Secretary 
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shall issue any such certification of such miti-
gating circumstances that would preclude the 
placement of a mine in pattern status as a writ-
ten finding, which shall, not later than 10 days 
after the certification is made, be— 
‘‘(i) made available on the public Web 
site of the Mine Safety and Health Admin-
istration; and 
‘‘(ii) transmitted to the Committee on 
Education and Labor of the House of Rep-
resentatives and the Committee on Health, 
Education, Labor, and Pensions of the 
Senate. 
‘‘(C) FREQUENCY.—Not less frequently 
than every 6 months, the Secretary shall iden-
tify any mines which meet the criteria set forth 
in paragraph (8). 
‘‘(2) ACTIONS
FOLLOWING
PLACEMENT
OF 
MINE IN PATTERN STATUS.—For any coal or other 
mine that is in pattern status, the Secretary shall— 
‘‘(A) notify the operator of such mine that 
the mine is being placed in pattern status; 
‘‘(B) issue an order requiring such oper-
ator to cause all persons to be withdrawn from 
such mine, except those persons referred to in 
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subsection (c) or authorized by an order of the 
Secretary issued under this subsection; 
‘‘(C) issue a remediation order described in 
paragraph (3) to such operator within 3 days; 
and 
‘‘(D) require that the number of regular 
inspections of such mine required under section 
103 be increased to 8 per year while the mine 
is in pattern status. 
Notice advising operators that they face potential 
placement in pattern status shall not be a require-
ment for issuing a withdrawal order to operators 
under this subsection. 
‘‘(3) REMEDIATION ORDER.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A remediation order 
issued to an operator under paragraph (2)(C) 
may require the operator to carry out one or 
more of the following requirements, pursuant to 
a timetable for commencing and completing 
such actions or as a condition of miners reen-
tering the mine: 
‘‘(i) Provide specified training, includ-
ing training not otherwise required under 
this Act. 
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‘‘(ii) Institute and implement an effec-
tive health and safety management pro-
gram approved by the Secretary, includ-
ing— 
‘‘(I) the employment of safety 
professionals, certified persons, and 
adequate numbers of personnel for the 
mine, as may be required by the Sec-
retary; 
‘‘(II) specific inspection, record-
keeping, reporting and other require-
ments for the mine as the Secretary 
may establish; and 
‘‘(III) other requirements to en-
sure compliance and to protect the 
health and safety of miners or prevent 
accidents or injuries as the Secretary 
may determine are necessary. 
‘‘(iii) Facilitate any effort by the Sec-
retary to communicate directly with miners 
employed at the mine outside the presence 
of the mine operators or its agents, for the 
purpose of obtaining information about 
mine conditions, health and safety prac-
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tices, or advising miners of their rights 
under this Act. 
‘‘(B) MODIFICATION OF AND FAILURE TO 
COMPLY WITH REMEDIATION ORDER.—The Sec-
retary may modify the remediation order, as 
necessary, to protect the health and safety of 
miners. If the mine operator fails to fully com-
ply with the remediation order during the time 
a mine is in pattern status, the Secretary shall 
reinstate the withdrawal order under paragraph 
(2)(B). 
‘‘(C) EXTENSION OF DEADLINES.—An ex-
tension of a deadline under the remediation 
order may be granted on a temporary basis and 
only upon a showing that the operator took all 
feasible measures to comply with the order and 
only to the extent that the operator’s failure to 
comply is beyond the control of the operator. 
‘‘(4) CONDITIONS FOR LIFTING A WITHDRAWAL 
ORDER.—A withdrawal order issued under para-
graph (2)(B) shall not be lifted until the Secretary 
verifies that— 
‘‘(A) any and all violations or other condi-
tions in the mine identified in the remediation 
order have been or are being fully abated or 
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corrected as outlined in the remediation order; 
and 
‘‘(B) the operator has completed any other 
actions under the remediation order that are re-
quired for reopening the mine. 
‘‘(5) PERFORMANCE EVALUATION.— 
‘‘(A) PERFORMANCE
BENCHMARKS.—The 
Secretary shall evaluate the performance of 
each mine in pattern status every 90 days dur-
ing which the mine is producing and determine 
if, for such 90-day period— 
‘‘(i) the rate of citations at such mine 
for significant and substantial violations— 
‘‘(I) is in the top performing 
35th percentile of such rates, respec-
tively, for all mines of similar size and 
type; or 
‘‘(II) has been reduced by 70 
percent from the date on which such 
mine was placed in pattern status, 
provided that the rate of such viola-
tions is not greater than the mean for 
all mines of similar size and type; 
‘‘(ii) the accident and injury rates at 
such mine are in the top performing 35th 
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percentile of such rates, respectively, for all 
mines of similar size and type; and 
‘‘(iii) no citations or withdrawal or-
ders for a violation under section 104(d), 
no withdrawal orders for imminent danger 
under section 107 (issued in connection 
with a citation), and no flagrant violations 
within the meaning of section 110(b), were 
issued for such mine. 
‘‘(B) REISSUANCE
OF
WITHDRAWAL
OR-
DERS.—If an operator being evaluated fails to 
achieve the performance benchmarks described 
in subparagraph (A), the Secretary may reissue 
a withdrawal order under paragraph (2)(B) to 
remedy any recurring conditions that led to pat-
tern status under this subsection, and may 
modify the remediation order, as necessary, to 
protect the health and safety of miners. 
‘‘(6) TERMINATION OF PATTERN STATUS.— 
‘‘(A) PERFORMANCE
BENCHMARKS.—The 
Secretary shall remove a coal or other mine 
from pattern status if, for a 1-year period dur-
ing which the mine is producing— 
‘‘(i) the rate of citations at such mine 
for significant and substantial violations— 
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‘‘(I) is in the top performing 
25th percentile of such rates, respec-
tively, for all mines of similar size and 
type; or 
‘‘(II) has been reduced by 80 
percent from the date on which such 
mine was placed in pattern status, 
provided that the rate of such viola-
tions is not greater than the mean for 
all mines of similar size and type; 
‘‘(ii) the accident and injury rates at 
such mine are in the top performing 25th 
percentile of such rates, respectively, for all 
mines of similar size and type; and 
‘‘(iii) no citations or withdrawal or-
ders for violations under section 104(d), no 
withdrawal orders for imminent danger 
under section 107 (issued in connection 
with a citation), and no flagrant violations 
within the meaning of section 110(b), were 
issued for such mine. 
‘‘(B) CONTINUATION
OF
PATTERN
STA-
TUS.—Should the mine operator fail to meet 
the performance benchmarks described in sub-
paragraph (A), the Secretary shall extend the 
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mine’s placement in pattern status until such 
benchmarks are achieved. 
‘‘(C) CONSTRUCTION.—A withdrawal order 
issued as the result of a condition that was en-
tirely beyond the operator’s ability to prevent or 
control shall not preclude the operator from 
being removed from pattern status, provided 
the operator did not cause or allow miners to 
be exposed to the condition in violation of any 
provision of this Act or a mandatory health or 
safety standard or regulation promulgated 
under this Act. 
‘‘(7) EXPEDITED REVIEW.—If any order under 
this subsection is contested, the review of such order 
shall be conducted on an expedited basis, in accord-
ance with section 105(d). 
‘‘(8) REGULATIONS.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—Not later than 120 
days after the date of enactment of the Robert 
C. Byrd Miner Safety and Health Act of 2010, 
the Secretary shall issue interim final regula-
tions that shall define— 
‘‘(i) the threshold benchmarks to trig-
ger pattern status under paragraph (1) 
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and cause a withdrawal order to be issued 
or reissued; and 
‘‘(ii) the performance benchmarks de-
scribed in paragraphs (5)(A) and (6)(A). 
‘‘(B) THRESHOLD
BENCHMARKS.—In es-
tablishing threshold benchmarks to trigger pat-
tern status for mines with significantly poor 
compliance that contributes to unsafe or 
unhealthy conditions, the Secretary— 
‘‘(i) shall— 
‘‘(I) consider rates of citations 
and orders described in paragraph 
(1)(A) and rates of reportable acci-
dents and injuries within the pre-
ceding 180-day period; and 
‘‘(II) assign appropriate weight 
to various types of citations, orders, 
accidents, injuries, or other factors; 
and 
‘‘(ii) may include— 
‘‘(I) factors such as mine type, 
production levels, number of miners, 
hours worked by miners, number of 
mechanized mining units (or similar 
production characteristics), and the 
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presence of a representative of miners 
at the mine for purposes of collective 
bargaining; 
‘‘(II) the mine’s history of cita-
tions, violations, orders, and other en-
forcement actions, or rates of report-
able accidents and injuries, over any 
period determined relevant by the Sec-
retary; and 
‘‘(III) other factors the Secretary 
may determine appropriate to protect 
the safety and health of miners. 
‘‘(C) FINAL REGULATION.—Not later than 
2 years after the date of enactment of the Rob-
ert C. Byrd Miner Safety and Health Act of 
2010, the Secretary shall promulgate a final 
regulation implementing this paragraph. 
‘‘(9) PUBLIC DATABASE AND INFORMATION.— 
The Secretary shall establish and maintain a pub-
lically available electronic database containing the 
data used to determine pattern status for all coal or 
other mines which shall be updated as frequently as 
practicable. Such database shall be searchable and 
have the capacity to provide comparative data about 
the health and safety at mines of similar sizes and 
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types. The Secretary shall also make publicly avail-
able— 
‘‘(A) a list of all mines the Secretary 
places in pattern status, updated within 7 days 
of placing an additional mine in pattern status; 
‘‘(B) the metrics, including percentile in-
formation, used for the purposes of the per-
formance benchmarks and threshold bench-
marks described in paragraphs (5), (6), and 
(8); and 
‘‘(C) guidance for the use of such metrics 
and benchmarks to assist operators in deter-
mining the performance their mines under cri-
teria established by the Secretary. 
‘‘(10) OPERATOR
FEES
FOR
ADDITIONAL
IN-
SPECTIONS.— 
‘‘(A) ASSESSMENT AND COLLECTION.—Be-
ginning 120 days after the date of enactment of 
the Robert C. Byrd Miner Safety and Health 
Act of 2010, the Secretary shall assess and col-
lect fees, in accordance with this paragraph, 
from each coal or other mine in pattern status 
for the costs of additional inspections under 
this subsection. The Secretary shall issue, by 
rule, a schedule of fees to be assessed against 
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coal or other mines of varying types and sizes, 
and shall collect and assess amounts under this 
paragraph based on the schedule. 
‘‘(B) USE.—Amounts collected as provided 
in subparagraph (A) shall only be available to 
the Secretary for making expenditures to carry 
out the additional inspections required under 
paragraph (2)(D). 
‘‘(C) 
AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIA-
TIONS.—In addition to any other amounts au-
thorized to be appropriated under this Act, 
there is authorized to be appropriated to the 
Assistant Secretary for Mine Safety and Health 
for each fiscal year in which fees are collected 
under subparagraph (A) an amount equal to 
the total amount of fees collected under such 
subparagraph during that fiscal year. Such 
amounts are authorized to remain available 
until expended. If on the first day of a fiscal 
year a regular appropriation to the Commission 
has not been enacted, the Commission shall 
continue to collect fees (as offsetting collec-
tions) under this subsection at the rate in effect 
during the preceding fiscal year, until 5 days 
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after the date such regular appropriation is en-
acted. 
‘‘(D) COLLECTION
AND
CREDITING
OF 
FEES.—Fees authorized and collected under 
this paragraph shall be deposited and credited 
as offsetting collections to the account providing 
appropriations to the Mine Safety and Health 
Administration and shall not be collected for 
any fiscal year except to the extent and in the 
amount provided in advance in appropriation 
Acts.’’. 
SEC. 203. INJUNCTIVE AUTHORITY. 
Section 108(a)(2) (30 U.S.C. 818(a)(2)) is amended 
by striking ‘‘a pattern of violation of’’ and all that follows 
and inserting ‘‘a course of conduct that in the judgment 
of the Secretary constitutes a continuing hazard to the 
health or safety of miners, including violations of this Act 
or of mandatory health and safety standards or regula-
tions under this Act.’’. 
SEC. 204. REVOCATION OF APPROVAL OF PLANS. 
Section 105 (30 U.S.C. 815) is amended— 
(1) by redesignating subsection (d) as sub-
section (e); and 
(2) by inserting after subsection (c) the fol-
lowing: 
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‘‘(d) REVOCATION OF APPROVAL OF PLANS.— 
‘‘(1) REVOCATION.—If the Secretary finds that 
any program or plan of an operator, or part thereof, 
that was approved by the Secretary under this Act 
is based on inaccurate information or that cir-
cumstances that existed when such plan was ap-
proved have materially changed and that continued 
operation of such mine under such plan constitutes 
a hazard to the safety or health of miners, the Sec-
retary shall revoke the approval of such program or 
plan. 
‘‘(2) WITHDRAWAL ORDERS.—Upon revocation 
of the approval of a program or plan under sub-
section (a), the Secretary may immediately issue an 
order requiring the operator to cause all persons, ex-
cept those persons referred to in section 104(c), to 
be withdrawn from such mine or an area of such 
mine, and to be prohibited from entering such mine 
or such area, until the operator has submitted and 
the Secretary has approved a new plan.’’. 
SEC. 205. CHALLENGING A DECISION TO APPROVE, MOD-
IFY, OR REVOKE A COAL OR OTHER MINE 
PLAN. 
Section 105(e) (as redesignated by section 204(1)) 
(30 U.S.C. 815(e)) is amended by adding at the end the 
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following: ‘‘In any proceeding in which a party challenges 
the Secretary’s decision whether to approve, modify, or re-
voke a coal or other mine plan under this Act, the Com-
mission shall affirm the Secretary’s decision unless the 
challenging party establishes that such decision was arbi-
trary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, or otherwise not 
in accordance with law.’’. 
SEC. 206. GAO STUDY ON MSHA MINE PLAN APPROVAL. 
Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Comptroller General shall provide a report 
to Congress on the timeliness of the Mine Safety and 
Health Administration’s approval of underground coal 
mines’ required plans and plan amendments, including— 
(1) factors that contribute to any delays in the 
approval of these plans; and 
(2) as appropriate, recommendations for im-
proving timeliness of plan review and for achieving 
prompt decisions. 
TITLE III—PENALTIES 
SEC. 301. CIVIL PENALTIES. 
(a) TECHNICAL CORRECTION.—Section 110(a)(1) 
(30 U.S.C. 820(a)(1)) is amended by inserting ‘‘including 
any regulation promulgated under this Act,’’ after ‘‘this 
Act,’’. 
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(b) INCREASED CIVIL PENALTIES DURING PATTERN 
STATUS.—Section 110(b) (30 U.S.C. 820(b)) is amended 
by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(3) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, 
an operator of a coal or other mine that is in pattern sta-
tus under section 104(e) and that fails to meet the per-
formance benchmarks set forth by the Secretary under 
section 104(e)(5)(A) during any performance review of the 
mine following the first performance review shall be as-
sessed an increased civil penalty for any violation of this 
Act, including any mandatory health or safety standard 
or regulation promulgated under this Act. Such increased 
penalty shall be twice the amount that would otherwise 
be assessed for the violation under this Act, including the 
regulations promulgated under this Act, subject to the 
maximum civil penalty established for the violation under 
this Act. This paragraph shall apply to violations at such 
mine that occur during the time period after the operator 
fails to meet the performance benchmarks in this para-
graph, and ending when the Secretary determines at a 
subsequent performance review that the mine meets the 
performance benchmarks under section 104(e)(5)(A).’’. 
(c) CIVIL PENALTY
FOR RETALIATION.—Section 
110(a) (30 U.S.C. 820(a)) is further amended— 
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(1) by redesignating paragraph (4) as para-
graph (5); and 
(2) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(4) If any person violates section 105(c), the Sec-
retary shall propose, and the Commission shall assess, a 
civil penalty of not less than $10,000 or more than 
$100,000 for the first occurrence of such violation, and 
not less than $20,000 or more than $200,000 for any sub-
sequent violation, during any 3-year period.’’. 
SEC. 302. CIVIL AND CRIMINAL LIABILITY OF OFFICERS, DI-
RECTORS, AND AGENTS. 
Section 110(c) (30 U.S.C. 820(c)) is amended to read 
as follows: 
‘‘(c) CIVIL AND CRIMINAL LIABILITY OF OFFICERS, 
DIRECTORS, AND AGENTS.—Whenever an operator vio-
lates a provision of this Act, including any mandatory 
health or safety standard or regulation promulgated under 
this Act, or knowingly violates or fails or refuses to comply 
with any order issued under this Act or any order incor-
porated in a final decision issued under this Act, any di-
rector, officer, or agent of such operator who knowingly 
authorized, ordered, or carried out such violation, failure, 
or refusal, or any policy or practice that resulted in such 
violation, failure, or refusal, shall be subject to the same 
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civil penalties, fines, and imprisonment that may be im-
posed upon a person under this section.’’. 
SEC. 303. CRIMINAL PENALTIES. 
(a) IN
GENERAL.—Section 110(d) (30 U.S.C. 
820(d)) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(d) CRIMINAL PENALTIES.—(1) Whoever, being an 
operator, knowingly violates a mandatory health or safety 
standard, or knowingly violates or fails or refuses to com-
ply with any order issued under section 104 or section 
107, or any order incorporated in a final decision issued 
under this Act (except an order incorporated in a decision 
under subsection (a)(1) or section 105(c)), shall, upon 
conviction, be fined not more than $250,000, or impris-
oned for not more than 1 year, or both, except that if 
the operator commits the violation after having previously 
committed a violation under this paragraph, the operator 
shall, upon conviction, be fined not more than $1,000,000, 
or imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both. 
‘‘(2) Whoever, being an operator— 
‘‘(A) knowingly tampers with or disables a re-
quired safety device (except with express authoriza-
tion from the Secretary); 
‘‘(B) knowingly violates a mandatory health or 
safety standard; or 
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‘‘(C) knowingly violates or fails or refuses to 
comply with an order issued under section 104 or 
107, or any order incorporated in a final decision 
issued under this Act (except an order incorporated 
in a decision under subsection (a)(1) or section 
105(c)), and thereby recklessly exposes a miner to 
significant risk of serious injury, serious illness, or 
death, shall, upon conviction, be fined not more than 
$1,000,000, or imprisoned for not more than 5 
years, or both, except that if the operator commits 
the violation after having previously committed a 
violation under this paragraph, the operator shall, 
upon conviction, be fined not more than $2,000,000, 
or imprisoned for not more than 10 years, or both. 
‘‘(3) Whoever, with intent to retaliate or to impede 
or interfere with an investigation, interferes with the law-
ful employment or livelihood of a person, or threatens a 
person with such action, because such person (or a spouse, 
sibling, child, or parent of such person) provides informa-
tion to an authorized representative of the Secretary, a 
State or local mine safety or health officer or official, or 
other any other law enforcement officer in reasonable be-
lief that the information is true and related to an apparent 
health or safety violation, or unhealthful or unsafe condi-
tion, policy, or practice under this Act, or takes or threat-
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ens such person with such action to prevent such person 
(or a spouse, sibling, child, or parent of such person) from 
so providing such information, shall be fined under title 
18, United States Code, or imprisoned for not more than 
5 years, or both.’’. 
(b) ADVANCE NOTICE OF INSPECTIONS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 110(e) (30 U.S.C. 
820(e)) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(e) Whoever, with intent to give advance notice of 
an inspection conducted or to be conducted under this Act, 
and thereby to impede, interfere with, or frustrate such 
inspection, engages in, or directs another person to engage 
in, conduct that a reasonable person would expect to result 
in such advance notice, shall be fined under title 18, 
United States Code, or imprisoned for not more than 5 
years, or both.’’. 
(2) POSTING
OF
ADVANCE
NOTICE
PEN-
ALTIES.—Section 109 (30 U.S.C. 819) is amended 
by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(e) POSTING OF ADVANCE NOTICE PENALTIES.— 
Each operator of a coal or other mine shall post, on the 
bulletin board described in subsection (a) and in a con-
spicuous place near each staffed entrance onto the mine 
property, a notice stating, in a form and manner to be 
prescribed by the Secretary— 
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‘‘(1) that giving, causing to give, or attempting 
to give or cause to give advance notice of any inspec-
tion to be conducted under this Act with the inten-
tion of impeding, interfering with, or adversely af-
fecting the results of such inspection is unlawful 
pursuant to section 110(e); and 
‘‘(2) the maximum penalties for a violation 
under such subsection.’’. 
SEC. 304. COMMISSION REVIEW OF PENALTY ASSESS-
MENTS. 
Section 110(i) (30 U.S.C. 820(i)) is amended by 
striking ‘‘In assessing civil monetary penalties, the Com-
mission shall consider’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘In 
any review of a citation and proposed penalty assessment 
contested by an operator, the Commission shall assess not 
less than the penalty derived by using the same method-
ology (including any point system) prescribed in regula-
tions under this Act, so as to ensure consistency in oper-
ator penalty assessments, except that the Commission may 
assess a penalty for less than the amount that would result 
from the utilization of such methodology if the Commis-
sion finds that there are extraordinary circumstances. If 
there is no such methodology prescribed for a citation or 
there are such extraordinary circumstances, the Commis-
sion shall assess the penalty by considering’’. 
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SEC. 305. DELINQUENT PAYMENTS AND PREJUDGMENT IN-
TEREST. 
(a) PRE-FINAL ORDER INTEREST.—Section 110(j) 
(30 U.S.C. 820(j)) is amended by striking the second and 
third sentences and inserting the following: ‘‘Pre-final 
order interest on such penalties shall begin to accrue on 
the date the operator contests a citation issued under this 
Act, including any mandatory health or safety standard 
or regulation promulgated under this Act, and shall end 
upon the issuance of the final order. Such pre-final order 
interest shall be calculated at the current underpayment 
rate determined by the Secretary of the Treasury pursu-
ant to section 6621 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 
and shall be compounded daily. Post-final order interest 
shall begin to accrue 30 days after the date a final order 
of the Commission or the court is issued, and shall be 
charged at the rate of 8 percent per annum.’’. 
(b) ENSURING PAYMENT OF PENALTIES.— 
(1) AMENDMENTS.—Section 110 (30 U.S.C. 
820) is further amended— 
(A) by redesignating subsection (l) as sub-
section (m); and 
(B) by inserting after subsection (k) the 
following: 
‘‘(l) ENSURING PAYMENT OF PENALTIES.— 
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‘‘(1) DELINQUENT PAYMENT LETTER.—If the 
operator of a coal or other mine fails to pay any civil 
penalty assessment that has become a final order of 
the Commission or a court within 45 days after such 
assessment became a final order, the Secretary shall 
send the operator a letter advising the operator of 
the consequences under this subsection of such fail-
ure to pay. The letter shall also advise the operator 
of the opportunity to enter into or modify a payment 
plan with the Secretary based upon a demonstrated 
inability to pay, the procedure for entering into such 
plan, and the consequences of not entering into or 
not complying with such plan. 
‘‘(2) WITHDRAWAL ORDERS FOLLOWING FAIL-
URE TO PAY.—If an operator that receives a letter 
under paragraph (1) has not paid the assessment by 
the date that is 180 days after such assessment be-
came a final order and has not entered into a pay-
ment plan with the Secretary, the Secretary shall 
issue an order requiring such operator to cause all 
persons, except those referred to in section 104(c), 
to be withdrawn from, and to be prohibited from en-
tering, the mine that is covered by the final order 
described in paragraph (1), until the operator pays 
such assessment in full (including interest and ad-
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ministrative costs) or enters into a payment plan 
with the Secretary. If such operator enters into a 
payment plan with the Secretary and at any time 
fails to comply with the terms specified in such pay-
ment plan, the Secretary shall issue an order requir-
ing such operator to cause all persons, except those 
referred to in section 104(c), to be withdrawn from 
the mine that is covered by such final order, and to 
be prohibited from entering such mine, until the op-
erator rectifies the noncompliance with the payment 
plan in the manner specified in such payment 
plan.’’. 
(2) APPLICABILITY
AND
EFFECTIVE
DATE.— 
The amendments made by paragraph (1) shall apply 
to all unpaid civil penalty assessments under the 
Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 (30 
U.S.C. 801 et seq.), except that, for any unpaid civil 
penalty assessment that became a final order of the 
Commission or a court before the date of enactment 
of this Act, the time periods under section 110(n) of 
the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 (as 
amended) (30 U.S.C. 820(n)) shall be calculated as 
beginning on the date of enactment of this Act in-
stead of on the date of the final order. 
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TITLE IV—WORKER RIGHTS AND 
PROTECTIONS 
SEC. 401. PROTECTION FROM RETALIATION. 
Section 105(c) (30 U.S.C. 815(c)) is amended to read 
as follows: 
‘‘(c) PROTECTION FROM RETALIATION.— 
‘‘(1) RETALIATION PROHIBITED.— 
‘‘(A) RETALIATION
FOR
COMPLAINT
OR 
TESTIMONY.—No person shall discharge or in 
any manner discriminate against or cause to be 
discharged or cause discrimination against or 
otherwise interfere with the exercise of the stat-
utory rights of any miner or other employee of 
an operator, representative of miners, or appli-
cant for employment, because— 
‘‘(i) such miner or other employee, 
representative, or applicant for employ-
ment— 
‘‘(I) has filed or made a com-
plaint, or is about to file or make a 
complaint, including a complaint noti-
fying the operator or the operator’s 
agent, or the representative of the 
miners at the coal or other mine of an 
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alleged danger or safety or health vio-
lation in a coal or other mine; 
‘‘(II) instituted or caused to be 
instituted, or is about to institute or 
cause to be instituted, any proceeding 
under or related to this Act or has 
testified or is about to testify in any 
such proceeding or because of the ex-
ercise by such miner or other em-
ployee, representative, or applicant for 
employment on behalf of him or her-
self or others of any right afforded by 
this Act, or has reported any injury or 
illness to an operator or agent; 
‘‘(III) has testified or is about to 
testify before Congress or any Federal 
or State proceeding related to safety 
or health in a coal or other mine; or 
‘‘(IV) refused to violate any pro-
vision of this Act, including any man-
datory health and safety standard or 
regulation; or 
‘‘(ii) such miner is the subject of med-
ical evaluations and potential transfer 
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under a standard published pursuant to 
section 101. 
‘‘(B) RETALIATION FOR REFUSAL TO PER-
FORM DUTIES.— 
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—No person shall 
discharge or in any manner discriminate 
against a miner or other employee of an 
operator for refusing to perform the min-
er’s or other employee’s duties if the miner 
or other employee has a good-faith and 
reasonable belief that performing such du-
ties would pose a safety or health hazard 
to the miner or other employee or to any 
other miner or employee. 
‘‘(ii) STANDARD.—For purposes of 
clause (i), the circumstances causing the 
miner’s or other employee’s good-faith be-
lief that performing such duties would pose 
a safety or health hazard shall be of such 
a nature that a reasonable person, under 
the circumstances confronting the miner or 
other employee, would conclude that there 
is such a hazard. In order to qualify for 
protection under this paragraph, the miner 
or other employee, when practicable, shall 
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‘‘(5) BURDEN OF PROOF.—In adjudicating a 
complaint pursuant to this subsection, the Commis-
sion may determine that a violation of paragraph (1) 
has occurred only if the complainant demonstrates 
that any conduct described in paragraph (1) with re-
spect to the complainant was a contributing factor 
in the adverse action alleged in the complaint. A de-
cision or order that is favorable to the complainant 
shall not be issued pursuant to this subsection if the 
respondent demonstrates by clear and convincing 
evidence that the respondent would have taken the 
same adverse action in the absence of such conduct. 
‘‘(6) ATTORNEYS’ FEES.—Whenever an order is 
issued sustaining the complainant’s charges under 
this subsection, a sum equal to the aggregate 
amount of all costs and expenses, including attor-
ney’s fees, as determined by the Commission to have 
been reasonably incurred by the complainant for, or 
in connection with, the institution and prosecution of 
such proceedings shall be assessed against the per-
son committing such violation. The Commission 
shall determine whether such costs and expenses 
were reasonably incurred by the complainant without 
reference to whether the Secretary also participated 
in the proceeding. 
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