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This article originally provided by
The
Charleston Gazette
By Ken Ward Jr.
Staff writer
Top federal lawmakers want the U.S. Mine Safety and Health
Administration to provide more detailed answers about thousands of
violations for which the agency never assessed monetary fines.
Senate and House Democrats called for MSHA to explain how the
problem occurred, how bad it is, and what is being done to quickly
fix it.
"This is another regrettable example of how MSHA has strayed from
its statutory mission," said Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va. "I will
pursue this matter with MSHA to ensure the safety of our coal
mines."
Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., and chairman of the House Labor
Committee, also harshly criticized the disclosure that MSHA had not
assessed penalties for thousands of violations, despite a federal
law that requires such penalties.
"It is unacceptable that thousands of health and safety violations
in the nation's mines have essentially gone unpunished," Miller said
Monday. "MSHA should explain why this problem has persisted for so
many years and what will be done to quickly end it."
Late last week, MSHA officials confirmed that preliminary agency
data show more than 4,000 health and safety violations that were
never assessed for monetary fines. Under a nearly 40-year-old law,
MSHA is required to fine operators for violations of mandatory
health and safety standards.
The 4,000 violations without fines were issued between January 2000
and July 2006, according to preliminary data from MSHA officials.
Richard Stickler, assistant labor secretary in charge of MSHA,
emphasized in an interview that the citations involved accounted for
less than 1 percent of all violations cited by agency inspectors.
Stickler also said that he has ordered his staff to take steps to
ensure the problem is fixed for future citations.
The extent of the problem remains unclear, as MSHA has released only
limited information as its computer staffers try to fine-tune their
analysis.
And it remained unclear on Monday what steps - if any - MSHA plans
to take regarding fines for the thousands of violations that have
gone without penalties over the last six years.
Last week, MSHA officials said a court case limited them to
assessing fines within 18 months of a citation being issued.
But on Monday, agency lawyer Ed Clair said through a spokesman,
"There is no case that establishes an inflexible 18-month rule
against imposing a penalty in cases older than 18 months."
MSHA spokesman Matt Faraci said that the agency's "longstanding
policy" allows fines to be issued beyond the 18-month limit "in
appropriate cases" and "based on the facts and circumstances" of
those cases. Faraci said that the policy dates back to 1999.
"As it does in every case, MSHA will determine the appropriate
course of action based on applying the laws, regulations and MSHA's
policies to the facts and circumstances of each case," Faraci said
in an e-mail response to questions.
Last week, MSHA assessments director Jay Mattos said that agency
computers had previously been set up to automatically write off
potential fines for citations that went 18 months without being
assessed.
In a Jan. 18 memo, assistant MSHA chief Bob Friend ordered staff to
design a system to "ensure timely action for citations and orders
that are less than 12 months from the issue date."
MSHA officials acted after they discovered earlier this month that
the agency had never fined Kentucky coal operator H&D Mining for a
citation that led to the death of miner Bud Morris on Dec. 30, 2005.
Morris bled to death after his legs were severed when a loaded coal
car accidentally rammed him.
MSHA cited H&D Mining, stating that "this injury became a fatality
because basic first-aid was not properly performed prior to the
injured employee being transported.
"H&D's failure to conduct the required select supervisor first-aid
training contributed to the victim not receiving the proper first
aid at the mine," the MSHA citation said.
Last week, MSHA data and agency officials said that H&D Mining had
never been fined for that citation.
But on Sunday, Faraci revealed that the agency had actually assessed
the maximum fine of $60,000 on Jan. 18 - the day after staffers told
Stickler about the problems with assessing fines.
According to records provided by Faraci on Monday, that fine was
assessed more than two years after the citation was issued.
Under federal law, MSHA is required to assess fines "within a
reasonable time" after the end of an inspection or investigation.
Court rulings have never set a concrete deadline for what
constitutes "a reasonable time," said Nathan Fetty, a staff lawyer
with the Appalachian Center for the Economy and the Environment's
Mine Safety Project. Instead, rulings have said that the time limit
could vary, depending on the circumstances of each case.
"There's no good reason for MSHA to avoid assessing penalties,"
Fetty said Monday. "It only puts miners' health and safety in
jeopardy and reinforces that coal operators can get away with
breaking the law."
To contact staff writer Ken Ward Jr., use e-mail or call 348-1702.
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