3.0.0 854 2023-01-11T13:36:59Z 2023-01-11T13:36:59Z Senate S 2017-04-05 115 sshr00 Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee Senate Standing Referred to 2017-04-05T21:38:55Z Robert C. Byrd Mine Safety Protection Act of 2017 115 1903 HR 2017-04-05 Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce. Related bill CRS 2017-04-05 sshr00 Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee Senate Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. IntroReferral 2017-04-05 Introduced in Senate IntroReferral 10000 9 Library of Congress C001070 Sen. Casey, Robert P., Jr. [D-PA] Bob Casey D PA N M001183 Sen. Manchin, Joe, III [D-WV] Joseph Manchin D WV 2017-04-05 True B000944 Sen. Brown, Sherrod [D-OH] Sherrod Brown D OH 2017-04-05 True Labor and Employment Accidents Administrative law and regulatory procedures Administrative remedies Air quality Business records Cardiovascular and respiratory health Civil actions and liability Coal Congressional oversight Criminal investigation, prosecution, interrogation Criminal procedure and sentencing Department of Labor Employment and training programs Employment discrimination and employee rights Environmental assessment, monitoring, research Evidence and witnesses Family services Government employee pay, benefits, personnel management Government studies and investigations Labor standards Lawyers and legal services Medical tests and diagnostic methods Mining State and local government operations Wages and earnings Worker safety and health Labor and Employment 00 2017-04-05 Introduced in Senate 2018-03-06T18:51:18Z Robert C. Byrd Mine Safety Protection Act of 2017

This bill amends the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 to revise requirements governing: (1) investigations of mine accidents, (2) miners' rights and protections (e.g., whistle-blower rights and protections), (3) mine health and safety standards, (4) underground coal mines, and (5) health and safety training for miners.

The Department of Labor, when investigating coal or other mines, must: (1) determine why an accident occurred and whether there were violations of law, mandatory health and safety standards, or other requirements; (2) refer to the Department of Justice cases involving violations of federal criminal law; and (3) make recommendations to avoid a recurrence of an accident.

The bill expands Labor's enforcement authority, including by requiring Labor to: (1) revoke the approval of mine operators' plans or programs based on certain criteria, and (2) order mine operators to withdraw all persons from a mine until Labor approves a new plan. The bill revises civil and criminal penalties, including by subjecting a mine operator who knowingly violates health or safety standards to a felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a $1 million fine.

Underground coal mines operators must implement a communication program to brief miners of current mine conditions and install atmospheric monitoring systems.

The bill amends the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSH Act) to expand its coverage to government employees and increase civil and criminal penalties for violations of the Act. The bill also expands whistle-blower rights and protections against retaliation under the OSH Act, establishes employee rights with respect to work-related bodily injuries or death, and establishes procedures for correcting serious, willful or repeated violations of occupational safety and health standards.

]]> Robert C. Byrd Mine Safety Protection Act of 2017 Display Title Robert C. Byrd Mine Safety Protection Act of 2017 Official Title as Introduced A bill to improve compliance with mine safety and health laws, empower miners to raise safety concerns, prevent future mine tragedies, and for other purposes. Introduced in Senate IS Short Titles as Introduced Robert C. Byrd Mine Safety Protection Act of 2017 Introduced in Senate 2017-04-05T04:00:00Z https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/BILLS-115s854is/xml/BILLS-115s854is.xml 2017-04-05 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain. Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress This file contains bill summaries and statuses for federal legislation. A bill summary describes the most significant provisions of a piece of legislation and details the effects the legislative text may have on current law and federal programs. Bill summaries are authored by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) of the Library of Congress. As stated in Public Law 91-510 (2 USC 166 (d)(6)), one of the duties of CRS is "to prepare summaries and digests of bills and resolutions of a public general nature introduced in the Senate or House of Representatives". For more information, refer to the User Guide that accompanies this file.