[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 133 (Thursday, November 18, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2068]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             ON THE HORIZON: WORKERS' BENEFITS BEING ROBBED

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                        HON. NICK J. RAHALL, II

                            of west virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, November 18, 2004

  Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, l have always believed that, in America, 
hard work leads to reward. I grew up in a family that inspired me by 
example to work hard, to be fair, and to be loyal. They are values 
worth instilling in future generations. They are concepts that, I 
believe, set our Nation apart and above the rest of the world.
  Increasingly, however, these American ideals are being swept aside in 
the corporate chase for the almighty dollar, and it does not bode well 
for the future of our country.
  In recent months, the media in my State have been running stories 
about a series of court cases concerning Horizon Natural Resources--the 
Nation's fourth largest coal company. The once robust company was 
ailing financially and it was seeking protection through the bankruptcy 
codes. It is the kind of story that might normally engender sympathy. 
But how this company went about trying to protect itself wipes away any 
semblance of pity.
  Horizon went after its employees, current and past. It went after 
their benefits, including their health care. In a cold and callous act, 
Horizon Natural Resources went to court and asked a judge to allow it 
to abandon its obligations to those men and women who had labored long 
and hard in the mines and coal-processing facilities to earn an honest 
living for themselves and the boys in suits.
  In a final, appalling decision in September, a federal judge gave the 
``all clear'' to Horizon to use bankruptcy loopholes to turn its back 
on its workers. Armed with that decision, Horizon took years of the 
hard work and the loyalty of thousands of employees and their families 
and heartlessly tossed it all out the courtroom window.
  As a result, Horizon's mines and coal-processing facilities are 
enabled to continue to operate under new names, but its employees and 
retirees have suffered egregious losses, including, for some, the loss 
of their promised health care.
  Such court decisions, to my mind, do not even vaguely resemble 
justice. They make a mockery of the word. Moreover, they thwart the 
intent of Congress when enacting the Coal Act which was supposed to 
guarantee those health care benefits.
  As a result of its courtroom victories, Horizon is not only permitted 
to chuck its obligations to ensure certain benefits for its own 
employees, it is able to dump its liabilities on already financially 
strained benefit plans that provide for thousands of other retirees and 
their beneficiaries. Benefit plans, I might add, that are largely being 
financed by other coal companies.

  As such, the Horizon ``bankruptcy'' decision resulted in several bad 
decisions that may have long-term, far-reaching implications for 
benefits and employer obligations under the Coal Act, including the 
level of benefits that are required to be provided. In handing down 
such a poorly considered decision, one federal judge set off a domino 
effect that will also cost numerous companies that are playing by the 
rules.
  This is exactly the type of egregious corporate behavior the Coal Act 
sought to address. It is wrong. It goes against the American grain. It 
turns on its head the ideals of hard work and loyalty and fairness.
  This series of court decisions cannot be allowed to stand. In 
response, today I, along with West Virginia Senator Jay Rockefeller, 
are introducing legislation to seek a remedy to this situation. Our 
bill will make clear that the benefits and obligations mandated by the 
Coal Act cannot be modified by the bankruptcy courts. It will prevent 
other companies from attempting to skirt the Coal Act through 
bankruptcy, and help to provide more stability to already over-burdened 
benefit plans and those families who depend on them.
  Moreover, our bill will send a message that financial bankruptcy is 
not an excuse for moral bankruptcy, and that loyalty and hard work are 
worthy ideals still valued in America today.

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