[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 100 (Wednesday, June 20, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1344]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                INTRODUCTION OF 2007 MINE SAFETY PACKAGE

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. NICK J. RAHALL II

                            of west virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 19, 2007

  Mr. RAHALL. Madam Speaker, in the hope of keeping the health and 
safety needs of our coal miners at the forefront of our Nation's 
conscience, I am pleased to join my colleagues, the Chairman of the 
Education and Labor Committee, George Miller, and Alan Mollohan from 
West Virginia in sponsoring a new legislative package on mine safety.
  The mine tragedies of last year are the result of a government and a 
Nation that let down its guard. That should never have happened.
  Nevertheless, the Congress responded quickly and appropriately with 
the passage of the MINER Act, which I proudly supported. Today, the 
Congress continues responding with the introduction of the Supplemental 
Mine Improvement and New Emergency Response Act of 2007 (S-MINER).
  This bill would ban the use of belt air to ventilate the working face 
of a mine--a flaw that contributed to the fatal fire at the Aracoma 
mine in my district. I have long opposed this practice, and I am glad 
to support the ban contained in this bill.
  The bill requires improvements to air quality monitoring to guard 
against black lung disease, better safety examinations, and improved 
construction and monitoring of seals--all things that could have helped 
to save some of the 47 lives lost in the coalfields in 2006.
  Also, importantly to my State, S-MINER calls for the installation of 
refuge chambers and helps to coordinate State and Federal deadlines and 
safety mandates. In West Virginia, operators are facing those looming 
requirements. A Federal requirement for chambers would undoubtedly save 
lives. It would, as well, help to reduce their cost and increase their 
availability, ensuring that more of our miners have access to refuges 
in life-threatening emergencies.
  The legislative package contains concepts and provisions that have 
been part of mine safety discussions for years, if not decades. The 
elements contained within should not come as a surprise to anyone who 
has been within shouting distance of the coalfields in the last several 
months.
  I welcome the discussion and the debate sure to come concerning this 
legislation. As long as we are talking about mine safety--whether we 
agree or not--we are not ignoring it. And that is a critical 
improvement to the purposeful neglect of recent years.
  Madam Speaker, I commend my colleague, George Miller, for his 
attention to this vital issue and I thank him for his continuing work 
on behalf of our Nation's coal miners and their families.

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