[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 118 (Monday, June 20, 2011)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 35801-35802]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-15250]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Mine Safety and Health Administration

30 CFR Parts 75 and 104

RIN 1219-AB75, 1219-AB73


Examinations of Work Areas in Underground Coal Mines and Pattern 
of Violations

AGENCY: Mine Safety and Health Administration, Labor.

ACTION: Proposed rule; notice of public hearing; notice of extension of 
comment period.

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SUMMARY: The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) will hold 
additional public hearings on the Agency's proposed rules for 
Examinations of Work Areas in Underground Coal Mines (Examinations of 
Work Areas) and for Pattern of Violations.

DATES: The hearings will be held on July 12, 2011, at the location 
listed in the ADDRESSES section of this document.
    Post-hearing comments must be received or postmarked by midnight 
Eastern Daylight Saving Time on August 1, 2011.

ADDRESSES: The public hearings will be held at The Forum at the Hal 
Rogers Center, 101 Bulldog Lane, Hazard, Kentucky.
    Comments, requests to speak, and informational materials for the 
rulemaking record may be sent to MSHA by any of the following methods. 
Clearly identify all submissions with ``RIN 1219-AB75'' for 
Examinations of Work Areas in Underground Coal Mines' submissions, and 
with ``RIN 1219-AB73'' for Pattern of Violations' submissions.
     Federal E-Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
     Electronic mail: http://[email protected]. Include 
``RIN 1219-AB75'' in the subject line of the message for Examinations 
of Work Areas in Underground Coal Mines and ``RIN 1219-AB73'' for 
Pattern of Violations.
     Facsimile: 202-693-9441.
     Mail or Hand Delivery: MSHA, Office of Standards, 
Regulations, and Variances, 1100 Wilson Blvd., Room 2350, Arlington, VA 
22209-3939. For hand delivery, sign in at the receptionist's desk on 
the 21st floor.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Roslyn B. Fontaine, Acting Director, 
Office of Standards, Regulations, and Variances, MSHA, at 
[email protected] (e-mail); 202-693-9440 (voice); or 202-693-9441 
(facsimile).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Availability of Information

    Federal Register Publications: The proposed rule for Examinations 
of Work Areas in Underground Coal Mines, published on December 27, 2010 
(75 FR 81165), and the proposed rule for Pattern of Violations, 
published on February 2, 2011 (76 FR 5719), are available on http://www.regulations.gov and on MSHA's Web site at http://www.msha.gov/REGSPROP.HTM.
    Public Comments: MSHA posts all comments without change, including 
any personal information provided. Access comments electronically on 
http://www.regulations.gov and on MSHA's Web site at http://www.msha.gov/currentcomments.asp. Review comments in person at the 
Office of Standards, Regulations, and Variances, 1100 Wilson Blvd., 
Room 2350, Arlington, VA. Sign in at the receptionist's desk on the 
21st floor.
    E-mail Notification: To subscribe to receive e-mail notification 
when MSHA publishes rulemaking documents in the Federal Register, go to 
http://www.msha.gov/subscriptions/subscribe.aspx.

II. Public Hearings

    MSHA held four public hearings on its proposed rules for 
Examinations of Work Areas in Underground Coal Mines and for Pattern of 
Violations. In response to a request from the public, MSHA will hold 
one additional public hearing on its proposed rules for Examinations of 
Work Areas in Underground Coal Mines and for Pattern of Violations. 
Requests to speak at a hearing should be made prior to the hearing 
date. You do not have to make a written request to speak; however, 
persons and organizations wishing to speak are encouraged to notify 
MSHA in advance for scheduling purposes. MSHA requests that parties 
making presentations at the hearings submit their presentations to 
MSHA, including any documentation, no later than 5 days prior to the 
hearing.
    The public hearing for the Examinations of Work Areas proposal will 
begin at 8:30 a.m. and the public hearing for the Pattern of Violations 
proposal will begin immediately following the conclusion of the public 
hearing on the Examinations of Work Areas proposal.
    MSHA is holding the two hearings on Tuesday, July 12, 2011, at the 
following location:

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                 Date                             Location                            Contact No.
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Tuesday, July 12, 2011...............  The Forum at the Hal Rogers    City Hall: 606-436-3171.
                                        Center, 101 Bulldog Lane,
                                        Hazard, Kentucky 41701.
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    Each hearing will begin with an opening statement from MSHA, 
followed by an opportunity for members of the public to make oral 
presentations. The hearings will be conducted in an informal manner. 
Formal rules of evidence will not apply. The hearing panel may ask 
questions of speakers and speakers may ask questions of the hearing 
panel. Speakers and other attendees may present information to MSHA for 
inclusion in the rulemaking record. MSHA also will accept written 
comments and other appropriate information for the record from any 
interested party, including those not presenting oral statements, until 
the close of the comment period on August 1, 2011.
    MSHA will have a verbatim transcript of the proceedings taken for 
each

[[Page 35802]]

hearing. Copies of the transcripts will be available to the public on 
http://www.regulations.gov and on MSHA's Web site at http://www.msha.gov/tscripts.htm.

III. Pattern of Violations: Clarification

    Section 104.2(a) of the Pattern of Violations (POV) proposed rule 
would provide that the specific criteria used in the review to identify 
mines with a pattern of significant and substantial violations would be 
posted on MSHA's website. In the preamble, MSHA requested specific 
comments on how the Agency should obtain comment during the development 
of, and periodic revision to, the POV screening criteria. At this point 
in the rulemaking, MSHA plans to provide any change to the specific 
criteria to the public, via posting on the Agency's Web site, for 
comment before MSHA uses it to review a mine for a POV. MSHA plans to 
review and respond to comments, and revise, as appropriate, the 
specific criteria, and post its response to the comments and the 
revised specific criteria on the Agency's website. MSHA requests 
comments on this proposed approach to obtaining public input into 
revisions to the specific POV criteria.
    Under Sec.  104.2(a)(8) of the POV proposal, MSHA stated in the 
preamble that an operator may submit a written safety and health 
management program to the district manager for approval so that MSHA 
can determine whether the program's parameters would result in 
meaningful, measurable, and significant reductions in significant and 
substantial violations. MSHA would like to clarify that the Agency did 
not intend that these safety and health management programs be the same 
as those referenced in the Agency's rulemaking on comprehensive safety 
and health management programs (RIN 1219-AB71), which has not yet been 
published as a proposed rule. Rather, a safety and health management 
program that would be considered by MSHA as a mitigating circumstance 
in the POV proposal would be one that: (1) Includes measurable 
benchmarks for abating specific violations that could lead to a POV at 
a specific mine; and (2) addresses hazardous conditions at that mine.

IV. Request for Comments

    MSHA solicits comments from the mining community on all aspects of 
the proposed rules and is particularly interested in comments that 
address alternatives to key provisions in the proposals. Commenters are 
requested to be specific in their comments and submit detailed 
rationale and supporting documentation for any comment or suggested 
alternative.

    Dated: June 15, 2011.
Joseph A. Main,
Assistant Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety and Health.
[FR Doc. 2011-15250 Filed 6-17-11; 8:45 am]
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