[United States Government Manual]
[May 30, 1997]
[Pages 549-551]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




FEDERAL MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH REVIEW COMMISSION

1730 K Street NW., Washington, DC 20006-3867
Phone, 202-653-5625

Chairman                                          Mary Lu Jordan
Commissioners                                     Mark L. Marks, James 
                                                          C. Riley, 
                                                          Theodore F. 
                                                          Verheggen, 
                                                          (vacancy)
Chief Administrative Law Judge                    Paul Merlin
General Counsel                                   Norman M. Gleichman
Executive Director                                Richard L. Baker

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[[Page 551]]

The Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission is an independent, 
quasi-judicial agency established by the Federal Mine Safety and Health 
Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 801 et seq.). The act, enforced by the Secretary 
of Labor through the Mine Safety and Health Administration, governs 
compliance with occupational safety and health standards in the Nation's 
surface and underground coal, metal, and nonmetal mines.
    The Commission consists of five members who are appointed by the 
President with the advice and consent of the Senate and who serve 
staggered, 6-year terms. The Chairman is selected from among the 
Commissioners.
    The Commission and its Office of Administrative Law Judges are 
charged with deciding cases brought pursuant to the act by the Mine 
Safety and Health Administration, mine operators, and miners or their 
representatives. These cases generally involve review of the 
Administration's enforcement actions including citations, mine closure 
orders, and proposals for civil penalties issued for violations of the 
act or the mandatory safety and health standards promulgated by the 
Secretary of Labor. The Commission also has jurisdiction over 
discrimination complaints filed by miners or their representatives in 
connection with their safety and health rights under the act, and over 
complaints for compensation filed on behalf of miners idled as a result 
of mine closure orders issued by the Administration.

Activities

Cases brought before the Commission are assigned to the Office of 
Administrative Law Judges, and hearings are conducted pursuant to the 
requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 554, 556) and 
the Commission's procedural rules (29 CFR Part 2700).
    A judge's decision becomes a final but nonprecedential order of the 
Commission 40 days after issuance unless the Commission has directed the 
case for review in response to a petition or on its own motion. If a 
review is conducted, a decision of the Commission becomes final 30 days 
after issuance unless a party adversely affected seeks review in the 
U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia or the 
Circuit within which the mine subject to the litigation is located.
    As far as practicable, hearings are held at locations convenient to 
the affected mines. The Office of Administrative Law Judges has two 
offices: the Falls Church Office, 2 Skyline, 5203 Leesburg Pike, Falls 
Church, VA 22041; and the Denver Office, Colonnade Center, Room 280, 
1244 Speer Boulevard, Denver, CO 80204.

Sources of Information

Commission decisions are published monthly and are available through the 
Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, 
Washington, DC 20402. Requests for Commission records should be 
submitted in accordance with the Commission's Freedom of Information Act 
regulations. Other information, including Commission rules of procedure 
and brochures explaining the Commission's functions, is available from 
the Executive Director, Federal Mine Safety and Health Review 
Commission, Sixth Floor, 1730 K Street NW., Washington, DC 20006-3867. 
E-mail, info @fmshrc.gov.

For further information, contact the Executive Director, Federal Mine 
Safety and Health Review Commission, Sixth Floor, 1730 K Street NW., 
Washington DC 20006-3867. Phone, 202-653-5625. Fax, 202-653-5030. E-
mail, [email protected].