Secretary of Labor v. Cargill Deicing Technology

Plain-English summary

Cargill Deicing Technology sought to reopen two penalty assessments that had become final orders. The company said it inadvertently mailed the contest forms with payment for other citations to MSHA's St. Louis address. The Secretary did not oppose reopening but urged Cargill to send future contests to the Civil Penalty Compliance Office in Arlington. The Commission found that an inadvertent mistake caused the missed deadlines. It reopened both assessments and remanded them, with penalty petitions due within 45 days.

Decision snapshot

• Cited authority: 30 U.S.C. § 815(a)
• Outcome: Both final assessments were reopened and remanded.
• Key point: Mailing contest forms to the payment address by mistake supported reopening.

Full text (FMSHRC public release)

FEDERAL
MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH REVIEW COMMISSION

1331
PENNSYLVANIA AVE., N.W., SUITE 520N

WASHINGTON,
DC 20004-1710

SECRETARY
OF LABOR,

MINE
SAFETY AND HEALTH      

ADMINISTRATION
(MSHA)         

v.

CARGILL
DEICING TECHNOLOGY

:

:

:

:

:

:

:

Docket
No. CENT 2020-0130

A.C.
No. 16-00509-506934

Docket
No. CENT 2020-0131

A.C.
No. 16-00509-503010

BEFORE: Traynor,
Chair; Althen and Rajkovich, Commissioners

ORDER

BY THE
COMMISSION:

These
matters arise under the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977, 30 U.S.C. §
801 et seq. (2018) (“Mine Act”). On April 24, 2020, the Commission received
from Cargill Deicing Technology a motion seeking to reopen two penalty
assessments that had become final orders of the Commission pursuant to section
105(a) of the Mine Act, 30 U.S.C. § 815(a). [1]

Under
section 105(a) of the Mine Act, an operator who wishes to contest a proposed
penalty must notify the Secretary of Labor no later than 30 days after
receiving the proposed penalty assessment. If the operator fails to notify the
Secretary, the proposed penalty assessment is deemed a final order of the
Commission. 30 U.S.C. § 815(a).

We
have held, however, that in appropriate circumstances, we possess jurisdiction to reopen uncontested
assessments that have become final Commission orders under section 105(a). Jim
Walter Res., Inc., 15 FMSHRC 782, 786-89 (May 1993) (“ JWR ”). In
evaluating requests to reopen final orders, the Commission has found guidance
in Rule 60(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, under which the
Commission may relieve a party from a final order of the Commission on the
basis of mistake, inadvertence, excusable neglect, or other reason justifying
relief. See 29 C.F.R. § 2700.1(b) (“the Commission and its Judges shall
be guided so far as practicable by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure”); JWR ,
15 FMSHRC at 787. We have also observed that default is a harsh remedy and
that, if the defaulting party can make a showing of good cause for a failure to timely respond, the case may be
reopened and appropriate proceedings on the merits permitted. See Coal Prep.
Servs., Inc., 17 FMSHRC 1529, 1530 (Sept. 1995).

Records
of the Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration (“MSHA”)
indicate that a proposed assessment was delivered on November 4, 2019, and became
a final order on December 4, 2019 (CENT 2020-0131). A second proposed assessment
was delivered on January 10, 2020 and became a final order of the Commission on
February 9, 2020 (CENT 2020-0130). Cargill asserts that it inadvertently mailed
the notice of contest forms along with payment for the remainder of the
citations at issue to MSHA’s address in St. Louis, Missouri.

The Secretary does not oppose the
request to reopen, but urges the operator to take steps to ensure that future
penalty contests are timely filed with MSHA’s Civil Penalty Compliance Office
in Arlington, Virginia.  

Having
reviewed Cargill’s request and the Secretary’s
response, we find that Cargill’s failure to timely contest was the
result of an inadvertent mistake. In the
interest of justice, we hereby reopen these matters and remand the cases to the
Chief Administrative Law Judge for further proceedings pursuant to the Mine Act
and the Commission’s Procedural Rules, 29 C.F.R. Part 2700. Accordingly,
consistent with Rule 28, the Secretary shall file a petition for
assessment of penalty within 45 days of the date of this order. See 29
C.F.R. § 2700.28.

/s/ Arthur R. Traynor, III

Arthur R. Traynor, III, Chair

/s/ William I. Althen

William I. Althen, Commissioner

/s/ Marco M. Rajkovich, Jr.

Marco M. Rajkovich, Jr., Commissioner

Distribution:

Avi Meyerstein

Brian Hendrix

Charles
Fleischmann

HUSCH BLACKWELL,
LLP

750 17 th
Street, NW, Suite 900

Washington, DC. 20006-4675

[email protected]

John M.
McCracken, Esq.

Office of the
Solicitor

Division of Mine
Safety and Health

U.S. Department
of Labor

201 12th Street
South, Suite 401

Arlington, VA
22202-5452

[email protected]

April Nelson,
Esq.

Office of the
Solicitor

U.S. Department
of Labor

201 12th Street
South, Suite 401

Arlington, VA
22202-5452

[email protected]

Chief
Administrative Law Judge Glynn Voisin

Federal Mine
Safety & Health Review Commission

1331
Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Suite 520N

Washington, DC 20004-1710

[email protected]

Melanie Garris

Office of Civil
Penalty Compliance

Mine Safety and
Health Administration

201 12th Street
South, Suite 401

Arlington, VA
22202-5452

[email protected]

[1]
For the
limited purpose of addressing the motions to reopen, we hereby consolidate
these captioned dockets. 29 C.F.R. § 2700.12.