Faith Coal Company (ALJ decision, December 28, 1988)

Plain-English summary

MSHA brought a civil penalty case against Faith Coal Company involving two citations at the Goforth Mine. The settlement reduced the negligence factor for Citation No. 2808790 from high to moderate and reduced the combined proposed penalty from $179 to $156. Judge Roy J. Maurer approved the settlement, affirmed both citations, and ordered the company to pay $156.

Decision snapshot

• Governing provisions: 30 U.S.C. §§ 815(d) and 820(i)
• Outcome: The settlement was approved, both citations were affirmed, and the total penalty was reduced to $156.
• Key point: The judge approved a settlement that reduced the negligence characterization and the combined penalty.

Full text (FMSHRC public release)

CCASE:
SOL (MSHA) V. FAITH COAL CO.
DDATE:
19881228
TTEXT:

Page 2

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Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (F.M.S.H.R.C.) Office of Administrative Law Judges

SECRETARY OF LABOR,
CIVIL PENALTY PROCEEDING
MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH
ADMINISTRATION (MSHA),
Docket No. SE 88-50
PETITIONER
A.C. No. 40-02701-03526
v.
Goforth Mine
FAITH COAL COMPANY,
RESPONDENT

DECISION

Appearances: Mary Sue Ray, Esq., Office of the Solicitor, U.S.
Department of Labor, Nashville, Tennessee, for the Petitioner;
Philip A. Condra, Esq., Dunlap, Tennessee, for the Respondent.

Before: Judge Maurer

This case is before me upon a petition for assessment of civil penalty under Section 105(d) of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977, 30 U.S.C. 801, et al., (the Act).

Pursuant to notice, a hearing on the merits was held in Chattanooga, Tennessee, on October 14, 1988. At the conclusion of the hearing, the parties proposed a settlement of the case. Based on the testimony adduced in the record, the petitioner proposed reducing the charged negligence factor concerning Citation No. 2808790 from "high" to "moderate" and reducing the proposed penalty for both violations at bar from $179 to $156. I have considered the representations and documentation submitted in this case as well as the record of trial and I conclude that the proffered settlement is appropriate under the criteria set forth in section 110(i) of the Act.

WHEREFORE, the motion for approval of settlement is GRANTED, Citation Nos. 2808790 and 2808791 are affirmed, and it is ORDERED that respondent pay a penalty of $156 within 30 days of this order.

Roy J. Maurer
Administrative Law Judge