Secretary of Labor v. Usibelli Coal Mine, Inc. (Commission decision, March 31, 2017)

Plain-English summary

Usibelli Coal Mine missed the deadline to contest a penalty assessment after a weeklong Thanksgiving shutdown delayed internal review. The company submitted its contest only a few days late and had no history of prior defaults. It also revised its procedures to prevent similar filing failures. The Secretary did not oppose reopening but urged Usibelli to maintain reliable contest procedures. The Commission found an excusable mistake, reopened the final assessment in the interest of justice, and remanded for ordinary penalty proceedings.

Decision snapshot

• Cited authority: 30 U.S.C. § 815(a); 29 C.F.R. § 2700.28
• Outcome: The final assessment was reopened and remanded for penalty proceedings.
• Key point: A brief deadline miss caused by an unusual shutdown can be excusable when the operator acts promptly, has no default history, and corrects its procedures.

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.

USIBELLI
COAL MINE, INC.

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:

:

:

:

:

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Docket
No. WEST 2016-300

A.C.
No. 50-00030-396182

BEFORE:  Althen,
Acting Chairman; Jordan, Young, and Cohen, Commissioners

ORDER

BY THE
COMMISSION:

This
matter arises under the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977, 30 U.S.C.   
§ 801 et seq. (2012) (“Mine Act”). On March 4, 2016, the Commission received from Usibelli Coal Mine, Inc. (“Usibelli”) a motion seeking to reopen a penalty assessment that had become a final order of the Commission pursuant to section 105(a) of the Mine Act, 30 U.S.C. § 815(a).

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 the proposed assessment was delivered on November 17, 2016, and became a final order of the Commission on December 16, 2016. MSHA mailed a delinquency notice on February 1, 2016. Usibelli states that due to a weeklong shutdown of the mine for Thanksgiving, the proposed assessment was not reviewed in a timely manner. Usibelli asserts that it submitted a late-filed contest of the proposed assessment, and MSHA states that it received a contest form postmarked December 23, 2015. MSHA records also reflect that it received a partial payment of $1,381.00 for this assessment on December 24, 2015.  Usibelli states that it has instituted changes in its contest procedures to prevent future delays. 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.

Having
reviewed Usibelli’s request and the Secretary’s
response, we find that the failure to contest the proposed assessment was an excusable mistake in that Usibelli missed the filing deadline by only a few days, has no history of previous defaults, and has revised its procedures to avoid future defaults.  In the interest of justice, we hereby reopen this matter and remand it 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/ William I. Althen

William I. Althen, Acting Chairman

/s/ Mary Lu Jordan

Mary Lu Jordan, Commissioner

/s/ Michael G. Young

ichael G. Young, Commissioner

/s/ Robert F. Cohen, Jr.

Robert F. Cohen, Jr., Commissioner

Distribution:

Donna
Pryor

Erik
Dullea

Jackson
Lewis P.C.

950
17th Street, Suite 2600

Denver,
CO 80202

W.
Christian Schumann, Esq.

Office
of the Solicitor

U.S.
Department of Labor

201
12th St. South, Suite 500

Arlington,
VA 22202-5450

Chief
Administrative Law Judge Robert J. Lesnick

Federal
Mine Safety & Health Review Commission

1331
Pennsylvania Ave. N.W., Suite 520N

Washington,
DC 20004-1710

Melanie
Garris

Office
of Civil Penalty Compliance

Mine
Safety and Health Administration

U.S.
Department of Labor

201
12th St. South, Suite 500

Arlington,
VA 22202-5450