Ezel / Agency Decisions / west-2019-0339-commission

Secretary of Labor v. Mountain Coal Company, LLC (Commission decision, October 19, 2020)

Secretary of Labor v. Mountain Coal Company, LLC (FMSHRC WEST 2019-0339): Reopening motion withdrawn

Decision type
Commission decision
Docket
WEST 2019-0339
Decided
October 19, 2020
Outcome
Procedural
Precedential status
Citable Commission precedent
Checked against source
2026-07-31
Official source
Read the official release (fmshrc.gov)
PDF
View Official PDF

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Currency note: this decision dates from 2020
The MSHA standards may have been amended, penalty amounts have been adjusted, and later Commission or court decisions may have changed the analysis since then. Treat this page as historical context, not current compliance advice. Verify the current standard before relying on any specific rule, threshold, or penalty mentioned here.
Decision of the Commission
This is a decision of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission, the highest level of agency review, citable as Commission precedent. It may have been appealed to a U.S. Court of Appeals after issuance under 30 U.S.C. § 816; check subsequent history before relying on it. The full text below is from the official FMSHRC release.
About this page: The plain-English summary and decision snapshot below were written by Ezel based on the official FMSHRC release. The full text is the agency's own release.
Read the official release (fmshrc.gov)

Plain-English summary

Mountain Coal filed a motion asking the Commission to reopen this case. The company later asked to withdraw that motion. The Commission granted the withdrawal request and dismissed the case. The short official release does not identify the underlying assessment, any cited safety standard, or the reason Mountain Coal initially sought reopening.

Decision snapshot

  • Cited authority: No specific safety standard identified in the release
  • Outcome: The reopening motion was withdrawn, and the case was dismissed.
  • Key point: The Commission ended the matter after Mountain Coal voluntarily withdrew its reopening request.

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.

MOUNTAIN
COAL COMPANY, LLC

:

:

:

:

:

:

:

Docket
No. WEST 2019-0339

A.C.
No. 05-03672-486546

BEFORE:  Rajkovich,
Chairman; Althen and Traynor, 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 June 3, 2019, the Commission received from
Mountain Coal Company (“Mountain Coal”) a motion to reopen the above-captioned
case. Mountain Coal thereafter requested to withdraw its motion.

We
hereby grant Mountain Coal Company’s motion to withdraw in Docket No. WEST
2019-0339. Accordingly, this case is dismissed.

/s/ Marco M. Rajkovich, Jr.

Marco
M. Rajkovich, Jr., Chairman

/s/
William I. Althen

William
I. Althen, Commissioner

/s/
Arthur R. Traynor, III

Arthur R. Traynor, III, Commissioner

Distribution (e-mail):

Christopher
G. Peterson

Fisher
& Phillips LLP

[email protected]

Emily
Scott, Esq.

Office
of the Solicitor

[email protected]

Chief
Administrative Law Judge Glenn Voisin

Federal
Mine Safety & Health Review Commission

[email protected]

Melanie
Garris

Office
of Civil Penalty Compliance

Mine
Safety and Health Administration

[email protected]

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