U.S. Silica Company (Commission decision, May 2, 2012)

Plain-English summary

U.S. Silica filed a penalty contest four days after the assessment had become a final Commission order. Its environmental, health, and safety coordinator had been told the assessment arrived a week later than it actually did and calculated the deadline from that incorrect date. The company changed its office procedure to require date stamps on all MSHA documents, and the Secretary did not oppose reopening. In the interests of justice, the Commission reopened the assessment, remanded it for further proceedings, and directed the Secretary to file a penalty petition within 45 days.

Decision snapshot

• Governing authority: 30 U.S.C. § 815(a) and 29 C.F.R. §§ 2700.1(b) and 2700.28
• Outcome: The final assessment was reopened and remanded for penalty proceedings.
• Key point: A documented receipt-date mistake coupled with a corrective office procedure can support reopening, though future late contests may still be opposed.

Full text (FMSHRC public release)

FEDERAL MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH REVIEW COMMISSION

601 NEW JERSEY AVENUE, NW

SUITE 9500

WASHINGTON, DC 20001

May 2, 2012

SECRETARY OF LABOR, 

MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH 

ADMINISTRATION (MSHA) 

v.

U.S. SILICA COMPANY

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Docket No. YORK 2012-32-M

A.C. No. 28-00526-265918

BEFORE: Jordan, Chairman; Duffy, Young, Cohen, and Nakamura, 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. (2006) (“Mine Act”). On November 22, 2011, the Commission received from U.S. Silica Company (“Silica”) a motion made by counsel 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 section 105(a) orders, the Commission has found guidance in Rule 60(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure under which, for example, a party could be entitled to relief from a final order of the Commission on the basis of mistake, inadvertence, or excusable neglect. 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).

The record indicates that the proposed assessment was delivered on September 14, 2011, and became a final order of the Commission on October 14, 2011. MSHA received the late contest, faxed on October 18, 2011, and payment for the uncontested penalties by check dated October 21, 2011. MSHA sent a delinquency letter on October 21, 2011. Silica asserts that its EHS coordinator was told that the assessment was received on September 21, 2011, which caused him to believe he had until October 21, 2011 to conduct his review. Silica further states that the mine office procedure was changed to require that all MSHA documentation be date stamped in order to avoid future errors. The Secretary does not oppose the request to reopen, but cautions that she may oppose future late contests.

Having reviewed Silica’s request and the Secretary’s response, in the interests 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/ Mary Lu Jordan

Mary Lu Jordan, Chairman

/s/ Michael F. Duffy Michael F. Duffy, Commissioner

/s/ Michael G. Young Michael G. Young, Commissioner

/s/ Robert F. Cohen, Jr.

Robert F. Cohen, Jr., Commissioner

/s/ Patrick K. Nakamura Patrick K. Nakamura, Commissioner

Distribution:

Nichelle Young, Esq.

Law Office of Adele Abrams, P.C.

4740 Corridor Place, Suite D

Beltsville, MD 20705

W. Christian Schumann, Esq.

Office of the Solicitor

U.S. Department of Labor

1100 Wilson Blvd., Room 2220

Arlington, VA 22209-2296

Melanie Garris

Office of Civil Penalty Compliance

MSHA

U.S. Dept. of Labor

1100 Wilson Blvd., 25th Floor

Arlington, VA 22209-3939

Chief Administrative Law Judge Robert J. Lesnick

Federal Mine Safety & Health Review Commission

601 New Jersey Avenue, N. W., Suite 9500

Washington, D.C. 20001-2021