Contests of Citations and Orders

Whenever MSHA believes that a violation of the Mine Act, any health or safety standard, or any regulation has occurred, it must issue a citation which describes the violation and fixes a time within which the operator must abate the violation. In some situations, such as when MSHA believes that conditions pose a danger to miners, MSHA must issue an order removing miners from the mine until hazards are corrected. Whenever MSHA issues a citation or order, it generally proposes a penalty, or fine, as a result of the violation, that the operator is ordered to pay.

The issuance of citations and orders may affect operators, miners, and miners’ representatives. Each has different rights to challenge a citation or order. These challenges are brought in a contest proceeding.

For an operator to begin a proceeding, it must file a contest with the Secretary (in the case of a citation or order issued under section 104 of the Act) or with the Commission (in the case of an imminent danger withdrawal order issued under section 107 of the Act) within 30 days after receipt of the citation or order. The notice of contest should set forth the reasons for challenging the order, citation, or the time for abatement in the citation, including all pertinent issues of law and fact and the relief sought from the citation or order. The operator must also attach to the notice of contest a copy of the citation or order that it is challenging.

The operator may file its challenge with the Commission even though it has not yet received a proposed penalty assessment for the violation described in the citation or order that it wishes to challenge. Further, even though an operator has filed a contest of a citation or order, it still must respond to any proposed penalty assessment for the violation described in the citation or order. For more information regarding how to respond to a proposed penalty assessment, see the section entitled, "Contests of Proposed Penalties."

Under section 105 of the Mine Act, miners or a miners’ representative may also contest the issuance, modification, or the termination of an order issued under section 104 of the Mine Act. They may also contest the reasonableness of the length of time set for abatement by a citation or modification thereof. In addition, under section 107, a miners’ representative may contest the issuance of an imminent danger withdrawal order, its modification, or termination.

The following chart summarizes the procedures for contesting a citation or order. All references to Commission rules are to 29 C.F.R. Part 2700.

CONTESTS OF CITATIONS AND ORDERS

1. The Secretary is authorized to issue a citation or order, pursuant to section 104. The Secretary shall issue a withdrawal order requiring an operator to withdraw all persons from an area where an imminent danger exists, pursuant to Section 107.
   
   
2. If you wish to file a notice of contest of citations or orders issued under section 104 of the Act, you must file within 30 calendar days of receipt of the citation or order with the Secretary, who must immediately advise the Commission of the notice. A notice of contest of imminent danger withdrawal orders under section 107 must be filed with the Commission within 30 calendar days of receipt of the order.
   
   
3. The Secretary must file an answer, responding to the allegations in the notice of contest of a section 104 citation or order, within 20 calendar days after service of the notice. The Secretary must file an answer, responding to allegations in the notice of contest of a Section 107 withdrawal order, within 15 calendar days of service of the notice of contest of a withdrawal order.
   
   
4. A contesting party must file any subsequent citation or order that modifies or terminates the citation or order under review within 30 calendar days of its receipt. The notice of contest, unless withdrawn, shall be deemed to challenge the subsequent citation and order. Miners or representatives of miners may obtain review of the issuance, modification or termination of an order issued under section 104 or the reasonableness of the length of time set for abatement by a citation issued under section 104 by notifying the Secretary who shall immediately advise the Commission of that notification.