79% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $3,990,377 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2000
6,315
inspections on record
147,174
inspection hours
13.9
citations per 100 inspection hours
ⓘThis rate is recorded citations divided by MSHA inspection hours, per 100 hours. It reflects inspection effort, not mine size or production.
20,395 citations across 147,174 inspection hours.
Source: MSHA inspections data, updated weekly.
Imminent-danger orders
ⓘA Section 107(a) order removes miners from an area when an inspector finds an imminent danger. Each order is lifted once the condition is corrected, so this counts orders issued, not orders now in effect.
28
Section 107(a) orders
Most recent order: 2025-01-09.
On record since 2010.
Source: MSHA imminent-danger order records, updated weekly.
Penalty disposition
ⓘDifferences between proposed and paid penalties reflect both settlements and conference reductions and amounts still owed. Outstanding is the balance currently owed.
$18.9M
proposed penalties
$15.5M
current assessed
$15.0M
paid to date
$518K
outstanding
19,914 assessments are final orders; 512 contested dockets.
Of $9.0M in penalties contested before the Commission, $5.6M was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2026-07-08.
Source: MSHA assessed-violations and conference/litigation data, updated weekly.
Violation severity profile
ⓘShares are computed over citations that carry the MSHA gravity and negligence coding; a small share of records are uncoded.
Source: MSHA violations gravity and negligence coding, updated weekly.
Injury rate, 2025
ⓘThis rate is reportable injury cases per 100 full-time-equivalent workers per year, computed as 200,000 times cases divided by MSHA operator-reported employee-hours. Cases are injuries MSHA graded degree 01 through 07; accident-only events that hurt no one are excluded, and so are contractor injuries, whose hours do not attach to a single mine. Rates begin in 2000, when quarterly employment reporting starts, and are withheld below 20,000 hours in a year.
1.20
total case rate
0.23
days-away rate
0.033
fatality rate
Below average. The US metal and nonmetal mining average was 1.65 and the all-US-mining average was 1.97 cases per 100 workers.
Year
total case rate
days-away
fatal
2026
1.81
0.42
0.000
2025
1.20
0.23
0.033
2024
1.08
0.27
0.000
2023
1.48
0.39
0.000
2022
1.45
0.45
0.037
2021
2.19
0.57
0.041
2020
1.89
0.45
0.000
2019
1.80
0.45
0.000
Source: injury cases from MSHA accident and injury records; employee-hours from MSHA quarterly employment reports. Rate is cases per 100 full-time-equivalent workers, operator employees only.
Health sampling
ⓘA sample is a point in time compliance measurement, not an individual exposure history. These figures describe MSHA sampling records and do not establish causation or personal dose.
Metal and nonmetal contaminants (personal samples)
ⓘMany samples are screening measurements of substances with no applicable exposure limit; they are counted as samples but excluded from every over-limit figure. Over-limit shares use only limit-tested samples.
Last sampled: 2026-08-05
11%
of limit-tested samples over the exposure limit
2,657
samples
1,485
limit-tested
Most sampled contaminants
Nuisance dust, total, <1% Qtz26590 over
Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz70060 over
Calcium oxide9010 over
Nuisance dust, respirable, <1% Qtz3113 over
Area samples (mill and shop air)
Last sampled: 2023-06-20, 3 years ago
5
samples
Source: MSHA respirable dust, quartz, and noise sampling records, updated weekly. Metal/nonmetal contaminant figures come from MSHA's Personal Health Samples and Area Samples files (public record), updated weekly.
When citations were contested
ⓘContesting a citation before the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission is a lawful right. These figures state the public outcomes of that process, from MSHA's Contested Violations file.
2,762citations taken to the federal commission · 14% of citations on record
Settled
2,449 · 89%
Stood as issued
209 · 8%
Vacated or withdrawn
10 · 0%
Still open
94 · 3%
73%
S&S designation survived the contest
ⓘCounts a Significant & Substantial citation as surviving when a settlement or judge's decision kept the designation, or the contest was dismissed or defaulted so the citation stands as issued. Vacated and withdrawn citations, and settlements that removed the designation, count against.
of 1,289 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
39%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$9.1M proposed, $5.5M after decisions · industry: 39%
Source: MSHA Contested Violations file (public record), updated weekly. A dismissed or defaulted contest leaves the citation standing as issued; a vacated or withdrawn citation is removed from the violation record. Latest contest filed 2026-07-08. Vacated and withdrawn citations are removed from the file this view attributes through, so that outcome is slightly undercounted here.
Contested penalties
ⓘA reduction or dismissal at the Commission is a lawful outcome of contesting a proposed penalty. Figures are the proposed amount and the amount upheld in the docket's decision.
Largest penalties this controller contested before the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission, with the outcome on record.
Employee was operating front end loader in the coal shed. For unknown reasons employee left the loader and was engulfed in the coal pile near the grizzly bars for the feeding system.
December 3, 2021FL · Metal/Non-Metalgroundman, yardmanFatality · POWERED HAULAGE
Employee was underneath Conveyor Belt and became entangled.
March 7, 2019TX · Metal/Non-Metalmaintenance man, mechanic, repair/serviceman, boilermaker, fueler, tire tech, field service techFatality · SLIP OR FALL OF PERSON
EE was changing the v-belts on the north log washer motor gearbox assembly. EE lost balance when wrench slipped off the motor mounting bolt ee was tightening and fell backwards through a 15 3/4 inch gap between the log washers. EE was conscious and talking and was told to remain in place until EMS arrived.
August 9, 2016KY · Metal/Non-Metalsteel worker, iron metal worker, iron workerFatality · MACHINERY
Employee was changing a cable pulley that raised and lowered a load spout. While installing the new pulley, something broke. The cable struck the employee in the head area fatally injuring the employee. The investigation is still ongoing to determine the exact cause.
CEMEX loader opr was moving flyash from mat'l storage bldg to hopper. Raw mat'l del driver, ind. o/o contracted w/ Tri-State Carriers(TSC), entered mat'l storage area & exited his tractor, preparing to unload. Loader reversed to get another load & impacted the tractor, striking the driver. MSHA issued Contr ID B0350 to TSC under protest as it is not a contr on CEMEX mine site.
February 21, 2014KY · Metal/Non-Metallaborer, blacksmith, bull gang, parts runner, roustabout, pick-up man, pitmanFatality · SLIP OR FALL OF PERSON
Without checking to ensure elevator car was present, contractor stepped into elevator shaft and fell approximately 25 feet landing on top of elevator car.
May 14, 2010TN · Metal/Non-Metalmaintenance man, mechanic, repair/serviceman, boilermaker, fueler, tire tech, field service techFatality · EXPLODING VESSELS UNDER PRESSURE
EE was cutting drill head from drill steel. Cutting operation resulted in fragmentation of drill steel. EE was struck by drill steel fragment resulting in his death.
For insurers, brokers, and safety consultants
Where Cemex S A stands on silica, penalties, and injury rate
MSHA's standard limits respirable silica to 50 micrograms per cubic metre, but MSHA publishes
dust and quartz as separate files and never the silica figure itself. We derive it per sample,
score it against the limit, and set the operator's injury rate against a benchmark built from
the full MSHA operator record. With the 26-year penalty trail, contest posture, and fatality
history. Delivered as a PDF with the underlying data as CSV.