82% of proposed penalties paid to date, a $906,490 gap.
Source: MSHA violations data, updated weekly.
Inspection activity
MSHA inspections since 2000
1,111
inspections on record
37,225
inspection hours
16.5
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.
6,155 citations across 37,225 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.
9
Section 107(a) orders
Most recent order: 2015-10-22.
On record since 2011.
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.
$5.1M
proposed penalties
$4.2M
current assessed
$4.1M
paid to date
$36K
outstanding
6,048 assessments are final orders; 189 contested dockets.
Of $2.5M in penalties contested before the Commission, $1.7M was upheld in final decisions.
As of the most recent assessment on 2016-09-19.
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, 2016
ⓘ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.
26.51
total case rate
4.14
days-away rate
0.000
fatality rate
Above average. The US metal and nonmetal mining average was 2.17 and the all-US-mining average was 2.59 cases per 100 workers.
Year
total case rate
days-away
fatal
2016
26.51
4.14
0.000
2015
23.18
8.43
0.000
2014
25.89
6.81
0.000
2013
16.33
2.04
0.000
2012
28.35
7.91
0.000
2011
7.73
0.43
0.000
2010
7.63
2.35
0.000
2009
13.48
3.55
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: 2016-03-03, 10 years ago
15%
of limit-tested samples over the exposure limit
277
samples
255
limit-tested
Most sampled contaminants
Nuisance dust, total, <1% Qtz7232 over
Quartz, respirable, >1% Qtz674 over
Calcium oxide242 over
Nuisance dust, respirable, <1% Qtz55
Area samples (mill and shop air)
Last sampled: 2004-12-29, 21 years ago
2
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.
1,246citations taken to the federal commission · 20% of citations on record
Settled
907 · 73%
Stood as issued
338 · 27%
Vacated or withdrawn
1 · 0%
84%
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 558 decided S&S contests · industry: 79%
34%
Penalty reduction in decided contests
$2.5M proposed, $1.6M 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 2017-06-06. 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.
The truck operator was traveling from the 870 level of the quarry to the waste dump with a load of waste material. The truck left the road, overtraveled a berm and continued down the highwall, rolling over before coming to rest int he quarry. It is believed that the truck operator suffered a medical event and as a result was unable to control the truck as it left the road.
May 31, 2004IN · Metal/Non-Metalhaul/off road/coal/ore/pit/quarry/rock/rubber tire truck driver, transportation truck driverFatality · EXPLODING VESSELS UNDER PRESSURE
The injured person, an employee of Service Transport, was delivering diesel to the quarry fuel tank. The driver was the only person at the tank when a hose separated from the truck and he was burned by the hot diesel fuel. He was taken to the hospital with burns - described as non life threatening. Driver later died from what is believed to be complications from the injury.
September 16, 1996PR · Metal/Non-Metalmaintenance man, mechanic, repair/serviceman, boilermaker, fueler, tire tech, field service techFatality · FALLING/SLIDING/ROLLING MATERIALS
BASED ON THE INFORMATION COLLECTED AT THIS DATE THE EMP WHILE IN AREA ADJACENT TO THE COOLER SYSTEM SUFFER SERIOUS BURNS IN HIS BODY WHEN A SUDDEN AND UNEXPECTED RELEASE OF HOT RAW MATERIAL SP ILLED OVER HIM.
September 16, 1996PR · Metal/Non-Metalmaintenance man, mechanic, repair/serviceman, boilermaker, fueler, tire tech, field service techFatality · FALLING/SLIDING/ROLLING MATERIALS
BASED ON THE INFORMATION COLLECTED AT THIS DATE,THE EMPLOYEE WHILE IN AREA ADJACENT TO THE COOLER SYSTEM SUFFER SERIOUS BURNS IN HIS BODY WHEN ASUDDEN AND UNEXPECTED RELEASE OF HOT RAW MATERIA L SPILLED OVER HIM.
August 24, 1992PR · Metal/Non-Metalbulldozer operator, universal operator, heavy equipment operator, operating engineerFatality · POWERED HAULAGE
54736YEE WAS FEEDING COAL CRUSHER HOPPER FOR SOME UNKNOWN REASON HE WENT TO THE CLINKER STORAGE AREA USING AN/INCLINED ROADWAY. THE LOADER ROLL OVER AND THE VICTIM'S HEAD WAS CRUSHER WITH THE 58497MENT.
February 7, 1992PA · Metal/Non-Metallaborer, blacksmith, bull gang, parts runner, roustabout, pick-up man, pitmanFatality · MACHINERY
A LABORER/CRANE OPERATOR WITH APPX 20 YRS EXPERIENCE WORKING ON & OPERATING CRANES WAS KILLED WHEN,AGAINST THE STRICT & EXPLICIT INSTRUCTIONS OF HIS FOREMAN,HE GOT UNDERNEATH THE CRANE BOOM AN D KNOCKED OUT 2 PINS WITHOUT MOVING THE PENNANT LINES TO THEIR CORRECT POSITION.HAD COMPLETED TRAINING ON THE CORRECT AND SAFE PROCEDURE.HAD ALSO PERFORMED IDENTICAL PROCED.4 TIMES /LAST 6 WK
For insurers, brokers, and safety consultants
Where Italcementi Spa 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.