Chapter 22A, Chapter 22A

(a) For the purposes of this section, the term accident means: (1) The death of an individual at a mine; (2) An injury to an individual at a mine which has a reasonable potential to cause death; (3) The entrapment of an individual; (4) The unplanned inundation of a mine by a liqu…

Whenever any accident occurs in or about any coal mine to any employee or person connected with the mining operation, resulting in personal injury or death, the operator shall, within twenty-four hours, report the same in writing to the director and to the district mine inspector…

Following a mine accident resulting in the death of one or more persons and following any mine disaster, the evidence surrounding such occurrence shall not be disturbed after recovery of bodies or injured persons until an investigation by the Office of Miners' Health, Safety and …

(a) In every underground mine where five or more persons are employed in a period of twenty-four hours, the operator shall employ at least one person certified in accordance with the provisions of article seven of this chapter as a mine foreman-fire boss. Each applicant for certi…

(a) When mine examiner to be employed; qualifications. — During the sinking of a shaft or the driving of a slope to a coal bed or while engaged in underground construction work, or relating thereto, the operator shall assign a mine examiner to such project areas. Such mine examin…

Rules of the commission governing fire suppression systems for diesel-powered equipment and fuel transportation units shall, at a minimum, comply with the provisions of part 75 of the code of federal regulations dealing with fire suppression systems for diesel-powered equipment a…

Rules of the commission governing fire suppression systems for permanent underground diesel fuel storage facilities shall, at a minimum, comply with the provisions of part 75 of the code of federal regulations dealing with fire suppression systems for permanent underground diesel…

Rules of the commission shall regulate or prohibit the use of volatile or chemical starting aids.

(a) Rules of the commission shall provide for all underground employees at the mine to receive special instruction related to fighting fires involving diesel fuel. This training may be included in annual refresher training under MSHA regulations set forth in 30 C.F.R. Pt. 48 (rel…

No miner shall be required to operate unsafe equipment. On or before January 1, 1981, the Board of Coal Mine Health and Safety shall by rule or regulation establish a procedure for resolving disputes arising out of the refusal by a miner to operate such alleged unsafe equipment. …

Any miner has the right to refuse to work in an area or under conditions which he believes to be unsafe.

(a) The Legislature finds that new methods of extracting coal known as long wall or short wall mining are being used in this state. The board of coal mine health and safety shall investigate or cause to be investigated the technology, procedures and techniques used in such mining…

The Board of Coal Mine Health and Safety shall investigate or cause to be investigated the technology, procedures and techniques used in the construction of shafts, slopes, surface facilities, and the safety hazards, attendant therewith, and shall promulgate rules governing the c…

Each operator shall maintain the concentration of respirable dust in the mine atmosphere during each shift to which miners in active workings of such mine are exposed below such level as the board may establish. The board may promulgate rules governing respirable dust, including,…

(a) Before a coal operator conducts underground mining operations within five hundred feet of any well, including the driving of an entry or passageway, or the removal of coal or other material, the coal operator shall file with the Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training a…

No person, without first giving to the director ten days' written notice thereof, shall reopen for any purposes any old or abandoned mine wherein water or mine seepage has collected or become impounded or exists in such manner or quantity that upon the opening of such mine, such …

On or before the end of each quarter, the operator of each mine, regulated under the provisions of this chapter or article three or four, chapter twenty-two of this code, shall file with the director a report with respect thereto covering the next preceding quarter which shall re…

Whenever permits are issued by the Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training, frequent examinations shall be made by the mine inspector during the tenure of the permit to determine that the requirements and limitations of the permit are complied with.

The various provisions of this article shall be construed as separable and severable and, should any of the provisions, sentences, clauses, or parts thereof be construed or held unconstitutional or for any reason be invalid, the remaining provisions of this article shall not be t…

(a) The duties of the mine foreman shall be to keep a careful watch over the ventilating apparatus, the airways, traveling ways, pumps and drainage. He or she shall see that, as the miners advance their excavations, proper breakthroughs are made so as to ventilate properly the mi…

By August 31, 2019, all existing rules or regulations under authority of this article shall be revised to reflect the changes enacted during the 2019 Regular Session of the Legislature.

(a) Rules of the commission shall require diesel-powered equipment to be maintained in an approved and safe condition or removed from service. Failure of the mine operator to comply with the maintenance requirements established by the board may result in revocation of the commiss…

(a) Rules of the commission shall require that all maintenance, repairs, examinations and tests on diesel-powered equipment shall be performed by a person who, at a minimum, is trained and qualified in accordance with the provisions of part 75 of the code of federal regulations d…

Rules of the commission shall require that mobile diesel-powered equipment that is to be used during a shift be visually examined by the equipment operator before being placed in operation, and that equipment defects affecting safety be reported promptly to the mine operator. Rul…

Rules of the commission shall establish the intervals at which a qualified person will evaluate and interpret the results of tests and examinations, perform maintenance and make all necessary adjustments or repairs or remove the diesel-powered equipment from service. The commissi…

Rules of the commission shall require that on-board engine performance and maintenance diagnostics systems shall be capable of continuously monitoring and giving read-outs. The diagnostics system shall identify levels that exceed the engine or component manufacturer's recommendat…

(a) The commission shall require periodic examination and testing of all diesel-powered equipment by a person trained and qualified as required by rules of the commission. (b) Rules of the commission shall prescribe the scope of the examination and testing and the procedures to b…

(a) Rules of the commission shall provide: (1) That a record be made of all tests, examinations and maintenance and repairs of diesel-powered equipment; (2) That the person performing the test, examination, maintenance or repair certify by date, time, engine hour reading and sign…

The mine foreman shall require that all slopes, incline planes and haulage roads used by any person in the mine shall conform to the provisions of this article.

(a) Rules of the commission shall establish programs for training equipment operators and members of the mine health and safety committee. Training shall include, but not be limited to, the following: (1) Fundamentals of the operation of a diesel engine; (2) Federal and state reg…

In this article the term "mine" includes the shafts, slopes, drifts or inclines connected with excavations penetrating clay seams or strata, which excavations are ventilated by one general air current or division thereof, and the surface structures or equipment connected therewit…

In every underground clay mine where five or more persons are employed in a period of twenty-four hours, the operator shall employ a mine foreman who shall be a competent and practical person holding a certificate of competence for said position issued to him or her by the Office…

The Director of the Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training may, from time to time, promulgate reasonable rules for the protection of the health and safety of the persons working in or about underground clay mines, to the extent the same are not more onerous or restrictive …

Unless the context in which used clearly requires a different meaning as used in this article: (a) "Open-pit mine" means an excavation worked from the surface and open to daylight. (b) "Underground mine" means subterranean workings for the purpose of obtaining a desired material …

All provisions of the mining laws of this state intended for the protection of the health and safety of persons employed within or at any coal mine and for the protection of any coal mining property extend to all open-pit mines and any property used in connection therewith for th…

The Director of the Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training shall promulgate reasonable rules, in accordance with and confined to the provisions of chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, for the effective administration of this article.

The operator of such mine shall, on or before the end of each calendar month, file with the Director of the Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training a report covering the preceding calendar month on forms furnished by the director. Such reports shall state the number of acci…

(a) The Director of the Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training shall divide the state into not more than two mining districts and assign one inspector to each district. Such inspector shall be a citizen of West Virginia, in good health, of good character and reputation, te…

Any person who fails or refuses to discharge any provision of this article, rule promulgated or order issued pursuant to the provisions of this article, is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $1,000…

There is hereby continued a board of appeals, consisting of three members. Two members of the board shall be appointed by the Governor, one person who by reason of previous training and experience may reasonably be said to represent the viewpoint of miners, and one person who by …

(a) There are hereby transferred to the Board of Appeals all functions of the Director of the Office of Miners' Health, Safety and Training relating to the review of orders and notices as set forth in section seventeen, article one of this chapter. (b) There are hereby transferre…

(a) The Legislature hereby finds and declares that: (1) The Legislature concurs with the congressional declaration made in the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969 that "the first priority and concern of all in the coal mining industry must be the health and safety of …

Each member of the board not otherwise employed by the state shall be paid the same compensation, and each member of the board shall be paid the expense reimbursement, as is paid to members of the Legislature for their interim duties as recommended by the Citizens Legislative Com…

The Board of Coal Mine Health and Safety is directed to study the mandatory substance abuse screening policy and program requirements of article one-a of this chapter and make recommendations to the director regarding: (a) Establishment of guidelines to be employed by the Board o…

Unless the context in which a word or phrase appears clearly requires a different meaning, the words and phrases defined in section two, article one of this chapter have, when used in this article, the meaning therein assigned to them. For the purpose of this article, "board" mea…

(a) The Board of Coal Mine Health and Safety is continued, and commencing July 1, 2010, is a separate independent board within the Department of Commerce. The board consists of six voting members and one ex officio, nonvoting member who are residents of this state, and who are ap…

(a) The board shall adopt as standard rules the “coal mine health and safety provisions of this chapter”. Such standard rules and any other rules shall be adopted by the board without regard to the provisions of chapter twenty-nine-a of this code. The Board of Coal Mine Health an…

(a) Prior to the posting of proposed rules as provided for in subsection (c), section four of this article, the board shall observe the preliminary procedure for the development of rules set forth in this section: (1) During a board meeting or at any time when the board is not me…

(a) The Governor shall appoint the Health and Safety Administrator of the board for a term of employment of one year, and the Health and Safety Administrator employed on January 1, 2017 shall complete a three-year term until June 30, 2020, unless he or she is determined to have c…

(a) The State Coal Mine Safety and Technical Review Committee is continued, and commencing July 1, 2010, is a separate independent committee within the Department of Commerce. The purposes of this committee are to: (1) Assist the Board of Coal Mine Health and Safety in the develo…