§933 Duties of Operators in States Not Qualifying Under Workmen’s Compensation Laws

Summary

If a State’s workers’ compensation law is not on the Secretary’s approved list, every coal mine operator in that State must make sure the benefits they owe are paid. They can do that by qualifying as a self‑insurer under rules the Secretary sets or by buying and keeping insurance from an authorized company or state fund. Any policy must promise to pay the required federal benefits even if State law would pay less, and the insurer still must pay if the operator becomes insolvent or bankrupt. The Secretary can require other policy terms. An insurer cannot cancel such a policy before it ends until at least 30 days after sending registered or certified mail notice to the Secretary and to the operator. If an employer fails to secure payment, the Secretary can fine them up to $1,000 for each day the failure continues. If the employer is a corporation, the president, secretary, and treasurer can each be held responsible for those fines and can be made personally liable for benefits owed while the company failed to secure them. If an employer hides, sells, or destroys property after a miner files a claim to avoid paying benefits, that is a misdemeanor punishable by up to $1,000, up to one year in jail, or both; corporate officers can also be held responsible. These rules do not remove any other legal duties the employer has.