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Committee approves change to mine emergency technician staffing for smallest shifts after emotional testimony, 7-4
Summary
House Bill 196 would reduce the required number of mine emergency technicians on-site for very small coal-mine production shifts; the Senate committee approved the bill 7-4 after hearing testimony from the widow of a miner killed in 2005 and safety advocates urging the existing two-person requirement be retained.
House Bill 196, which would change the statutory requirement for the number of mine emergency technicians (METs) required on an active production shift at coal mines, passed the Senate Standing Committee on Economic Development, Tourism and Labor by a 7-4 vote after extended testimony and debate.
Senator Philip Wheeler introduced the bill on behalf of Representative Blanton, noting that current law requires small mines with fewer than 10 workers on a production shift to have two METs while mines with 11 to 50 employees are subject to a different percentage-based standard. "Currently in a small mine, 20% of your workforce on an active production shift has to be…
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