[DOCID: f:k94-1260.wais] PEABODY COAL COMPANY March 6, 1995 KENT 94-1260 FEDERAL MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH REVIEW COMMISSION OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGES 2 SKYLINE, 10th FLOOR 5203 LEESBURG PIKE FALLS CHURCH, VIRGINIA 22041 March 6, 1995 SECRETARY OF LABOR, : CIVIL PENALTY PROCEEDING MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH : ADMINISTRATION (MSHA), : Docket No. KENT 94-1260 Petitioner : A.C. No. 15-14074-03667 v. : : Martwick Underground Mine PEABODY COAL COMPANY, : Respondent : DECISION APPROVING SETTLEMENT Appearances: Donna E. Sonner, Esq., Office of the Solicitor, U. S. Department of Labor, Nashville, Tennessee, for Petitioner; Carl B. Boyd, Jr., Esq., Meyer, Hutchinson, Haynes and Boyd, Henderson, Kentucky, for Respondent. Before: Judge Melick This case is before me upon a petition for assessment of civil penalty under Section 105(d) of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 (the Act). At hearing, Petitioner has filed a motion to approve a settlement agreement and to dismiss the case. A reduction in penalty from $2,000 to $1,300 was proposed. I have considered the representations and documentation submitted in this case, and I conclude that the proffered settlement is acceptable under the criteria set forth in Section 110(a) of the Act. WHEREFORE, the motion for approval of settlement is GRANTED, and it is ORDERED that Respondent pay a penalty of $1,300 within 30 days of this order. Gary Melick Administrative Law Judge Distribution: Donna E. Sonner, Esq., Office of the Solicitor, U.S. Department of Labor, 2002 Richard Jones Road, Suite B-201, Nashville, TN 37215-2862 Carl B. Boyd, Jr., Esq., Meyer, Hutchinson, Haynes & Boyd, 120 North Ingram Street, Suite A, Henderson, KY 42420 /jf