FEDERAL MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH REVIEW COMMISSION
601 NEW JERSEY AVENUE, NW
SUITE 9500
WASHINGTON, DC 20001
March 2, 2012
SECRETARY OF LABOR, MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION (MSHA)
v.
MMR CONSTRUCTORS, INC. |
: : : : : : : : : |
Docket No. CENT 2010-760-M A.C. No. 03-00256-217706 |
BEFORE: Jordan, Chairman; Duffy, Young, Cohen, and Nakamura, Commissioners
ORDER
BY THE COMMISSION:
This matter arises under the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977, 30 U.S.C. § 801 et seq. (2006) (“Mine Act”). On October 5, 2011, the Commission received from MMR Constructors, Inc. (“MMR”) a motion seeking to reopen a penalty assessment proceeding and relieve it from the order of default entered against it.
On May 3, 2011, Chief Judge Lesnick issued an Order to Show Cause which by its terms became an Order of Default if the operator did not file an answer within 30 days. This Order to Show Cause was issued in response to MMR’s failure to answer the Secretary’s October 21, 2010 Petition for Assessment of Civil Penalty.
MMR asserts that it did not receive the Show Cause Order until October 5, 2011, and that it was in the process of negotiating a settlement agreement with MSHA. The Secretary originally opposed the motion. However, the Secretary subsequently withdrew her opposition, and requested that this case be reopened for the limited purpose of allowing the parties to submit their settlement agreement for approval pursuant to section 110(k) of the Mine Act, 30 U.S.C. § 820(k).
Having reviewed MMR’s request and the Secretary’s response, in the interest of justice, we grant MMR’s motion and remand this case to the Chief Administrative Law Judge for further proceedings pursuant to the Mine Act and the Commission’s Procedural Rules, 29 C.F.R. Part 2700.
/s/ Mary Lu Jordan
Mary Lu Jordan, Chairman
/s/ Michael F. Duffy
Michael F. Duffy, Commissioner
/s/Michael G. Young
Michael G. Young, Commissioner
/s/ Robert F. Cohen, Jr.
Robert F. Cohen, Jr., Commissioner
/s/ Patrick K. Nakamura
Patrick K. Nakamura, Commissioner
Distribution:
Holly Hollis
Corporate Counsel
MMR Group, Inc.
P.O. Box 84210
Baton Rouge, LA 70884
W. Christian Schumann, Esq.
Office of the Solicitor
U.S. Department of Labor
1100 Wilson Blvd., Room 2220
Arlington, VA 22209-2296
Melanie Garris
Office of Civil Penalty Compliance
MSHA
U.S. Dept. Of Labor
1100 Wilson Blvd., 25th Floor
Arlington, VA 22209-3939
Chief Administrative Law Judge Robert J. Lesnick
Federal Mine Safety & Health Review Commission
601 New Jersey Avenue, N. W., Suite 9500
Washington, D.C. 20001-2021