Regulations Implementing the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969, as Amended

Résumé

On January 22, 1997, the Department issued a proposed rule to amend the regulations implementing the Black Lung Benefits Act. 62 FR 3338-3435 (Jan. 22, 1997). When the comment period closed on August 21, 1997, the Department had received written submissions from almost 200 interested persons, including coal miners, coal mine operators, insurers, physicians, and attorneys. The Department also held hearings in Charleston, West Virginia, and Washington, D.C. at which over 50 people testified. The Department carefully reviewed the testimony and the comments and, on October 8, 1999, issued a second notice of proposed rulemaking. 64 FR 54966-55072 (Oct. 8, 1999). In its second notice, the Department proposed changing several of the most important provisions in its initial proposal. The Department also explained its decision not to alter the original proposal with respect to other key regulations based on the comments received to date. Finally, the Department prepared an initial regulatory flexibility analysis. In order to ensure that small businesses that could be affected by the Department's proposal received appropriate notice of the Department's proposed changes, the Department mailed