Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, April 16, 1991 TAG: 9104160262
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Medium
Martin announced earlier this month that federal investigators had uncovered nearly 5,000 instances of tampering with dust samples at 840 mines.
Martin had originally proposed fines of $1,000 for each instance of tampering, but said at a congressional hearing Monday that 11 cases were so egregious she would ask that fines against them be raised to $10,000.
Those 11 alleged tampering cases occurred in mine areas that were supposed to have low-dust conditions to accommodate miners already showing signs of black lung disease.
By law, miners who have early signs of the deadly disease have the right to move to a low-dust mining job with no loss in pay.
"Submitting fraudulent tests on these miners who already are at special risk increases the danger that they may eventually become disabled by black lung," she said.
Announcing another development to the House Education and Labor health and safety subcommittee, Martin said 60 people responsible for submitting the samples will be decertified by the Labor Department.
She rejected allegations that the government had unfairly accused coal mine operators of tampering with dust samples and repeated her charge that there is "widespread cheating" in the industry.
When she announced the investigation earlier this month, industry officials said the Labor Department had no evidence of tampering and that the irregularities could have occurred in shipping or handling or because of faulty equipment.
Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, said Martin had leveled a "stinging indictment of an entire industry," accusing it of widespread fraud.
"Considering that only 3 percent [of the samples] were tampered with, this doesn't seem to match up," Boehner said.
But Martin called the 5,000 irregular samples, found in 120,000 samples checked by inspectors, an "enormously high" number.
"It's not just trifling, it staggers the imagination," she said.
Martin said two separate technical studies had found that the irregularities with the samples could only have been caused by tampering, and as soon as inspectors began to void tampered samples, there was a huge drop-off in the number of irregular samples mine operators turned in.
"I consider this strong evidence," Martin said of the fact that the abnormalities stopped once the investigation became known.
She noted that some industry officials have hinted that miners, who carry the dust sample machinery with them on an eight-hour shift, might be responsible, presumably so they could get jobs inspecting mines.
"Can you really imagine miners trying to make their air quality worse so they can get black lung?" Martin said to Boehner. "That almost tells you all of it right there."
The industry again complained that there was no evidence of cheating, and said the Labor Department had refused to let mining companies cooperate with its investigation.
"Our industry was tried and found guilty without any disclosure of the crime and evidence," Richard Lawson, president of the National Coal Association, said in a statement. "Interested and affected parties have not been provided documented evidence upon which the determinations were made."
The 11 tampering cases in which Martin will push for the $10,000 fines involve five coal companies, operating six mines. Here are the companies, followed by the mine site and the number of alleged violations:
Consolidation Coal, Rowland No. 9, W.Va., four violations.
> Consolidation Coal, Matthews Mine, Tenn., two violations.
Freeman United, Orient No. 6, Ill., two violations.
Fawn Mining, Fawn Mine No. 91, Pa., one violation.
> Bethenergy Mines, Livingston Portal 84, Pa., one violation.
U.S. Steel Mining, Cumberland Mine, Pa., one violation.
by CNB