CHAPTER 1 FEDERAL SAFETY LAWS MARCH ON

• Jurisdiction: United States

Mine Health and Safety
(Oct 1973)
CHAPTER 1
FEDERAL SAFETY LAWS MARCH ON
Fred R. Blackwell
Washington, D.C.

INTRODUCTION

The agenda of today's Institute indicates fruitful consideration of some of the most important facets of the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969.¹ As we focus on the Coal Act, however, we should keep in mind that the Congress has recently enacted other major laws concerning employee health and safety and that more such laws may be in the offing. Moreover, it is beyond dispute that employee health and safety is now clearly delineated as a subject of major concern with the Federal Government. Three federal agencies, the Department of Labor, Interior, and Transportation, have been given broad regulatory power and substantial appropriations with which to implement the federal laws on health and safety. Yet, until just a few years ago, the federal interest in the subject of employee health and safety was relatively modest, certainly as compared with the current scene. Except for federal laws respecting underground coal mines, metal and nonmetallic mines, a few specialized subjects in the railroad industry, such as locomotive safety, and some coverage of construction workers on federal contracts, there was little surface evidence that we were on the verge of a policy of federal responsibility for employee health and safety on a national scale. Nonetheless, in the short span of two years, 1969 and 1970, the Congress enacted three stringent safety laws: the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969, the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970,² and the Federal Railroad Safety Act of 1970.³ These laws, collectively, cover

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virtually all of the nation's industry. Amendments to strengthen the Federal Metal-Nonmetallic Act of 1966 are now before the Congress, so by the end of this Congress there may be a fourth stringent safety law.⁴

From this formidable catalogue of past and prospective federal action, one might logically conclude that the federal law-making process has about run its course on the subject of employee health and safety. Such may not be the case, however. The Congress is a political institution and, thus, one legislative effort, which is successful by political standards, creates incentive for another similar effort. Consequently, one should not be surprised to see the federal employee health and safety laws march on toward further expansion, and greater appropriations, for the remainder of this decade.

As we meet here today, the effect which the existing safety laws will have upon one another, if any, cannot be foreseen, but an issue has already been drawn over whether the Labor Department's jurisdiction should be extended to cover health and safety in coal mines and in metal and nonmetal mines.⁵ It, therefore, seems worthwhile to look at the broad picture of the origin and current status of the present spectrum of federal safety laws, with particular emphasis on the Coal Act, the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSHA), and the Federal Metal-Nonmetallic Act of 1966. In the discussion which follows this Introduction, the chronological order of enactment of the various safety laws is not followed. The Railroad Safety Act is discussed briefly, followed by more

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extended treatment of the Coal Act, OSHA, and the Metal and Non-metal Safety Act. The final topic, Senate Bill, S.2117, affects all of the foregoing safety laws except the Railroad Safety Act.

FEDERAL RAILROAD SAFETY ACT OF 1970

The Federal Railroad Safety Act of 1970 resulted in major part from a number of catastrophic railroad accidents which involved injuries and fatalities to railroad passengers as well as to railroad employees. In consequence, unlike other safety laws which cover employee safety only, the Railroad Safety Act combines public safety and employee safety under a single Act. The administrative authority of the Act is vested in the Department of Transportation, which, thus far, has issued final regulations on railroad tracks and railbeds and proposed regulations on various other subjects. There are not yet any regulations on employee safety, per se, that is, on conditions unique to the employee such as caboose design or noise levels in machine shops.

At the present time, the Railroad Safety Act appears to have little import to the coal and mineral industries, but, nonetheless, this Act raises at least three noteworthy points.

1. The regulatory power of the Act is quite broad and is clearly sufficient to require new installations, equipment, labor expenditures, etc., if warranted by safety considerations. This, of course, implies increased costs to the railroad industry which would ultimately be passed along to the users of rail service.

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2. The Act covers rail operations of a nonpublic character, whereas prior to 1970 such nonpublic operations were exempt from federal authority. Thus, a privately owned rail system, which moves coal, metal ore, or other materials on private property, could be made subject to regulations under the Railroad Safety Act, while other activities on the same property would be subject to a different safety Act.

3. In common with other safety laws, the Railroad Safety Act has jurisdictional conflicts with OSHA, and, reportedly, the Department of Transportation and Labor are endeavoring to draw jurisdictional boundaries between the two Acts. Also, some cases involving Railroad Carrier resistance to OSHA jurisdiction are already pending before the OSHA Review Commission, but no decisions have been rendered.

The Railroad Safety Act, as previously indicated, appears to have no short range significance to the coal and mineral industries; however, from a long range viewpoint, this Act should be scrutinized with respect to legal precedents resulting from court litigation and particularly with respect to possible increases in pertinent rail tariffs. Also, the Act might profitably be taken into account in making equipment purchases, and similar decisions, for a rail system used by a coal or mineral company on its own property.

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FEDERAL COAL MINE HEALTH AND SAFETY ACT OF 1969

The body of laws on coal mine safety can fairly be called the progenitor of all federal safety laws. Indeed, the first...