Section 1. That sections 1561.011, 1561.16, 1561.17, 1561.23, | 13 |
1561.25,
1561.26,
1565.15, and 4131.03 be amended and sections | 14 |
1561.24,
1561.261, 1567.64,
and 1567.681 of the Revised Code be | 15 |
enacted to
read as follows: | 16 |
Sec. 1561.16. (A) As used in this section and sections | 21 |
1561.17 to 1561.21 of the Revised Code, "actual practical | 22 |
experience" means previous employment that involved a person's | 23 |
regular presence in the type of mining operation in which the | 24 |
experience is required to exist; participation in functions | 25 |
relating to the hazards involved in and the utilization of | 26 |
equipment, tools, and work crews and individuals for that type of | 27 |
mining; and regular exposure to the methods, procedures, and | 28 |
safety laws applicable to that type of mining. Credit of up to
one | 29 |
year for a portion of the required experience time may be
given | 30 |
upon documentation to the
chief of the
division of mineral | 31 |
resources management of an
educational degree
in a field related | 32 |
to mining. Credit of up to
two years of the
required experience | 33 |
time may be given upon
presentation to the
chief of proof of | 34 |
graduation
from an
accredited school of mines or mining after a | 35 |
four-year
course of
study with employment in the mining industry | 36 |
during
interim breaks
during the school years. | 37 |
(B) A person who applies for a certificate as a mine
| 38 |
foreperson of gaseous mines shall be able to read and
write the | 39 |
English language; shall have had at least five years' actual | 40 |
practical experience in the underground workings of a gaseous
mine | 41 |
or the equivalent thereof in the judgment of the
chief; and shall | 42 |
have had practical experience obtained
by
actual contact with gas | 43 |
in mines and have knowledge of the
dangers
and nature of noxious | 44 |
and explosive gases and ventilation
of
gaseous mines. An
applicant | 45 |
for a certificate as a
foreperson of gaseous mines
shall meet the | 46 |
same requirements,
except
that the
applicant shall
have had at | 47 |
least three years'
actual practical
experience in the
underground | 48 |
workings of a
gaseous mine or the
equivalent thereof
in the | 49 |
judgment of the
chief.
Each applicant for examination
shall pay a | 50 |
fee of ten dollarsestablished in rules adopted under this section | 51 |
to
the
chief on the first day of
such
examination. Any | 52 |
(C) A person who has been issued a certificate as a mine | 53 |
foreperson or a foreperson of a gaseous mine and who has not | 54 |
worked in an underground coal mine for a period of more than two | 55 |
calendar years shall apply for and obtain recertification from the | 56 |
chief in accordance with rules adopted under this section before | 57 |
performing the duties of a mine foreperson or a foreperson of a | 58 |
gaseous mine. An applicant for recertification shall pay a fee | 59 |
established in rules adopted under this section at the time of | 60 |
application for recertification. | 61 |
Sec. 1561.17. (A) A person who applies for a certificate as | 90 |
mine
foreperson or
foreperson of nongaseous mines
shall
be able to | 91 |
read and write the English
language; shall have had at
least three | 92 |
years' actual practical experience in
mines, or the
equivalent | 93 |
thereof in the judgment of the
chief of the division of mineral | 94 |
resources management; and shall
have knowledge of the dangers and | 95 |
nature of noxious
gases. Each
applicant for examination shall pay | 96 |
a fee of ten dollarsestablished in rules adopted under this | 97 |
section to the
chief on the first day of the
examination. Any | 98 |
(B) A person who has been issued a certificate as a mine | 99 |
foreperson or a foreperson of a nongaseous coal mine and who has | 100 |
not
worked in an underground coal mine for a period of more than | 101 |
two
calendar years shall apply for and obtain recertification | 102 |
from the
chief in accordance with rules adopted under this | 103 |
section before
performing the duties of a mine foreperson or a | 104 |
foreperson of a
nongaseous coal mine. An applicant for | 105 |
recertification shall pay a
fee
established in rules adopted | 106 |
under this section at the time of
application for | 107 |
recertification. | 108 |
Applicants for certificates shall make application to the
| 153 |
chief, on a form provided by
the chief, for examination.
All | 154 |
applicants
shall be able to read and write the English
language | 155 |
intelligently, and shall furnish the
chief with a
certificate as | 156 |
to their character, length and description of their
practical | 157 |
experience, and satisfactory evidence of their ability
to perform | 158 |
the duties of the position for which they make
application for | 159 |
examination. | 160 |
Sec. 1561.24. For purposes of this chapter, Chapters 1563., | 166 |
1565., and 1567., and sections 1514.40 to 1514.50 of the Revised | 167 |
Code, there is hereby created in the state treasury the mine | 168 |
safety fund. The fund shall consist of money transferred to it by | 169 |
the administrator of workers' compensation from the coal-workers | 170 |
pneumoconiosis fund established in section 4131.03 of the Revised | 171 |
Code. All investment earnings of the mine safety fund shall be | 172 |
credited to the fund. The chief of the division of mineral | 173 |
resources management shall use money in the fund for all of the | 174 |
following purposes: | 175 |
Sec. 1561.25. The division of mines and reclamationmineral | 183 |
resources management shall establish and
maintain four rescue | 184 |
stations. Three of such stations shall be
centrally located at | 185 |
such places, conveniently accessible to the
mines and mining areas | 186 |
of the state so as to cover the largest
number of mines in the | 187 |
shortest period of time, as the chief of
the division of mines and | 188 |
reclamationmineral resources management determines; and one such | 189 |
station may be
maintained at the mine laboratory provided for in | 190 |
section
1561.27 of the Revised Code. In establishing such stations | 191 |
the
chief may use
quarters owned by or in the possession and | 192 |
control of the state,
if available, or may lease other quarters | 193 |
therefor. Each
station shall be equipped with rescue and first aid | 194 |
apparatus and
other equipment as follows: | 195 |
Each of suchthe stations shall at all times be in charge of | 225 |
an
assistant superintendent of rescue stations. Each assistant | 226 |
superintendent shall, under the supervision of the superintendent | 227 |
of rescue stations, conduct classes in first aid, mine safety, | 228 |
rescue work, and other safety educational work for the benefit of | 229 |
people desiring to take the same. They shall keep the equipment | 230 |
prescribed in this section in good condition, and see that this | 231 |
equipment reaches any mine whenever it is needed as expeditiously | 232 |
as possible. They shall help to perform whatever duties are | 233 |
necessary. | 234 |
(B) The superintendent of rescue stations, with the approval | 242 |
of
the chief of the division of mineral resources
management, | 243 |
shall, at each rescue station
provided for in section 1561.25 of | 244 |
the Revised Code, train and
employ rescue crews of six members | 245 |
each, one of whom shall hold a
mine foreperson or fire boss | 246 |
certificate and be
designated captain,
and train and employ any | 247 |
number of such rescue crews as the
superintendent believes | 248 |
necessary. One member of a rescue crew shall be
certified as an | 249 |
EMT-basic, EMT-I, mine medical responder, or
paramedic. Each | 250 |
member of a
rescue
crew
shall devote the time specified by the | 251 |
chief each
month for
training purposes and shall be available at | 252 |
all times
to assist in
rescue work at explosions, mine fires, and | 253 |
other
emergencies. | 254 |
A captain of mine rescue crews shall receive for
service as | 255 |
captain the sum of twenty-four dollars per month, and
each
member | 256 |
shall receive the sum of twenty dollars per month, all
payable on | 257 |
requisition approved by the chief. When engaged in
rescue work at | 258 |
explosions, mine fires, or other emergencies away
from their | 259 |
station, the members of the rescue crews and captains
of the same | 260 |
shall be paid the sum of six dollars per hour for
work on the | 261 |
surface, which includes the
time
consumed by
those members in | 262 |
traveling to and from the scene of
the emergency when
the scene
is | 263 |
away from the station of
the members, and the
sum of seven
dollars | 264 |
per hour for all work
underground at
the
emergency, and
in | 265 |
addition thereto, the
necessary living expenses
of
the members | 266 |
when
the emergency is
away from their
home station, all payable
on | 267 |
requisition approved
by the chief. | 268 |
Each member of a mine rescue crew shall undergo an annual | 269 |
medical examination. The chief
may
designate to perform an | 270 |
examination any individual authorized by
the Revised Code to do | 271 |
so, including a physician assistant, a
clinical nurse specialist, | 272 |
a certified nurse practitioner, or a
certified nurse-midwife. In | 273 |
designating
the
individual to
perform a medical
examination, the | 274 |
chief
shall
choose one near the
station of the
member of
the | 275 |
rescue
crews.
The
examiner
shall
report the
examination
results
to | 276 |
the
chief and
if, in the
opinion
of the
chief,
the
report | 277 |
indicates
that
the
member is
physically
unfit
for further | 278 |
services, the
chief shall
relieve the
member
from
further duty. | 279 |
The fee charged
by
the
examiner
for
the
examination shall
be
paid | 280 |
in the
same manner
as fees are
paid to
doctors employed by
the | 281 |
industrial
commission
for special
medical
examinations. | 282 |
The chief may remove any member of a rescue crew for any | 283 |
reason. Such crews
shall be subject to the orders of the chief, | 284 |
the superintendent, and the
deputy mine inspectors when engaged in | 285 |
actual mine rescue work.
Mine rescue crews shall, in case of | 286 |
death or injury when engaged in rescue
work, wherever the same may | 287 |
occur, be paid compensation, or their
dependents shall be paid | 288 |
death benefits, from the workers'
compensation fund, in the same | 289 |
manner as other employees of the
state. | 290 |
(C) In addition to the training of rescue crews, each | 291 |
assistant
superintendent of rescue stations, with the approval of | 292 |
the
superintendent, shall provide for and conduct safety, first | 293 |
aid,
and rescue classes at any mine or for any group of miners who | 294 |
make application for the conducting of such classes.
The chief may | 295 |
assess a fee for safety and first aid classes for the purpose of | 296 |
covering the costs associated with providing those classes. The | 297 |
chief shall establish a fee schedule for safety and first aid | 298 |
classes by rule adopted in accordance with Chapter 119. of the | 299 |
Revised Code. Fees collected under this section shall be
deposited | 300 |
in the surface mining fund created in section 1514.06 of
the | 301 |
Revised Code. | 302 |
(D) No member of a mine rescue crew who performs mine
rescue | 307 |
at an underground coal mine and no operator of a mine whose | 308 |
employee participates as a member of such a mine rescue crew is | 309 |
liable in any civil action that arises under the laws of this | 310 |
state for damage or injury caused in the performance of rescue | 311 |
work at an underground coal mine. However, a member of such a mine | 312 |
rescue crew may be liable if the member acted with malicious | 313 |
purpose, in bad faith, or in a wanton or reckless manner. | 314 |
Sec. 1561.261. Except for civil actions in which the state is | 319 |
the plaintiff, no employee of the division of mineral resources | 320 |
management who performs rescue work at an underground coal mine is | 321 |
liable in any civil action that arises under the laws of this | 322 |
state for damage or injury caused in the performance of rescue | 323 |
work at an underground coal mine unless the employee acted with | 324 |
malicious purpose, in bad faith, or in a wanton or reckless | 325 |
manner. | 326 |
(B) The operator of an underground coal mine where twenty or | 342 |
more persons are employed on a shift, including all persons | 343 |
working at different locations at the mine within a ten-mile | 344 |
radius, shall provide at least one
mine medical responder, | 345 |
EMT-basic, or EMT-I
on duty
at
the underground coal mine whenever | 346 |
employees at the
mine are
actively engaged in the extraction, | 347 |
production, or
preparation of
coal. The
operator shall provide | 348 |
mine medical responders,
EMTs-basic, or
EMTs-I on duty at
the | 349 |
underground coal mine at
times and in numbers sufficient to
ensure | 350 |
that no miner works in a
mine location that cannot be
reached | 351 |
within a
reasonable time by a
mine medical responder, an | 352 |
EMT-basic, or an EMT-I.
Mine medical responders, EMTs-basic, and | 353 |
EMTs-I shall be employed on their regular
coal
mining duties at | 354 |
locations convenient for quick response to
emergencies in order to | 355 |
provide emergency medical services inside
the underground coal | 356 |
mine and
transportation of
injured or sick
employees to the | 357 |
entrance of the mine. The operator shall
provide
for the services | 358 |
of at least one emergency medical service
organization to be | 359 |
available on call to reach the
entrance of the
underground coal | 360 |
mine within thirty minutes at
any time that
employees are engaged | 361 |
in the extraction, production, or
preparation of coal in order to | 362 |
provide emergency medical services
and
transportation to a | 363 |
hospital. | 364 |
The operator shall make available to
mine medical responders, | 365 |
EMTs-basic,
and EMTs-I
all of the equipment for first
aid and | 366 |
emergency
medical services
that is necessary for those
personnel | 367 |
to function
and to comply
with the regulations pertaining to | 368 |
first
aid and
emergency medical
services that are adopted under | 369 |
the "Federal
Mine Safety and
Health Act of 1977," 91 Stat.
1290, | 370 |
30 U.S.C.A.
801, and
amendments to it. The operator of
the | 371 |
underground coal
mine shall
install telephone service or | 372 |
equivalent facilities that
enable
two-way voice communication | 373 |
between the
mine medical responders,
EMTs-basic, or EMTs-I in
the | 374 |
mine and the emergency medical
service organization outside
the | 375 |
mine that provides emergency
medical services
on a regular
basis. | 376 |
(C) The operator of a surface coal mine shall provide at | 377 |
least one
first aid provider on
duty at the mine whenever | 378 |
employees at
the mine are actively engaged in the extraction, | 379 |
production, or preparation of
coal. The operator shall provide | 380 |
first aid
providers on duty at the surface coal mine at
times and | 381 |
in numbers sufficient to
ensure that no miner works in a mine | 382 |
location that cannot be reached within a
reasonable time by a | 383 |
first aid
provider. First aid providers shall be employed on
their | 384 |
regular
coal mining duties at locations convenient for quick | 385 |
response to emergencies in order to provide emergency medical | 386 |
services and transportation of injured or sick employees to the | 387 |
entrance of
the surface coal mine. The
operator shall provide for | 388 |
the services of at least one emergency
medical service | 389 |
organization to be available on call to reach the entrance of
the | 390 |
surface coal mine within
thirty minutes at any time that employees | 391 |
are engaged in the
extraction, production, or preparation of coal | 392 |
in order to
provide
emergency medical services and transportation | 393 |
to a hospital. | 394 |
(D)(1)
An employee at a surface coal
mine shall
be considered | 401 |
to be a first aid provider for the purposes of this
section if the | 402 |
employee has received from an instructor approved
by the
chief of | 403 |
the division of mineral resources
management ten
hours of
initial | 404 |
first aid training as a selected supervisory
employee under 30 | 405 |
C.F.R. 77.1703 and receives five hours of
refresher
first aid | 406 |
training as a selected supervisory employee
under 30
C.F.R. | 407 |
77.1705 in each subsequent calendar year. | 408 |
(3) The training received in accordance with division (D) of | 413 |
this section shall consist of a course of instruction established | 414 |
in the manual issued by the mine safety and health
administration | 415 |
in the United
States department of labor entitled "first
aid, a | 416 |
bureau of mines
instruction manual" or its
successor or any other | 417 |
curriculum approved by the chief. The training shall
be included | 418 |
in the hours of instruction provided to
miners in accordance with | 419 |
training requirements established under 30
C.F.R. part 48, subpart | 420 |
(B), as amended, and 30 C.F.R. part
77, as amended. | 421 |
If a person qualifies as a mine medical responder or similar | 438 |
classification
in another state, the person may provide emergency | 439 |
medical
services as a mine medical responder in this state | 440 |
without completing the
training or passing the examination that | 441 |
is required in rules
adopted under this division, provided that | 442 |
the chief determines
that the person's qualifications from the | 443 |
other state satisfy all
of the applicable requirements that are | 444 |
established in rules
adopted under this division. | 445 |
(F) Each operator of a surface coal mine shall establish, | 446 |
keep
current, and make available for inspection an emergency | 447 |
medical plan that
includes the telephone numbers of the division | 448 |
of
mineral resources management and of an
emergency medical | 449 |
services
organization the services of which are required to be | 450 |
retained under
division (C) of this section. The chief shall
adopt | 451 |
rules in
accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code
that | 452 |
establish any additional information required to be included
in an | 453 |
emergency
medical plan. | 454 |
(F)(G) Each operator of an underground coal mine or
surface | 455 |
coal mine
shall provide or contract to obtain emergency medical | 456 |
services
training or first aid training, as applicable, at the | 457 |
operator's expense, that is sufficient to train and
maintain the | 458 |
certification of the number of employees necessary
to comply with | 459 |
division (B) of this section and that is
sufficient to train | 460 |
employees as required under division (D) of this
section and to | 461 |
comply with division (C) of this section. | 462 |
Sec. 1567.681. (A) The operator of an underground coal mine | 498 |
that uses conveyor belts in the operation of the mine shall | 499 |
install fire detection devices on each conveyor belt that is used | 500 |
in the mine. The fire detection devices shall be of a design and | 501 |
type established in rules adopted under this section. The chief of | 502 |
the division of mineral resources management shall inspect the | 503 |
fire detection devices after the operator of the mine has | 504 |
installed the devices on the conveyor belts that are used in the | 505 |
operation of the mine. The chief shall approve or disapprove the | 506 |
installation of the fire detection devices and shall notify the | 507 |
operator of the chief's decision. | 508 |
Sec. 4131.03. (A) For the relief of persons who are
entitled | 529 |
to receive benefits by virtue of the federal act, there
is hereby | 530 |
established a coal-workers pneumoconiosis fund, which
shall be | 531 |
separate from the funds established and administered
pursuant to | 532 |
Chapter 4123. of the Revised Code. The fund shall
consist of | 533 |
premiums and other payments thereto by subscribers who
elect to | 534 |
subscribe to the fund to insure the payment of benefits
required | 535 |
by the federal act. | 536 |
(2) The administrator of workers' compensation may transfer a | 543 |
portion of the investment earnings credited to the coal-workers | 544 |
pneumoconiosis fund to the mine safety fund created in section | 545 |
1561.24 of the Revised Code for the purposes specified in that | 546 |
section. The administrator, with the advice and consent of the | 547 |
bureau of workers' compensation board of directors, shall adopt | 548 |
rules governing the transfer in order to ensure the solvency of | 549 |
the coal-workers pneumoconiosis fund. For that purpose, the rules | 550 |
may establish
tests based on measures of net assets, liabilities, | 551 |
expenses,
interest, dividend income, or other factors that the | 552 |
administrator
determines appropriate that may be applied prior to | 553 |
a transfer. | 554 |
Section 3. It is the intent of the General Assembly that the | 572 |
authorization of a transfer of a portion of the interest money in | 573 |
the Coal-Workers Pneumoconiosis Fund created in section 4131.03 of | 574 |
the Revised Code, by the amendment of that section by this act, to | 575 |
the Mine Safety Fund created in section 1561.24 of the Revised | 576 |
Code, as enacted by this act, is not to be a long-term funding | 577 |
source for the Mine Safety Fund. In addition, the General | 578 |
Assembly's authorization of such a transfer by this act does not | 579 |
establish a precedent for the transfer of money from other Bureau | 580 |
of Workers' Compensation funds to other funds. Finally, the | 581 |
Department of Natural Resources shall examine sources other than | 582 |
the Coal-Workers Pneumoconiosis Fund to provide money for the Mine | 583 |
Safety Fund and report its findings to the Bureau of Workers' | 584 |
Compensation Board of Directors immediately prior to the five-year | 585 |
review of the rules adopted under division (B)(2) of section | 586 |
4131.03 of the Revised Code, as amended by this act. | 587 |
Section 4. This act is hereby declared to be an emergency | 588 |
measure necessary for the immediate preservation of the public | 589 |
peace, health, and safety. The reason for such necessity is that | 590 |
the creation of the Mine Safety Fund by this act enables the | 591 |
Division of Mineral Resources Management in the Department of | 592 |
Natural Resources to establish a new center to provide more rapid | 593 |
response to mine incidents in which mine workers' health or safety | 594 |
may be in jeopardy, and, as a result, the reduction in response | 595 |
times to such incidents could help save mine workers' lives. | 596 |
Therefore, this act shall go into immediate effect. | 597 |