W.Va. mine disaster calls attention to revolving door between industry, government (State of VA, pusher of uranium mining/nuke power)

Comment: Yes, the federal government killed 29 miners in West Virginia, period! Demand our government to stop catering to the industries and protect the workers! Also, next time the Nukes or the pro uranium group in VA, says, there are strict laws to enforce safe uranium mining, refer them to this article, it is not true! Plus Virginia is a Pro Business state, a Pro Lobbyist State and the local/Canadian uranium/Nuke companies have lots of lobbyists just giving money to our VA leaders. Another note, Ace heard about the meeting of The Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission in Roanoke which gave $200,000 for the Coal Commission re: Uranium Study (Grant #2056). Well, the people on the commission were ranting and raving about VA should only consider the NAS Study on uranium mining (one paid for by the local uranium company) and not the studies by VA Beach or local study. Really reminds me of this article. No to uranium mining and Mine Pushers!

By Kimberly Kindy and Dan Eggen
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, April 18, 2010; A01

More than 200 former congressional staff members, federal regulators and lawmakers are employed by the mining industry as lobbyists, consultants or senior executives, including dozens who work for coal companies with the worst safety records in the nation, a Washington Post analysis shows.

The revolving door has also brought industry officials into government as policy aides in Congress or officials of the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA), which enforces safety standards.

The movement between industry and government allows both to benefit from crucial expertise, but mining safety experts say it often has led to a regulatory system tilted toward coal company interests.

That, they say, has put miners at risk and left behind a flawed enforcement system that probably contributed to this month's Massey Energy mine explosion in West Virginia.

Industries from coal to automobiles to food processing have long sought to capitalize on the experience of former government officials or to win the appointment of allies to federal agencies, and there is nothing illegal about doing so.

"Mining is very specialized. You need experience," said Ellen Smith, owner and managing editor of the independent Mine Safety and Health News. "You can't just throw someone in who has never worked in a mine."

But such relationships have come under increased scrutiny after the West Virginia disaster, which killed 29 miners, and Toyota's recent safety problems. Former regulators hired by the automaker limited the scope of federal probes and at least one vehicle recall, documents show.

Among mining regulators, 30-year industry veteran Richard E. Stickler created the government's scoring system for identifying and reining in dangerous mines when he was head of the MSHA.

The scoring system, which President Obama singled out for criticism in the Massey disaster, has allowed mines with hundreds of unresolved "serious and substantial" violations to remain open.

Dave Lauriski, a Bush appointee who ran MSHA before Stickler, also worked in the industry. He oversaw the writing of regulations in 2004 that allowed conveyer belt tunnels to double as ventilation shafts. The practice -- advocated by coal companies but opposed by many safety experts -- was identified as a key contributor to a 2006 Massey mine disaster, in which a fire killed two workers, records show.

Regulatory shifts

Lauriski said in an interview that his decision and subsequent regulations under the 2006 Miner Act strengthened ventilation standards. Since leaving government, Lauriski has been a mining consultant, advising operators on compliance with federal safety and health laws.

Mining experts said Democratic administrations often fill regulatory jobs with labor union executives hostile to coal companies. Joseph A. Main, Obama's MSHA head, directed health and safety programs for 22 years at the United Mine Workers of America.

The Post's examination identified nearly a dozen former MSHA district directors who recently took jobs as executives and consultants with Massey or Murray Energy, the two U.S. mining companies with the worst safety records. Their mines have been the sites of at least three accidents in the past decade, claiming 40 lives. The two companies together have more than 5,700 pending safety violations.

The incentives for such job moves are significant, with industry typically paying double or triple the salary of district directors, who average about $85,000 a year.

Former government officials also have been hired as industry lobbyists. The mining sector, including coal operators and support companies, spent more than $26 million on lobbying last year, part of a dramatic increase since West Virginia's Sago mine disaster of 2006, which killed 12 and led to some safety reforms. Lobbying disclosures compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics show that more than 170 people who once worked as congressional staffers, mining regulators or members of Congress are now registered industry lobbyists.


Industry influence

Tony Oppegard, a former MSHA regulator and a Kentucky lawyer who represents miners, criticized what he said was a Bush-era practice of appointing industry-friendly regulators.

"Bringing people in with long ties to the mining industry to the very top of the chain of command at MSHA, I think, had an extremely detrimental effect on mining safety," he said. "They have changed the entire mission of the agency, and it has a lasting effect for years to come. The mind-set stays in place, and so do the policies."

Complaints of undue industry influence at MSHA are not new. During congressional hearings in 2006, some lawmakers questioned the high number of industry executives then running the agency.

Read more:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/17/AR2010041702990_pf.html