Director; powers and duties
Sec. 6. (a) The director shall devote his entire time and attention
to the duties of his office during working hours, and shall be subject
to call at all times. The director and mine inspectors are authorized
to enter, examine, and inspect all commercial coal mines and
facilities belonging thereto, at any time, and the operator of any such
mine is required to furnish the necessary facilities for entry,
examination, and inspection.
(b) The director shall have full direction of the official activities
of the mine inspectors and shall be responsible therefor.
(c) The director and each mine inspector are empowered to act as
police officers, with full power to arrest and detain any person found
violating any provision of the mining laws of Indiana or engaged in
any attempt to violate such laws or parts thereof. However, no such
person shall be detained for any period of time longer than
twenty-four (24) hours without warrant or the filing of a charge
against him in a court of competent jurisdiction. Such director and
each mine inspector also shall have power, and it is their duty, to
stop immediately the operation of any coal mine or part thereof when
any dangerous or unlawful condition exists. However, where
conditions exist justifying him to do so, he shall grant a reasonable
length of time for making necessary repairs. Where a stop in
operation is enforced, such director and mine inspectors shall be
empowered to subsequently allow such mine or part of a mine to be
reopened when the dangerous or unlawful conditions have been
remedied or removed. If the operator or a workman believes that an
inspector has acted illegally in citing violations of the law, they may
appeal to the director for relief from such citation. The director may
grant or deny such relief after a hearing, at which all interested
parties have been notified of such hearing and given an opportunity
to present evidence in support of their contentions.
(d) It shall be the responsibility of the director to collect statistics
relating to coal mining in the state.
(e) The director shall keep a properly indexed permanent record
of all inspections made by himself and the mine inspectors, and
copies of all reports relating to coal mines shall be kept on file, and
all such records shall, at all times during office hours, be open to
inspection by the public, and shall be laid before the governor at any
time upon his request.
(f) The director is empowered to revoke, in writing, any order
issued by a mine inspector for the purpose of stopping the operation
of a mine or part thereof. However, such revocation of an order shall
not be made unless and until the director has made a personal
examination of the mine or part thereof affected and determined it to
be in a safe condition to operate.
(g) The director or mine inspectors shall make a personal
inspection of each underground coal mine in this state:
(1) at least once every three (3) months, or oftener if
practicable, while the mine is in operation;
(2) whenever any danger to the workmen may exist; or
(3) whenever called upon to do so by the workmen or their
representatives.
During a regular inspection, the inspector shall inspect the surface
plant; every working place in the mine; all active haulageways,
travelways, and airways in their entirety; entrances to abandoned
workings; accessible old workings; escapeways and all other places
where men work or travel; electric equipment and installations; first
aid equipment; ventilation facilities; communications installations;
roof and rib conditions; and blasting practices, etc. The inspector
shall measure the volume of air at the intake and return of the main
ventilating current and of each split, and the amount passing through
the last breakthrough in each pair or set of entries, and designate to
the mine foreman where he shall measure the currents of air as
required by the mining laws of this state. In mines operating more
than one shift in a twenty-four (24) hour period, the inspector shall
devote sufficient time to the second and third shift to determine
conditions and practices related to the health and safety of the
employees. He shall make tests for gas and oxygen deficiency in
each place which he is required to inspect in the mine.
(h) The director or mine inspector making an inspection of a mine
shall make an accurate report covering such inspection, showing:
(1) the date of inspection and actual time required to make the
inspection;
(2) the condition in which the mine is found;
(3) the extent to which the laws relating to mines are violated;
(4) the progress made in the improvement of the mine, where
such progress relates to the health and safety of the employees;
(5) the number of fatal injuries and the number of nonfatal
lost-time injuries resulting from accidents in and around the
mine, and their cause; and
(6) in case any violation of the mining laws is found, the
specific section or sections violated, with recommendations for
correcting them, and the action taken to eliminate them.
(i) The director or mine inspector making an inspection of a mine
shall within three (3) days after the completion of the inspection,
deliver:
(1) one (1) copy of his inspection report on the mine to the
operator, superintendent, or mine foreman of the mine
inspected;
(2) one (1) copy to the mine safety committee, if such a
committee is maintained;
(3) one (1) copy to the district office of the mine workers'
organization having jurisdiction at the mine; and
(4) one (1) copy to be posted within the three (3) day limit on
a bulletin board at a prominent place on the premises where it
can be conveniently read by the employees. The report shall not
be removed from such board until the report of the succeeding
examination is posted.
The director or mine inspector shall keep the mine foreman or
superintendent informed as much as is practicable of any violation
or other unsafe condition as his regular inspection progresses. In
instances where, in the opinion of the mine inspector, an imminent
or serious disaster hazard exists, such inspector shall report the same
to the director by the quickest available means.
(j) Mine inspectors shall report immediately upon being informed
of a mine fire, mine explosion, or any accident resulting in loss of
life or serious injury, to the director, to the nearest office of the
United States Bureau of Mines, and to the district office of the mine
workers' organization having jurisdiction at the mine.
(k) The mine inspector shall proceed immediately to the scene of
any mine accident in his assigned territory that results in loss of life
or serious personal injury, and to the scene of any mine fire or
explosion regardless of whether there is loss of life or personal
injury, shall make such investigation and recommendations and
render such assistance necessary for the safety of the employees, and
shall make a complete report thereof and give such report to the same
distribution as a regular mine inspection report. The district president
of the mine workers' organization having jurisdiction at the mine, or
some person delegated by him, the mine safety committee at the mine
involved, and federal coal mine inspectors shall be permitted to
actively and fully participate in the investigation of any such accident
and any hearings held in connection therewith, including the right to
call, examine, and cross-examine witnesses. At all hearings held in
connection with accidents that result in loss of life, the director and
mine inspectors are empowered to compel the attendance of
witnesses and administer oaths or affirmation to them, and the costs
of such investigations shall be paid by the county in which the
accident occurs, as costs of coroner's inquests are now paid.
(l) The mine inspector shall cooperate with the United States
Mine Safety and Health Administration and mine management in
directing any necessary mine rescue and recovery work and in the
reopening of any mine or part thereof that has been sealed, closed, or
abandoned.
(m) It shall be the duty of the director and mine inspectors to
enforce the coal mining laws of this state, and the mine inspectors
shall perform such other official duties required by the director as
may be necessary to secure full compliance with the coal mining
laws of this state.
(n) The director or mine inspector shall notify the mine
management and a representative of the miners at each mine
inspected that a management representative and a representative of
the miners shall have the opportunity to accompany the state
inspector on an inspection. The miners' representative shall be a
nonsupervisory employee of the mine designated by a majority of the
miners at the mine. The management representative and the miners'
representative shall not suffer a loss of pay from the employer of the
representatives during the inspection. Compensation of more than
one (1) miners' representative is not required in the case of any
inspection conducted jointly with a federal mine safety and health
inspection.
(Formerly: Acts 1955, c.168, s.20.) As amended by Acts 1979,
P.L.17, SEC.36; P.L.231-1983, SEC.6; P.L.112-1992, SEC.6.
Last modified: May 27, 2006