Washington, DC – U.S. Senators Joe Manchin (D-WV), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Bob Casey (D-PA), John Fetterman (D-PA), Mark Warner (D-VA) and Tim Kaine (D-VA) released the following statement on the Department of Labor’s (DOL) proposal by its Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) to amend current federal standards to better protect the nation’s miners from health hazards related to exposure to respirable crystalline silica, or silica dust. 

“We applaud the Mine Safety and Health Administration’s new proposed silica rule to enhance health protections for miners across the country. We urge swift implementation of this rule because protecting our hard-working miners from dangerous levels of silica cannot wait. After decades of declining rates of black lung deaths, we have seen the number of reported cases rapidly increase over the last 20 years - especially in Appalachia. America’s coal miners have risked their lives to power our great nation for generations, and we are committed to using every tool possible to protect miners from developing debilitating diseases that are entirely preventable.”

Earlier this month, the Senators sent a letter to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Shalanda Young, seeking additional information on the delayed announcement of a new silica standard for miners across America and urging prompt promulgation.