{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-351.070","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 351.070","heading":"Duties of the commissioner  -- Division of Mine Safety -- Secretary","body":"may  promulgate  administrative regulations -- Family liaison -- Civil\nmonetary  penalties.\n(1) The  commissioner shall have full authority over the department and shall\nsuperintend and direct the activities of the mine safety specialists and other\npersonnel of the department. There is created within the Department for\nNatural Resources a Division of Mine Safety.\n(2) The  secretary shall appoint a director to the Division of Mine Safety in\naccordance with KRS  224.10-020(2) and prescribe his or her powers and\nduties.\n(3) The commissioner may, whenever necessary, divide the coal fields of the state\ninto as many inspection regions as necessary, so as to equalize as nearly as\npracticable the work of each mine safety specialist, and may  assign to the\nspecialists their respective regions.\n(4) The commissioner may, whenever he or she deems it necessary in the interest\nof efficient supervision of the mines, temporarily employ the services of\nadditional mine safety specialists or change specialists from one (1) region to\nanother.\n(5) The  commissioner shall superintend and direct the inspection of mines and\ncause to be investigated the character and quality of air in mines whenever\nconditions indicate the necessity of doing so.\n(6) The commissioner shall collect statistics relating to coal mining in the state and\nmake  an annual report of the statistics.\n(7) The  commissioner shall see that maps, plans, projections, and proposed\ndevelopments of all underground coal mines are made and filed in his office.\n(8) The  commissioner shall keep a properly indexed, permanent record of all\ninspections made by himself and the personnel of the department.\n(9) The  commissioner shall exercise general supervision over the training of\nofficials and workmen  in safety and first aid and mine rescue methods, and\nmay  conduct demonstrations in safety whenever he deems it advisable.\n(10) The commissioner shall exercise general supervision over the dissemination of\ninformation among officials and employees concerning mine ventilation, mining\nmethods, and mine accidents and their prevention, and shall assume  full\ncharge in the event of mine fire or explosion or other serious accident at any\nmine in the state.\n(11) The  commissioner may assist in the resumption of operations of any mine or\ngather data for the development of any coal seams that would be of any benefit\nto the state or create new employment.\n(12) The  commissioner may prescribe reasonable safety standards governing the\nuse of explosives, and electrical and mechanical equipment in the operation of\nopen-pit or surface mines.\n(13) The  secretary of the Energy and Environment Cabinet shall have the power\nand authority to promulgate, amend, or rescind any administrative regulations\nhe or she deems  necessary and suitable for the proper administration of this\nchapter. Administrative regulations may  be  promulgated, amended,  or\nrescinded by the secretary only after public hearing or an opportunity to be\nheard thereon of which proper notice by publication pursuant to KRS  Chapter\n424, has been given. Administrative regulations so promulgated shall carry the\nfull force and effect of law.\n(14) The  commissioner shall ascertain the cause or causes of any coal mining\nfatality and any accidents involving serious physical injury and, within sixty (60)\ndays of completion of the investigation, shall report his or her findings and\nrecommendations to the Governor, the Mine Safety Review Commission, and\nthe Legislative Research Commission. Accident interviews conducted by the\ndivision shall be closed proceedings. The  recommendations  may  include\nwithout being limited to the need to promulgate or amend  administrative\nregulations to prevent the recurrence of the conditions causing the fatality.\nEffective January 1, 2009, the division shall appoint an existing full-time\nemployee  to act as a family liaison. The  family liaison shall have  the\nresponsibility during an accident investigation to keep the families of miners\ninformed of the progress and findings of the accident investigation. The family\nliaison shall be trained in mining and in grief counseling.\n(15) The  commissioner shall assess civil monetary penalties against licensed\nfacilities for violations of laws in this chapter and KRS  Chapter 352 pertaining\nto roof control plans, mine seal construction plans, unsafe working conditions,\nand  mine ventilation plans that could lead to imminent danger or serious\nphysical injury. The  Energy  and  Environment Cabinet shall promulgate\nadministrative regulations within ninety (90) days of July 12, 2006, providing for\nthe manner  and method  of the assessment of the penalties and appeals\ntherefrom. In no event shall the civil penalty assessed pursuant to this\nsubsection for the violation exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000). Nothing\ncontained in this subsection shall be construed to impair or contravene the\nauthority granted under KRS  351.025(2) for imposing penalties against\nlicensed facilities.","path":["KRS Chapter 351"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=46545","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:58:37Z","sha256":"d920a5303c94253757ec165ac1da8dee3bf40af805085d2a726531167bf1b5cf","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-351.060","next":"us-ky/krs-351.073"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}