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the Strategic Plan and of program

portfolios to document the Department’s

progress in meeting its strategic

objectives.

7. Reservation of Authority and

Responsibility.

A. The submission of reports and

recommendations to the President and

the Congress concerning the

administration of the statutory

provisions and Executive Orders

affecting DOL is reserved to the

Secretary.

B. This Secretary’s Order does not

affect the authorities or responsibilities

of the Office of Inspector General under

the Inspector General Act of 1978, as

amended, or under Secretary’s Order

04–2006 (February 21, 2006).

C. Except as provided above in

Section 2, all other Secretary’s Orders

remain in full force and effect.

8. Effective Date. This Order is

effective immediately.

Dated: February 21, 2020.

Eugene Scalia,

Secretary of Labor.

[FR Doc. 2020–04028 Filed 3–5–20; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4510–04–P

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

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Secretary’s Order 01–2020—Delegation

of Authority and Assignment of

Responsibility to the Administrative

Review Board

1. Purpose. To delegate authority and

assign responsibility to the

Administrative Review Board, define its

composition, and describe its functions.

2. Authorities. This Order is issued

under the authority of 5 U.S.C. 301

(Departmental Regulations); 29 U.S.C.

551 et seq. (Establishment of

Department; Secretary; Seal);

Reorganization Plan No. 6 1950 (5

U.S.C. App. 1 Reorg. Plan 6 1950); and

the authorities cited in Section 5 of this

Order.

3. Background. The Secretary of Labor

(‘‘Secretary’’) has the authority and

responsibility to decide certain appeals

from administrative decisions. The

Secretary created the Administrative

Review Board (‘‘Board’’ or ‘‘ARB’’) in

Secretary’s Order 02–96, which

delegated authority and assigned

responsibilities to the Board. Secretary’s

Order 01–2002 delegated this authority

and assigned responsibility to the ARB,

defined and expanded its composition,

clarified ARB procedural authorities,

and codified the location of the ARB in

the Department’s organizational

structure. Secretary’s Order 01–2010,

then, created and designated a ViceChair to maintain and operate the Board

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during a Chair’s absence or vacancy.

Additionally, Secretary’s Order 01–2010

delegated the responsibility for the

operational management of the Board

and its affairs to the newly created ViceChair. Secretary’s Order 02–2012

provided updates to the delegation of

authority and assignment of

responsibilities laid out in the previous

orders. Secretary’s Order 01–2019

extended the term of membership of

Board members from two years to four

years. This Order allows for

discretionary review by the Secretary of

Board decisions.

4. Directives Affected. Secretary’s

Order 01–2019—Delegation of Authority

and Assignment of Responsibility to the

Administrative Review Board is hereby

canceled. Any Secretary’s Order or other

DOL document (including policies and

guidance) that references Secretary’s

Order 01–2019 is deemed to refer to this

Order instead.

5. Delegation of Authority and

Assignment of Responsibilities. The

Board is hereby delegated authority and

assigned responsibility to act for the

Secretary of Labor in review or on

appeal of the matters listed below. This

authority includes, but is not limited to,

the issuance of final agency decisions,

as provided for in Section 6 of this

Order, except in those cases reviewed

by the Secretary in accordance with that

Section. The Board shall report to the

Secretary through the Deputy Secretary

of Labor and shall immediately transmit

its decisions to the Deputy Secretary

once they are issued.

a. Final decisions of the

Administrator of the Wage and Hour

Division or an authorized representative

of the Administrator, and final decisions

of Administrative Law Judges (‘‘ALJs’’),

under the following:

1. The Davis-Bacon Act, 40 U.S.C.

3141 et seq.; any laws now existing or

which may be subsequently enacted,

providing for prevailing wages

determined by the Secretary of Labor in

accordance with or pursuant to the

Davis-Bacon Act; the Contract Work

Hours and Safety Standards Act, 40

U.S.C. 3701 et seq. (except matters

pertaining to safety); the Copeland Act,

40 U.S.C. 3145; Reorganization Plan No.

14 of 1950; and 29 CFR parts 1, 3, 5, 6,

subpart C and D.

2. The McNamara-O’Hara Service

Contract Act, as amended, 41 U.S.C.

6701 et seq.; the Contract Work Hours

and Safety Standards Act, 40 U.S.C.

3701 et seq. (except matters pertaining

to safety) where the contract is also

subject to the McNamara-O’Hara Service

Contract Act; and 29 CFR parts 4, 5, 6,

subparts B, D, E.

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3. Executive Order No. 13658, as

implemented, 29 CFR 10.51 et seq.

4. Executive Order No. 13706, as

implemented, 29 CFR 13.51 et seq.

b. Decisions and recommended

decisions by ALJs as provided for or

pursuant to the following laws and

implementing regulations:

1. Age Discrimination Act of 1975, 42

U.S.C. 6103;

2. Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of

1964, 42 U.S.C. 2000d-l; 29 CFR part 31;

3. Civil Service Reform Act of 1978,

5 U.S.C. 7120; 29 CFR part 458,

§§ 458.70, 458.72, 458.76, 458.81,

458.82, 458.88, 458.90, 458.91, and

458.93;

4. Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. 7622; 29

CFR part 24;

5. Comprehensive Environmental

Response, Compensation, and Liability

Act of 1980, 42 U.S.C. 9610; 29 CFR part

24;

6. Congressional Accountability Act

of 1995, 2 U.S.C. 1351(a)(1); 29 CFR part

458, §§ 458.70, 458.72, 458.76, 458.81,

458.82, 458.88, 458.90, 458.91, and

458.93;

7. Consumer Financial Protection Act

of 2010, Section 1057 of the Dodd-Frank

Wall Street Reform and Consumer

Protection Act of 2010, 12 U.S.C. 5567,

Public Law 111–203;

8. Consumer Product Safety

Improvement Act of 2008, 15 U.S.C.

2087; 29 CFR part 1983;

9. Title IX of the Education

Amendments of 1972, 20 U.S.C. 1682;

29 CFR part 36;

10. Employee Polygraph Protection

Act of 1988, 29 U.S.C. 2005(a); 29 CFR

part 801, subpart E;

11. Energy Reorganization Act of

1974, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 5851; 29

CFR part 24;

12. Equal Access to Justice Act, 5

U.S.C. 504; 29 CFR part 16;

13. Executive Order No. 11246, as

amended, 3 CFR part 339 (1964–1965

Comp.); reprinted in 42 U.S.C. 2000e

app.; 41 CFR parts 60–1 and 60–30;

14. Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938,

as amended, 29 U.S.C. 203(m); 29 CFR

part 531, §§ 531.4, 531.5;

15. Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938,

as amended, 29 U.S.C. 211(d); 29 CFR

part 530, subpart E;

16. Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938,

as amended, 29 U.S.C. 214(c); 29 CFR

part 525, § 525.22;

17. Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938,

as amended, 29 U.S.C. 216(e); 29 CFR

part 580;

18. Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938,

as amended by the Affordable Care Act,

29 U.S.C. 218C, Public Law 111–148,

section 1558;

19. Federal Railroad Safety Act, 49

U.S.C. 20109; 29 CFR part 1982;

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20. Federal Unemployment Tax Act,

26 U.S.C. 3303(b)(3), 3304(c);

21. Federal Unemployment Tax Act

(addressing agreements under the Trade

Act of 1974, as amended), 26 U.S.C.

3302(c)(3); 20 CFR part 617;

22. Federal Water Pollution Control

Act, 33 U.S.C. 1367; 29 CFR part 24;

23. Foreign Service Act of 1980, 22

U.S.C. 4117; 29 CFR part 458, §§ 458.70,

458.72, 458.76, 458.81, 458.82, 458.88,

458.90, 458.91, 458.92, and 458.93;

24. Immigration and Nationality Act

as amended, 8 U.S.C. 1182(m); 20 CFR

part 655, subpart E;

25. Immigration and Nationality Act

as amended, 8 U.S.C. 1182(m); 20 CFR

part 655, subpart M;

26. Immigration and Nationality Act,

as amended, 8 U.S.C. 1182(n); 20 CFR

part 655, subpart I;

27. Immigration and Nationality Act,

as amended, 8 U.S.C. 1184(c)(14); 20

CFR part 655, subpart A; 29 CFR part

503, subpart C;

28. Immigration and Nationality Act,

as amended, 8 U.S.C. 1188(b)(2); 20 CFR

part 655, subpart A, 29 CFR part 503,

subpart C;

29. Immigration and Nationality Act,

as amended, 8 U.S.C. 1288(c) and (d); 20

CFR part 655, subpart G;

30. Immigration and Nationality Act,

as amended, 8 U.S.C. 1188(g)(2); 29 CFR

part 501, subpart C;

31. Labor-Management Reporting and

Disclosure Act of 1959, 29 U.S.C.

481(h); 29 CFR part 417, §§ 417.6, 417.7,

417.9(c), 417.13, 417.14, and 417.15;

32. Longshore and Harbor Workers’

Compensation Act, 33 U.S.C. 907(j)(2);

20 CFR part 702;

33. Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural

Worker Protection Act, 29 U.S.C. 1813,

1853; 29 CFR part 500, subpart F;

34. Motor Vehicle and Highway

Safety Improvement Act of 2012,

Section 31307 of the Moving Ahead for

Progress in the 21st Century Act, 49

U.S.C. 30171;

35. National Apprenticeship Act, 29

U.S.C. 50; 29 CFR parts 29 and 30;

36. National Transit Systems Security

Act of 2007, 6 U.S.C. 1142; 29 CFR part

1982;

37. Notification of Employee Rights

Under Federal Labor Laws, 29 CFR part

471;

38. Older Americans Senior

Community Service Employment

Program, 42 U.S.C. 3056; 20 CFR

641.900;

39. Part B of the Black Lung Benefits

Act, 30 U.S.C. 921–924; Section 3(d)(3)

of the Black Lung Consolidation of

Administrative Responsibility Act

(2002); 20 CFR part 410 (2011);

40. Pipeline Safety Improvement Act

of 2002, 49 U.S.C. 60129; 29 CFR part

1981;

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41. Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act

of 1986, 31 U.S.C. 3803; 29 CFR part 22;

42. Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief

and Emergency Assistance Act, 42

U.S.C. 5177(a) and 5189a; 20 CFR part

625;

43. Section 423(d)(1) of the Black

Lung Benefits Act, 30 U.S.C. 933(d)(1);

20 CFR part 726;

44. Section 428 of the Black Lung

Benefits Act, 30 U.S.C. 938;

45. Seaman’s Protection Act, 46

U.S.C. 2114;

46. Section 402 of the FDA Food

Safety Modernization Act, Public Law

111–353, 21 U.S.C. 399d;

47. Section 503 of the Rehabilitation

Act of 1973, as amended, 29 U.S.C. 793;

41 CFR part 60–741, subpart B;

48. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation

Act of 1973, as amended, 29 U.S.C. 794;

29 CFR part 32;

49. Section 1405(b) of the Taxpayer

First Act, 26 U.S.C. 7623(d);

50. Safe Drinking Water Act, 42 U.S.C.

300j–9(i); 29 CFR part 24;

51. Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, 18

U.S.C. 514A, as amended by Sections

922 and 929A of the Dodd-Frank Wall

Street Reform and Consumer Protection

Act of 2010, Public Law 111–203; 29

CFR part 1980;

52. Single Audit Act of 1984, as

amended, 31 U.S.C. 7501 et seq.; OMB

Circular No. A–133, as amended; 29

CFR part 96;

53. Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. 503;

20 CFR parts 601 and 602;

54. Solid Waste Disposal Act, 42

U.S.C. 6971; 29 CFR part 24;

55. Surface Transportation Assistance

Act, 49 U.S.C. 31105; 29 CFR part 1978;

56. Toxic Substances Control Act, 15

U.S.C. 2622; 29 CFR part 24;

57. Trade Act of 1974, as amended, 19

U.S.C. 2101–2321; 20 CFR part 617;

58. Unemployment Compensation for

Federal Civilian Employees Program, 5

U.S.C. 8501–8508; 20 CFR part 609;

59. Unemployment Compensation for

Ex-Service Members Program, 5 U.S.C.

8521–8525; 20 CFR part 614;

60. Vietnam Era Veterans

Readjustment Assistance Act, as

amended, 38 U.S.C. 4211, 4212; 41 CFR

part 60–250, subpart B, and part 60–300,

subpart B;

61. Wagner-Peyser Act, as amended,

29 U.S.C. 49; 20 CFR part 658;

62. Walsh-Healey Public Contracts

Act, as amended, 41 U.S.C. 38; 41 CFR

part 50–203;

63. Welfare to Work Act, 20 CFR

645.800(c);

64. Wendell H. Ford Aviation

Investment and Reform Act for the 21st

Century, 49 U.S.C. 42121; 29 CFR part

1979;

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65. Workforce Investment Act of 1998,

as amended, 29 U.S.C. 2936; 20 CFR

667.830;

66. Workforce Innovation and

Opportunity Act, 29 U.S.C. 3246; 20

CFR 683.830;

67. Workforce Investment Act of 1998,

as amended, 29 U.S.C. 2938; 29 CFR

part 37 (see 37.110–112);

68. Workforce Innovation and

Opportunity Act, 29 U.S.C. 3248; 29

CFR part 38 (see 38.112); and

69. Any laws or regulations

subsequently enacted or promulgated

that provide for final decisions by the

Secretary of Labor upon appeal or

review of decisions, or recommended

decisions, issued by ALJs, and any

federal law that extends or supplements

unemployment compensation and

provides for final decisions by the

Secretary of Labor.

The Board shall not have jurisdiction

to pass on the validity of any portion of

the Code of Federal Regulations that has

been duly promulgated by the

Department of Labor and shall observe

the provisions thereof, where pertinent,

in its decisions. The Board also shall not

have jurisdiction to review decisions to

deny or grant exemptions, variations,

and tolerances and does not have the

authority independently to take such

actions. In issuing its decisions, the

Board shall adhere to the rules of

decision and precedent applicable

under each of the laws enumerated in

Sections 5(a) and 5(b) of this Order,

until and unless the Board or other

authority explicitly reverses such rules

of decision or precedent. The Board’s

authority includes the discretionary

authority to review interlocutory rulings

in exceptional circumstances, provided

such review is not prohibited by statute.

6. Discretionary Review.

a. Finality of Board Decisions

1. Except as otherwise provided in

this Section or by statute, a decision of

the Board shall become the final action

of the Department after the passage of 28

calendar days from the date on which

the decision was issued.

2. In the case of a decision for which

a petition has been filed under

subsection (b)(1), but that the Board has

not referred to the Secretary for review,

such decision shall become the final

action of the Department after the

passage of 28 calendar days from the

date on which the petition was filed.

3. In the case of a decision that the

Board has referred to the Secretary for

review under Subsection (b)(1), such

decision shall become the final action of

the Department either after the passage

of 28 calendar days from the date on

which the decision was referred, or on

the date on which the Secretary declines

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review, whichever comes first, if the

Secretary has declined review or if no

action has been taken in response to the

Board’s referral.

4. In the case of a decision that the

Secretary has directed the Board to refer

to the Secretary under Subsection (b)(2),

or in the case of a decision referred to

and accepted by the Secretary under

Subsection (b)(1), such decision shall

not become the final action of the

Department and shall have no legal

force or effect, unless and until the

Secretary adopts the Board’s decision as

his or her own.

b. Referral of Cases to the Secretary

1. At any point during the first 14

calendar days after the date on which a

decision of the Board was issued, a

party to the case may file a petition with

the Board for further review by the

Secretary. Such petition shall not

exceed 15 pages in length and must

begin with a statement of the legal issue

or issues of which the party is seeking

review and why the case involves a

matter of exceptional importance. A

brief in opposition to the petition may

be filed within 10 calendar days after

the filing of the petition, and shall not

exceed 15 pages in length. Within 21

calendar days of the date on which the

petition for further review was filed, if

a majority of the Board determines that

the petition presents a question of law

that is of exceptional importance and

warrants review by the Secretary, the

Board shall advise the Secretary of such

determination in writing and explain

why the Board believes review by the

Secretary is warranted. The Secretary

may, in his or her sole discretion,

decline, accept, or take no action on the

Board’s referral as the Secretary deems

appropriate.

2. At any point during the first 28

calendar days after the date on which a

decision was issued, the Secretary may,

in his or her sole discretion, direct the

Board to refer such decision to the

Secretary for review.

c. Review by the Secretary

1. When the Secretary undertakes the

review of a decision of the Board, the

Board shall promptly notify the parties

to the case in writing of such action and

supply the Secretary with the

administrative record and the petition

and briefs filed by the parties.

2. In any case the Secretary decides,

the Secretary’s decision shall be made

solely based on the administrative

record, the petition and briefs filed with

the Board, and any amicus briefs

permitted by the Secretary. The decision

shall be stated in writing and

transmitted to the Board. The Board

shall publish the decision and transmit

it to the parties to the case.

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3. The Secretary’s decision shall

constitute final action by the

Department and shall serve as binding

precedent on all Department employees

and in all Department proceedings

involving the same issue or issues.

d. Reservation of Authority—Nothing

in this Section shall be construed as

limiting the Secretary’s power to

supervise or direct the actions of the

Board.

7. Composition and Panel

Configuration.

a. The Board shall consist of a

maximum of five Members, one of

whom the Secretary shall designate as

Chair, and a second of whom the

Secretary shall designate as Vice-Chair.

The Members of the Board shall be

appointed by the Secretary of Labor, and

shall be selected upon the basis of their

qualifications and competence in

matters within the authority of the

Board.

b. Except as provided in Section 7(c),

the Board shall sit, hear cases, render

decisions, and perform all other related

functions in panels of two or three

Members, as may be assigned by the

Chair, unless the Chair specifically

directs that an appeal or review will be

decided by the full Board.

c. Except as otherwise provided by

law or duly promulgated regulation (see,

e.g., 29 CFR parts 7 and 8), if the

petitioner(s) and the respondent(s) (or

the appellant(s) and the appellees(s))

consent to disposition by a single

Member, the Chair may determine that

the decision shall be by a single

Member. Upon an affirmative

determination, the Chair of the Board

shall, in his or her discretion, designate

himself, herself, or any other Member of

the Board to decide such an appeal

under Section 9.

d. The Vice-Chair shall preside at

meetings in the absence of the Chair. In

the event of the vacancy of the Chair’s

position, the Vice-Chair shall assume all

of the Chair’s authority and shall act as

Chair.

e. The Vice-Chair shall be responsible

for the operational management of the

Board and its affairs.

8. Terms of the Members.

a. Members of the Board shall be

appointed for a term of four years or

less. Term of service may be extended,

if deemed necessary by the Secretary, to

promote the efficiency of service, and

will be considered on a case-by-case

basis.

b. Appointment of a Member of the

Board to a term not to exceed a specified

time period shall not affect the authority

of the Secretary to remove any Member

at any time prior to the completion of

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the term, consistent with applicable

law.

c. Vacancies in the membership of the

Board shall not impair the authority of

the remaining Member(s) to exercise all

the powers and duties of the Board.

9. Voting. A petition for review by the

Board may be granted upon the

affirmative vote of one Member, or at

the direction of the Secretary, except

where otherwise provided by law or

regulation. A decision in any matter,

including the issuance of any

procedural rules, shall be by a majority

vote, except as provided in Section 7(c).

10. Location of Board Proceedings.

The Board shall hold its proceedings in

Washington, DC, unless for good cause

the Board orders that proceedings in a

particular matter be held in another

location.

11. Rules of Practice and Procedure.

The Board shall prescribe such rules of

practice and procedure, as it deems

necessary or appropriate, for the

conduct of its proceedings. The rules

which are prescribed as of the date of

this Order in 29 CFR part 7 and Part 8

with respect to Sections 5(a) and 5(b),

respectively, of this Order until

changed, govern the respective

proceedings of the Board when it is

deciding appeals described in Section 5

of this Order.

12. Departmental Counsel. The

Solicitor of Labor shall have the

responsibility for representing the

Secretary, the Deputy Secretary, and

other officials of the Department and the

Board in any administrative or judicial

proceedings involving agency decisions

issued pursuant to this Order, including

representing officials of the Department

before the Board. In addition, the

Solicitor of Labor, or his or her

designee, shall have the responsibility

for providing legal advice to the

Secretary, the Deputy Secretary, and

other officials of the Department with

respect to decisions covered by this

Order, as well as the implementation

and administration of this Order, except

that no individual involved in the

investigation or prosecution of a case

shall advise the Secretary on the

exercise of the powers described in

Section 6 of this Order with respect to

such case or a case involving a common

nucleus of operative facts. The Solicitor

of Labor, or his or her designee, may

also provide legal advice and assistance

on the same terms to the Chair and/or

Vice-Chair of the Board, as appropriate.

13. Effective Date. This delegation of

authority and assignment of

responsibility is effective immediately.

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Dated: February 21, 2020.

Eugene Scalia,

Secretary of Labor.

[FR Doc. 2020–04019 Filed 3–5–20; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4510–04–P

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Mine Safety and Health Administration

[OMB Control No. 1219–0003]

Proposed Extension of Information

Collection; Radiation Sampling and

Exposure Records

AGENCY: Mine Safety and Health

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Administration, Labor.

ACTION: Request for public comments.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Labor, as

part of its continuing effort to reduce

paperwork and respondent burden,

conducts a pre-clearance consultation

program to provide the general public

and Federal agencies with an

opportunity to comment on proposed

collections of information in accordance

with the Paperwork Reduction Act of

1995. This program helps to ensure that

requested data can be provided in the

desired format, reporting burden (time

and financial resources) is minimized,

collection instruments are clearly

understood, and the impact of collection

requirements on respondents can be

properly assessed. Currently, the Mine

Safety and Health Administration

(MSHA) is soliciting comments on the

information collection for Radiation

Sampling and Exposure Records.

DATES: All comments must be received

on or before May 5, 2020.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comment

as follows. Please note that late,

untimely filed comments will not be

considered.

Electronic Submissions: Submit

electronic comments in the following

way:

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://

www.regulations.gov. Follow the

instructions for submitting comments

for docket number MSHA–2020–0006.

Comments submitted electronically,

including attachments, to https://

www.regulations.gov will be posted to

the docket, with no changes. Because

your comment will be made public, you

are responsible for ensuring that your

comment does not include any

confidential information that you or a

third party may not wish to be posted,

such as your or anyone else’s Social

Security number or confidential

business information.

• If you want to submit a comment

with confidential information that you

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do not wish to be made available to the

public, submit the comment as a

written/paper submission.

Written/Paper Submissions: Submit

written/paper submissions in the

following way:

• Mail/Hand Delivery: Mail or visit

DOL–MSHA, Office of Standards,

Regulations, and Variances, 201 12th

Street South, Suite 4E401, Arlington,

VA 22202–5452.

• MSHA will post your comment as

well as any attachments, except for

information submitted and marked as

confidential, in the docket at https://

www.regulations.gov.

Sheila McConnell, Director, Office of

Standards, Regulations, and Variances,

MSHA, at

MSHA.information.collections@dol.gov

(email); (202) 693–9440 (voice); or (202)

693–9441 (facsimile).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

Section 103(h) of the Federal Mine

Safety and Health Act of 1977 (Mine

Act), 30 U.S.C. 813(h), authorizes

MSHA to collect information necessary

to carry out its duty in protecting the

safety and health of miners. Further,

section 101(a) of the Mine Act, 30 U.S.C.

811, authorizes the Secretary of Labor to

develop, promulgate, and revise as may

be appropriate, improved mandatory

health or safety standards for the

protection of life and prevention of

injuries in coal and metal and nonmetal

mines.

Under the authority of Section 103 of

the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act

of 1977, MSHA is required to issue

regulations requiring operators to

maintain accurate records of employee

exposures to potentially toxic materials

or harmful physical agents which are

required to be monitored or measured

under any applicable mandatory health

or safety standard promulgated under

this Act.

Airborne radon and radon daughters

exist in every uranium mine and in

several other underground mining

commodities. Radon is radioactive gas.

It diffuses into the underground mine

atmosphere through the rock and the

ground water. Radon decays in a series

of steps into other radioactive elements,

which are solids, called radon

daughters. Radon and radon daughters

are invisible and odorless. Decay of

radon and its daughters results in

emissions of alpha energy.

Medical doctors and scientists have

associated high radon daughter

exposures with lung cancer. The health

hazard arises from breathing air

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contaminated with radon daughters

which are in turn deposited in the

lungs. The lung tissues are sensitive to

alpha radioactivity.

The amounts of airborne radon

daughters to which most miners can be

exposed with no adverse effects have

been established and are expressed as

working levels (WL). The current MSHA

standard is a maximum personal

exposure of 4 working level months per

year.

Excess lung cancer in uranium

miners, just as coal workers’

pneumoconiosis, silicosis, and other

debilitating occupational diseases, has

been recognized for many years. Thus,

an adequate base of accurate exposure

level data is essential to control miners’

exposures and permit an evaluation of

the effectiveness of existing regulations.

The standard at 30 CFR 57.5037

established the procedures to be used by

the mine operator in sampling mine air

for the presence and concentrations of

radon daughters. Operators are required

to conduct weekly sampling where

concentrations of radon daughters

exceed 0.3 WL. Sampling is required biweekly where uranium mines have

readings of 0.1 WL to 0.3 WL and every

3 months in non-uranium underground

mines where the readings are 0.1 WL to

0.3 WL. Mine operators are required to

keep records of all mandatory

samplings. Records must include the

sample date, location, and results, and

must be retained at the mine site or

nearest mine office for at least 2 years.

The standard at 30 CFR 57.5040

requires mine operators to calculate and

record individual exposures to radon

daughters on MSHA Form 4000–9

‘‘Record of Individual Exposure to

Radon Daughters.’’ The calculations are

based on the results of the weekly

sampling required by 30 CFR 57.5037.

Records must be maintained by the

operator and submitted to MSHA

annually.

II. Desired Focus of Comments

MSHA is soliciting comments

concerning the proposed information

collection related to Radiation Sampling

and Exposure Records. MSHA is

particularly interested in comments

that:

• Evaluate whether the collection of

information is necessary for the proper

performance of the functions of the

Agency, including whether the

information has practical utility;

• Evaluate the accuracy of MSHA’s

estimate of the burden of the collection

of information, including the validity of

the methodology and assumptions used;

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