Kentucky Coal Boss Agrees to Post Bond for Future Safety Fines

An eastern Kentucky coal operator sued by the federal government for failing to pay penalties over health and safety violations has agreed to post a bond to ensure payment of future fines.

Stanley Osborne, head of Misty Mountain Mining and Midgard Mining LLC, will post a $20,000 bond within 10 days of becoming an operator or agent of a coal company under an agreement filed Tuesday in federal court, the Lexington Herald-Leader reported on its Web site.

The deal between Osborne, of Pike County, and the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration is awaiting approval from U.S. District Judge Danny Reeves.

MSHA sued Stanley Osborne in February 2006 for failing to pay more than $200,000 in safety fines since the 1980s, according to the court documents.

The lawsuit was MSHA’s first in a new approach to hold mine operators accountable for penalties.

A few weeks after the agency sued Osborne, MSHA filed a similar lawsuit against Harold Simpson, of Ewing, Va., who had failed to pay more than $1 million in fines.

No settlement has been filed in MSHAs complaint against Simpson.

Information from: Lexington Herald-Leader,
http://www.kentucky.com