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ICYMI: Senator Fetterman Demands Answers from Trump Administration on Cuts to Miner Safety Programs

Washington, D.C. – In recent weeks, United States Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) has expressed his deep concern with several actions taken by the Trump administration that would endanger Pennsylvania miners.

In March, it was announced that the Trump administration was planning to close 35 Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) offices, including four in Pennsylvania. MSHA inspectors are required to inspect every working part of a mine, ensuring ventilation systems that protect miners from black lung disease are working correctly and that mining equipment is safe. Experts warn that proposed cuts to MSHA would require inspectors to travel farther more frequently, potentially resulting in less thorough inspections. Following this announcement, Senator Fetterman wrote a letter to Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer alongside his colleagues, Senators Mark Warner (D-VA), Tim Kaine (D-VA), and Bernie Sanders (I-VT). 

In their letter, the senators wrote, “We write to express our strong opposition to the self-proclaimed Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) efforts to close 35 Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) field offices. This proposal will seriously undermine the progress made over the past 50 years to ensure the health and safety of our nation’s miners.”

“In 1977, MSHA was established through the bipartisan passage of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act, also known as the Mine Act. Mining fatalities drastically dropped following the enactment of the Mine Act, yet there were still 31 fatalities in 2024. Federal law requires MSHA to inspect each underground mine four times a year. Unfortunately, MSHA has faced challenges in carrying out its mission due to limited staff and funding resources. This effort from the Trump administration to further undermine MSHA under the guise of “efficiency” will only cause more harm to individuals in some of the most dangerous jobs,” they continued.

The full letter to Secretary Chavez-DeRemer can be found here. 

Then, on April 1, 2025, it was reported that the Trump administration was planning to gut the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), including firing nearly 300 workers at a NIOSH facility in Pittsburgh tasked with researching, developing, and testing respirators for miners and first responders. In response, Senator Fetterman again joined his colleagues in a letter to Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., questioning this decision and demanding answers on how NIOSH’s crucial services would be impacted by a severely reduced workforce.

“We write today with alarming concern about reports that nearly the entire workforce that works to improve the health of miners was laid off and the office that oversees this work was eliminated. We urge you to reverse course immediately and ensure the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) continues its important work in our states to protect and serve our constituents,” wrote the senators.

They continued, “We also have heard from those who work directly with our miner constituents in these communities that the Enhanced Coal Workers’ Health Surveillance Program is also being decimated. This program provides direct screening services via a mobile medical unit to miners at no cost. NIOSH also supports clinic sites where screening is done, so miners can understand if they are developing black lung or another condition and be as healthy as possible for themselves and their families.”

A copy of the letter sent to Secretary Kennedy can be found here.

Senator Fetterman has consistently stood with Pennsylvania miners and fought to put rules in place that will keep them safe. In his first year in office, he advocated for a new standard to better protect miners from inhaling toxic chemicals, and applauded MSHA when the new standard was finally announced. When the Trump administration announced their decision to pause enforcement of this rule – which was designed to protect America’s miners from silica dust – Senator Fetterman released the following statement with Senators Kaine and Warner:

“Coal miners deserve to go to work every day and come back healthy, and the recent decision by the Mine Safety and Health Administration delaying enforcement of their landmark rule to better protect miners from silica dust is an alarming abdication of responsibility. Silica dust has caused severe black lung disease in young coal miners, and as the Trump administration continues to cause chaos through their indiscriminate funding cuts and firings, it’s our miners who are being left behind. We expect the Mine Safety and Health Administration to begin enforcement of this rule no later than their August 18, 2025 deadline.”

Senator Fetterman will continue working to keep Pennsylvania miners safe and healthy. At this time, he has not received responses from Secretary Chavez-DeRemer or Secretary Kennedy regarding his concerns.