West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice delivers his annual State of the State address at the state Capitol in Charleston, W.Va., in January. Justice and his family own coal mining companies that have agreed to pay the government more than $5 million in delinquent mine safety fines, the Justice Department says.West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice delivers his annual State of the State address at the state Capitol in Charleston, W.Va., in January.
NPR used data provided by the Mine Safety and Health Administration to analyze delinquent fine records and continued to review the data into 2017, until the agency stopped providing it. NPR and correspondent Howard Berkes sued MSHA under the federal Freedom of Information Act in 2018, leading to additional data releases.
The federal government sued the companies last year after several attempts to collect the delinquent fines. The settlement covers 24 companies across five states — Virginia, West Virginia, Tennessee, Alabama and Kentucky.
How can anyone be surprised? This is 'merican capitalism at its best. Those who beat game the system, win. Unfortunately.
That's it?
Omfg. Their government doesn't take care of the miners, put's nothing in place to open up the job sector in these poor communities, now they're being paid off for allowing shoddy business practices? Win win for them, and families lose out every time. A coal miners daughter.
I would too if I owed $70,000,000. Brilliant !
Chump change...
$5 mil doesn’t seem like very much in contrast to their crimes.
5million, would that even be a days profits from his mining empire
Gee aren’t we lucky he AGREED to pay the fine. I believe it’s called a fine and you pay when you break the law. It’s not a charitable donation. It’s a punishment.
But if i were to stop paying taxes would i also have to “agree” to paying back then?
So the average citizen doesn’t pay our fines to the tune of a few hundred dollars we’ll be garnished/arrested and major corporations get to AGREE to paying $5 mil of the estimated $70 mil that they skipped...we have socialism for the rich and rugged individualism for the poor 🤷🏻♂️
And this guy is governor? There should be better oversight in our politics. There should be better information given to the public.
This is disgraceful. In a working society this man would be nowhere near a position of power.
Stop mining, is it still the 1800s?
Finally got around to it or got caught by media spotlight ? Thank you NPR and press
How is it that these companies 'agree' to pay these fines, while I'd get my license suspended if I was late paying a traffic ticket?
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