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POSTPONED: Miners with black lung launch two weeks of demonstrations urging Sen. Capito to back 10-year extension of Black Lung Excise Tax

Contact Trey Pollard, 202-904-9187, trey@pollardcommunications.com Due to inclement weather and the increased risk it poses to people with black lung, these demonstrations have been postponed. This press release was updated at 11 a.m. on Dec. 6. CHARLESTON, WV — Today,

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House vote gives Senate an opportunity to spur clean energy investments in Appalachia

CONTACT: Molly Moore, Appalachian Voices Communications, (847) 401-3633, molly@appvoices.org Dana Kuhnline, Legislative Coordinator, (304) 825-3262, dana@appvoices.org Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Build Back Better Act, a bill that, if passed by the U.S. Senate, will deliver significant

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Coal Miners & Advocates Applaud Introduction of 10-Year Extension of Excise Tax for Black Lung Disability Trust Fund

CONTACT: Rebecca Shelton, Appalachian Citizens’ Law Center, 859-893-0543, rshelton@aclc.org Chelsea Barnes, Appalachian Voices, 614-205-6424, chelsea@appvoices.org Trey Pollard, 202-904-9187, trey@pollardcommunications.com Please reach out if you’d like to speak to a local contact (policy expert, miner with black lung disease) about the

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Miners with black lung call on Congress to protect benefits

five miners wearing shirts that say Black Lung Kills gather around a notepad

In an August webinar, advocates and representatives of the Black Lung Association discussed the critical importance for the passage of a permanent 25% increase to the Black Lung Excise Tax on coal companies.

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Black Lung Benefit Fund Would See Major Boost from Change to Coal Tax

five miners wearing shirts that say Black Lung Kills gather around a notepad

Changing the structure of a tax that funds federal benefits for miners could bring tens of millions of dollars annually to the cash-strapped Black Lung Disability Trust Fund.

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Tighter silica rules needed to protect miners from black lung disease

chart shows how MSHA allows twice as much silica dust exposure as other agencies

Coal miners are legally allowed to be exposed to twice as much dangerous silica dust as any other worker. That needs to change.

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Congress includes one-year extension of black lung excise tax in omnibus spending bill

A one-year extension of the excise tax that funds the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund is included in the 2021 omnibus spending bill. This is the second year in a row that a one-year extension has been included in the

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Covid’s impact on coal sharpens the pandemic’s economic hardships

Empty train cars along a mountain road

Even before the pandemic, a growing number of coal companies were declaring bankruptcy — and now the decades-long decline of coal is in a nosedive. This will leave already-shortchanged coalfield communities even less money to deal with decades of damage to people’s health and the environment.

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Black Lung Healthcare Legislation Sees Progress

black lung demonstration

Congress temporarily reinstated a tax on coal companies that funds black lung benefits for miners and their families in December. Advocates continue to push for further protections for coal workers.

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Progress on healthcare for miners with black lung disease

black lung demonstration

Congress reinstated a tax to fund healthcare and benefits for miners with black lung and their families for 2020 — but further action is needed to extend the tax and support the fund for 10 years.

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