PUBLIC LAW 109–236—JUNE 15, 2006
120 STAT. 499
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There shall be permanently established within the Institute an Office of Mine Safety and Health which shall be administered by an Associate Director to be appointed by the Director. ‘‘(2) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the Office is to enhance the development of new mine safety technology and technological applications and to expedite the commercial availability and implementation of such technology in mining environments. ‘‘(3) FUNCTIONS.—In addition to all purposes and authorities provided for under this section, the Office of Mine Safety and Health shall be responsible for research, development, and testing of new technologies and equipment designed to enhance mine safety and health. To carry out such functions the Director of the Institute, acting through the Office, shall have the authority to— ‘‘(A) award competitive grants to institutions and private entities to encourage the development and manufacture of mine safety equipment; ‘‘(B) award contracts to educational institutions or private laboratories for the performance of product testing or related work with respect to new mine technology and equipment; and ‘‘(C) establish an interagency working group as provided for in paragraph (5). ‘‘(4) GRANT AUTHORITY.—To be eligible to receive a grant under the authority provided for under paragraph (3)(A), an entity or institution shall— ‘‘(A) submit to the Director of the Institute an application at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Director may require; and ‘‘(B) include in the application under subparagraph (A), a description of the mine safety equipment to be developed and manufactured under the grant and a description of the reasons that such equipment would otherwise not be developed or manufactured, including reasons relating to the limited potential commercial market for such equipment. ‘‘(5) INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP.— ‘‘(A) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Director of the Institute, in carrying out paragraph (3)(D) shall establish an interagency working group to share technology and technological research and developments that could be utilized to enhance mine safety and accident response. ‘‘(B) MEMBERSHIP.—The working group under subparagraph (A) shall be chaired by the Associate Director of the Office who shall appoint the members of the working group, which may include representatives of other Federal agencies or departments as determined appropriate by the Associate Director. ‘‘(C) DUTIES.—The working group under subparagraph (A) shall conduct an evaluation of research conducted by, and the technological developments of, agencies and departments who are represented on the working group that may have applicability to mine safety and accident response and make recommendations to the Director for the further development and eventual implementation of such technology.
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