1. Executive Summary
H.R. 6756 changes how black lung disability claims are decided. It expands the medical tests allowed as evidence, creates a program to help pay legal fees and medical expenses for claims delayed more than two years, ties annual benefit increases to inflation, and raises financial penalties for coal companies that do not secure benefit payments.
2. What This Bill Would Do
[Sec. 102] Modifies the evidentiary standard for "complicated pneumoconiosis" (an advanced, severe form of black lung disease marked by scar-tissue masses over 1 centimeter in the lungs). Currently, Section 411(c)(3) of the Black Lung Benefits Act establishes a presumption of disability/death due to pneumoconiosis based on certain X-ray classifications. This provision would expand the accepted diagnostic methods to include CT scans, biopsy, autopsy, or other medically accepted tests, and designates an irrebuttable presumption — a mandatory legal conclusion that cannot be disproven once the specified test threshold is met — where these tests show opacities exceeding 1 centimeter.
[Sec. 103] Establishes a new Department of Labor process for developing medical evidence. Currently, claimants bear responsibility for obtaining medical evidence to support a claim. This provision would create a Secretary-administered "complete pulmonary evaluation" process, authorize CT scans under specified conditions, require the Secretary to maintain a public list of qualified physicians, and mandate conflict-of-interest screening for those physicians — including a 24-month lookback period during which a physician who has been retained by, employed by, or under contract to a party opposing a claim may not perform a reimbursed evaluation for that claim. Note: Implementation details, including the criteria the Secretary uses to evaluate physician "suitability," are subject to agency discretion and require human review.
[Sec. 106] Establishes an Attorneys' Fees and Medical Expenses Payment Program. Currently, the Department approves legal fees without paying them in advance from a dedicated fund. This provision would create a Trust Fund-financed payment program for "qualifying claims" (contested claims without a final order within 2 years of filing). Within that program, a district director may approve up to $1,500 in attorneys' fees and an administrative law judge may approve up to $3,000 in attorneys' fees for work done before that judge, with a combined per-claim maximum of $4,500 in attorneys' fees and $3,000 in medical expenses. Reimbursement from the liable operator is required if the claim results in an award.
[Sec. 107] Changes the benefit-calculation formula. Currently, disabled miner benefits are calculated as 37.5 percent of the monthly pay rate for federal employees in grade GS-2, step 1. This provision would set a fixed rate of $10,769.00 per year for calendar year 2026, and for each year thereafter, would tie annual adjustments to the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W — a federal measure of inflation for urban wage earners, used here to set annual cost-of-living adjustments), with a floor ensuring the ratio applied is not less than 1.
[Sec. 131] Modifies self-insurance requirements and penalties for coal operators. Currently, Section 423(d)(1) of the Black Lung Benefits Act sets a penalty of $1,000 for operators who fail to secure payment of benefits. This provision would raise the penalty to $25,000, expand personal liability to include chief executive officers, chief operating officers, and other "responsible parties," and require the Secretary to issue an interim final rule (60 days after enactment) and final rule (12 months after enactment) establishing new self-insurer qualification criteria tied to operator creditworthiness and long-term viability. Note: Implementation details are subject to agency rulemaking and require human review.
3. Who is Affected
Affected Party | If Bill Passes | If Bill Fails / Status Quo | Governing Section |
Coal miners (active/inactive) filing claims | Gain access to Secretary-arranged complete pulmonary evaluations, expanded diagnostic test types, and an irrebuttable presumption pathway for complicated pneumoconiosis | Continue under existing evidentiary standards limited primarily to chest radiograph classification | Secs. 101, 102, 103 |
Spouses, dependents, and other family members | Gain explicit statutory eligibility for claims assistance; definitions of "spouse" and "surviving spouse" are reorganized under existing Social Security Act cross-references | Continue under current definitions and assistance framework | Secs. 101, 301 |
Claimants with denied claims tied to discredited chest radiograph interpretations | May file a new claim under Sec. 105 that excludes the discredited radiograph from consideration | Remain subject to final denial without a statutory readjudication pathway for this specific circumstance | Sec. 105 |
Claimants' attorneys | May receive Trust Fund payment of up to $1,500 (district director) or $3,000 (ALJ) in fees per qualifying claim, capped at $4,500 total; subject to new disqualification and sanction provisions for false statements or misrepresentation | Continue under existing fee-approval procedures without the dedicated advance-payment program; existing conduct rules under Sec. 431 remain in effect as currently written | Secs. 104, 106 |
Coal mine operators / employers | Face increased penalties ($25,000, up from $1,000) for failing to secure benefit payments; face new self-insurance qualification criteria to be defined by forthcoming rule; personal liability provisions extended to CEOs, COOs, and "other responsible parties"; may be required to reimburse the Trust Fund for attorneys' fees and medical expenses paid under Sec. 106 | Remain subject to the $1,000 penalty ceiling and existing self-insurance rules | Sec. 131 |
Physicians providing evaluations | Subject to new Department of Labor qualification listing, annual suitability review, and conflict-of-interest disclosure requirements, including a 24-month lookback on relationships with parties opposing a claim | Not subject to a Secretary-maintained qualified-physician list | Sec. 103(e) |
Department of Labor / Secretary of Labor | Required to establish new programs (Sec. 106), issue interim and final rules (Sec. 131, Sec. 104(f)), maintain physician lists (Sec. 103), and submit a backlog-reduction strategy to Congress within 90 days (Sec. 121) | Not subject to these specific new administrative and reporting obligations | Secs. 103, 104, 106, 121, 131 |
Black Lung Benefits Disability Trust Fund | Bears upfront costs of medical evidence development (Sec. 103(g)) and the attorneys' fees/medical expenses payment program (Sec. 106), subject to operator reimbursement with interest in successful claims | Not subject to these specific new funding obligations | Secs. 103, 106 |
Office of Workers' Compensation Programs | Formally established in statute within the Department of Labor, continuing existing functions, personnel, and authorities without interruption | Continues to operate under current administrative structure without specific statutory establishment | Sec. 201 |
IRS / Social Security Administration | Required to disclose specified tax return and Social Security earnings information to the Department of Labor upon written request, for claims administration purposes | Not subject to this specific disclosure mandate | Sec. 108 |
4. Existing Law vs. What Would Change
Current Law or Condition | What This Bill Changes |
Sec. 411(c)(3) (30 U.S.C. 921(c)(3)): Presumption standard based on chest radiograph classification for complicated pneumoconiosis | Sec. 102 expands accepted evidence to X-ray, CT scan, biopsy, autopsy, or other medically accepted tests meeting a 1-centimeter opacity threshold |
No statutory Secretary-administered "complete pulmonary evaluation" process exists under Part C of the Act | Sec. 103 creates new Section 435 establishing this process, including a qualified-physician list and conflict-of-interest procedures |
Sec. 431 (30 U.S.C. 941): Penalties for false statements exist but do not include specific attorney disqualification or discovery sanction provisions in current form as restated here | Sec. 104 rewrites Section 431 to add attorney/expert witness disqualification, discovery sanctions by administrative law judges, and a mandated rulemaking timeline (proposed rule in 180 days, final rule in 18 months) |
No statutory readjudication pathway exists for claims involving chest radiographs later found not credible | Sec. 105 creates new Section 436 allowing covered individuals/survivors to file new claims excluding such radiographs, with retroactive payment provisions |
No dedicated Trust Fund payment program for attorneys' fees/medical expenses in delayed contested claims | Sec. 106 creates new Section 403 establishing this program, with $1,500 (district director) / $3,000 (ALJ) sub-caps, a $4,500 combined fee cap, a $3,000 medical expense cap, and operator reimbursement requirements |
Sec. 412(a)(1) (30 U.S.C. 922(a)(1)): Benefit rate set at 37.5% of GS-2, step 1 federal pay rate | Sec. 107 sets a fixed 2026 rate of $10,769.00 annually, then indexes future years to CPI-W with a floor of no decrease |
Sec. 423(d)(1) (30 U.S.C. 933(d)(1)): $1,000 penalty for failure to secure benefit payments, applicable to president and treasurer | Sec. 131 raises the penalty to $25,000 and mandates/establishes criteria extending liability to CEOs, COOs, and "other responsible parties" (newly defined) |
Self-insurance qualification criteria for operators currently exist under separate Department of Labor rule, not specified in bill text as reviewed | Sec. 131 mandates a new interim final rule (60 days) and final rule (12 months) establishing criteria tied to creditworthiness and long-term viability |
Office of Workers' Compensation Programs currently operates as an existing Department of Labor administrative unit without specific standalone statutory establishment in the text reviewed | Sec. 201 formally establishes the Office in statute, continuing existing personnel, assets, authorities, and liabilities |
No statutory mechanism requires IRS/SSA disclosure of earnings information specifically for Black Lung Benefits Act administration | Sec. 108 amends 26 U.S.C. 6103(l) to authorize this disclosure upon written request |
No change is made in this bill text to the coal excise tax rate that funds the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund, or to Mine Safety and Health Administration silica dust exposure standards — both are referenced only in the findings (Sec. 3) and are not the subject of operative provisions.
5. Fiscal Impact Summary
No CBO score or official fiscal note is currently available for this legislation. Fiscal impact cells are left blank pending official scoring. The bill text itself specifies certain fixed dollar figures relevant to future fiscal analysis: a $10,769.00 annual benefit rate for calendar year 2026 (Sec. 107), a $25,000 per-violation penalty ceiling (Sec. 131, up from $1,000), and per-claim caps of $1,500/$3,000 (district director/ALJ sub-caps), $4,500 combined attorneys' fees, and $3,000 medical expenses payable from the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund (Sec. 106). These figures are cited directly from bill text and are not projections.
6. Household Impact Matrix
Analysis for a household earning $35,000 to $100,000 (Median range for rural Ohio/Appalachian communities).
Metric | If Bill Passes | If Bill Fails or Status Quo Continues |
Household Overhead | For households receiving black lung benefits, Sec. 107 sets the calendar year 2026 rate at $10,769.00 annually, with future years adjusted by CPI-W (not less than the prior year's rate) | Benefit rate would continue to be calculated at 37.5% of the GS-2, step 1 federal pay rate, which per Sec. 3 findings has been affected by federal pay freezes in past years |
Market Stability | Insufficient primary source data — pending official analysis of downstream coal industry effects from the $25,000 penalty and new self-insurance criteria | Insufficient primary source data — pending official analysis |
Mobility Check | Insufficient primary source data — pending official analysis | Insufficient primary source data — pending official analysis |
Local Government Impact | No provisions in the bill text as reviewed directly mandate state or county funding or regulatory authority changes | Current funding levels and regulatory authority remain under existing law |
7. Provisions Requiring Review
Section 103(e)(4) contains undefined qualitative criteria ("qualified, capable, and willing to provide credible opinions consistent with the premises underlying this Act") governing physician list inclusion. Reason for review flag: term "credible opinions consistent with the premises" is not further defined in bill text. Recommended action: Verify against forthcoming Department of Labor implementation guidance.
Section 104(f) delegates rulemaking authority to the Secretary to establish disqualification and sanction procedures without specifying substantive parameters beyond a distinction between represented and unrepresented parties. Reason for review flag: delegates implementation details to agency rulemaking without specifying parameters. Recommended action: Verify against the proposed rule (due 180 days after enactment) and final rule (due 18 months after enactment).
Section 131(a)(3) delegates self-insurer qualification criteria (creditworthiness, "long-term enterprise viability," and other liabilities) to agency rulemaking without specifying quantitative thresholds. Reason for review flag: delegates implementation details to agency rulemaking without specifying parameters. Recommended action: Verify against the interim final rule (due 60 days after enactment) and final rule (due 12 months after enactment).
Section 121 requires the Secretary to submit a "comprehensive strategy" to reduce case backlogs within 90 days, with contents specified only at a general level. Reason for review flag: conditional language creates multiple possible outcomes depending on the strategy's eventual contents, which are not yet available. Recommended action: Verify against the Secretary's submitted strategy report.
Section 402(j) ("other responsible party" definition, added by Sec. 131(b)(2)) uses broad language that could apply to a range of corporate relationships. Reason for review flag: broad terms whose practical scope depends on future agency or judicial interpretation. Recommended action: Verify against any subsequent Department of Labor guidance or case law.
8. What This Bill Does Not Do
The bill text does not contain provisions related to Mine Safety and Health Administration silica dust exposure limits or coal dust concentration standards. Public discussion has referenced silica/dust exposure rulemaking in connection with black lung policy generally. No such regulatory provision appears in H.R. 6756 as introduced, the topic is referenced only in the Sec. 3 findings as background context, not as an operative provision.
The bill text does not contain provisions changing the coal excise tax rate that funds the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund. Public discussion of Trust Fund solvency has sometimes referenced excise tax rates. No such provision appears in H.R. 6756 as introduced; Sec. 131's financial-security provisions address operator self-insurance requirements and penalties, not the excise tax.
The bill text does not contain a general cost-of-living methodology change for all federal disability programs. Sec. 107's CPI-W indexing provision applies specifically to Black Lung Benefits Act payments under Section 412(a); no broader federal benefits indexing provision appears in this bill.
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