President Donald Trump has nominated Wayne Palmer to head the Mine Safety and Health Administration that oversees conditions at mines, quarries, gravel pits and concrete plants across the country.
Palmer previously worked at the mine safety agency as a deputy in the first Trump administration. He’s had a long career in DC politics as a staffer for two Republican senators and lobbyist for pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca.
In a phone call, Pamer declined to comment on the nomination to Kentucky Public Radio. He instead referred us to a press officer at the Department of Labor.
The Mine Safety and Health Administration, or MSHA, conducts regular inspections at mines and quarries to protect workers from unsafe conditions and occupational diseases like black lung. If confirmed, Palmer would play a key role in the agency’s approach to a long-awaited rule to curb an epidemic of black lung disease in central Appalachian coal mines.
He recently worked as an executive at the Essential Minerals Association, which filed a legal brief supporting a challenge to that very same rule, targeting the root cause of black lung disease. Enforcement in coal mines is slated to begin in April.
Palmer would also inherit the agency amid directives by the Trump administration to drastically reduce staff in government agencies.
In an exit interview, former MSHA head Chris Williamson said he prided himself on adding staff during the Biden administration after the number of mine inspectors and safety specialists dipped during Trump’s first term.
“That staffing number: it has a ripple effect all throughout the agency when you don’t staff at the level you need,” Williamson said before his departure. “That’s just something I think is incredibly important.”
In a press release, EMA president Chris Greissing praised Palmer’s nomination saying the administration is “gaining a person of such strong character who also has the depth of knowledge and understanding to bring to this position of protecting our industry’s workforce.”
State government and politics reporting is supported in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
