Action, at last, on mine safety, abusive driver fees

THUMBS UP TO:

A mine-safety move

he U.S. House passed new mine safety legislation this week despite threats of a presidential veto. If it becomes law, the measure would add new restrictions to retreat mining – a dangerous practice implicated in the deaths of nine manners in the Crandall Canyon Mine in Utah last year. The measure also is said to improve emergency responses to mine disasters and require mine operators to install advanced tracking technology, according to The Associated Press.

The Bush administration and some in the coal industry oppose the bill because they say they haven’t had time to implement safety changes ordered by Congress in 2006. Those changes came after the Sago Mine disaster killed 12 in West Virginia.

Tardiness on the part of the federal government, which missed a deadline to implement the new regulations, is no excuse to delay further reforms – particularly on the matter of retreat mining, which wasn’t addressed in 2006. We applaud Congress. We urge the administration to quit the foot-dragging, implement the 2006 safety changes and come to an agreement on the latest round of improvements. A veto doesn’t serve the interest of those who work in the nation’s coal mines.

Breaking ground ... at last

Four Washington County, Va., schools are about to get some much needed room. Officials broke ground on new additions at Abingdon Elementary, High Point Elementary, Valley Institute and E.B. Stanley Middle School. The bond-financed projects have a price tag of $4.5 million and are just the first phase of a long-term plan to add more space to the county’s schools.

The additions arrive just in time. Students are attending class in closets, hallways and shower rooms. While we’re certain that teachers and students are doing the best they can under trying circumstances, proper classrooms can provide a better learning environment than makeshift ones. Here’s hoping that the work goes smoothly and the students get to enjoy their new space on schedule.

A vote to end ‘abusive driver’ fees

Separate measures to kill Virginia’s abusive driver fees – the scheme that lawmakers concocted to avoid a tax increase to pay for road work – are moving through the state House and Senate. What a relief.

The onerous fees – up to $3,000 in some cases – applied rather indiscriminately to those who committed serious infractions, like driving drunk, and those who did not. The fee scheme reached the height of incredulity when it was applied to 19-year-old Kajuan Cornish, who was commuting to work on his bicycle in Newport News. Cornish doesn’t even own a car. He was fined $1,000.

The Cornish case belies the reassurances offered by Virginia House of Delegates Speaker William J. Howell, R-Stafford, in July, when he said, "Safe drivers with only minor traffic infractions or occasional speeding tickets have nothing to fear from the abuser fee legislation." Right. The sooner that lawmakers repeal the fees the better.

THUMBS DOWN TO:

Taking advantage of generous souls

A Rogersville, Tenn., man was arrested this week on allegations that he scammed people into donating money to pay for a grandchild’s kidney transplant. As it turns out, John David Bundren, 29, was lying. He made it all up.

If the allegations are true, Bundren took money that could have gone to help children with legitimate needs. He should be ashamed and punished to the extent the law allows.