Sec. 2. Amendments to the benefits process for survivors of miners whose deaths were due to pneumoconiosis
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Section 411(c)(2) of the Black Lung Benefits Act ( 30 U.S.C. 921(c)(2) ) is amended by striking the second sentence. Section 411(c) of the Black Lung Benefits Act ( 30 U.S.C. 921(c) ) is amended by adding at the end the following: If a deceased miner was totally disabled due to pneumoconiosis during the life of such miner, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that the death of such miner was a death due to pneumoconiosis. The presumption under this paragraph may be rebutted only by establishing that no part of the death of such miner was caused by pneumoconiosis. . The amendments made by paragraphs
(1)and
(2)shall apply with respect to claims filed under part B or part C of the Black Lung Benefits Act ( 30 U.S.C. 921 et seq., 931 et seq.) after January 1, 2016, that are pending on or after the date of enactment of this Act. Part A of the Black Lung Benefits Act ( 30 U.S.C. 901 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of the Relief for Survivors of Miners Act of 2021 , the Secretary shall establish a payment program to pay attorneys’ fees and other reasonable and unreimbursed medical expenses incurred in establishing the claimant’s case, using amounts from the fund, to the attorneys of claimants in qualifying claims. A qualifying claim for purposes of this section is a contested claim for benefits under this title for which a final order has not been entered within one year of the filing of the claim. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, amounts in the fund shall be available for payments authorized by the Secretary under this section. If a claimant for benefits under this title obtains a proposed decision and order from a district director with an award of benefits for a qualifying claim, or an award for a qualifying claim before an administrative law judge— the district director may approve attorneys’ fees for work done before such director in an amount not to exceed $1,500; and an administrative law judge may approve attorneys’ fees for work done before such judge in an amount not to exceed $3,000. The Secretary shall, through the program under this section, pay any amounts approved under subparagraph (A). If a claimant for benefits under this title obtains a proposed decision and order from a district director with an award of benefits for a qualifying claim, or an award for a qualifying claim before an administrative law judge, such district director and administrative law judge may each approve an award, in an amount not to exceed $1,500, to the claimant’s attorney of reasonable and unreimbursed medical expenses incurred in establishing the claimant’s case. The Secretary shall, through the program under this section, pay any amounts approved under subparagraph (A). The Secretary, through the program established under this section, shall for any single qualifying claim pay— not more than a total of $4,500 in attorneys’ fees; and not more than $3,000 in medical expenses. In any case in which a qualifying claim results in a final order awarding compensation, the liable operator shall reimburse the fund for any fees or expenses paid under this section, subject to enforcement by the Secretary under section 424 and in the same manner as compensation orders are enforced under section 21(d) of the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act ( 33 U.S.C. 921(d) ). Nothing in this section shall limit or otherwise affect an operator's liability for any attorneys’ fees or medical expenses awarded by the district director or an administrative law judge that were not paid by the program under this section. Nothing in this section shall limit or otherwise affect the Secretary's authority to use amounts in the fund to pay approved attorneys’ fees in claims for benefits under this title for which a final order awarding compensation has been entered and the operator is unable to pay. Any payment for attorneys’ fees or medical expenses made by the Secretary under this section shall not be recouped from the claimant or the claimant’s attorney. .
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Sec. 2
Amendments to the benefits process for survivors of miners whose deaths were due to pneumoconiosis
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