ELR Citation: ELR 20217
No(s). 91-0006-A (W.D. Va. Apr 23, 1992)

The court holds that a coal mining company's due process challenge to a permit denial based on outstanding violations of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA) is tantamount to an attack on SMCRA's regulations and thus can be brought only in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The company sought to permanently enjoin the Office of Surface Mining (OSM) from recommending permit denials based on outstanding violations without a due process hearing. The defendants moved for summary judgment alleging that the court lacks jurisdiction. The court grants the defendants' motion for summary judgment, relying on the Fourth Circuit's decision in Virginia v. Watt, 741 F.2d 37 (4th Cir. 1984), which held that a district court lacks jurisdiction over an indirect attack on SMCRA regulations. The court holds that the attack on the OSM decision to deny permits without a predenial hearing on the issue of underlying violations constitutes an attack on SMCRA's regulations. This challenge can be brought only in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, and this result cannot be avoided by framing the question in terms of due process and asserting jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. §1331.

Counsel for Plaintiffs
John R. Woodrum
Smith, Heenan & Althen
1110 Vermont Ave. NW, Ste. 400, Washington DC 20005
(202) 887-0800

Counsel for Defendants
Charles P. Gault
Department of Interior
530 Gay St., Knoxville, TN 37902
(615) 545-4103

GLEN M. WILLIAMS, Senior District Judge