Non-Metal Mining & Quarrying NAICS 2123

May 27, 2025 - NIOSH Cuts Threaten Safety

• Cuts to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) by the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, threaten miners’ safety just as the Trump administration is seeking to expand mining in the US, NPR reports. The president of the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) condemned the cuts, stating “This is not just an attack on jobs. This is an attack on the very foundation of worker safety in the United States of America.” The UMWA president said the dismantling of the Respiratory Disease Division at NIOSH eliminates the nation’s leading defense against black lung disease, silicosis, and other respiratory illnesses that afflict miners. In March, President Trump signed an executive order fast tracking permitting and expanding mining in the US. The cuts at NIOSH followed soon after. More mining means more miners to protect. However, miners' protections are being stripped away, according to UMWA.
• Federal cost cutting by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has targeted Kentucky's mine safety offices, terminating leases at seven locations around Kentucky and Appalachia, USA Today reported in March. Overall, leases for 35 Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) offices across the US have been terminated, according to DOGE — including most of the agency’s offices in Kentucky. Critics say the closures will result in fewer inspections, eliminate onerous regulations, and create a more sympathetic enforcement environment for mine operators. While the Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 requires that all surface mines receive at least two annual inspections and that underground mines receive at least four inspections annually, meeting those requirements has been challenging, and will become even more difficult given the staffing cuts and office closures, according to Pit & Quarry. As such, advocates say miners' health and safety will suffer.

• The Trump administration is expected to “significantly prioritize” building more mines, processing facilities, and refineries in the US, as opposed to the previous administration's focus on international cooperation to reduce US reliance on foreign supply chains for critical minerals, according to Gregory Wischer, founder of critical minerals consultancy Dei Gratia Minerals. Wischer also predicts that the Trump administration will continue and accelerate bipartisan policies strengthening US mineral supply chains. “In particular, I think you can expect the [Trump] administration to focus heavily on domestic onshoring of all parts of the mineral supply chain, especially mineral extraction,” Wischer told Mining Technology (MT) after the election. Trump’s approach will likely entail streamlining the permitting process and imposing tariffs to incentivize domestic mineral production, Wischer adds. Also, Trump’s more relaxed approach to environmental regulation is likely to benefit the mining sector, per MT.
• Employment by non-metal mining and quarrying firms grew 2.3% in March compared to a year ago while average industry wages remained flat over the same period at $28.24 per hour, according to the latest US Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Producer prices rose steadily in 2024, ending the year at a new high, BLS data show. Meanwhile, mining capacity utilization rose to 90.3% in February, up from 89.9% in January, according to data from the Federal Reserve. Sales for the US non-metal mining and quarrying companies industry are forecast to grow at a 3.25% compounded annual rate from 2025 to 2029, slower than the growth of the overall economy, according to the latest forecast from the Interindustry Economic Research Fund.