Measures for Administrative Penalties against Illegal Acts concerning Work Safety (2015Amendment)

Measures for Administrative Penalties against Illegal Acts concerning Work Safety (2015Amendment) Measures for Administrative Penalties against Illegal Acts concerning Work Safety (Issued by the Order No. 15 of the State Administration of Work Safety on November 30, 2007, and amended in accordance with by the Order No. 77 of the State Administration of Work Safety on April 2, 2015) Chapter I General Provisions Article 1 The present Measures are enacted according to the Law on Administrative Penalty , the Work Safety Law and other relevant laws and administrative regulations for the purpose of imposing penalties against illegal acts concerning work safety and regulating administrative penalties concerning work safety. Article 2 The administrative department of work safety under the people's government at or above the county level shall apply the present Measures when imposing administrative penalties upon the production and business operation entities and their relevant staff due to their acts in violation of relevant laws, administrative regulations, ministerial rules, national standards, trade standards or rules concerning work safety (hereinafter referred to as illegal acts concerning work safety) in production and business operation activities. The supervisory authority of coal mine safety shall, according to the present Measures and the Measures for the Administrative Penalties Concerning Coal Mine Safety Supervision , impose administrative penalties on coal mines, work safety intermediary institutions of coal mines, other production and business operation entities as well as their relevant staff against their illegal acts concerning work safety. Where there are otherwise provisions in the relevant laws and administrative regulations on the types, extents or the decision-making authorities of administrative penalties against illegal acts concerning work safety, such provisions shall be complied with. Article 3 When administrative penalties are imposed against illegal acts concerning work safety, the principle of fairness, impartiality and publicity shall be followed. The administrative department of work safety or the supervisory authority of coal mine safety (hereinafter referred to as the safety supervisory authority) and its administrative law enforcement staff shall, when imposing administrative penalties, take the facts as the basis. An administrative penalty shall correspond to the facts, nature, severity and social dangers of the illegal act concerning work safety. Article 4 The production and business operation entities and their relevant staff upon whom administrative penalties are imposed by the safety supervisory authority shall have the right to state their cases, the right to defend themselves as well as the right to hearing; those who refuse to accept the administrative penalty shall have the right to apply for administrative reconsideration or bring an administrative lawsuit; and those who suffer damage from being illegally imposed on administrative penalty shall have the right to apply for state compensation. Chapter II Types of and Jurisdiction over Administrative Penalties Article 5 Types of administrative penalties against illegal acts concerning work safety include: 1. warning; 2. fine; 3. confiscation of illegal proceeds; confiscation of coal products that are illegal mined and the relevant mining equipment; 4. ordering for suspension of production and business operation for rectification, ordering for suspension of production and business operation, and ordering for suspension of construction; 5. temporary distrain or revocation of a relevant license, suspension or cancellation of a relevant practice qualification or post certificate; 6. close-down; 7. detention; and 8. other administrative penalties stipulated in laws and administrative regulations on work safety. Article 6 The safety supervisory authority at or above the county level shall, according to the provisions of this Chapter, exercise jurisdiction over administrative penalties against illegal acts concerning work safety within its own authorities. An administrative penalty against an illegal act concerning work safety shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the safety supervisory authority at or above the level of county where the illegal act concerning work safety takes place. An administrative penalty imposed on a Central enterprise, an enterprise affiliated to a Central enterprise or any of its staff due to its/his illegal act concerning work safety shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the safety supervisory authority at or above the level of districted city where the illegal act concerning work safety takes place. An administrative penalty of temporarily distraining or revoking a relevant license or temporarily suspending or canceling a relevant practice qualification or post certificate shall be decided by the license /certificate issuing organ. Of which, the term for temporarily distraining a relevant license or temporarily suspending a relevant practice qualification or post certificate shall generally not exceed six months, unless it is otherwise stipulated by any law or administrative regulation. With respect to the administrative penalty of close-down, the safety supervisory authority at or above the county level shall submit it to the people's government at or above the county level for decision according to the limit of power established by the State Council. With respect to the administrative penalty of detention, the safety supervisory authority at or above the county level shall suggest to the public security organ to make a decision according to the Regulation on Administrative Penalties for Public Security . Article 7 Where two or more safety supervisory authorities are in dispute on the jurisdiction over an administrative penalty, the jurisdiction shall be designated by the safety supervisory authority at their common next higher level. Article 8 The safety supervisory authority shall accept a case of any reported illegal act concerning work safety; and if the safety supervisory authority finds that the case is not under its jurisdiction, it shall timely transfer the case to the safety supervisory authority that has the jurisdiction. Where the safety supervisory authority to which a case has been transferred has any dissent to the jurisdiction, it shall report to the safety supervisory authority at the common next higher level for designated jurisdiction. Article 9 Where an illegal act concerning work safety is suspected of a crime, the safety supervisory authority shall transfer the case to the judicial organ for imposition of criminal liabilities. Where no criminal punishment but the administrative penalty should be given, the case shall be under the jurisdiction of the safety supervisory authority. Article 10 The safety supervisory authority at a higher level may directly investigate the cases under the jurisdiction of the safety supervisory authorities at the lower levels, or may deliver the cases under its own jurisdiction to the safety supervisory authorities at the lower levels for jurisdiction. The safety supervisory authority at the lower level may submit major or difficult cases to the safety supervisory authority at the higher level for jurisdiction. Article 11 The safety supervisory authority at the higher level has the right to correct or revoke the illegal or inappropriate administrative penalties imposed on by the safety supervisory authorities at the lower levels. Article 12 If necessary, the safety supervisory department may, within the scope of its statutory power, entrust an organization that meets the conditions set out in Article 19 of the Law on Administrative Penalty , a village or township people's government, or a local people's government's dispatched office such as a sub-district office or a development zone management institution to implement administrative penalties. The entrusted entity shall, within the scope of entrustment, implement administrative penalties in the name of the entrusting safety supervisory authority. The entrusting safety supervisory authority shall supervise and inspect the administrative penalties imposed on by the entrusted entity, and assume legal liabilities for the consequences therefrom. Chapter III Procedures for Imposing Administrative Penalties Article 13 The law enforcement officers of work safety (hereinafter referred to as “work safety officers”) must, when executing their official duties, show valid law enforcement certificates which are uniformly produced by the safety supervisory authority at or above the provincial level or the local people's government at or above the county level. In the case of the safety supervision over a coal mine, the work safety officers shall show the certificates of coal mine safety supervisors which are uniformly produced by the State Administration of Work Safety. Article 14 If the safety supervisory authority and its law enforcement officers find that there is any hidden danger of accident in a production and business operation entity during the process of supervision and inspection, they shall adopt onsite remedies according to the following provisions: 1. If the hidden danger could be eliminated immediately, they shall order the production and business operation entity to eliminate the danger immediately; and 2. If the safety could not be guaranteed before a major hidden danger of accident is eliminated or during the process of elimination, they shall order the operating staff to leave the dangerous area, order the temporary cession of production and business operation, cession of construction, cession of use relevant facilities and equipment to eliminate the hidden danger within a time limit. After the hidden danger is eliminated, upon examination and approval of the safety supervisory authority, the production, business operation and use may be reinstated. The term of ordering the temporary cession of production and business operation, cession of construction and cession of use relevant facilities and equipment as stipulated in Item (2) of Paragraph 1 in this Article shall generally be less than six months, unless it is otherwise stipulated by any law or administrative regulation. Article 15 Where there are grounds to believe that the facilities, equipment or apparatuses in use do not comply with the national standards or industrial standards for work safety, any hazardous goods are illegally produced, stored, used, operated or transported, or any operation site is used to illegally produce, store, use or operate hazardous goods, the safety supervisory department shall seal them up or seize them under the Administrative Compulsion Law . The sealing-up or seizure period may not exceed 30 days, but may be extended by 30 days upon the approval of the person in charge of the safety supervisory department under complicated circumstances, during which a handling decision shall be made as follows: (1) Confiscating the illegal property as required by the law if the illegal facts are clear. (2) Destroying them if it is required by any law or administrative regulation. (3) Lifting the sealing-up or seizure if it is required by any law or administrative regulation. To seal up or seize, a sealing-up or seizure decision and a list of property sealed up or seized shall be made and delivered on the spot. Article 16 Where a safety supervisory department makes a decision ordering a business entity with a hidden danger of serious accident to stop production or business operation, stop construction, or stop using relevant facilities and equipment, the business entity shall execute it according to the law and eliminate the hidden danger in a timely manner. If the business entity refuses to execute and there is a realistic danger that a work safety accident may occur, under the premise of ensuring safety, upon the approval of the chief person in charge of the safety supervisory department, the department may take such a measure as notifying the entity concerned to stop supplying electricity or civil explosives to force the business entity to execute the decision. The notification shall be made in writing and the entity concerned shall be cooperative. To take the measure of stopping the electricity supply to the business entity under the preceding paragraph, the safety supervisory department shall notify the business entity at least 24 hours beforehand, unless it is under any urgent situation endangering work safety. After the business entity executes the administrative decision according to the law and takes corresponding measures to eliminate the hidden danger of accident, the safety supervisory department shall remove the measure mentioned in the preceding paragraph. Article 17 If a production and business operation entity is ordered to make correction within a time limit or is ordered to eliminate the hidden danger and bring the situation under control within a time limit, it shall complete the task within the required time limit. If the task could not be completed within the statutory term due to force majeure, the entity shall, while making rectification or bringing the situation under control, file a written application for deferral within 10 days upon expiry of the statutory term, and the safety supervisory authority shall give a written reply on whether or not approve the deferral within five days after receipt of the said application. If a production and business operation entity puts forward an application for review or the term for making rectification or bringing the situation under control expires, the safety supervisory authority shall make review within ten days upon receipt of the application or expiry of the term, fill in the form of review opinions, which shall be signed by the reviewed entity and the reviewing persons of the safety supervisory authority and then be put on files. If the entity fails to make rectification and bring the situation under control or the measure of making rectification and bringing the situation under control is not qualified, the safety supervisory authority shall impose an administrative penalty on the entity. Article 18 Before the safety supervisory authority makes an administrative penalty decision, it shall fill in a notice on administrative penalty, notifying the party concerned of the facts, reasons and basis for the administrative penalty decision as well as the rights the party concerned has, and serve the notice on the party concerned. The party concerned shall, within three days upon receipt of the notice on administrative penalty, make statements and defenses or put forward the request for hearing. The aforesaid rights shall be regarded as having been waived if the party concerned exercises them after expiry of the time limit. Article 19 The safety supervisory authority shall sufficiently heed the statements and defenses of the party concerned, review the facts, reasons and evidence put forward by the party concerned; and if the facts, reasons and evidence are established, the safety supervisory authority shall adopt them. The safety supervisory authority shall not impose a heavier punishment on the party concerned due to its/his statements or defenses. Article 20 To impose administrative penalties against illegal acts concerning work safety, the safety supervisory authority shall follow statutory procedures and make law enforcement documents. Section 1 Summary Procedure Article 21 Where the illegal facts are irrefutable and there is legal basis, and the administrative penalty of a fine of not more than 50 yuan is to be imposed upon an individual, or one of not more than 1,000 yuan is to be imposed upon a production and bus......