Kentucky legislation · 2026 Regular Session
Kentucky SR165: A RESOLUTION recognizing the 50th anniversary of the Scotia Mine Disaster in Letcher County.
Status: Passed both chambers, March 27, 2026
Recognize the 50th anniversary of the Scotia Mine Disaster, the sacrifices of the miners and their families, and the resulting improvement to mine safety.
What the bill says
A resolution recognizing the 50th anniversary of the Scotia Mine Disaster in Letcher County.
From the introduced text:
A RESOLUTION recognizing the 50th anniversary of the Scotia Mine Disaster in Letcher County. WHEREAS, on March 9, 1976, shortly after 11:30 a.m., an explosion occurred in Mine No. 1 at the Scotia Coal Mining site at Black Mountain, Kentucky, killing people; and WHEREAS, two days later, as members of the community worked to rescue the trapped miners, a second explosion occurred, claiming 11 more lives; and WHEREAS, these two explosions combined resulted in one of the worst coal mining disasters in United States History; and WHEREAS, the 26 victims of these two explosions were beloved members of their communities in eastern Kentucky, and their loss was felt across the region; and WHEREAS, due to the instability of the conditions in the mines, the bodies of the victims were unable to be recovered for several months, forcing families to mourn their loved ones with empty caskets and resulting in protests to reopen the mines for body recovery; and WHEREAS, the lessons learned from these two explosions helped to reshape mine safety regulations for years to come, as regulators and industry professionals came to better understand how poorly ventilated air moves and can become trapped underground; and WHEREAS, the tragedy of the Scotia Mine explosions led to the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 and still informs regulations surrounding …
Sponsors
- Scott Madon (R, SD-029) · primary sponsor
- Brandon Smith (R, SD-030)
Latest actions
- : adopted by voice vote
- : to Senate Floor
- : to Committee on Committees (S)
- : introduced in Senate
Subjects: Commendations And Recognitions, Minerals And Mining, Coal
Common questions
- What is SR165?
- SR165 is a bill in the Kentucky Legislature (2026 Regular Session): A RESOLUTION recognizing the 50th anniversary of the Scotia Mine Disaster in Letcher County.
- What does SR165 do?
- In its own words: A resolution recognizing the 50th anniversary of the Scotia Mine Disaster in Letcher County.
- What is the status of SR165?
- Passed both chambers as of March 27, 2026. Latest action: adopted by voice vote (March 27, 2026).
- Who sponsored SR165?
- Scott Madon (R, SD-029), with 1 co-sponsor.
- Where is the official record for SR165?
- On the Kentucky Legislature website: https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/26rs/sr165.html
Source: official Kentucky record. Tracked by Delilah, AI for legislation across all 50 states and Congress.