COAL COUNTRY — A new report from the Appalachian Citizens’ Law Center and Appalachian Voices finds that the cost of living continues to outpace federal black lung disability benefits for miners with black lung disease and their families. Congressional action is urgently needed to update these monthly benefit payments to account for the increased cost of living across the United States.
As the buying power of these monthly disability benefits continues to decline, new data from 2025 finds that across coal mining communities where black lung beneficiaries are located, benefit payments are more than three to four times below the average monthly cost of living for a miner and dependent.
“Coal miners continue to sacrifice their health and long-term well-being to power our country, yet at the same time, they’re asked to accept meager benefits when they fall ill due to preventable occupational health hazards,” said Brendan Muckian-Bates, Policy & Advocacy Associate for the Appalachian Citizens’ Law Center. “Coal miner advocates have been having the same conversations with congressional offices for years to little avail. We hope that, by bringing them this data, they can better understand that this ballooning crisis will only continue to get worse without their leadership. Congress can take action to immediately ensure these monthly benefits truly support those who have given their lives in one of the most dangerous jobs today.”
When federal black lung disability benefits were first created in 1969, a single miner with no dependents received $144.50 each month. Adjusted for inflation, that amount would be $1,239 today. However, monthly benefits have not kept up with inflation. Individual miners receive nearly 40% less than the value of the original amount, at just $793 per month. Even when compared to the cost of living in rural, coal-mining communities in Kentucky, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, these meager benefits still fall well short.
Because black lung disability benefits are tied to a percentage of federal salary scales instead of other metrics — such as inflation — the buying power of the benefits will continue to decline unless appropriate action is taken. Appalachian Congressional offices have filed the Black Lung Benefits Improvement Act (BLBIA) every session of Congress since 2014. One of the key provisions within BLBIA would tie federal disability benefits to national inflation indicators. However, the bill has never received a floor vote nor has it been co-sponsored by a Republican congressional office.
“Sick coal miners and their families are being penalized more and more every year because the monthly benefit payment wasn’t tied to inflation,” said Quenton King, Government Affairs Specialist for Appalachian Voices. “It’s a travesty, but one that can be fixed by a Congress that professes to value hardworking coal miners. They didn’t ask for black lung disease when we asked them to power our country. The least we can do is honor their service by ensuring their monthly disability stipend keeps pace with rising inflation.”
In December, U.S. Sens. John Fetterman, D-Penn., Tim Kaine, D-Va., and Mark Warner, D-Va., and U.S. Reps. Morgan McGarvey, D-Ky., Robert “Bobby” Scott, D-Va., and Summer Lee, D-Penn., reintroduced the BLBIA. If Congress passes the bill this year, benefits would increase by over $100 per month, from $793 to $897.
