Mar 24, 2025 By Garrett Neese 2 min read

The Mine Safety Health Administration field office in Waynesburg is among the government sites to have its lease terminated, according to the Department of Government Efficiency website.

The annual cost to lease the 8,233-square-foot building is $168,726, according to the DOGE website. It lists the total savings at $478,057, though it does not specify how DOGE arrived at that number.

Personnel at the Waynesburg office deferred comment to headquarters. Spokespeople with MSHA in Washington, D.C., reached by phone Thursday afternoon requested questions to be sent via email, and had not yet responded.

Leases at the MSHA offices in Frackville, Mount Pleasant and Warrenville were also listed for termination.

Messages seeking comment had also been left with the United Mine Workers of America. In a statement earlier this month after the announcement of dozens of closures of MSHA offices, UMWA President Cecil Roberts said the agency’s work is “critical” for keeping miners safe.

“It is important to remember that before 1969 there was no law protecting miners at work, and thousands died in mines every year,” he said. “We have good laws today, but if the government does not enforce them then we are back to the days of no workplace safety laws at all. That puts miners at great risk. We urge the administration to keep this in mind and keep worker safety as its top priority moving forward.”