Mine safety official will stay on the job

WASHINGTON (AP) — The country's top mine-safety regulator will stay on the job despite the expiration of his temporary appointment as assistant labor secretary for mine safety and health.

President Bush designated Richard Stickler as acting head of the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration on Friday, only a few days after the expiration of his recess appointment.

"I'd like to thank the president for his designation today, which will allow us to continue our progress on completing the implementation of Congress' safety improvements," Stickler said.

The Democratic-controlled Senate has so far refused to approve his nomination. Democratic senators have said Stickler spent too many years as a coal-mining executive and failed to demonstrate that safety is his priority.

Stickler could have been limited to a 210-day stay starting from Bush's designation Friday. But since his latest nomination is still pending in the Senate, the White House says, the time limit does not apply and Stickler will likely serve until the end of the Bush administration.

Stickler, the government's public face during the Crandall Canyon mine disaster in Utah, took over the $340 million agency in late 2006 as a result of an appointment Bush made while Congress was out of session.