MONTANA REFINING CO.

According to U.S. Department of Labor enforcement records, MONTANA REFINING CO. — a industry sector 00 facility located at 1900 10TH ST, GREAT FALLS, MT 59404 — was the subject of a formal OSHA inspection that resulted in 105 citation(s) and cumulative proposed penalties of $520,100.00. The inspection case was opened on 1994-03-14.

This facility represents one of the most severe enforcement actions in the OSHA SVEP database. Willful violations combined with penalties exceeding $100,000 indicate a pattern of deliberate non-compliance that poses an imminent danger to workers.

State Context: Within MT, this facility's penalty places it at the 100th percentile among 9,480 inspected facilities. The statewide average penalty is $2,110.71.

Citation Analysis: The inspection produced 105 citations spanning 9 distinct OSHA regulatory standards. The citation breakdown includes: 11 serious — A workplace hazard that could cause death or serious physical harm exists, and the employer knew or should have known about the condition. 2 other-than-serious — The violation has a direct relationship to job safety and health but is unlikely to cause death or serious physical harm. 1 repeat — A substantially similar violation was found during a previous inspection and the original citation has become a final order. 1 willful — The employer intentionally and knowingly committed the violation, demonstrating either an intentional disregard for the requirements of the OSH Act or plain indifference to employee safety and health.

Enforcement Timeline: Citations were issued beginning March 17, 1994 with the latest abatement deadline set for January 22, 1999. Of the 105 total citations, 7 (7%) have been marked as abated in DOL records, which may indicate ongoing compliance gaps requiring further regulatory attention.

Penalty Assessment: The cumulative penalty of $520,100.00 reflects OSHA's gravity-based penalty calculation methodology, which considers the severity of potential injury, the probability of occurrence, the employer's size, good faith, and violation history. The per-citation average of $4,953.33 falls within the standard penalty range.

The 1994 enforcement action against Montana Refining Co. represents a catastrophic breakdown of safety management systems