The Reclamation Commission is an adjudicatory board, established pursuant to Ohio Revised Code 1513.05.

The Commission conducts hearings and renders decisions. Based upon the information presented to the Commission in an adjudicatory hearing, the Commission will affirm, vacate or modify the Chief’s decision under appeal. The decisions of the Commission are appealable to the Court of Common Pleas for Franklin County, Ohio in industrial minerals matters and appealable to the Court of Appeals in coal mining matters.

Reclamation Commission members are appointed by the Governor to a five-year term. The Commission is composed of eight members, with only seven members sitting on any appeal. Four members constitute a quorum, and no more than four members may belong to the same political party. The members represent various interests and concerns, relevant to mining and reclamation issues:

• Two members represent farmers
• One member represents the public
• One member is learned in forestry practices
• One member is learned in agronomy
• One member represents either the coal or industrial minerals mining industry
• One member is learned in earth grading or civil engineering

The Reclamation Commission adopts rules to govern its procedures. These rules are found at Ohio Administrative Code 1513-3-01 through 1513-3-22.