Northern China's coal-rich Shanxi province is moving to standardize administrative law enforcement in coal mine safety, targeting weak links in the regulatory process.

The provincial justice department, natural resources department, emergency management department and the Shanxi branch of the National Mine Safety Administration held a joint meeting on September 4 to address shortcomings and refine enforcement measures, according to local media reprot.

Administrative law enforcement is a key tool for preventing and defusing coal mine safety risks, the meeting noted, adding that coordination between departments must be strengthened.

The meeting identified typical problems in current enforcement practices and set out six priorities: ensuring enforcement bodies have legal authority, standardizing procedures from case filing through to execution, aligning penalties with violations under provincial discretion rules, clarifying enforcement responsibilities down to individual officers, improving coordination with public security, procuratorial and judicial authorities on case transfers, and strengthening internal oversight of enforcement conduct.