Explanation of Terms

=> Employment and related items.
The report forms requested separate information on production, development,
and exploration workers for a specific payroll period within each quarter
of the year and on other employees as of the payroll period which included
the 12th of March.

->  All employees.
This item includes all full-time and part-time employees on the payrolls of
mining establishments during any part of the pay period which included the
12th of the months specified on the report form. Included are all persons
on paid sick leave, paid holidays, and paid vacations during these pay
periods. Also included are employees working for miners paid on a per ton,
car, or yard basis.  Excluded are employees at the mine but on the payroll
of another employer (such as employees of contractors) and employees at
company stores, boardinghouses, bunkhouses, and recreational centers. Also
excluded are members of the Armed Forces and pensioners carried on the
active rolls but not working during the period. Officers of corporations
are included as employees; proprietors and partners of unincorporated firms
are excluded.

->  Production, development, and exploration workers.
This item includes employees (up through the working-supervisor level)
engaged in manual work (using tools, operating machines, hauling materials,
loading and hauling products out of the mine in mine cars or trucks, and
caring for mines, plants, mills, shops, or yards). Included are exploration
work, mine development, storage, shipping, maintenance, repair, janitorial,
and guard services, auxiliary production for use at establishments (such as
power plant), recordkeeping, and other services closely associated with
these production and development operations at the establishment covered by
the report. Gang and straw bosses and supervisors who performed manual
labor are included, as are employees paid on either a time- or piece-rate
basis.  Also included are miners paid on a per ton, car, or yard basis and
persons engaged by them and paid out of the total amount received by these
miners.  In addition, other employees at the establishment but not on its
payroll are included if paid directly through its own employees, such as
superintendents and supervisors. The payments received by these types
of employees are included as part of the establishments payroll.  Employees
above the working-supervisor level are excluded from this category.

->  All other employees.
This item covers nonproduction employees of the establishment including
those engaged in the following activities: supervision above the working-
supervisor level, sales, highway trucking (by employees not entering mines
or pits), advertising, credit, collection, clerical and routine office
functions, executive, purchasing, financing, legal, personnel (including
cafeteria and medical), professional (such as engineers and geologists),
and technical activities. Also included are employees on the payroll of the
establishment engaged in the construction of major additions or alterations
to the plant and utilized as a separate work force.  (Workers engaged in
regular maintenance and repair operations are not included here but are
classified as production, development, and exploration workers.)

->  Separately operated auxiliary establishments employees.
This item includes employment at separate central administrative offices or
auxiliary units of multiestablishment companies and at those offices or
units servicing more than one establishment during the payroll period which
included March 12.  Establishments are classified on the basis of the
industry or principal industry served. Employees at an office located at or
near the mining establishment are usually included in the mine report.

->  All employees, average for year.
The 1992 census report form requested employment figures for production,
development, and exploration workers for four selected pay periods (mid-
March, May, August, and November). For all other employees, only a mid-
March figure was requested. The annual average is an average of the four
monthly figures for production, development, and exploration workers plus
the March figure for all other employees. This approach was used to
simplify the schedule format and lighten the reporting burden of
respondents, since it was found that the average of these selected pay
periods closely approximates, for most industries, the average employment
for the year that would be obtained from 12 monthly pay periods.

->  Payroll.
This item includes the gross earnings of all employees on the payroll of
mining establishments paid in the calendar year 1992. It includes all forms
of compensation such as salaries, wages, commissions, payments received on
a ton, car, or yard basis, dismissal pay, bonuses, vacation and sick leave
pay, employee contributions to pension plans (such as 401(K) plan), and
compensation in kind, prior to such deductions as employees' Social
Security contributions, withholding taxes, group insurance, union dues, and
savings bonds. The total includes salaries of officers of corporations; it
excludes payments to proprietors or partners of unincorporated concerns,
and payments to members of Armed Forces and pensioners carried on the
active payroll of mining establishments. Also excluded are royalty payments
to unions and costs of smithing, explosives, fuses, electric cap lamps, and
mine supplies used in production, development, and exploration work but
charged to employees and deducted from their wages.

As in the case of employment and establishment figures, the annual payrolls
of separate auxiliary establishments of multiestablishment companies are
included in the totals for individual industries and for States.

->  Production-, development-, and exploration-worker hours.
This item represents all hours that production, development, and
exploration workers worked, both on active days during which there was
production or development work and on inactive days when only security
guards, inspectors, repair persons, and other maintenance persons were on
duty. It includes all hours worked or paid for at the mining operations,
except hours paid for vacations, holidays, or sick leave, when the employee
was not at the establishment. Included are actual overtime hours, not
straight time equivalent hours. Hours of working proprietors or partners
and employees of contractors are excluded.

->  Supplemental labor costs.
This item represents employer's cost for fringe benefits not included in
payrolls.

->  Legally required expenditures, including Social Security contributions.
This cost includes employer contributions for all programs required under
Federal and State legislation, such as Federal Old Age and Survivors'
Insurance, unemployment compensation, and worker's compensation.  Also
included are legally required State temporary disability payments.

->  Payments for voluntary programs.
Included in this cost are payments resulting from union negotiated
contracts and all employer payments of insurance premiums on hospital and
medical plans, life insurance premiums, and premiums on supplementary
accident and sickness insurance. For programs supported by joint employer-
employee contributions, only the employer payments are included. Also
included are payments or allocations on all pension plans regardless of
methods of administration, supplemental unemployment compensation plans,
welfare plans, stock purchase plans in which the employer payment is
not subject to withholding tax, and deferred profit sharing plans.

=> Value added by mining.
This measure of mining activity is derived by subtracting the cost of
supplies, minerals received for preparation, purchased machinery installed,
purchased fuel, purchased electricity, and contract work from the sum of
the value of shipments (mining products plus receipts for services
rendered) and total capital expenditures. This statistic avoids the
duplication in value of shipments and receipts which results from the use
of products of some establishments as supplies, energy sources, or
materials by others.  Moreover, it provides a measure of value added not
only in mineral production but also in the development of mineral
properties. For these reasons, it is considered to be the best value
measure for comparing the relative economic importance of mining among
industries and geographic areas.

=> Cost of supplies used, purchased machinery installed, etc.
Besides supplies used and purchased machinery installed, this cost includes
fuels and electric energy used and contract work done by others for each
establishment. It includes charges to both the current and capital
accounts. It also includes the cost of items used during 1992 whether they
were purchased, withdrawn from inventories, or received from other
establishments of the company. For selected supplies and fuels and for
electric energy, both quantity and cost data were requested. The cost data
refer to direct charges actually paid or payable (after discounts) for
items used during the year. Freight charges and other direct charges
incurred by the establishment in acquiring the item are included. Companies
whose records did not show actual amounts used were asked to approximate
use by adding purchases (or receipts) during the year to beginning
inventory and subtracting ending inventory. Separate figures were requested
for (1) selected supplies used, minerals received for preparation, and
purchased machinery installed; (2) electric energy purchased; (3) purchased
fuels used for heat, power, or the generation of electricity; (4) contract
work done by others; and (5) products bought and resold in the same
condition. Supplies and equipment used in mine development, plant
expansion, and capitalized repairs, which are chargeable to fixed assets
accounts, are included in this item, as are supplies furnished without
charge to contractors for use at the mining operation and supplies sold to
employees for use at the establishment. Excluded are such costs as
advertising, insurance, telephone, and research and consulting services of
other establishments or such overhead costs as depreciation charges, rent,
interest, and royalties.

=> Selected supplies used, minerals prepared, etc.
In addition to the total cost of supplies used, purchased machinery
installed, etc., which every establishment was required to report,
information also was collected on the consumption of major supplies used in
mining. These inquiries were restricted to supplies which were important
parts of the cost of production, exploration, and development of a
particular industry and for which cost information was available.  On
report forms for most mineral industries (except the contract services and
the crude petroleum and natural gas industries), a uniform inquiry was
included on minerals prepared at the reported establishments. Figures were
obtained on crude minerals mined at the establishment (quantity), received
from other establishments of the company or purchased from others (quantity
and cost), and received for preparation on a custom or toll basis (quantity
and estimated value).  Establishments consuming less than a specified
amount (usually $25,000) were not required to report the cost of a supply.
For small establishments for which administrative records were used, the
cost of supplies was included in "not specified by kind."

=> Value of shipments and receipts.
The amounts shown as value of shipments and receipts for each industry and
for individual products or classes of products are the net selling values,
f.o.b. mine or plant after discounts and allowances, excluding freight
charges and excise taxes. Shipments includes all products physically
shipped from the establishment during 1992, including material withdrawn
from stockpiles and products shipped on consignment, whether or not sold in
1992. Prepared material or concentrates includes preparation from ores
mined at the same establishment, purchased, received from other operations
of the same company, or received for milling on a custom or toll basis. For
products transferred to other establishments of the same company or
prepared on a custom basis, companies were requested to report the
estimated value, not merely the cost of producing the items.
Multiestablishment companies were asked to report value information for
each establishment as if it were a separate economic unit. They were
instructed to report the value of all products transferred to other plants
of the company at their full economic value; to include, in addition to
direct cost of production, a reasonable proportion of company overhead and
profits.

For all establishments classified in an industry, value of shipments and
receipts includes (1) the value of all primary products of the industry,
(2) the value of secondary products which are primary to other industries,
(3) the receipts for contract work done for others, except custom milling,
and (4) the value of products purchased and resold without further
processing. Receipts for custom milling are not included to avoid
duplication with the value of custom milled ores included in an industry's
primary and secondary products. Some duplication exists in industry and
industry group totals because of the inclusion of materials transferred
from one establishment to another for mineral preparation or resale.

=> Shipments of individual products.
In the 1992 Census of Mineral Industries, information was collected on
output for about 150 individual mineral products. In general, the shipments
figures of the 1992 and 1987 minerals censuses were confined to separate
totals for each crude and each prepared mineral. When shipments were
significant, separate figures also were obtained on crude minerals goingto
preparation plants and those going to consumers.

Figures were collected on both quantity and value of shipments.  Shipments
includes commercial shipments and transfers of products to other operations
of the same company. For products that are used to a significant extent
within the same establishment for power or heat, and for minerals mined and
prepared in the same establishment, total production figures or separate
data on production for such uses were collected. Typically, production also
was collected for products for which there was usually significant
differences between total production and total shipments because of stock
changes.

For service industries, the amount received or due for services performed
during 1992 was collected as a measure of output. For mine operators who
also perform services, the amount received for such services was added to
the total value of products shipped to determine total value of shipments
and receipts for each establishment.

=> Capital expenditures.
This item covers expenditures made during the year for development and
exploration of mineral properties, for new construction, and for purchased
machinery chargeable to fixed assets accounts of the mineral establishment.
They are the type for which depreciation, depletion, or Office of Minerals
Exploration accounts are ordinarily maintained. Capital expenditures during
1992 were determined as "additions completed during the year plus
construction in progress at the end of the year minus construction in
progress at the beginning of the year." Reported capital expenditures
include work done on contract, as well as by the mine forces.  Expenditures
for machinery and equipment include those made for replacement purposes, as
well as those for additions to capacity.  Excluded from these expenditures
were costs of maintenance and repairs charged as current operating expense
and expenditures for land and mineral rights.

Whenever applicable, separate figures were provided for expenditures for
development and exploration of mineral property, construction of
preparation plants and other construction, new machinery and equipment,
used plant, and used equipment acquired from others.

=> Gross value of depreciable assets.
Assets data were collected on buildings, other structures, machinery,
equipment, capitalized mineral exploration and development, and mineral
land and rights for which depreciation, amortization, or depletion accounts
are maintained. The values shown represent the actual cost of assets at the
time they were acquired, including all costs incurred in making the assets
usable (such as transportation and installation costs). The data were
collected for the beginning and end of the year. Assets at the beginning of
the year plus new and used capital expenditures minus retirements should
equal assets at the end of the year. For new construction or other
improvement projects in progress but not completed by the end of the year,
the cumulative capital expenditures were included in the beginning- and
end-of-year assets figures.

=> Retirements.
This item represents the gross value of depreciable assets sold, retired,
scrapped, destroyed, abandoned, etc., during 1992. The values shown are the
acquisition costs of the retired assets. This item also includes the value
of assets (at acquisition cost rather than current market value)
transferred to other establishments of the same company.

=> Depreciation.
This item shows the reduction in value of depreciable assets brought about
through use, gradual obsolescence, or the effect of the elements (decay or
corrosion) during the year.  Included are charges against assets acquired
or completed during the year.

=> Rental payments.
This item consists of rental payments made to other companies for use of
such depreciable assets as buildings, other structures, machinery, and
equipment. It does not include payments made to the parent company or
another subsidiary of the parent company for the use of buildings and
equipment owned by the parent company or its subsidiary. The value of such
company-owned assets is included in the gross value of depreciable assets.

Rented equipment is reported according to the type of lease negotiated with
the lessor. If the lease qualified as an "operating lease" the periodic
payments made to the producer or the lessor are reported in the rental
section. However, if the leasing arrangement met the criteria set down by
the Financial Accounting Standards Board for a "capital lease," the
original cost or market value of the equipment or building is reported as a
value of fixed assets and not as rental payments.

=> Current account expenditures.
This item includes all expenses for mineral properties, exploration, and
development charged to current accounts. This includes all supplies,
machinery, equipment, parts, fuels, power, etc., used for development or
exploration and charged to current operating expenses. Also included are
royalty payments, acquisition costs for mineral land and rights which were
not capitalized, and the cost of maintenance and repairs associated with
exploration or development activity and charged to current accounts.

=> Inventories.
This item includes inventories of mined or quarried products and supplies,
parts, fuels, etc., at the beginning and end of the year. Included as mined
or quarried products are stockpiles of products ready for shipment and
stocks of raw products awaiting treatment or beneficiation. Beginning with
the 1982 Census of Mineral Industries, all respondents were requested to
report their inventories at (the lower of) cost or market prior to
adjustment to LIFO cost. This is a change from the 1977 census in which
respondents were permitted to value their inventories using any generally
accepted accounting method.

=> Fuels and electric energy used.
This item includes the quantity and cost of fuels and electric energy used
in mining. For most industries, separate quantity and cost figures are
shown for purchased coal, distillate fuel oil, residual fuel oil, gas,
gasoline, and electric energy, and a cost figure is shown for "other fuels"
(see table 7b of the industry series). Data also were obtained on the
quantity of fuels and electric energy produced and consumed at the same
establishment. These data are shown for coal, crude petroleum, and natural
gas used at the producing establishments for heat and power, and for
electric energy generated and used at the same mining operations.  For
electric energy, the quantity generated and used is approximated by
subtracting the quantity of electric energy sold from the total quantity
generated (excluding generating station use).