FACES this week said the event would be held at the Washington County Fairgrounds in Abingdon on June 2 beginning at 11am local time.
It will feature an open forum to discuss coal’s importance to the state and the nation as well as current events involving the US Environmental Protection Agency.
Currently confirmed participants include Virginia senate candidate George Allen, Virginia lieutenant governor Bill Bolling, attorney general Ken Cuccinelli and Tennessee lieutenant governor Ron Ramsey.
Those invited to attend include presidential candidates Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul as well as Virginia governor Bob McDonnell, Virginia senate candidate Tim Kaine and US senators Mark Warner and Jim Webb.
The 75,000-strong FACES group has coordinated the gathering in tandem with the Eastern Coal Council.
“Coal is a huge part of Virginia's economy; whether it is in the coalfields, the ports in Hampton Roads or the affordable electricity Virginia businesses enjoy across the state, coal is a jobs creator,” Virginia FACES of Coal executive director Petrina Jones said.
“This rally is an opportunity for coal supporters to come together and send a message to Washington DC that the bureaucratic attacks on coal need to stop.”
Jones said the Obama administration and the EPA both made their “mission to destroy the coal industry” clear in recent months.
She said the agency’s new maximum achievable control technology rule and greenhouse gas emissions rule proposal would have devastating effects on the operations of Virginia and all of Appalachia, all on the heels of the government’s surface mining permit moratorium in the region.
“We are proud of Virginia coal and coal miners and we intend to stand up with Virginia's elected leaders to defend coal jobs and defend Virginia's economy,” Jones said.
“If the Obama administration thinks they can just attack our jobs and pretend we won't notice, they are wrong and we will make sure they know they are wrong.”
FACES previously held a “Rally for Coal Jobs” in Virginia in February.
The rally is open to the public.
For more details on the event or getting to the venue, visit the FACES website.
