Ezel / Agency Decisions / lake-2009-57-alj

Secretary of Labor v. Big Ridge, Inc. (ALJ decision, June 6, 2017)

Secretary of Labor v. Big Ridge, Inc. (FMSHRC LAKE 2009-57): Typo corrected in remand penalty footnote

Decision type
ALJ decision
Docket
LAKE 2009-57
Decided
June 6, 2017
Presiding judge
Jerold Feldman
Outcome
Procedural
Precedential status
Final order, not precedent
Checked against source
2026-08-01
Official source
Read the official release (fmshrc.gov)
PDF
View Official PDF

Apply this to your situation

This order from 2017 bound only the parties to this case; it isn't precedent. Ask about your situation and see what the current MSHA standards and Commission precedent say, with citations.

Currency note: this decision dates from 2017
The MSHA standards may have been amended, penalty amounts have been adjusted, and later Commission or court decisions may have changed the analysis since then. Treat this page as historical context, not current compliance advice. Verify the current standard before relying on any specific rule, threshold, or penalty mentioned here.
Corrected final order, not Commission precedent
This correction forms part of an ALJ decision that became the final decision of the Commission 40 days after issuance because the Commission did not direct further review (30 U.S.C. § 823(d)(1)). It binds the parties but is not binding on the Commission in other cases. The full text below is from the official FMSHRC release.
About this page: The plain-English summary and decision snapshot below were written by Ezel based on the official FMSHRC release. The full text is the agency's own release.
Read the official release (fmshrc.gov)

Plain-English summary

Judge Jerold Feldman corrected one word in a footnote to the previous day's decision on remand. The correction replaced “not” with “now,” clarifying that the parties had agreed to a $1,795 penalty for Citation No. 6674618 in Docket No. LAKE 2009-57. The corrected footnote also stated that Big Ridge had already paid $272,961 for the other citations and orders in five related dockets. The order made no other change to the remand decision.

Decision snapshot

  • Cited standard(s): None identified in this correction order
  • Outcome: A single typographical error in the prior decision's penalty footnote was corrected.
  • Key point: The correction clarified that the $1,795 penalty agreement had already been reached.

Full text (FMSHRC public release)

FEDERAL MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH REVIEW
COMMISSION

OFFICE OF
ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGES

1331 Pennsylvania
Avenue, NW, Suite 520N

Washington , DC 20004

June 6, 2017

SECRETARY OF LABOR

MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH  

ADMINISTRATION (MSHA),

Petitioner,

v.

BIG RIDGE, INC.,

Respondent.

CIVIL PENALTY PROCEEDING

Docket No. LAKE 2009-57

A.C. No. 11-03054-163984

Mine:  Willow Lake Portal

ORDER CORRECTING
TYPOGRAPHICAL ERROR

Before:              Judge Feldman

The Decision on Remand and Order to Pay issued on June 5, 2017, IS HEREBY corrected to replace the word “not” with “now” in the second sentence of footnote one, as follows:

The
caption in the Commission’s remand also concerned Docket Nos. LAKE 2008-436, LAKE 2009-58, LAKE 2009-59, and LAKE 2009-378.  With the exception of Citation No. 6674618 in Docket No. LAKE 2009-57, for which the parties have now agreed upon payment of a $1,795.00 civil penalty, Judge Melick ordered that Big Ridge pay a total civil penalty of $272,961.00 in satisfaction of the all other citations/orders in these five dockets.  Big Ridge has timely paid the
$272,961.00 civil penalty.

/s/ Jerold Feldman

Jerold Feldman

Administrative Law Judge

Distribution:

Emily B. Hays, Esq., U.S. Department of Labor, Office of the Solicitor, 1244 Speer Blvd., Suite 216, Denver, CO 80204-3516

Arthur Wolfson, Esq., Jackson Kelly PLLC, Three Gateway Center, 401 Liberty Avenue, Suite 1500, Pittsburgh, PA 15222

/acp

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