Federal Agency Decisions
Workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), and environmental appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board, each with a plain-English summary, the standards it cites, and whether it counts as precedent. More agencies are coming.
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Cam Mining, LLC
Late penalty petitions remained unsupported on remand
Cam Mining obtained summary decision dismissing three late-filed penalty petitions after the Secretary did not respond to its motion or dispute its facts. The Commission vacated that ruling and remanded for an explanation of why the judge had not followed an earlier order allowing the late filings…
Pattison Sand Company, LLC
Ground-control dismissal and summary motions denied
MSHA cited hazardous cracked and loose ground extending about 242 feet at Pattison Sand's mine and restricted the area to miners correcting the condition. Pattison argued that this restriction effectively closed the entire mine and exceeded the authority of a section 104(a) citation. The Secretary…
Excel Mining, LLC
Pump permissibility violations yield $49,000 penalty
Two de-watering pump starter boxes in Excel Mining's underground coal mine lacked packing needed to contain an internal ignition, and the defects had remained for at least a month. Judge Gary Melick found the violations S&S because the pumps were near methane-releasing seals, multiple return air…
Bledsoe Coal Corporation
Lifeline order affirmed and accumulation citation vacated
MSHA charged Bledsoe Coal with six violations at Mine No. 4, and the parties settled four of them. Judge Gary Melick affirmed an order for failing to maintain a continuous directional lifeline in the secondary escapeway for at least five crosscuts. He found that violation significant and…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Thurman Wayne Pruitt v. Grand Eagle Mining, Inc.
Reinstatement and discrimination cases dismissed
The Secretary asked to withdraw temporary-reinstatement and discrimination complaints involving miner Thurman Wayne Pruitt and Grand Eagle Mining. Pruitt agreed to the withdrawal based on a mutually agreeable settlement. Judge Gary Melick permitted the withdrawal under 29 C.F.R. § 2700.11 and…
American Coal Company
Special-assessment forms ordered disclosed
American Coal moved to compel MSHA to produce special-assessment review forms and eight internal memoranda. Judge Gary Melick held that the review forms were not protected by the deliberative-process privilege because MSHA adopted their recommendations when it issued the citations, and because the…
CAM Mining, LLC
Late penalty petitions dismissed
CAM Mining moved for summary decision because the Secretary filed three penalty petitions about four months after they were due. The Secretary did not respond, and Judge Gary Melick found that the asserted explanation concerned delivery of the original assessment rather than a later litigation…
Big Ridge, Inc.
Multiple violations decided and penalties assessed
Big Ridge contested enforcement actions involving hazardous-condition examinations, its roof-control plan, combustible accumulations, electrical equipment, a tool-transport safeguard, and equipment permissibility at the Willow Lake Portal mine. Judge Gary Melick affirmed four enforcement actions as…
American Coal Company
Settlement approved for $163,516
American Coal and the Secretary settled all pending enforcement actions in six consolidated Galatia Mine dockets. The Secretary stated that further evaluation showed insufficient evidence to sustain the original charges and separately vacated Citation No. 6617943. Judge Gary Melick approved the…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Thurman Wayne Pruitt v. Grand Eagle Mining, Inc.
Physical reinstatement changed to economic reinstatement
An earlier order required Grand Eagle Mining to return Thurman Wayne Pruitt to his former or an equivalent job while his discrimination claim was pending. Grand Eagle asked instead to pay his full wages and benefits without returning him to the site, citing admitted safety incidents and concern…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Thurman Wayne Pruitt v. Grand Eagle Mining, Inc.
Temporary reinstatement granted after safety complaints
Thurman Wayne Pruitt reported a large diesel-fuel spill to MSHA and later raised concerns about unsafe mobile equipment and missing truck lights before Grand Eagle Mining discharged him. Grand Eagle relied on Pruitt's admitted safety violations, including working without lockout and fall…
Johnco Material, Inc.
Equipment inspection violations affirmed
Johnco Materials admitted three equipment-safety violations and disputed only the proposed penalties. The violations involved damaged pressure gauges on an oxygen and acetylene torch, failure to inspect a service truck before use, and a nonworking backup alarm on a bulldozer. Johnco argued that…
Jim Walter Resources, Inc.
Contractor fall citation affirmed with no operator negligence
An employee of contractor O & O Services fell 25 feet onto a concrete platform while working over an opening without fall protection at Jim Walter Resources' No. 4 Mine. The judge held that O & O violated the fall-protection standard and that JWR was strictly liable as the mine operator, even…
Consolidation Coal Company
Seven unwarrantable-failure orders affirmed
MSHA issued seven section 104(d)(2) orders at Consolidation Coal's Loveridge No. 22 underground mine. The orders involved extensive combustible coal and coal-dust accumulations, inadequate preshift examinations that failed to report those hazards, a continuous miner returned to service with major…
Secretary of Labor v. Highland Mining Co., LLC
Belt and ventilation violations bring $118,340
Highland Mining settled 36 of 39 cited violations for $78,340 and tried three citations involving a rubbing belt component, mining direction, and ventilation. Judge Gary Melick affirmed an S&S equipment-maintenance citation because a broken roller chair was smoking against the belt and could ignite…
Big Ridge, Inc.
Seven orders affirmed, five vacated
MSHA charged Big Ridge with 12 violations at the Willow Lake Mine, including combustible accumulations, examination failures, equipment conditions, roof hazards, and uncorrected hazardous conditions. Judge Gary Melick affirmed seven orders and vacated five after evaluating the evidence for each…
Eureka Rock, LLC
Owner hours had to be reported to MSHA
Eureka Rock argued that its local screening operation did not affect interstate commerce and that an owner-operator with no other employees did not have to report work hours to MSHA. Judge Gary Melick held that the operation fell under the Mine Act because local mines collectively affect interstate…
Eugene Badonie v. Peabody Western Coal Company
Shift-transfer retaliation claim dismissed
Eugene Badonie filed a life-threatening safety alert about haul trucks crossing rough windrows and learned the next morning that he would remain on the midnight shift. Judge Gary Melick found that the safety report was protected activity and that the close timing initially supported an inference of…
Abundance Coal, Inc. v. Secretary of Labor
Partial EAJA award set at $11,586.59
Abundance Coal had prevailed in expedited contest proceedings and was entitled to fees because the Secretary's trial position was not substantially justified. Judge Gary Melick found serious defects in Abundance's verification and itemized billing, but allowed a partial award where the charges were…
Abundance Coal, Inc. v. Secretary of Labor
EAJA liability found, fee record left open
Abundance Coal prevailed in an expedited contest after a judge vacated a citation under 30 C.F.R. § 75.336(c) because the standard did not apply to its 120 psi mine seals. The company then sought $13,911.59 in attorney fees and costs under the Equal Access to Justice Act. Judge Gary Melick held…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Mark Gray v. North Fork Coal Corporation
Temporary reinstatement dissolved after Secretary declined complaint
Mark Gray had received temporary economic reinstatement after the Judge found that the Secretary's discrimination application was not frivolously brought. The Secretary later told Gray that she would not file a discrimination complaint on his behalf. Judge Gary Melick concluded that temporary…
Secretary of Labor v. Consolidation Coal Company
Belt accumulation and preshift orders affirmed
MSHA cited hazardous coal accumulations, inadequate preshift examinations, and an unguarded pulley at Consolidation Coal's Loveridge No. 22 Mine. Judge Gary Melick found that the extensive belt accumulations were obvious, had existed over multiple shifts, and created serious fire hazards near…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Mark Gray v. North Fork Coal Corporation
Economic reinstatement terms approved
After temporary reinstatement was granted, Mark Gray, North Fork Coal, and the Secretary agreed that Gray would receive economic reinstatement instead of returning to work. The agreement required weekly pay of $1,179.70 based on his prior regular and overtime hours, with normal deductions. North…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Mark Gray v. North Fork Coal Corporation
Roof bolter temporarily reinstated
Roof bolter Mark Gray alleged that North Fork discharged him after he stopped to hang ventilation curtains and refused to bolt a deep cut that he believed violated the roof-control plan and had unsafe roof. Judge Gary Melick found that those allegations described protected safety complaints and a…
Secretary of Labor v. East Tennessee Zinc Company, LLC
Drug and training-plan citations vacated
MSHA cited East Tennessee Zinc after marijuana was found hidden in a contractor work area and after an inspector said the approved training plan was not available at the mine site. Judge Gary Melick vacated the drug citation because the Secretary did not show that the operator knowingly consented…
Jim Walter Resources, Inc.
Inaccessible seal plan was unsuitable
Jim Walter Resources challenged a citation alleging that it operated the No. 7 Mine under an unapproved ventilation plan. Its proposed plan supplement would place seals where they became inaccessible as the active longwall advanced, preventing required weekly hazard examinations, methane testing…
Walter Kuhl
Three violations affirmed and $42,374 ordered
Walter Kuhl operated the Fourmile Gravel Pit and settled all but three of the charging documents in six civil penalty proceedings. Judge Gary Melick found that Kuhl deliberately undercut a 30-to-40-foot highwall in violation of 30 C.F.R. § 56.3130 and directed an employee to work near it. The judge…
Richard Jaimes v. Stansley Mineral Resources, Inc.
Late discrimination complaint dismissed
Richard Jaimes alleged that Stansley Mineral Resources fired him after he raised safety concerns about haul-truck tires, a leaking wheel cylinder, and coworker conduct. He filed his MSHA discrimination complaint almost five months after the Mine Act's 60-day deadline because he chose to await the…
Webster County Coal
Damaged trailing-cable splices upheld as S&S
Webster County Coal faced multiple citations at the Dotiki Mine and settled all but two before the hearing. The remaining citations involved damaged permanent splices on energized trailing cables carrying 300 volts direct current and 995 volts alternating current. Webster admitted both violations…
Highland Mining Co., LLC
Three violations affirmed without S&S findings
Highland faced 28 violations and $74,232 in proposed penalties at its Highland 9 mine. The parties settled 25 violations, leaving two combustible-oil accumulation citations and one diesel-equipment ventilation citation for decision. Highland admitted the three violations but challenged their…
Gabriel Robles v. Lafarge North America, Inc.
Discrimination complaint dismissed as untimely
Gabriel Robles alleged that Lafarge terminated him because of protected activity under the Mine Act. His MSHA discrimination complaint was filed more than five months after the statutory 60-day deadline. Robles said poverty prevented him from affording the postage, but the Judge found that…
Solid Energy Mining Company
Dust and scoop citations reduced to non-S&S
MSHA cited float coal dust along about 642 feet of a belt entry and an outby scoop whose breaker could not be reset from the operator's compartment. The Judge affirmed the dust violation but rejected S&S because the layer was thin and MSHA identified no ignition source, methane outside the seals…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol of Kentucky, Inc.
Consol of Kentucky, Inc. (FMSHRC KENT 2007-63): High-voltage lockout violations affirmed with $51,000 in penalties
An electrician at Consol's Beaver Gap E-3 Mine suffered severe electrical shock while working in a high-voltage power center. Judge Gary Melick held that Consol's two-person procedure violated the requirement that each person performing electrical work personally lock and tag the disconnecting…
Webster County Coal, LLC
Roof-fall reporting citation vacated on summary decision
MSHA cited Webster County Coal for not filing an accident report after a roof fall. The mine had already dangered off the affected area because of bad roof, and miners were not permitted to work or travel there before the fall occurred. Judge Gary Melick held that the location was therefore not…
Banner Blue Coal Company
Citation vacated after Secretary default
Banner Blue Coal Company contested Citation No. 7316850, which had been issued at the Apollo Mine on September 7, 2006. The Secretary did not respond to Judge Gary Melick's order requiring a response by October 26, 2007. The judge granted the company's contest by default. He vacated the citation.
Shawn Johnson v. David Huffman Trucking Inc.
Discharged miner awarded back pay and fees
An earlier decision found that David Huffman Trucking unlawfully discharged Shawn Johnson in violation of the Mine Act's discrimination protections. After the parties could not agree on damages, Judge Gary Melick calculated Johnson's lost earnings through the date he left the labor market to become…
Consol of Kentucky, Inc.
Imminent-danger methane order vacated
MSHA withdrew miners from Consol's Jones Fork E-3 Mine after sampling found methane and oxygen levels behind a set of seals within an explosive range. Judge Gary Melick found that an explosive atmosphere alone did not establish an imminent danger without a reasonably likely ignition source. MSHA's…
Oak Grove Resources, LLC
Scoop citation upheld, cable citation reduced
Oak Grove admitted that a battery-powered scoop had an excessive gap in its electrical enclosure and that a shuttle-car cable splice was deteriorated. Judge Gary Melick found the scoop violation S&S and highly grave because the gassy mine had a history of methane ignitions and the gap could allow…
Lattimore Materials Company, LP
Three safety violations affirmed after shaker-deck accident
Three miners were seriously injured when a 4,200-pound replacement shaker deck slid into place while they worked in its path. Judge Gary Melick found that the deck remained a suspended load and that the plant manager rejected a miner's proposal to use a come-along as a brake. He affirmed the…
Morning Glory Gold Mines
Recusal denied, case referred for reassignment
Morning Glory asked Judge Gary Melick to recuse himself, relying on an appellate reversal of part of an earlier decision involving the mine and the judge's use of the owner's prior opening statement. The judge found that the affidavit did not describe detailed facts showing personal bias. He…
Steven C. Collins v. Northfork Coal Company
Discrimination complaint dismissed after voluntary resignation finding
Steven Collins complained about a worn grinder brush after a piece of steel struck a can in his shirt pocket. Judge Gary Melick found that the safety complaints were protected activity under the Mine Act. He credited testimony that Collins quit during the ensuing dispute rather than being…
Shawn Johnson v. Huffman Trucking, Inc.
Safety-complaint retaliation found and reinstatement ordered
Truck driver Shawn Johnson repeatedly reported defective brakes and a leaking third-axle valve, and MSHA cited the equipment after inspections. Huffman Trucking laid him off after an April 4 inspection and later discharged him after another written defect report. Judge Gary Melick found direct and…
Emerald Coal Resources, LP
Manufacturer-installed insulation satisfied the standard
Emerald Coal Resources contested a citation alleging that a telephone communication wire at its longwall belt starter lacked additional insulation where it contacted energized 480-volt power cables. The evidence showed that the wire had additional insulation supplied by its manufacturer, that the…
Asphalt Paving Supply Inc.
Cable-bushing violation affirmed without negligence
Asphalt Paving Supply contested a citation involving a 110-volt cable whose outer jacket had pulled away from a junction-box bushing, leaving its insulated conductors exposed. The company did not dispute the condition but argued that it had arisen overnight, likely because of cattle near the pond…
Webster County Coal, LLC
Permissibility citation and $629 penalty affirmed
Webster County Coal did not dispute that a battery-box locking bar was missing from an electric scoop at its Dotiki Mine, leaving the equipment outside the permissible condition required by 30 C.F.R. § 75.503. The company challenged a later withdrawal order and the penalty consequences of its…
Summit Anthracite, Inc.
Fan violation affirmed, two citations vacated
Summit Anthracite was driving the Brockton Slope to support future coal production, so Judge Gary Melick held that the site was a mine covered by the Mine Act. He vacated a slope-plan citation because the cited standard required submitting and obtaining approval of a plan, which Summit had done…
Freeman Rock, Inc.
Three low-gravity violations affirmed
Freeman Rock operated a wash plant and portable crusher. Judge Gary Melick found violations involving an unguarded compressor V-belt drive, nonfunctional front lights on a bulldozer, and missing berms or guardrails on a quarry access road. He found the violations low in gravity, with little…
Master Aggregates Toa Baja Corp.
Late discovery response change denied
Master Aggregates asked to change an admission about whether Jeffrey Albrecht examined ground conditions at the base of a highwall before a fatality. The company first admitted the statement, then sought to deny it on the day of trial, attributing the original response to an error by counsel. Judge…
William Arthur Bowen
Discrimination complaint dismissed
William Arthur Bowen alleged that Sidney Coal Company suspended and terminated him because he complained about unsafe highwall conditions and filed a complaint with MSHA. Judge Gary Melick found that Bowen resigned before any adverse employment action, based on the credible evidence about his…
Imerys Pigments, LLC
Three citations affirmed, one vacated
MSHA cited Imerys Pigments for wet and cluttered work areas, uncovered openings, an unprotected highwall edge, and unguarded moving machine parts. Judge Gary Melick affirmed the wet-floor and debris citation, the uncovered-openings citation, and the moving-parts citation, while vacating the…
Crimson Stone
Guarding citation affirmed as significant and substantial
Crimson Stone was cited after an inspector found a loose and deteriorated conveyor guard that exposed pinch points at the chain drive, head pulley, and tail pulley. The company argued that the dry plant was not operating when the citation was issued, but the judge held that the guarding standard…
Tamko Roofing Products
One citation vacated and two affirmed
MSHA cited Tamko Roofing Products at its Frederick grinding plant for three alleged safety violations and proposed civil penalties. Judge Gary Melick accepted Tamko's agreement to pay the proposed penalty for one citation, affirmed the citation for failing to perform annual grounding-system…
Original Sixteen to One Mine, Inc.
Fire and escape-route citations affirmed with $4,180 penalty
Original Sixteen to One Mine operated a small underground mine in California. MSHA cited the mine for an inoperable portal fire-suppression system, an unsafe and unmarked secondary escape route, missing fire-warning equipment, combustible-fuel hazards, and a combustible trailer near the portal…
Currituck Sand Inc.
Settlement approved for a $1,100 penalty
The Secretary sought a civil penalty against Currituck Sand Inc. and the parties submitted a settlement agreement. The agreement proposed reducing the penalty to $1,100. Judge Gary Melick considered the parties' submissions and found the settlement acceptable under the Mine Act's penalty criteria…
U.S. Steel Mining Company, Inc.
U.S. Steel Mining Company (FMSHRC SE 2002-126): Remanded settlement approved for a $25 penalty
The case returned to the Administrative Law Judge after the Commission remanded it for further proceedings. The Secretary then moved to approve a settlement and dismiss the case, proposing a reduced penalty of $25. Judge Gary Melick found the settlement acceptable under the Mine Act's penalty…
Tamko Roofing Products, Inc.
Milling jurisdiction granted, merits reserved
MSHA sought summary decision establishing jurisdiction over Tamko Roofing Products' Frederick Grinding Mill and affirming three citations at $60 each. Tamko argued that its milling operation was separate from the adjacent limestone quarry and did not receive mine product from that quarry. Judge…
Secretary of Labor v. Eighty Four Mining Company
Settlement approved for $85,000
Eighty Four Mining Company and the Secretary reached a settlement in a civil penalty proceeding involving Mine 84. The parties agreed that one order would be vacated, other charging documents would be modified, and the total penalty would be reduced to $85,000. Judge Gary Melick found the…
Martin Marietta Aggregates
Highwall hazard citation affirmed
A pit loader at Martin Marietta's Cayce Quarry was partly engulfed by material falling from a bench, while loose material remained above the work area. Judge Gary Melick found that the operator violated the highwall safety standard and that the violation was significant and substantial. He found…
24/7 Service & Supply, Inc.
Decision amended under Commission Rule 69(c)
Judge Gary Melick amended the July 30, 2004 decision in the discrimination proceeding involving Raymond George and 24/7 Service and Supply. Under Commission Rule 69(c), the amendment substitutes a corrected paragraph three on page eight of the earlier decision. The replacement paragraph recounts…
24/7 Service & Supply, Inc.
Decision amended under Commission Rule 69(c)
Judge Gary Melick amended the July 30, 2004 decision in the discrimination proceeding involving Raymond George and 24/7 Service and Supply. Under Commission Rule 69(c), the amendment substitutes a corrected paragraph three on page eight of the earlier decision. The replacement paragraph recounts…
What these documents are
- The agencies: Workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), and environmental permit and penalty appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board (EAB). Each decision page names its agency.
- Commission and Board decisions: Rulings by the agency's highest review level (the Commission at OSHRC and FMSHRC, the Environmental Appeals Board at EPA). These are citable as precedent, though a decision may have been appealed to a U.S. Court of Appeals after issuance.
- ALJ decisions: Rulings by the agency's Administrative Law Judges after a hearing. When no Commissioner directs review, an ALJ decision becomes a final order that binds the parties in that case but is not binding precedent: under 29 U.S.C. § 661(j) at OSHRC, and after the 40-day window of 30 U.S.C. § 823(d)(1) at FMSHRC.
- Why finality matters: Every page here says which kind of decision you are reading, so you know whether it is precedent you can cite or a final order that only shows how one judge ruled on one set of facts.
- Where they come from: Every page links the official public release from the deciding agency, and the full text on the page is that release. The plain-English summaries are written by Ezel.