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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Agronics, Inc.
Five-docket settlement approved with $17,000 penalty
Agronics, Inc. faced civil penalty proceedings in five consolidated dockets concerning its Clod Buster Pit No. 1. After a settlement conference and hearings, the Secretary vacated three citations and proposed reducing the penalty to $17,000. Judge Gary Melick found the settlement acceptable under…
RAG Emerald Resources Corp.
Pre-shift examination violation affirmed, $55 penalty assessed
The case concerned work at RAG Emerald Resources Corp.'s Emerald No. 1 Mine. MSHA alleged that the company assigned certified persons to work in return air courses, escapeways, and bleeder entries before those areas received the required pre-shift examination. The issue was whether supplemental…
Dotson Trucking Company, Incorporated
Haul-road and brake citations affirmed after fatal accident
A truck driver died after losing control of a refuse truck on a steep, slick haul road at the Long Fork Preparation Plant. The Secretary alleged that the truck lacked adequate brakes and was operated at an imprudent speed for the road conditions. Judge Gary Melick found that Dotson Trucking…
J & C Mining, L.L.C. and Manalapan Mining Co., Inc.
Discrimination proceeding dismissed
Grant Noe alleged that J & C Mining constructively discharged him after he refused a transfer to the third shift. He said he was concerned about the shift foreman, prior injuries, and the effect on his family. Judge Gary Melick found that Noe did not have a good-faith, reasonable belief that the…
Eagle Coal Company, Inc.
Temporary reinstatement ordered
Raymond Roman alleged that Eagle Coal Company constructively discharged him after he complained about excessive dust, met with an MSHA investigator, and observed an unsafe electrical condition. Judge Gary Melick found that the temporary-reinstatement application was not frivolous because the…
Holt Company of Texas
Fatality-related citations modified
Holt Company of Texas was cited after mechanic Benny Duncan suffered fatal injuries while working on a Caterpillar 990 loader without securing its raised bucket. Judge Gary Melick found that the failure to secure the bucket violated the mobile-equipment standard and was significant and substantial…
Keystone Cement Company
Motion to compel informant identities denied
Keystone Cement asked the judge to require the Secretary to identify which named witnesses had provided particular interview statements to MSHA. The Secretary had disclosed the potential witnesses and produced interview notes, but redacted each interviewee's identity based on the government…
Consolidation Coal Company
Mary Johnson v. Consolidation Coal Company (FMSHRC WEVA 99-81-D): Mine Act discrimination complaint dismissed
Mary Johnson alleged that Consolidation Coal Company delayed accepting a Workers’ Compensation claim for injuries she suffered while passing through a man-door at the Loveridge No. 22 Mine, which delayed her Workers’ Compensation payments. She sought interest on the late benefits under section…
Douglas R. Rushford Trucking
Wheel-rim fatality citations split
Douglas R. Rushford Trucking operated the Seymour Road Pit, where mechanic and welder Nile Arnold was fatally injured when a wheel rim exploded during tire inflation. The ALJ found that the mine did not use the required wheel restraint or stand-off inflation device, and that it failed to notify…
Jim Walter Resources, Inc.
Withdrawal order modified after remand
Jim Walter Resources contested a citation and withdrawal order for combustible trash in the No. 7 Mine. The case returned to the ALJ after appellate and Commission review required consideration of non-violative trash near the cited condition when assessing unwarrantable failure. The ALJ found that…
Consolidation Coal Company
Two coal-accumulation orders affirmed
Consolidation Coal operated the Humphrey No. 7 Mine, where an inspector found large accumulations of coal spillage in active workings and found that a preshift examiner had not recorded the conditions. Judge Gary Melick affirmed two section 104(d)(2) orders, concluding that the accumulations…
Reading Anthracite Company
Discrimination complaint dismissed
William Kaczmarczyk, an applicant for employment with Reading Anthracite Company, claimed that the company discriminated against him by placing another employee in an electrician position instead of recalling him from layoff. He argued that the decision violated the collective bargaining agreement…
Walker Stone Company Inc.
Seatbelt citation affirmed with reduced penalty
Walker Stone operated a portable plant where an employee was observed operating a bulldozer without a seatbelt. The judge found the violation significant and substantial, considering that the equipment could operate near a five- or six-foot highwall, but credited the company's training and prior…
Roger Richardson
Individual penalty case dismissed
Roger Richardson was the superintendent of Solid Energy Mining Company's underground coal mine when MSHA alleged that the mine had second-mined coal pillars required by its approved ventilation plan. The Secretary sought an individual penalty under section 110(c) of the Mine Act, which requires…
Consolidation Coal Company
Preshift-examination citation vacated
Consolidation Coal operated the Robinson Run No. 95 Mine. The Secretary alleged that the mine’s preshift examiner failed to report loose coal and float coal dust conditions on belt conveyors and sought $4,350 in penalties. The parties settled two underlying citation penalties for a combined $1,588…
The Doe Run Company
Ground-control citations modified after fatal fall
The Doe Run Company operated the underground Casteel-Buick lead mine. Senior surveyor Jeffrey Sadler was fatally injured when a slab of rock fell while he was setting up a surveying instrument in an underground stope. Judge Gary Melick found that the operator should have tested the ground and taken…
Highway 195 Crushed Stone, Inc.
One citation vacated and two affirmed
Highway 195 Crushed Stone operated a crushed stone facility in Texas. MSHA cited the company for an unguarded tail pulley, a partially guarded tail pulley above a travelway, and an unbermed elevated roadway, proposing $191 in penalties. Judge Gary Melick vacated the first citation because the…
Consolidation Coal Company
Discrimination settlement approved
Consolidation Coal Company faced a discrimination proceeding brought on behalf of Richard E. Glover and Leon Kehrer, along with a civil penalty petition. Judge Gary Melick approved the parties' settlement, which required a $5,000 civil penalty and an agreed posting at the mine. The judge ordered…
Consolidation Coal Company
Discrimination settlement approved
Consolidation Coal Company faced a discrimination proceeding brought on behalf of Kenneth Hannah, Phillip J. Payne, and Floyd Mezo, along with a civil penalty petition. Judge Gary Melick approved a settlement requiring back pay and interest, expungement of references to the incident from personnel…
Bear Ridge Mining, Inc.
Roof-control citation vacated after fatal rock fall
Bear Ridge Mining was cited after section foreman Michael Bandy was killed by a roof fall in the No. 6 entry of the mine. The Secretary alleged that Bear Ridge violated 30 C.F.R. § 75.202(a) by removing three wood cribs without providing other roof control and sought a $40,000 civil penalty. The…
Spa City Gravel
Loader and first-aid citations affirmed, three citations vacated
Spa City Gravel faced 14 alleged violations at its gravel mine and a proposed total penalty of $2,479. The Secretary vacated three citations, and the parties settled nine others for $1,176. Judge Gary Melick affirmed a significant and substantial citation after a mechanic worked on a running…
Jim Walter Resources, Incorporated
Discrimination settlement approved
Bennard Smith brought a Mine Act discrimination complaint against Jim Walter Resources, and the parties later moved to approve a settlement. Judge Gary Melick found the settlement acceptable after considering the parties' representations, supporting documents, and the full trial record. The order…
Jim Walter Resources Incorporated
One discrimination claim denied and one affirmed
Bennard Smith, a longwall helper at Jim Walter Resources' No. 3 Mine, alleged that two transfers from a producing longwall to an idle longwall were retaliation for safety complaints. Judge Gary Melick excused Smith's late filing of the first complaint because he had only recently learned about the…
Island Creek Mining Company
Coal accumulation citation affirmed with reduced penalty
MSHA cited Island Creek Mining Company after finding loose coal accumulated beneath and alongside a conveyor belt at the VP No. 8 Mine. The judge found that the company violated 30 C.F.R. § 75.400 and that the follow-up order was valid because the condition had not been fully abated within the…
Cantera Green
Seventeen violations partly modified and affirmed
MSHA alleged 17 violations at Cantera Green, including unsafe access to crusher and conveyor equipment, guarding problems, electrical hazards, and a missing workplace examination record. The judge found the cited conditions were proven, but he rejected several unwarrantable-failure findings and…
Anderson Sand & Gravel
Five citations affirmed after loader accident
MSHA cited Anderson Sand & Gravel after a front-end loader accident in which the operator suffered broken ribs, a punctured lung, and head wounds. The citations concerned seat-belt use, preservation and reporting of the accident, the loader's pre-operational inspection, and an inoperable parking…
Consol Pennsylvania Coal
Belt-scraper citation vacated and second citation settled for $200
Consol Pennsylvania Coal operated the Enlow Fork Mine. MSHA alleged that a belt scraper was not maintained in safe operating condition because a loose guide chain allowed belt splices to strike the scraper assembly, and separately issued another citation that the parties settled. Judge Gary Melick…
Consolidation Coal Company
Methane-explosion citations modified
Consolidation Coal's Blacksville No. 1 Mine experienced a methane explosion that killed four miners and injured two others during a shaft-capping and dewatering project. Judge Gary Melick vacated a citation alleging inadequate ventilation in inactive workings because the Secretary did not prove the…
Hobet Mining, Inc.
Dust-control citations partly resolved
Hobet Mining operated several West Virginia surface mines. The Secretary vacated one citation, and the judge accepted a settlement that modified two citations and reduced their total penalty to $720. The remaining five citations concerned visible drill dust and the requirement to use wet drilling…
Lone Mountain Processing, Inc.
Temporary reinstatement denied for job applicant
Roscoe Ray Young applied for a roof-bolter position at Lone Mountain Processing after expecting a layoff from another mine. He alleged that the company refused to hire him after unsafe roof conditions affected his timed roof-bolting test, and the Secretary sought temporary reinstatement while the…
Lesueur-Richmond Slate Corp.
Two safety citations affirmed with reduced penalties
Lesueur-Richmond Slate Corp. operated a surface slate mine and roofing plant. MSHA alleged that a table saw lacked a blade guard and that a front-end loader's backup alarm was not audible above surrounding noise. Judge Gary Melick found both violations proven and significant and substantial, but…
Consolidation Coal Company
Methane citation affirmed without S&S designation
MSHA cited Consolidation Coal Company after an inspector found 1.5 percent methane near a continuous miner and the electrical power was not disconnected promptly. Judge Gary Melick found that the operator violated the methane standard, but the record did not establish the required significant and…
Hoover Incorporated
Drill citation affirmed without S&S designation
Hoover Incorporated operated a surface limestone quarry where a drill was left unattended while its operator measured holes 150 to 180 feet away. Judge Gary Melick found that the company violated the rule requiring operating drills to be attended. He rejected the significant and substantial…
Blue Circle, Incorporated
Settlement approved on remand
Blue Circle, Incorporated faced five consolidated civil penalty proceedings at its Tulsa Plant. On remand, the parties proposed modifying and vacating certain citations and reducing the total penalties. Judge Gary Melick found the settlement acceptable under the Mine Act penalty criteria, approved…
Local 1702, District 31, United Mine Workers of America v. Consolidation Coal Company
Miner compensation claim dismissed
Local 1702, District 31 of the United Mine Workers of America sought compensation under Mine Act section 111 for 141 miners at Consolidation Coal Company's Blacksville No. 2 Mine. The union argued that the miners were entitled to compensation after MSHA issued an imminent-danger withdrawal order…
Eastern Associated Coal Corporation
Dust violations modified and penalties reduced
Eastern Associated Coal operated the Lightfoot No. 2 underground coal mine in West Virginia. The judge found that respirable-dust levels exceeded the applicable limit and that required follow-up samples were not submitted, but found that the operator's good-faith dust-control efforts and a misfiled…
Appalachian Mining, Inc.
Explosives-work communication citation affirmed
Appalachian Mining used a contractor to prepare a blast at its Alloy No. 1 Mine. The worker was alone in the blasting area, could not see or hear other mine employees, and was using an explosives truck without two-way communications. The judge found that handling explosives and carrying 50-pound…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Donald E. Zecco v. Consolidation Coal Company
Discrimination complaint dismissed
Donald E. Zecco alleged that Consolidation Coal Company transferred him from a production section to a construction project in retaliation for safety complaints about methane, sulfur, and mine ventilation. Judge Gary Melick found that Zecco's complaints were protected activity, but he did not prove…
Global Stone Penroc, Inc.
Summary decision denied
Global Stone Penroc sought summary decision on six citations and orders involving electrical grounding, equipment access, and damaged steps. Judge Gary Melick found genuine disputes about whether pumps were grounded, whether equivalent protection existed, whether safe access was provided, and…
Leeco, Incorporated
Discrimination penalty and reinstatement ordered
Leeco, Incorporated discharged Ronald Maxey after he made safety complaints to MSHA and caused inspections at the company’s No. 68 mine. Judge Gary Melick found that the discharge was intentional, violated the Mine Act’s discrimination protection, and was followed by an effort to create a false…
Consolidation Coal Company
Motion to dismiss compensation complaint denied
Local 1702, District 31, UMWA filed a compensation complaint on behalf of miners against Consolidation Coal Company. The company argued that the complaint had been served 153 days after it was filed and moved to dismiss. Judge Gary Melick applied Commission rules and Federal Rule of Civil Procedure…
Pontiki Coal Corporation
Discrimination settlement approved
The Secretary of Labor brought a discrimination complaint on behalf of Charles H. Dixon, Bernard Evans, Richard Glover, Edgar Oldham, Mark March, Don Riley, Charles Johnson, and eleven unnamed employees of Pontiki Coal Corporation. The Secretary also sought a $1,500 civil penalty. Judge Gary Melick…
Leeco, Incorporated
Discrimination complaint granted
Leeco, Incorporated discharged Ronald Maxey after he reported mine safety problems to MSHA. Judge Gary Melick found that the discharge was motivated by Maxey’s protected safety complaints and violated the Mine Act’s discrimination protection. The judge rejected Leeco’s account that the discharge…
Independence Coal Company, Inc.
Partial summary decision denied
Independence Coal Company contested a civil penalty proceeding involving a berm or guard condition on an elevated roadway at the Twilight-Winifrede Mine. The Secretary asked the Judge to treat an earlier unchallenged imminent-danger order as conclusive proof that the related citation involved a…
Jim Walter Resources, Inc.
Withdrawal order modified after remand
Jim Walter Resources was cited after MSHA found combustible trash accumulations in active and inactive areas of its No. 7 Mine. On remand from the D.C. Circuit and the Commission, Judge Gary Melick considered whether non-violative accumulations in the inactive area could support an…
Akzo Salt Company, Inc.
Damages and penalty ordered after discrimination finding
Akzo Salt Company, Inc. was ordered to pay damages after the parties stipulated to the amount owed to complainant James Rieke in a Mine Act discrimination proceeding. Judge Gary Melick ordered Akzo to pay Rieke $2,542.04 in damages and to pay MSHA a $2,000 civil penalty within 30 days. The order…
Consolidation Coal Company
Failure-to-abate order vacated after invalid dust sample
Consolidation Coal challenged a withdrawal order issued after MSHA alleged that the operator had not abated a respirable-dust citation at the Robinson Run No. 95 Mine. The underlying citation was based on samples averaging more than the applicable dust limit, and later samples were used to…
Consol of Kentucky, Inc.
Settled proceedings dismissed
Consol of Kentucky and Norman Blankenship faced a temporary-reinstatement proceeding and a related discrimination proceeding involving Dewey Runyon. After the parties reached a settlement, the Secretary requested permission to withdraw both the application and complaint. Judge Gary Melick approved…
Consolidation Coal Co.
Remand penalty set at $30
Consolidation Coal Company was ordered to pay back pay and interest to three miners whose protected work refusals had resulted in discipline, along with a civil penalty. On remand from the Commission, Judge Gary Melick found that the record supported only the operator's negligence and the gravity…
Eastern Associated Coal Corp.
Settlement enforcement motions denied
Eastern Associated Coal asked the ALJ to enforce an alleged agreement to vacate a citation, dismiss the case, and postpone the proceeding. Judge Gary Melick found that the company had not identified consideration supporting the alleged promise and that no enforceable settlement agreement could be…
Whayne Supply Company
Remand dismissal
Whayne Supply Company contested an MSHA order. On remand, Judge Gary Melick found the proceeding moot because the Secretary had not timely sought Commission review and the earlier ALJ decision vacating the underlying order was final. The judge dismissed the case.
Whayne Supply Company
Remand dismissal
Whayne Supply Company contested an MSHA order. On remand, Judge Gary Melick found the proceeding moot because the Secretary had not timely sought Commission review and the earlier ALJ decision vacating the underlying order was final. The judge dismissed the case.
Secretary of Labor v. Capitol Cement Corp.
Lockout and fall-protection violations affirmed
Capitol Cement operated a cement plant in Martinsburg, West Virginia. The judge affirmed a citation for failing to de-energize and lock out a 480-volt overhead crane hot rail before work, and an order for failing to use a safety belt while working about 50 feet above the ground. The judge also…
Secretary of Labor v. Capitol Cement Corp.
Lockout and fall-protection violations affirmed
Capitol Cement operated a cement plant in Martinsburg, West Virginia. The judge affirmed a citation for failing to de-energize and lock out a 480-volt overhead crane hot rail before work, and an order for failing to use a safety belt while working about 50 feet above the ground. The judge also…
Capitol Cement Corp.
Safety violations affirmed after disabling electrical injury
Capitol Cement challenged citations and a withdrawal order issued after a shift supervisor suffered disabling electrical burns while working near an energized overhead crane rail without de-energizing and locking out the power. The case also involved the failure to wear a safety belt and line while…
Lendon Shepherd v. Consol of Kentucky, Inc.
Discrimination complaint dismissed as untimely
Lendon Shepherd alleged that Consol of Kentucky discharged him in violation of the Mine Act's miner-protection provision after a work-related injury and a disputed pre-employment physical. He said he had contacted MSHA within the required period, but the judge credited testimony that no complaint…
Winn Construction Co., Inc.
Pump-house transport citations affirmed after electrical contact
Winn Construction was moving a steel pump house at the Browns Valley Mine when the load shifted and the boom of the cherry picker contacted an energized 7,200-volt overhead line. A worker touching the pump house suffered electrical burns and was treated in intensive care before returning to work…
Wimpey Minerals
Discrimination case dismissed after damages agreement
William F. Metz and Wimpey Minerals reached an agreement regarding damages in a discrimination proceeding. Judge Gary Melick ordered Wimpey Minerals to pay total damages, including interest, of $58,158 within 15 days. He then dismissed the case.
Consolidation Coal Company
Emergency-brake order affirmed with $4,000 penalty
Consolidation Coal Company contested two withdrawal orders at the Loveridge No. 22 Mine. One order involved a settlement for a $1,800 penalty, and the judge accepted that settlement. The other concerned an underground scoop whose emergency parking brakes had substantial gaps and could not function…
Christman Quarry
Citation affirmed, penalty reduced to $1
Christman Quarry was cited after a bulldozer operator was fatally injured when the bulldozer moved while unattended. The judge found that the machine had not been left with its controls in park and its parking brake set, violating 30 C.F.R. § 56.14207. Because the precise cause and circumstances…
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.