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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O'Neal Machine & Repair, Inc.
Settlement approved and $2,600 assessed
O'Neal Machine & Repair, Inc. was the respondent in a civil penalty proceeding involving Lobby No. 4 Mine. The parties proposed a settlement that reduced the penalty from $5,300 to $2,600. Judge Gary Melick found the settlement appropriate under the Mine Act's penalty criteria and ordered the…
Rushton Mining Company v. Secretary of Labor
Summary decision denied in hearing-conservation dispute
Rushton Mining challenged Citation No. 2889705, which alleged that the company failed to submit a hearing-conservation program plan within 60 days after a notice of violation. Rushton argued that the plan requirement applied only after a supplemental noise survey, while the Secretary argued that…
Secretary of Labor v. Blue Circle Atlantic, Incorporated
Unguarded moving conveyor pulley violation affirmed with $400 penalty
Blue Circle Atlantic operated a rock and stone mine where an employee applied speedi-dry to a conveyor pulley while the guard was open and the conveyor was running. The company conceded that the condition violated the rule requiring guards to be in place while machinery operates, but argued that an…
Bandas Industries Incorporated
Mixed citation results and $1,638 in penalties
Bandas Industries faced 24 alleged violations at its Nolanville Quarry Plant in two dockets. The judge approved a settlement for 18 citations, withdrew one citation for lack of expert testimony, and dismissed another because the inspector could not recall the relevant facts. Of the three remaining…
K T K Mining and Construction Company
Five settlements approved and penalties reduced
K T K Mining and Construction Company faced five civil penalty proceedings involving its K T K No. 2 Mine. The parties proposed settlements that reduced the penalties from $3,157 to $335 for KENT 88-113, from $16,331 to $2,826 for KENT 88-114, from $80 to $13.32 for KENT 88-125, from $1,294 to…
Tanner Sand & Gravel
Settlement approved and $40 penalty assessed
Tanner Sand & Gravel was the respondent in a Mine Act civil penalty proceeding brought by the Secretary of Labor through MSHA. The parties asked the judge to approve a settlement and dismiss the case, and the company agreed to pay the proposed $40 penalty in full. Judge Gary Melick found the…
Monterey Coal Company
Fees and expenses awarded after discrimination case
Paula L. Price had prevailed on one discrimination allegation against Monterey Coal Company, and the ALJ then considered her request for attorney's fees and other expenses. The judge found that $187.36 in grievance-related expenses was sufficiently connected to the discrimination proceeding, but…
Troy W. Conway, Jr. v. Peabody Coal Company
Discrimination complaint dismissed despite protected activity
Troy W. Conway, Jr., a lab technician at Peabody Coal Company's Camp No. 9 Preparation Plant, complained about missing hazard information and protective equipment for perchlorethylene used in coal testing. Judge Gary Melick found that Conway engaged in protected safety activity and that the…
Jim Walter Resources, Inc.
Citation for intending to violate ventilation-plan rule vacated
MSHA cited Jim Walter Resources after the operator stated that it would no longer adopt its previously approved ventilation, methane, and dust control plan while seeking approval of a supplement. The citation described the violation as intending to adopt an unapproved plan, but the Secretary argued…
Frank Irey, Jr., Inc.
Training order modified and $700 in penalties assessed
Frank Irey, Jr., Inc. faced two citations at the Loveridge Preparation Plant concerning miner training and welding near float coal dust. The parties settled one citation for its proposed $500 penalty, while the judge found that employees doing extended maintenance work were miners covered by the…
Beth Energy Mines, Inc.
District-wide safeguard citation vacated
Beth Energy operated Mine 108, where MSHA issued a citation based on a safeguard that had been applied across the district and later modified. The Secretary alleged that the resulting condition was a significant-and-substantial violation of 30 C.F.R. § 75.1403. Judge Gary Melick concluded that the…
Florida Mining & Materials
Seven reporting violations affirmed with $350 penalty
Florida Mining & Materials operated the Brooksville Rock Plant. The company admitted seven violations of 30 C.F.R. § 50.20 for failing to submit required MSHA accident reports. Judge Gary Melick found that the reporting failures were serious because accurate Part 50 reporting supports MSHA's safety…
Monterey Coal Company
Protected work refusal upheld, records correction ordered
Monterey Coal Company required miner Paula L. Price to wear integrated metatarsal boots even though the boots did not fit and caused foot problems. Judge Gary Melick found that Price's refusal to work in the ill-fitting boots was protected because she had a good-faith, reasonable belief that…
Amax Coal Company
Discrimination damages set at $1,000
Amax Coal Company had already lost a discrimination complaint brought by Donald F. Denu. The parties later agreed that the costs and damages totaled $1,000. Judge Gary Melick ordered Amax to pay Denu $1,000 within 30 days of the order.
Mettiki Coal Corporation
Citation vacated because no examination was performed
MSHA alleged that Mettiki Coal failed to record the result of a required daily hoisting-equipment inspection at the Mettiki Mine. Judge Gary Melick held that the cited recordkeeping standard requires a record only after an examination has been performed. Because no examination occurred on April 15…
Arno Sand Company
Defective-brake citations affirmed with $60 penalty
Arno Sand Company operated the Highsmith Pit. MSHA cited the company after finding that a Clark 75 front-end loader was being used without adequate brakes and that the brake defect had not been recorded. Judge Gary Melick affirmed both violations, finding the brake violation significant and…
Tuscola Stone Company
Brake citations partly modified with $400 penalty
Tuscola Stone Company operated a limestone open-pit mine. MSHA cited two Euc haul-truck brake conditions, including service brakes that could not stop or hold the truck on steep haul roads and a hand brake that failed to stop the truck. Judge Gary Melick found the service-brake and hand-brake…
Reynolds Metal Company Incorporated
Temporary reinstatement ordered
The Secretary of Labor applied for temporary reinstatement of Willie C. Jones on his discrimination complaint against Reynolds Metal Company Incorporated. Under Commission Rule 44, Judge Gary Melick reviewed the application after the request for hearing was withdrawn. He found that the miner's…
Sterling Energy Inc.
Discrimination case dismissed after settlement
The Secretary of Labor, on behalf of miner Ronald D. Elliott, brought this discrimination proceeding against Sterling Energy Inc. The case concerned the No. 5 Mine and docket KENT 88-194-D. At a March 15, 1989 hearing, the parties agreed to a settlement, and Elliott approved its complete terms…
New World Mining Company
Discrimination case dismissed with prejudice
Tommy Meade brought a discrimination proceeding against New World Mining Company concerning the No. 1 Strip Mine. The judge ordered Meade to show cause why the case should not be dismissed for failure to comply with the prehearing order. Meade did not respond, and his attorney's office advised that…
Consolidation Coal Company
Water-spray order partly sustained
MSHA alleged that Consolidation Coal's Osage No. 3 Mine lacked an operable water spray at a belt-to-belt transfer point and had a damaged high-voltage cable. Judge Gary Melick found that the water-spray requirement was violated and resulted from unwarrantable failure because a similar condition had…
Amax Coal Company
Discrimination complaint granted
Donald F. Denu refused to disconnect a high-voltage cable at a switch box because he believed the cable might still be energized and the procedure lacked a reliable lockout. Supervisors told him he could be disciplined for insubordination and that his actions could lead to discharge, although no…
B & M Trucking
Discrimination complaint dismissed after show-cause failure
Judge Gary Melick had ordered Kenneth Howard to provide proof that he served his discrimination complaint on B & M Trucking within 30 days. The order warned that failure to respond could lead to dismissal. Howard did not respond to the show-cause order. The judge therefore dismissed the complaint…
Peabody Coal Company
$50 penalty imposed for training outside normal working hours
Peabody Coal required two second-shift miners at the Camp No. 2 Mine to attend annual refresher training during first-shift hours. The operator argued that frequent voluntary shift changes made cross-shifting a common practice. Judge Gary Melick found that the evidence showed only two involuntary…
KTK Mining and Construction
Late-receipt dismissal denied
The Secretary moved to dismiss KTK Mining and Construction's contest as untimely because the Secretary's office received the notice after the 30-day period. KTK had mailed the notice by certified mail within that period. Judge Gary Melick applied Commission precedent holding that mailing the notice…
Developers International Service Corporation
Proposed settlement denied and hearing ordered
MSHA proposed a $4,000 penalty for a significant and substantial regulatory violation allegedly causing a miner's electrocution. The Secretary and Developers International sought approval of a settlement reducing the penalty to $3,000, but the motion supplied no factual basis for evaluating the…
Birchfield Mining Incorporated
Pre-shift examination penalty reduced to $300
Birchfield Mining Incorporated was cited for failing to complete and record a required pre-shift examination at No. 1 Mine. Judge Gary Melick had previously assessed a $400 civil penalty for the serious violation. On remand, the Commission's finding that the violation was not significant and…
Tunnelton Mining Company
Weekly air-course examination violation modified
MSHA cited Tunnelton Mining Company for failing to examine and record examinations of portions of a return aircourse at the Marion Mine. The judge found that the violation of the weekly examination standard was proven because safe areas and travelways to bleeder examination points were not being…
Lehigh Portland Cement Company
Discrimination complaint dismissed
Gerard Sapunarich, a miner safety representative, complained about dust and other safety conditions at Lehigh Portland Cement Company's Cementon Plant. The company suspended him for three days without pay after a confrontation with the plant manager in which he used threatening language. The judge…
Kentucky Mountain Reserve, Inc.,
Proposed settlement denied
The Secretary proposed settling Kentucky Mountain Reserve's civil penalty case for $10,000. The proposed agreement included a disclaimer stating that the settlement could not be used for other purposes and did not establish a standard of care or adjudge compliance. Judge Gary Melick found the…
Kentucky Mountain Reserve, Inc.
Proposed settlement denied
The Secretary proposed settling Kentucky Mountain Reserve's civil penalty case for $10,000. The proposed agreement included a broad disclaimer stating that the settlement could not be used for other purposes and did not establish a standard of care or adjudge compliance. Judge Gary Melick found the…
Pennsylvania Electric Company
Conveyor citations affirmed under Mine Act jurisdiction
MSHA cited Pennsylvania Electric Company for failing to adequately guard the head drives of two conveyors at its Homer City electric generating station. The judge decided that the conveyor drives were part of a facility used to prepare coal because the coal traveled through them before being…
Nally and Hamilton Enterprises, Inc.
Discrimination complaint dismissed
Ford Allen Amos alleged that Nally and Hamilton Enterprises fired him after a dispute about docked pay and complaints to company management. The company said Amos quit voluntarily. Judge Gary Melick found that Amos returned to work immediately after the alleged firing, continued working for about…
Gosser Construction Company
Discrimination proceeding dismissed
Jackie Sanders brought a Mine Act discrimination proceeding against Gosser Construction Company. She did not appear at the scheduled hearing and did not respond to the later order requiring her to explain the absence. Judge Gary Melick dismissed the proceeding.
Green River Coal Company
Consolidated mine proceedings partly modified and settled
Green River Coal Company's No. 9 Mine faced consolidated proceedings over ventilation, explosives storage, roof control, and related civil penalties. Judge Gary Melick found one ventilation order unproven and vacated it, while modifying three other orders to section 104(a) citations and assessing…
Rochester & Pittsburgh Coal Company
Citations split and penalties set
Rochester & Pittsburgh Coal Company contested five citations and one imminent danger withdrawal order at its Greenwich Collieries No. 2 Mine. Judge Gary Melick vacated one citation because the Secretary did not establish a measurable standard for a reasonably airtight separation, and vacated…
Ranger Fuel Corporation
Compensation awarded after remand
The United Mine Workers sought compensation for miners idled at Ranger Fuel Corporation's Beckley No. 2 Mine after an imminent-danger withdrawal order. On remand, Judge Gary Melick found that the withdrawal order was final because Ranger did not contest it within the statutory period. He also found…
Cyprus Emerald Resources Corporation
Citations modified and roof order vacated
Cyprus Emerald Resources Corporation was cited at the Emerald Mine No. 1 for problems involving elevator-rope examinations, a ventilation-plan stopping, and roof-control support. Judge Gary Melick found violations in the elevator and stopping matters, but modified both citations to…
Johnson Coal Company, Incorporated
Discrimination proceedings dismissed after settlements
Five discrimination proceedings were brought on behalf of Elliott Rowe Jr., Agnel Amburgey, Everett Watkins, Edsel Baker, and Calvin Baker against Johnson Coal Company. The complainants requested permission to withdraw their complaints because the parties had reached agreed settlements. Judge Gary…
Lehigh Portland Cement, Co.
Summary decision denied in discrimination case
Gerard Sapunarich alleged that Lehigh Portland Cement suspended him without pay after he reported dust and other health and safety problems. Lehigh argued that the suspension was based on threats and abusive language, not protected activity. Judge Gary Melick found a genuine dispute over the…
Benjamin Coal Company
Discrimination proceeding withdrawn after settlement
Joseph M. Mazenko and Benjamin Coal Company reached an agreed settlement of the underlying discrimination matter. Judge Gary Melick treated the parties' notice as a request to withdraw the complaint and granted permission to withdraw it. The case was dismissed, and the hearings scheduled for July…
Benjamin Coal Company
Discrimination proceeding withdrawn after settlement
Terry Miller brought a discrimination complaint against Benjamin Coal Company at the Benjamin No. 1 Strip. Miller requested permission to withdraw the complaint because the underlying issue had been settled. Judge Gary Melick granted the request, dismissed the case, and canceled the scheduled…
Beth Energy Mines, Inc.
Escapeway citations partly affirmed and one vacated
Beth Energy Mines operated the Cambria Slope No. 33 Mine. The case involved five alleged violations concerning escapeway conditions, roof support, and pressure separation. Judge Gary Melick approved a settlement reducing one order's penalty from $850 to $650, vacated Citation No. 2691158, and…
Davidson Mining, Inc.
Ventilation order affirmed with $1,000 penalty
Davidson Mining, Inc. was cited after a roof fall left inadequate ventilation at the Davidson No. 1 Mine. The mine had only 2,420 cubic feet of air per minute at a location requiring 9,000, and lower readings at two working locations that required 3,000. Judge Gary Melick found that the operator…
Davidson Mining Inc.
Ventilation order affirmed with $1,000 penalty
Davidson Mining Inc. was cited after a roof fall left inadequate ventilation at the Davidson No. 1 Mine. The mine had only 2,420 cubic feet of air per minute at a location requiring 9,000, and lower readings at two working locations that required 3,000. Judge Gary Melick found that the operator…
Youghiogheny & Ohio Coal Company
Canopy violation affirmed as unwarrantable failure
Youghiogheny & Ohio Coal Company was cited after a section foreman directed a miner to operate a scoop tractor without a canopy in an underground mine area where the canopy was required. Judge Gary Melick found that the foreman knew the equipment was being operated in violation of the standard and…
Cen-Tex Ready Mix Concrete Company, Incorporated
Contests withdrawn and dismissed
Cen-Tex Ready Mix Concrete asked to withdraw nine contests as part of a settlement reached in related civil penalty proceedings. Judge Gary Melick granted permission to withdraw under 29 C.F.R. § 2700.11. The nine contest proceedings were dismissed.
Cen-Tex Ready Mix Concrete Company, Incorporated
Settlement approved and penalty reduced
Cen-Tex Ready Mix Concrete Company faced two civil penalty proceedings concerning its Lampasas Quarry. The Secretary of Labor proposed reducing the combined penalty from $10,957 to $6,957 through a settlement. Judge Gary Melick rejected the company's claim that an independent contractor was…
H. B. Zachry Company
Motion for summary decision denied
H. B. Zachry Company performed repair work at Texas Utilities Mining Company's Martin Lake Strip Mine after a fatal accident. Zachry argued that it was not subject to the Mine Act because it lacked a continuing presence at a mine, was not an independent contractor within the Act's scope, and…
Charolais Corporation, E. R. Mining, Inc., D.B.A. as E. R. Trucking Co.
Party dismissed from discrimination case
Charles H. Sisk asked to amend his discrimination complaint by removing Charolais Corporation as a party respondent. No party objected to the request. Judge Gary Melick granted permission to amend the complaint under 29 C.F.R. § 2700.11 and dismissed Charolais Corporation from the case. The release…
Beckley Lick Run Company
Compensation complaint dismissed after payment
Local Union 2387, District 29, United Mine Workers of America filed a compensation proceeding against Beckley Lick Run Company concerning the Bonny Mine. The complainant asked to withdraw the complaint because the individual complainants had been paid the requested compensation. Judge Gary Melick…
Birchfield Mining Incorporated
Pre-shift examination citation affirmed with $400 penalty
MSHA cited Birchfield Mining Incorporated after miners entered the No. 1 Mine before the required pre-shift examination had been completed, reported, and recorded. Judge Gary Melick found that Birchfield violated 30 C.F.R. § 75.303(a), that the violation resulted from unwarrantable failure, and…
Youghiogheny & Ohio Coal Company
Penalty reassessed after remand
Youghiogheny & Ohio Coal Company operated the Nelms No. 2 Mine and was involved in a contest proceeding and a civil penalty proceeding. The Commission remanded the cases after holding that the cited “hole through” violation was not significant and substantial because a roof fall was not reasonably…
White County Coal Corporation
Withdrawal-order contests denied after remand
MSHA issued two section 104(d) withdrawal orders at White County Coal Corporation's Pattiki Mine after inspectors found a chalk centerline and footprints in areas of unsupported roof. The Commission remanded the case after reversing the ALJ's earlier modification of the orders to section 104(a)…
Consolidation Coal Company
Ventilation citation modified and withdrawal order affirmed
Consolidation Coal Company operated the Robinson Run No. 95 underground coal mine. MSHA alleged that damaged haulage doors were allowing ventilating air to enter an intake escapeway, in violation of the approved ventilation plan and 30 C.F.R. § 75.316. Judge Gary Melick found the condition…
Nally and Hamilton Enterprises, Inc.
Untimely discrimination complaint dismissed
Bobby Sizemore alleged that Nally and Hamilton Enterprises discharged him in violation of the Mine Act's miner-protection provision. Judge Gary Melick found that Sizemore received notice of the Secretary's determination on May 7, 1987, but did not file his Commission complaint until July 6, 1987…
Whitaker Coal Corporation
Discrimination complaint dismissed as untimely
Ronald Sizemore alleged that Whitaker Coal discharged him in violation of the Mine Act's discrimination provision. The Secretary of Labor notified him on November 23, 1985 that the investigation found no violation, but Sizemore did not file his Commission complaint until August 13, 1987. Judge Gary…
Solar Fuel Company, Inc.
Belt and noise-survey violations affirmed
Solar Fuel operated the No. 10 Mine. Judge Gary Melick found that damaged conveyor rollers, coal dust, and combustible material violated the mine safety standards and created a significant and substantial fire or explosion hazard. He also found a violation for failing to submit a required periodic…
Freeman United Coal Mining Company
Discrimination complaint dismissed with prejudice
Gladys B. Johnson asked to withdraw her discrimination complaint against Freeman United Coal Mining Company because financial and other problems prevented her from pursuing it. Judge Gary Melick found that she understood the consequences of withdrawal and dismissal. He granted permission to…
Adkins Coal Corporation
Discrimination proceeding dismissed after settlement
The Secretary of Labor filed a discrimination complaint on behalf of Jerry Rife against Adkins Coal Corporation. The parties, including Rife, agreed to settle the case. Judge Gary Melick approved the settlement and dismissed the proceeding.
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.