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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M.M. Sundt Construction Company
Noise citation affirmed and sampling citation vacated
M.M. Sundt Construction was cited after a crusher laborer was exposed to noise above the permissible limit and after a separate air-sampling citation. Judge John J. Morris found that the operator violated 30 C.F.R. § 56.5050(b), even though the employee was wearing earplugs, because feasible…
Bert W. Bielz, Jr., and Richard McNeely
Agent penalties settled at $2,200 each
Bert W. Bielz, Jr., and Richard McNeely were charged as agents of Silver State Mining Corporation with knowingly authorizing, ordering, or carrying out violations involving 30 C.F.R. §§ 55.5-2 and 55.5-5. The operator had already been assessed penalties for those violations, and each respondent…
ASARCO, Incorporated
Discrimination complaint dismissed
Joe Arnoldi alleged that ASARCO discriminated against him in violation of section 105(c) of the Mine Act. The case concerned his removal from work at the Coeur Mine and the company's decision not to rehire him, with the parties disputing whether the actions were motivated by protected safety…
Kelley Trucking Company
Settlement approved at $100 after remand, alternate release
Kelley Trucking faced a civil penalty proceeding involving a citation under 30 C.F.R. § 48.25(a). After remand, the parties proposed affirming the citation while reducing the original $400 assessment to $100. Judge John J. Morris approved the settlement, affirmed the citation, and assessed the $100…
Kelley Trucking Company
Settlement approved at $100 after remand
Kelley Trucking faced a civil penalty proceeding involving a citation under 30 C.F.R. § 48.25(a). After remand, the parties proposed affirming the citation while reducing the original $400 assessment to $100. Judge John J. Morris found the settlement reasonable and in the public interest, approved…
Emery Mining Corporation
Roof-control penalties assessed at $2,000
Emery Mining Corporation faced two roof-control citations at the Deer Creek Mine. The parties stipulated that the underlying violations had already been decided in related contest proceedings, so Judge John J. Morris addressed the civil penalties and applied the statutory penalty factors. The…
Emery Mining Corporation
Trolley-switch orders vacated
Emery Mining Corporation contested two orders alleging that trolley cut-out switches at its Deer Creek Mine were not adequately guarded. Judge John J. Morris held that the switches were part of the trolley wires covered by 30 C.F.R. § 75.1003, but found that the Secretary did not prove miners…
Staker Paving & Construction Company, Incorporated
Back-up alarm citation affirmed with S&S designation removed
MSHA cited Staker Paving after a front-end loader operated without an audible back-up alarm or an observer, even though maintenance reports had documented the defect. The company admitted the violation and abated it in six days after obtaining a replacement part. Judge John J. Morris found that the…
Concrete Products Company
Back-up alarm citation affirmed with $150 penalty
MSHA cited Concrete Products after an inspector found a 35-ton Caterpillar operating without a back-up alarm at a sand and gravel pit. The company admitted the violation and repaired or replaced the alarm the same day. Judge John J. Morris found that the defect had been reported several days…
Hydrocarbon Resources Company
Four safety citations affirmed with $4,200 in penalties
Hydrocarbon Resources was cited for failing to provide bulkhead protection during shaft work, maintain an effective underground telephone, ground a water pump, and ground an electrical wire. Judge John J. Morris found all four violations proven and assessed penalties of $3,000 for the bulkhead…
Fife Rock Products Company, Inc.
Protective equipment citation affirmed after remand
Fife Rock Products' plant manager was using an oxygen-acetylene torch without protective glasses or other protective equipment while cutting holes in a screen. Judge John J. Morris found that the conduct violated 30 C.F.R. § 56.15007 and could have caused blindness or a serious eye injury. The…
Jay Tuft & Company, Inc.
Citation-posting violation affirmed with $50 penalty
Jay Tuft & Company was cited for failing to post a prior citation at the Lapoint Gravel Pit. The company posted the citation at its Midvale office, but the judge found that the Mine Act required posting at the mine site. Judge John J. Morris affirmed the citation, while giving some credit for the…
Jefferson County Road & Bridge Department
Mine Act jurisdiction upheld and citations affirmed
Jefferson County operated gravel pits whose material was used on county roads, and the operation used equipment manufactured outside Colorado. The judge held that the Mine Act applied to the county operation because the gravel pits were mines that affected interstate commerce. He also found that…
N.L. Baroidadiv/N.L. Industries
Citation vacated and case dismissed
MSHA initiated a civil-penalty proceeding against N.L. Baroidadiv/N.L. Industries for an alleged violation of a mandatory safety standard. At the hearing, MSHA moved to vacate its citation and dismiss the petition. Judge John J. Morris granted the motion and dismissed the case.
Iron Mountain Ore Company
Nine citations affirmed
Iron Mountain Ore Company operated a surface iron-ore crushing and screening site in Utah. Judge John J. Morris found that the operation was subject to the Mine Act and that nine citations covered missing training plans, inadequate first aid training and materials, unguarded moving machine parts…
Sanders Construction, Inc.
Four citations affirmed and one vacated
Sanders Construction, Inc. faced five citations at the Gilbert Mine #1 in connection with violations of mandatory mine-safety standards. After a hearing began, the parties reached a settlement. Judge John J. Morris approved the settlement, affirmed four citations under 30 C.F.R. §§ 56.6047 and…
River Cement Company
Late penalty petition dismissed
River Cement Company moved to dismiss the Secretary's civil-penalty petition as untimely. Judge John J. Morris found that the Secretary filed the petition seven days after the 45-day deadline in Commission Rule 27(a), and that the Secretary's explanations of inadvertence and multiple responses did…
River Cement Company
Two late penalty petitions dismissed
River Cement Company moved to dismiss two civil-penalty petitions as untimely. Judge John J. Morris found that the Secretary filed both petitions 23 days after the 45-day deadline in Commission Rule 27(a), and that a change in processing policy and reliance on an internal date stamp did not…
Brubaker-Mann Incorporated
Magazine-area citation affirmed with $15 penalty
Brubaker-Mann Incorporated operated a small business subject to the Mine Act. An inspector found two pieces of lumber within six feet of a powder magazine and several hundred railroad ties within 20 feet. Judge John J. Morris found that the railroad ties were unnecessary combustible material under…
C.D. Livingston
Mine inspection access and penalty affirmed
C.D. Livingston operated the Digmore Placer Mine, an underground gold mine in California. He refused an MSHA inspector entry without a search warrant and argued that the Mine Act did not apply to his small operation because he had no employees. Judge John J. Morris found that the Act broadly covers…
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.