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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Charles Scott Howard v. Cumberland River Coal Company
Camera-policy warning found discriminatory
Charles Scott Howard recorded leaking mine seals and later showed the video while testifying at an MSHA public hearing. Cumberland River Coal Company then placed a written warning in his personnel file for using a non-permissible camera and violating its photography policy. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon…
Secretary of Labor obo Christopher L. Abeyta v. San Juan Coal Company
Electrical engineer temporarily reinstated
Christopher Abeyta worked as an electrical projects engineer at San Juan Coal Company's underground mine. He raised concerns about electrical arcing, capacitor use, inspections, high-voltage checks, emergency-response work, and coal dust inside load centers, and he also filed an MSHA safety…
Secretary of Labor v. Black Castle Mining Company and Michael Vira
Pipeline examination citation vacated
A bulldozer operator was fatally injured when his machine struck and ruptured a buried natural-gas pipeline at Black Castle's surface coal mine. MSHA alleged that the company and superintendent Michael Vira failed to identify inadequate pipeline marking during required examinations and sought…
Secretary of Labor v. Cloverlick Coal Company, LLC
Cylinder and ventilation citations reduced
MSHA cited Cloverlick Coal for unsafe compressed-gas cylinder storage, a broken acetylene gauge, an inadequate on-shift examination, and failure to follow its ventilation plan. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon affirmed all four violations. He removed the S&S designations from the two cylinder citations…
Sangravl Company, Inc.
One citation vacated and penalties reduced to $1,626
MSHA issued five citations at Sangravl's small sand-and-gravel plant involving conveyor guarding, a rusted structural beam, and a nonworking loader backup alarm. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon vacated one return-roller citation because Sangravl had installed the guard as a previous inspector directed and…
National Coal Corporation
Dangerous-highwall citation vacated
After a highwall collapse damaged two machines, National Coal developed a written recovery plan that barred work on the side nearest the remaining unstable wall and posted spotters around the pit. An MSHA inspector arrived while an excavator was removing rock and concluded from his initial angled…
Secretary of Labor v. White Buck Coal Company
White Buck Coal Company (FMSHRC WEVA 2007-327): Cable and dust violations produced $4,848 penalty
MSHA cited damaged and improperly clamped trailing cables, a malfunctioning roof-bolter dust collector, and excessive respirable dust at White Buck's Grassy Creek No. 1 Mine. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon affirmed all five violations and found four significant and substantial, including the dust-collector…
R S & W Coal Company, Inc.
Broken loader window violation upheld but reduced
R S & W Coal Company operated a small anthracite mine with a front-end loader whose left door window was broken near the top. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon found that the broken window violated the requirement to keep cab windows in good condition. He found the violation was not significant and substantial…
Secretary of Labor v. Dana Mining Company, Inc.
Accident victim's estate denied intervention
The estate administrator of a miner killed in a roof fall sought to intervene in an MSHA penalty case against Dana Mining. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon held that she was neither a miner nor a representative of affected miners under the Commission's intervention rule. He also found that the Secretary could…
Hazleton Shaft Corporation
Grinder trigger-lock citation vacated
An MSHA inspector found an unused hand grinder at Hazleton Shaft's preparation plant with both a pressure-sensitive trigger and a manufacturer-installed trigger lock. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon held that section 77.402 requires a control needing constant hand or finger pressure but does not prohibit a…
Carmeuse Lime and Stone, Inc.
Mixed ruling reduces consolidated penalties to $511
Carmeuse contested enforcement actions involving contractor training, a mine-fire investigation, and several settled citations and orders. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon held the mine operator strictly liable because seven contractor employees had not received required Part 48 training, even though Carmeuse…
San Juan Coal Company
Corrected settlement modifies two unwarrantable-failure citations
The Commission remanded San Juan Coal's case for further analysis of whether a coal-accumulation violation resulted from an unwarrantable failure. The parties then agreed that San Juan would accept Citation No. 4768527 as written and pay a reduced penalty of $3,500 instead of $6,300. Judge T. Todd…
San Juan Coal Company
Original settlement order superseded by corrected citation label
The Commission remanded San Juan Coal's case for further analysis of whether a coal-accumulation violation resulted from an unwarrantable failure. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon approved a settlement that reduced the penalty from $6,300 to $3,500 and modified two enforcement actions under section 104(d)(1)…
CSA Materials, Inc.
Loader citation modified and fuse citation vacated
CSA Materials contested two citations issued during an inspection of its crushed-limestone mine. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon affirmed a violation for a worker standing under an unsecured front-end-loader boom, but he removed the significant-and-substantial designation because a spontaneous hydraulic…
Highland Mining Company, LLC
Stays lifted and ten contest cases dismissed
Highland Mining filed ten contests involving citations issued at its Highland 9 Mine. The judge stayed the cases while the corresponding civil penalty proceedings were being filed. Once those penalty cases were pending, Judge T. Todd Hodgdon lifted the stays and concluded that the separate contest…
Spartan Mining Company
Twenty-eight citation contests stayed for penalty cases
Spartan Mining filed 28 immediate citation contests but did not oppose staying them until MSHA assessed penalties. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon said routine pre-penalty contests without a need for an immediate hearing clogged the Commission's docket and violated the spirit of the Mine Act process. He…
Highland Mining Company
Operator ordered to justify routine contests
Highland Mining filed immediate contests of two S&S citations and did not oppose the Secretary's request to continue the cases until the related civil penalties were filed. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon questioned the routine filing of contests when the operator did not need an immediate hearing and could…
Spartan Mining Company
Operator ordered to justify 28 routine contests
Spartan Mining filed 28 immediate contests of citations and an order, then did not oppose the Secretary's request to continue the cases until related civil penalties were filed. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon questioned the routine filing of contests when the operator did not need an immediate hearing and…
Independence Coal Company
Discovery barred during stay, Secretary retains reporting duty
Sixteen Independence Coal contest proceedings were stayed while MSHA prepared the related civil penalty cases. The Secretary asked the judge to allow discovery during the stay and transfer the duty to report on the penalty cases to the operator. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon denied both requests, reasoning…
Spartan Mining Company
Discovery barred during stay, Secretary retains reporting duty
Seven Spartan Mining contest proceedings were stayed while MSHA prepared the related civil penalty cases. The Secretary asked the judge to allow discovery during the stay and transfer the duty to report on the penalty cases to the operator. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon denied both requests, reasoning that…
San Juan Coal Company
Coal-accumulation actions modified and affirmed
San Juan Coal operates an underground coal mine in New Mexico. MSHA cited the mine for coal and float coal dust accumulations on longwall shields and in return air entries, and the company agreed to pay a third citation involving incombustible content. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon found significant and…
Spartan Mining Company
Contest proceedings dismissed after withdrawal
Spartan Mining asked to withdraw its notices of contest after learning that the prior mine owner, Cannelton Industries, had paid the civil penalty before selling the mine. The Secretary did not object. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon granted leave to withdraw under Commission Rule 11 and dismissed both…
Hanson Aggregates New York, Inc.
Crane safety citation affirmed after summary decision
Hanson Aggregates New York was preparing a mobile crane to repair a primary crusher when its auxiliary hoist line failed and a raised hook and ball struck and killed a mine foreman. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon held that the crane's anti-two-block device did not function properly and that Hanson violated…
Mark W. Gibson v. Triple C Trucking, Inc.
Discrimination complaint dismissed
Mark Gibson alleged that Triple C Trucking fired him for reporting worn tires on a truck in a pre-trip inspection report. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon found that reporting the tires was protected activity, but concluded that the discharge resulted from Gibson's confrontations, failure to follow…
Secretary of Labor, MSHA on behalf of Wendell McClain, Coy McClain, Wade Damron, and Gary Conway v. Misty Mountain Mining, Inc., Stanley Osborne, and Simon Ratliff
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Wendell McClain, Coy McClain, Wade Damron, and Gary Conway v. Misty Mountain Mining, Inc. (FMSHRC KENT 2005-96-D, et al.): Safety complaints led to discriminatory discharges and back pay
Four miners complained about defective brakes and other equipment at Misty Mountain Mining's No. 5 Mine. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon found that the miners were fired for protected safety complaints and later discriminated against after filing complaints with MSHA. The judge ordered the company and…
Jim Walter Resources, Inc.
David M. Hall v. Jim Walter Resources (FMSHRC SE 2004-61-D): Discrimination complaint dismissed
David M. Hall claimed that Jim Walter Resources discharged him because he raised safety concerns and refused to continue work he believed was unsafe. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon found that Hall had barely established protected activity, but had not shown that the operator knew of the complaint or that…
Baylor Mining, Inc.
Baylor Mining (FMSHRC WEVA 2004-36): Stay lifted and $60 settlement approved
Baylor Mining's civil penalty case had been stayed since May 26, 2004. The Secretary moved to approve a settlement under which Baylor agreed to pay the proposed penalty in full. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon approved the settlement under the Mine Act's penalty criteria, lifted the stay, and ordered Baylor…
Weirich Brothers, Inc.
Guarding and brake findings partly changed
Weirich Brothers operated small sand and gravel pits near Johnson City, Texas. MSHA alleged that a loader had defective brakes, several pieces of machinery lacked required guarding, and a truck lacked a required reverse-movement alarm. The judge affirmed the imminent-danger order and brake…
Drummond Company, Inc., and Michael Earl, Employed by Drummond Company, Inc.
Drummond Company, Inc., and Michael Earl (FMSHRC SE 2004-106 and SE 2004-91): Loader-bucket riding violation affirmed
Drummond operated the Shoal Creek coal mine, where foreman Michael Earl rode in the bucket of a front-end loader while it traveled forward. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon found that the conduct violated an MSHA safeguard because Earl was being transported rather than positioning to work at creep speed. The…
Baylor Mining, Inc.
Interlocutory-review certification denied
Baylor Mining asked the judge to certify an earlier discovery ruling for interlocutory Commission review. The ruling required the Secretary to disclose miner-witness names and statements before the hearing. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon found that the request did not present a controlling question of law…
Baylor Mining, Inc.
Motion for partial reconsideration denied
The Secretary sought partial reconsideration of a discovery order requiring disclosure of miner-witness names and statements shortly before trial. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon held that Commission precedent allowed witness statements to be provided when the witnesses were identified for trial. He denied…
The Ohio Valley Coal Company
Settlement approved on remand
The Ohio Valley Coal Company returned to the Commission after a remand concerning whether a violation was significant and substantial and what penalty should be assessed. The parties agreed to leave the significant-and-substantial finding in place and reduce the penalty from $35,000 to $10,000…
Baylor Mining, Inc.
Motion to compel granted in part
Baylor Mining sought documents that the Secretary withheld under work product, informant, and deliberative-process privileges. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon found that the work product privilege protected most of the investigation materials because they were prepared with litigation in mind and Baylor had…
Rockhouse Energy Mining Co.
Five roof-control matters split, $65,000 penalty assessed
Rockhouse Energy Mining operated an underground coal mine in Kentucky where a miner was killed by a roof fall while workers tried to recover a continuous mining machine. MSHA alleged that the mine violated a closure order, roof-support rules, its roof-control plan, sound and vibration testing…
Independence Coal Co., Inc.
Roof-fall citations modified after fatality investigation
Independence Coal operated the Cedar Grove underground coal mine, where a roof brow fell on a continuous miner operator during production and the operator later died. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon found that the mine violated roof-support and roof-control-plan requirements, but found that the Secretary did…
Independence Coal Co., Inc.
Roof-fall citations modified after fatality investigation
Independence Coal operated the Cedar Grove underground coal mine, where a roof brow fell on a continuous miner operator during production and the operator later died. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon found that the mine violated roof-support and roof-control-plan requirements, but found that the Secretary did…
Rockhouse Energy Mining Co.
Roof-fall penalties partly vacated, partly affirmed
Rockhouse Energy Mining Company and several employees were cited after an inspector concluded that miners had worked under unsupported roof during cleanup and bolting near a roof fall. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon found that the Secretary had not proved the alleged violation of 30 C.F.R. § 75.202(b)…
Cold Spring Granite Co.
Fall-protection citation affirmed with reduced penalty
Cold Spring Granite was cited after an inspector observed a rock-drill operator working above ground level without fall protection. The judge held that the applicable standard required protection where a fall could cause injury, even though the operator was using a safety line for part of the work…
Southwest Quarry & Materials, Incorporated
Nine citations affirmed by default
Southwest Quarry & Materials faced nine alleged violations and a proposed civil penalty of $1,096. The operator did not meaningfully respond to the judge's orders, the Secretary's discovery requests, or attempts to arrange a conference. The judge found the operator in default and affirmed all nine…
Rockhouse Energy Mining Company
Fatality citation affirmed with negligence reduced and $7,000 penalty
Rockhouse Energy operated an underground coal mine where a section foreman was fatally injured after being caught between a continuous mining machine’s boom and a coal rib. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon found that the company violated its approved roof control plan by allowing the machine to be trammed…
Stillhouse Mining, LLC
Ventilation citation modified and penalty reduced
Stillhouse Mining, LLC operates an underground coal mine where an inspector found missing deflector curtains in two entries during a regular inspection. The company conceded that its ventilation plan was not followed, but disputed the violation's significant-and-substantial designation, negligence…
Vandalia Resources, Inc.
Imminent-danger order vacated
Vandalia Resources operated a surface coal mine in West Virginia where two bulldozers were reclaiming a slope. MSHA inspectors observed one bulldozer slide and issued an imminent-danger order under section 107(a), concluding that the machines could lose control and cause serious injury. Judge T…
Baylor Mining, Inc.
Settlement approved on remand
Baylor Mining contested a citation and a related civil-penalty proceeding involving its Jim's Branch No. 3A mine. After the Commission remanded the consolidated cases, the parties agreed to reduce the negligence level from moderate to low, modify the citation narrative, and keep the proposed…
Lodestar Energy, Inc.
Weekly air-course examination citation affirmed on remand
Lodestar Energy was cited after it examined one entry but not a second entry in a 6,615-foot intake air course at its Baker Mine. On remand from the Commission, Judge T. Todd Hodgdon considered whether the regulation gave Lodestar adequate notice that both entries required weekly examination. He…
Eastern Associated Coal Corp.
Three citations vacated, two affirmed or modified
Eastern Associated Coal operated the Harris No. 1 underground coal mine in West Virginia. During polyurethane roof grouting, falling roof material struck a contractor employee, causing a serious knee injury, and MSHA issued five citations. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon vacated three citations because the…
The Ohio Valley Coal Company
Guarding citation affirmed as modified, maintenance citation vacated
A belt foreman at Ohio Valley's Powhatan No. 6 underground coal mine died after his arm was caught near a moving belt take-up unit where two guarding panels had been displaced. The judge found that the mine violated the guarding standard because the panels allowed access to moving parts, but he…
Lexicon, Inc., d/b/a Schueck Steel Company
Citations modified and affirmed after fatal fall
A Schueck Steel employee died after falling through unsecured floor grating during construction at the Midlothian Quarry and Plant. The ALJ found violations involving failure to use a safety belt and line, failure to barricade or post the unsecured grating, and entry into an area controlled by an…
VT Unfading Green Slate Co., Inc.
Unguarded trimmer citation affirmed on remand
VT Unfading Green Slate Co. operated a slate quarry and mill. The Commission remanded the case so the ALJ could consider additional testimony about the guard on a slate trimmer’s V-belt drive. The company did not respond to the hearing notice or the later show-cause order, so the hearing was…
Bailey Quarries Incorporated
Six quarry citations affirmed with reduced penalties
Bailey Quarries operated a limestone quarry in southwest Missouri. MSHA cited six conditions involving a haul-truck parking brake, a noise program, an electrical cover plate, machine guarding, and two backup alarms. The ALJ found all six violations, reduced the negligence classifications on two…
Black Beauty Coal Company
Motion to lift stay denied during criminal investigation
Black Beauty Coal asked Judge T. Todd Hodgdon to end a stay in its civil penalty proceeding after more than 120 days had passed. The Secretary opposed the request because the matter had been referred to the U.S. Attorney for a criminal investigation involving overlapping evidence. The judge applied…
Cannelton Industries, Inc.
Preshift exception applied, weekly examination violation affirmed
Cannelton Industries operated the Shadrick underground coal mine in West Virginia while the mine was idle and certified personnel entered to keep its pumps running. The judge held that the regulation's pumpers' exception allowed a certified pumper to examine the areas where the pumper worked or…
BGS Construction, Inc.
Motion for reconsideration and interlocutory review denied
BGS Construction asked the judge to reconsider a ruling that denied its motion to dismiss a civil penalty case based on delay in proposing the penalty. The company argued that the Secretary specially assessed penalties unnecessarily, failed to consider cited authority and policy guidance, and did…
Mine Management Consultants, Inc.
Individual case dismissed and company citation modified
Mine Management Consultants provided engineering and surveying services to an underground coal mine. A survey crew worked under unsupported roof while setting survey points, and MSHA cited the company and Tony M. Stanley. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon found that the company violated the roof-support…
BGS Construction, Inc.
Motion to dismiss denied after delayed penalty notice
BGS Construction faced two citations involving the death of a miner at the Blacksville No. 2 mine. The Secretary mailed the proposed penalty notice about 14 months after the investigation ended, and BGS argued that the delay required dismissal. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon held that the Secretary gave an…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Donnie Lee Lowe v. Island Creek Coal Company
Discrimination complaint dismissed
Donnie Lee Lowe served as a miners' walk-around representative at Island Creek's underground coal mine. After each of three inspections, the company assigned him to shovel along the belt line instead of returning him to his dispatcher position. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon found that Lowe engaged in…
Mining Property Specialists, Inc.
Unsupported-roof citation modified and $100 penalty assessed
Mining Property Specialists employees installed a survey station 20 inches beyond the last row of permanent roof supports at a coal mine. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon found a violation of the unsupported-roof standard, but concluded that the company's negligence could not be established through the…
U.S. Quarried Slate Products, Inc.
MSHA jurisdiction upheld, $456 penalty assessed
U.S. Quarried Slate Products operated a surface slate quarry and processing facilities in Vermont. MSHA cited the company for four safety violations involving machine guards and a damaged junction-box cover, and the company argued that OSHA rather than MSHA had jurisdiction over its buildings…
Mingo Logan Coal Company
Discrimination complaint dismissed
Nathan B. Harvey alleged that Mingo Logan Coal Company discharged him because of safety-related activity at its Mountaineer Mine. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon found that Harvey had not shown he engaged in protected activity or that the discharge was caused by such activity. The judge credited the…
Simp-A-Lex
Default entered and $50,113 penalty assessed
Simp-A-Lex failed to respond to a prehearing order and an order to show cause in a civil penalty proceeding. The company had indicated that it was no longer in business and that no one was available to pursue the case, but it did not formally withdraw its contest or respond to the default motion…
Island Creek Coal Company
Motion to compel granted in part and denied in part
Island Creek Coal Company asked the Secretary to produce an MSHA discrimination investigation report and related exhibits in a case brought on behalf of Donnie Lee Lowe. Judge T. Todd Hodgdon held that the investigative report, chronology, and most witness statements were protected work product…
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.