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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Matter of M-F-W- & L-G-
IUD insertion and resistance under China’s family planning policy
The Board reconsidered the asylum, withholding of removal, and Convention Against Torture claims of a mother and son from China after a remand from the Second Circuit. The lead respondent had an intrauterine device inserted under China’s family planning policy, later removed it, missed required…
Beeland Group, LLC, Beeland Disposal Well #1
In re Beeland Group, LLC, Beeland Disposal Well #1 (EAB UIC Appeal No. 08-02): UIC permit upheld
EPA Region 5 issued Beeland Group, LLC a permit to construct and operate a Class I non-hazardous underground injection well in Antrim County, Michigan. Star Township, Antrim County, and Friends of the Jordan River challenged the permit's technical findings, the characterization of the proposed…
Cumberland Coal Resources, LP.
High-spot methane testing violation reduced to non-S&S
MSHA cited Cumberland Coal for failing to properly test for methane near the roof of a high spot in an intake entry. The Judge found that preshift examiners routinely used a probe that could reach only about 15 to 16 feet in an area that rose as high as 21 feet, rather than testing within 12 inches…
Masonry Arts, Inc.
Scaffold planking, access, and repeat guardrail items totaled $12,500
Masonry Arts employees performed block repair work from a scaffold platform approximately 12.5 feet above the ground at a new Florida high school gymnasium. The judge found a five-inch gap between planks, no safe ladder access, and no guardrail or other fall protection on the platform. He rejected…
Matter of R-A-
Domestic-violence asylum case remanded for reconsideration
The Attorney General reviewed the history of Matter of R-A- , an asylum case involving a Guatemalan woman who alleged persecution based on domestic violence. Earlier Attorney General actions vacated the Board’s decision and directed reconsideration after a proposed asylum rule, but the rule was…
Sanderson Farms, Inc.
Unstable freezer pallet storage resulted in a $6,300 penalty
Sanderson Farms stored 2,200-to-2,500-pound pallets of frozen chicken on an aging freezer rack system with frequently damaged legs and little margin for placement error. A maintenance employee died from smoke inhalation and burns after beginning to cut a damaged rack leg while loaded pallets…
Matter of Viviana Alejandra GUADARRAMA de Contreras
False citizenship claim does not automatically bar good moral character
The Board reviewed an Immigration Judge’s denial of cancellation of removal to a Mexican respondent who had falsely claimed United States citizenship on a Form I-9 to obtain employment. The Board held that the catch-all provision of section 101(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act may support…
FABI Construction Company, Inc., and PRO Management Group
Court required a factual basis for penalty increase
The D.C. Circuit reviewed the administrative law judge's decision after it became a final Commission order without discretionary review. The court granted review of the penalty for a concrete-formwork violation and found that the judge increased the Secretary's proposed $2,500 penalty to $7,000…
Matter of A-T-
Withholding claim remanded after female genital mutilation ruling
The Attorney General reviewed a Board decision denying withholding of removal to a Malian woman who had previously undergone female genital mutilation and feared future harm if returned. The Attorney General held that the Board had focused incorrectly on whether the future harm would repeat the…
Weatherton Contracting Co., Inc.
Two silica overexposure citations affirmed as S&S
MSHA cited Weatherton Contracting after sampling showed that a loader operator and crusher operator were overexposed to respirable silica dust. The company did not dispute the violations but challenged their S&S designations. The Judge found the violations S&S because the exposures were…
Agapito Associates, Inc.
Full stay denied while discovery was suspended
MSHA cited engineering consultant Agapito Associates after the Crandall Canyon Mine pillar failure that killed six miners. Following a criminal referral, the Secretary asked to stay the civil contest so broader civil discovery would not interfere with the criminal investigation. Agapito opposed a…
Matter of Kelechi Gerald NWOZUZU
Lawful permanent residence required for derivative citizenship
The Board reviewed the Department of Homeland Security’s appeal after an Immigration Judge terminated removal proceedings against a Nigerian respondent who claimed derivative United States citizenship through his naturalized parents. The respondent’s parents naturalized while he was under 18, but…
Elan Lawn and Landscape Service, Inc.
One-day-late contest required an evidentiary record
Elan Lawn filed its notice of contest one day after the deadline calculated from a disputed certified-mail receipt, and the judge denied relief without a hearing. The Commission noted that the Secretary's dismissal request did not comply with the rule requiring a separate motion and consultation…
Wynnewood Refining Company
Delayed flare-line replacement was willful and drew a $63,000 penalty
Wynnewood Refining Company operated an Oklahoma petroleum refinery that used hydrofluoric acid in its alkylation unit. OSHA alleged that the company violated the process safety management standard by failing to correct deficiencies in the unit's flare line before further use or in a safe and timely…
Essroc San Juan, Inc.
In re Essroc San Juan, Inc. (EAB NPDES Appeal No. 07-20): permit appeal remanded after consent order
EPA Region 2 issued Essroc San Juan, Inc. an NPDES permit with seven contested conditions. The parties later executed a Consent Order that stayed those seven conditions for one year, while the remaining permit conditions stayed enforceable. The Board remanded the matter to Region 2 instead of…
Twentymile Coal Co.
Refuge-chamber requirement stands after evenly divided review
Twentymile's emergency response plan did not provide a refuge chamber for miners working in the roughly four miles of main entries between the portals and an intake air shaft. MSHA required a chamber near the midpoint with breathable air for miners who could not evacuate after an emergency, and the…
Spartan Mining Company, Inc.
Four fatal-electrocution violations upheld, one penalty reduced
A continuous miner damaged its trailing cable during a mine-wide power outage, and an electrician was fatally shocked when a foreman restored power while the cable was being repaired. The Commission affirmed violations for failing to protect the cable, lock and tag it out, remove it from service…
James Blevins and Maverick Mining Co.
Delayed penalty case allowed to proceed
Maverick Mining sought dismissal of two $20,500 proposed penalties issued about two years after MSHA's accident report concerning a fatal mine accident. The company argued that the delay was unreasonable and prejudicial because the mine had closed and witnesses could be difficult to locate or…
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…
H.H. Rauh Paving, Inc.
Seasonal-office delay sent for a good-cause determination
MSHA proposed penalties for eight citations and orders issued to H.H. Rauh Paving's aggregate mine. The seasonal operator said its chief executive was out of town when the assessment arrived and did not receive it until late February, after which the company contacted MSHA about reopening. Rauh…
Climax Molybdenum Company
Chute citations affirmed with reduced gravity and penalties
MSHA cited Climax Molybdenum for leaving open a chute door that exposed a moving head pulley and for having workers scrape material from the chute while the conveyor was operating. The Judge affirmed the guarding violation as S&S because a worker who slipped or fell could contact the belt and…
Jim Walter Resources, Inc.
Roof-control citation vacated after fatal bolting accident
A miner was fatally injured after falling backward during roof-bolt installation at the end of a longwall panel. MSHA alternatively alleged that Jim Walter Resources failed to adequately support the roof or failed to take additional measures required by its roof control plan. The Judge found that…
Matter of Houng SAYSANA
Non-DHS release can trigger mandatory detention
The Board reviewed the Department of Homeland Security’s appeal from an Immigration Judge’s order releasing a respondent on bond. The respondent was in removal proceedings based on an aggravated-felony conviction and had later been released from non-DHS custody after an arrest for failure to…
National Cement Company of California, Inc. and Tejon Ranchcorp
Shared access road held outside Mine Act jurisdiction
MSHA cited National Cement for lacking berms or guardrails along a 4.3-mile access road shared with Tejon Ranch and other authorized users. After a court remand, the Secretary argued that the road was a mine under the Mine Act's private-road provision but that a separate subsection excluded…
Matter of Javier RAMIREZ-VARGAS
A parent’s residence does not satisfy a child’s cancellation requirement
The Board reviewed the Department of Homeland Security’s appeal from an Immigration Judge’s grant of cancellation of removal to a Mexican lawful permanent resident. The respondent had been a lawful permanent resident for less than seven years before a controlled-substance offense ended his…
I O Coal Company
Roof-control violations reduced to moderate negligence
MSHA alleged that I O Coal failed to provide supplemental support for surface cracks and kettle bottoms in the Europa Mine roof. The Judge rejected the surface-crack allegations but credited the inspector's evidence that some kettle bottoms were inadequately supported, creating an S&S roof-fall…
PSP Monotech Industries
Inconsistent suspended-load training defeated the misconduct defense
PSP Monotech Industries operated a sheet-metal fabrication plant where employees used an overhead floor crane to move large panels. A 3,700-pound panel fell from a clamp, killing one employee and seriously injuring another. The Secretary cited PSP under the general duty clause for failing to keep…
Higman Barge Lines, Inc. (Palmer Barge Superfund Site)
In re Higman Barge Lines, Inc. (EAB CERCLA 106(b) Appeal No. 08-01): reimbursement petition dismissed without prejudice
Higman Barge Lines, Inc. sought reimbursement of $75,000 in response costs from EPA's Superfund after working under a unilateral administrative order. EPA Region 6 asked the Board to dismiss the petition because it had not yet formally approved the parties' Remedial Action Report, and additional…
Pospiech Contracting, Inc.
Unprotected trench citation affirmed with a $5,000 penalty
Pospiech Contracting installed underground utilities at a Florida construction project. OSHA found employees had entered a vertical-sided Type C soil excavation measured at 6 to 6½ feet deep without a protective system. The company argued that the excavation was less than 5 feet deep, that it…
Nelson Quarries, Inc.
Loader-riding citation reduced to non-S&S
Two miners rode on the engine hood behind the cab of a front-end loader without seats or seatbelts while returning from servicing a water pump. The Judge affirmed the violation because the equipment had no provision for secure travel outside the cab. He vacated the S&S designation after finding…
Phelps Dodge Tyrone, Inc.
Late fire-reporting citation affirmed
Contractors using torches to dismantle a shovel body ignited accumulated grease at Phelps Dodge's surface copper mine. The Commission upheld the finding that flames appeared by about 7:30 a.m. and that the incident remained one unplanned fire until it was extinguished more than two hours later…
Bacardi Corporation
In re Bacardi Corporation (EAB NPDES Appeal No. 08-07): permit appeal dismissed after withdrawal
Bacardi Corporation appealed conditions in NPDES Permit No. PR0000591. Bacardi moved to withdraw the appeal after entering a consent decree with EPA Region 2 and the U.S. Department of Justice. The consent decree was lodged with the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico and addressed…
Pioneer Sand Company
Allegedly mailed contests sent for a good-cause determination
Pioneer Sand said it marked three assessment forms to contest all proposed penalties and promptly mailed them to MSHA. The company learned from delinquency notices that MSHA had no record of receiving the forms. The Secretary did not oppose reopening. The Commission remanded the matter for the…
Blount Springs Materials
Safety-director transition sent for a good-cause determination
Blount Springs Materials submitted contests to two proposed penalty assessments after the 30-day deadline. The company attributed the late filings to a change in safety directors, and the Secretary did not oppose reopening. The Commission remanded the matter for the Chief Administrative Law Judge…
Matter of E-A-G-
Gang resistance and perceived gang affiliation did not establish asylum eligibility
The Board reviewed the Department of Homeland Security’s appeal from an Immigration Judge’s grant of asylum to a young Honduran respondent. The respondent relied on resistance to gang recruitment, perceived gang affiliation, and political opinion after two brothers were killed in gang violence and…
Matter of S-E-G-, et al.
Resistance to gang recruitment did not establish a protected social group
The Board reviewed Salvadoran respondents’ appeal from an Immigration Judge’s denial of asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture. The respondents said that the MS-13 gang beat and threatened them because two younger family members resisted recruitment, and…
Matter of Felix ROTIMI
Pending asylum or adjustment applications did not establish lawful residence
The Board reconsidered a waiver-of-inadmissibility case after a federal appellate court remanded it for clarification of the phrase “lawfully resided continuously.” The respondent argued that time spent in the United States while his asylum and adjustment-of-status applications were pending should…
Twentymile Coal Company
New accounting process sent for a good-cause determination
Twentymile sought to contest seven penalties from an assessment covering 33 citations and orders. An earlier reopening request had been denied without prejudice because it explained only the late payment of uncontested penalties, not the missing contest form. The renewed motion said a new…
Russell City Energy Center
In re Russell City Energy Center (EAB PSD Appeal No. 08-01): permit remanded for public notice
The Bay Area Air Quality Management District issued Russell City Energy Center a PSD permit for a 600-megawatt natural gas-fired facility in California. Rob Simpson challenged the permit's public notice process and also raised substantive BACT and other federal and state issues. The Environmental…
Lafarge Aggregates Southeast, Inc.
Bare administrative-error claim denied without prejudice
Lafarge sought to reopen a final penalty assessment, saying only that an administrative error caused the missed contest deadline. The Secretary argued that this conclusory statement did not explain the circumstances needed for relief but supported giving the operator another opportunity to provide…
Jim Walter Resources, Inc.
Float-coal-dust citation reduced to non-S&S
MSHA found float coal dust on the roof, ribs, belt frame, and floor along about 867 feet of a belt entry at Jim Walter Resources' underground mine. The Judge affirmed the accumulation violation because the quantity of dust could ignite. He rejected the S&S designation because MSHA did not show that…
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…
Denison Mines (USA) Corp.
Expected meeting sent for a good-cause determination
Denison Mines missed the contest deadlines for four proposed penalty assessments. The company said it expected to discuss or contest the citations at an April meeting in Denver and responded late when that did not occur. The Secretary did not oppose reopening. The Commission remanded the matter for…
Service Oil, Inc.
In re Service Oil, Inc. (EAB CWA Appeal No. 07-02): stormwater liability and $35,640 penalty affirmed
Service Oil, Inc. operated a construction site for a travel center in Fargo, North Dakota. EPA alleged that the company began construction without obtaining the required stormwater permit and later failed to complete or maintain required inspections. The Board affirmed liability on both counts and…
BRS Inc.
Hardship and merits claims denied without prejudice
BRS first asked to reopen a final assessment so it could arrange a payment plan because of economic hardship. It later asked to contest citations it believed should not have been issued. The Secretary opposed both requests because neither explained why the company missed the original contest…
Environmental Disposal Systems, Inc.
In re Environmental Disposal Systems, Inc. (EAB UIC Appeal No. 07-03): permit termination upheld
EPA Region 5 terminated two UIC permits that had authorized Environmental Disposal Systems, Inc. to operate Class I hazardous-waste injection wells in Romulus, Michigan. The Police and Fire Retirement System of the City of Detroit, RDD Investment Corporation, and RDD Operations, LLC challenged the…
Prime Roofing Corporation
Deficient roof warning lines led to a repeat citation and $7,500 penalty
Prime Roofing Corporation provided warning lines while workers removed roof ballast in preparation for replacing a low-slope roof about 20 feet above the ground. The warning lines ran down the center of the roof rather than at least 6 feet from the exposed edges, and workers were observed near the…
Canyon Fuel Company, LLC
Overlooked penalty contest sent for a good-cause determination
Canyon Fuel timely contested an MSHA order but did not separately contest the later proposed $27,959 penalty. The company said its safety manager told an assistant not to pay the penalty but overlooked mailing the penalty contest. The Secretary did not oppose reopening, while noting that Canyon had…
Old Dominion Energy, Inc.
Unsupported clerical-error claim denied without prejudice
Old Dominion sought to reopen one penalty on an assessment form that covered two violations. The company attributed the omission to a clerical error by office staff serving several coal companies, while acknowledging that it successfully contested the other penalty on the same form. The Secretary…
Atlanta Sand & Supply Company, Inc.
Vague counsel-miscommunication claim denied without prejudice
Atlanta Sand intended to contest nine penalties after informal conferences with MSHA but said a miscommunication with counsel prevented a timely filing. The Commission majority found the motion too vague because it did not state specific facts about the transfer of the assessment or who believed a…
Waroquier Coal Company
Receptionist delay and filing authority sent for review
DMS Safety Services sought to reopen a Waroquier Coal assessment after a receptionist held the form for nearly a month without alerting the safety director to the 30-day deadline. The safety director then mailed a contest believing the assessment had arrived only in early April, although the…
Black Beauty Coal Company
Misdirected contest forms sent for a good-cause determination
Black Beauty marked two assessment forms to contest selected penalties and mailed them with checks for the uncontested penalties within 30 days. The package went to MSHA's payment-processing office in Pittsburgh rather than the Civil Penalty Compliance Office in Arlington, which handles contest…
Plateau Mining Corporation
Ventilation citation vacated after court reversal
An Administrative Law Judge affirmed a ventilation-system citation against Plateau Mining and assessed a $25,000 penalty. The Commission later divided evenly, which left the Judge's decision standing. The Tenth Circuit reversed because substantial evidence did not show that Plateau had notice its…
KS Energy Services, Inc.
Inadequate road-work warnings supported a serious citation
KS Energy Services installed a natural gas pipeline in a traffic-control zone along a Wisconsin county road with a 55 mph speed limit. The Commission found that the company failed to provide advance warning conveying highway conditions and how motorists should move through the work zone, as…
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…
Little Eagle Coal Co.
Reopening motion denied as moot after timely contest confirmed
Little Eagle asked to reopen a proposed assessment because it believed a forwarding delay had caused a late contest. The Secretary reviewed the records and determined that the contest was actually timely. Because the assessment never became a final Commission order, there was nothing to reopen. The…
Secretary of Labor v. Ammon Enterprises
Ammon Enterprises (FMSHRC WEST 2007-62-M, WEST 2007-147-M, WEST 2007-184-M): MSHA jurisdiction upheld and 15 violations produced $1,365
Ammon Enterprises operated a small gravel pit and screening plant while also conducting excavation, equipment rental, construction, and other businesses from the same property. Judge Michael E. Zielinski held that Mine Act jurisdiction covered the pits, screening equipment, shop, fuel area…
Powder River Coal, LLC
Welder dust citation vacated because samples were contaminated by fumes
MSHA cited Powder River Coal after four samples from non-shop welders averaged above the respirable-dust limit. The Judge held that welding fumes are not dust under the cited regulation because they are produced by heat, have different physical characteristics, and are addressed by separate MSHA…
Secretary of Labor v. Drummond Company, Inc.
Good-cause inquiry ordered for missed penalty contest
Drummond Company sought to reopen a penalty assessment covering two citations it had already contested. The company said it intended to contest the related penalties, but its safety superintendent had assumed additional duties and missed the deadline; the Secretary did not oppose reopening. The…
Secretary of Labor v. Drisco Trucking Company
Good-cause inquiry ordered for late contest
Drisco Trucking asked to reopen a penalty assessment after inadvertently misplacing the proposal and missing the 30-day contest deadline. It said this was its first citation and it was unfamiliar with Mine Act proceedings; the Secretary did not oppose reopening. The Commission did not decide…
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.