Federal Agency Decisions
Federal workers' compensation appeals from the Department of Labor's Employees' Compensation Appeals Board (ECAB), federal-sector labor-relations cases from the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), Longshore Act and Black Lung Benefits Act appeals from the Department of Labor's Benefits Review Board (BRB), precedent decisions of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), environmental permit and penalty appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board (EAB), and whistleblower and other labor appeals from the Department of Labor's Administrative Review Board (ARB), each with a plain-English summary, the law it cites, and whether it counts as precedent. More agencies are coming.
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J.R. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Falfurrias, TX
Board upholds denial of hearing loss schedule award (ECAB 21-0909)
A Border Patrol agent had accepted work related hearing loss and tinnitus from years of noise exposure. OWCP denied a schedule award because the measured hearing loss did not reach a compensable level. The Board applied the prescribed audiometric formula and found zero percent hearing loss in each…
D.K. and U.S. Postal Service, Webb Bridge Post Office, Alpharetta, GA
Board orders fresh review of postal worker's shoulder award claim (ECAB 21-0885)
A postal carrier sought a schedule award for lasting impairment after an accepted left shoulder injury. A physician's report rated a shoulder tear at five percent impairment and also documented limited external rotation, but OWCP denied the claim without sending the report to a district medical…
J.W. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Manchester VA Medical Center, Manchester, NH
Board upholds finding that VA worker abandoned hearing request (ECAB 21-0869)
A VA maintenance mechanic requested a hearing after OWCP denied authorization for right revision ulnar nerve decompression surgery. OWCP mailed a hearing notice to his address of record, but he did not call in or ask for postponement. He later said he had not received the notice. The Board applied…
C.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Istrouma Station, Baton Rouge, LA
Board orders merit review of postal carrier's recurrence claim (ECAB 21-0866)
A postal carrier sought wage loss compensation after an accepted back injury and later recurrence. OWCP denied merit review of her reconsideration request. The Board found that new specialist notes about worsening spinal conditions and radiculopathy addressed the disputed medical issue and had not…
K.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Hammond Post Office, Hammond, IN
Board narrows postal worker's compensation forfeiture and orders recalculation (ECAB 21-0604)
A postal carrier sold crafts and sweets through a small business while receiving wage loss compensation. The Board found that she knowingly failed to report that activity on benefit claim forms covering November 2016 through January 6, 2017 and June 24, 2017 through June 2019, supporting forfeiture…
J.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Coppell, TX
Board orders recalculation of postal worker's benefit overpayment (ECAB 20-1577)
A postal distribution clerk received wage loss compensation and Social Security retirement benefits without an offset for the portion attributable to federal service. The Board agreed that this created an overpayment. OWCP's records showed two different totals, $64,894.49 and $61,645.59, without a…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3369 and Social Security Administration
Social Security Administration and AFGE Local 3369 (FLRA 0-AR-5710): Authority dismisses removal-pay exceptions
An arbitrator found that the Social Security Administration lacked just cause to remove an employee and ordered reinstatement without backpay or benefits for the removal period. After reinstatement, the parties returned for clarification about whether the employee should receive within-grade…
A.B.E.F. Development Corp. and Herminio Cotto Construction, Inc.
In re A.B.E.F. Development Corp. and Herminio Cotto Construction, Inc. (EAB CWA Appeal No. 21-(02)): Initial Decision became final
On November 30, 2021, the Presiding Officer issued an Initial Decision and Default Order in the proceeding involving A.B.E.F. Development Corp. and Herminio Cotto Construction, Inc. The order says the decision was served on the parties on December 1, 2021, and neither party appealed. The…
A.D. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Secret Service, Washington, DC
Board recognizes neck strain diagnosis but upholds injury claim denial (ECAB 21-1205)
A Secret Service officer reported neck pain after a government vehicle carrying him was struck from behind during a work assignment. OWCP accepted the collision but denied his injury claim because it found no medical diagnosis. The Board found that an emergency physician had diagnosed a neck…
A.L. and Department of Justice, U.S. Marshals Service, Corpus Christi, TX
Board upholds denial of Marshals Service investigator's shoulder injury claim (ECAB 21-0978)
A U.S. Marshals Service investigator reported hurting his right shoulder while arresting a fugitive. OWCP accepted the incident and recognized shoulder diagnoses but found the medical evidence insufficient to show that work caused them. The Board agreed because the physician did not explain how the…
G.C. and Department of the Navy, Norfolk Navy Shipyard, Portsmouth, VA
Board upholds denial of continuation of pay for late injury form (ECAB 21-0679)
A Navy shipyard painter reported hip and groin pain after moving a heavy paint container at work. OWCP accepted a right hip strain but denied continuation of pay because he submitted his injury claim more than a year after the incident. The Board held that continuation of pay requires an approved…
P.L. and Social Security Administration, Newburgh Social Security Office, Newburgh, NY
Board orders recalculation of federal worker's benefit overpayment (ECAB 21-0663)
A Social Security Administration employee received FECA wage loss compensation and Social Security retirement benefits attributable to federal service for the same period. The Board agreed that this produced an overpayment and that the employee was without fault. It rejected OWCP's $79,437.17…
A.V. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Olin E. Teague Veterans Medical Center, Temple, TX
Board orders explanation of late reconsideration denial (ECAB 21-0167)
A VA nursing assistant sought reconsideration of OWCP's denial of disability compensation after an accepted back and hip injury. She filed more than one year after the last merit decision, so the Board agreed that her request was late. OWCP had denied the request without explaining whether her new…
M.N. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Denver, CO
Board orders fresh review of postal worker's partial disability pay (ECAB 20-1502)
A postal carrier worked reduced hours after an accepted shoulder and neck injury from a fall on snow. OWCP had paid partial disability compensation, but stopped paying after April 24, 2020 and later denied his claim for intermittent wage loss. The Board found that OWCP had not explained why the…
E.E. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Florence, CO
Board remands prison officer's injury claim for clear findings (ECAB 20-1039)
A federal corrections officer reported swelling after drinking from a workplace water dispenser he believed had recently been sanitized. OWCP denied his injury claim, saying both that the medical evidence did not link his condition to an established work event and that the event itself had not been…
United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Information and Technology and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 17
VA Information Technology and AFGE Local 17 (FLRA 0-AR-5692): Authority leaves reprimand in place
The VA suspended an employee for three days after a two-month absence continued beyond available sick leave and the employee did not respond to agency contacts. An arbitrator found discipline warranted but reduced the suspension to a written reprimand under the agreement's progressive-discipline…
Holovatyuk v. EM Cargo, LLC
Vague rest-rule reference not protected
EM Cargo driver Mykhaylo Holovatyuk took a week off without telling the company and kept a rented truck in Florida while declining dispatch messages. In an email seeking tax information about whether he should be treated as an employee, he listed “34-h ‘restarts’” among several scheduling concerns…
Y.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Daniel J. Doffyn Post Office, Chicago, IL
Board upholds denial of postal carrier's hand condition claim (ECAB 21-1011)
A postal carrier developed carpal tunnel syndrome and ulnar neuropathy and attributed them to repetitive mail casing work. A physician described her duties and said the conditions were likely work related, but the Board found that he did not explain medically how those duties caused or aggravated…
P.D. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Buffalo VA Medical Center, Buffalo, NY
Board upholds denial of VA nurse's injury claim after door incident (ECAB 21-0920)
A VA nurse reported head, neck, and back symptoms after an overhead door struck her at work. OWCP accepted the incident but denied her injury claim for lack of qualifying medical evidence linking a condition to it. The Board found that the emergency report was unsigned, a physician assistant's…
V.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bell Gardens, CA
Board upholds refusal to reopen postal worker's benefit termination (ECAB 21-0910)
A postal carrier sought to reopen OWCP's termination of benefits for an accepted foot injury. Her reconsideration request did not present a new legal argument, identify a legal error, or supply relevant new medical evidence. Letters from the Social Security Administration asking for her medical…
M.M. and Department of Veterans Affairs, San Antonio Military Medical Center, Fort Sam Houston, TX
Board upholds refusal to reopen VA worker's impairment claim (ECAB 21-0816)
A VA worker sought a larger schedule award for permanent impairment related to accepted lumbar conditions. OWCP denied the increased award and later refused to reopen the claim on reconsideration. The Board found that her new medical submissions did not show a ratable motor or sensory deficit…
R.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Chicago Central Carrier Annex, Chicago, IL
Board upholds continuation of pay denial for accepted occupational disease (ECAB 21-0446)
A postal carrier developed arm and shoulder conditions while handling mail and doing clerical work over time. OWCP accepted her occupational disease claim but denied continuation of pay, a benefit available for a traumatic injury. The Board agreed that her own account described work exposure across…
L.C. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Coast Guard, Baltimore, MD
Board upholds denial of Coast Guard worker's wrist injury claim (ECAB 21-0161)
A Coast Guard maintenance worker reported a wrist injury while cleaning equipment and emptying a shop vacuum at work. An orthopedic surgeon diagnosed wrist synovitis and carpal tunnel syndrome and said the conditions were work related. The Board found that the reports did not adequately explain how…
D.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Warwick Post Office, Warwick, NY
Board orders impartial review of postal carrier's knee injury claim (ECAB 21-0974)
A postal carrier reported twisting her left knee at work and sought compensation for a meniscus injury. Her treating surgeon explained how the twist could have caused a new tear or worsened a preexisting tear and arthritis. An OWCP second opinion surgeon attributed her symptoms instead to chronic…
A.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Santa Fe Post Office, Santa Fe, NM
Board upholds denial of postal carrier's back condition claim (ECAB 21-0774)
A rural postal carrier attributed her chronic back condition to years of lifting, bending, and twisting at work. Her physician said the duties may have contributed, but the Board found that opinion too uncertain and insufficiently reasoned to establish causation. It affirmed OWCP's denial of the…
V.D. and Department of the Navy, Military Sealift Command, Norfolk, VA
Board orders review of Navy worker's wage earning capacity request (ECAB 21-0734)
A Navy supply clerk sought to change a prior finding that he could earn wages as an office clerk after an accepted back injury. OWCP treated his request as an untimely reconsideration request and denied it. The Board found that his arguments and new medical evidence instead sought modification of…
F.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Portland, OR
Board upholds denial of further knee physical therapy (ECAB 21-0557)
A postal custodian with an accepted right knee injury sought additional supervised physical therapy after multiple surgeries. His treating surgeon supported further treatment, while an OWCP second opinion physician did not. OWCP obtained an impartial specialist's opinion to resolve that conflict…
D.R. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, West Palm Beach, FL
Board orders medical review of TSA worker's earning capacity (ECAB 21-0498)
A TSA officer challenged a prior determination that she could earn wages as a customer complaint clerk after an accepted shoulder and neck injury. She underwent OWCP authorized shoulder surgery after that determination and submitted medical reports describing reduced work capacity. The Board found…
J.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Fayetteville Processing and Distribution Center, Fayetteville, NC
Board upholds denial of late request to reopen postal worker's benefits (ECAB 21-0311)
A postal worker sought to reopen OWCP's termination of wage loss benefits after it found that she refused suitable work. OWCP received her reconsideration request more than one year after the termination decision. The Board held that the request was late and that her job offer materials and later…
M.H. and Department of Veterans Affairs, VA Medical Center, New York, NY
Board orders combined review of VA nurse's shoulder injury files (ECAB 21-0250)
A VA nurse said that pushing a wheelchair at work aggravated a preexisting right shoulder condition. OWCP denied the claim for lack of medical evidence linking the condition to that incident. The Board found that two earlier claim files also involved her shoulder or neck and had not been combined…
C.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Broomfield Post Office, Broomfield, CO
Board orders clarification on postal worker's knee replacement (ECAB 21-0213)
A postal carrier underwent right knee replacement after a fall at work and sought authorization for the surgery. OWCP denied it despite a second opinion surgeon's statement that the knee damage justified replacement. The Board found that the surgeon had not explained whether the accepted injury…
Ajax Materials Corporation
In re Ajax Materials Corporation (EAB CAA Appeal No. 21-04): Petition dismissed for lack of jurisdiction
Melvin Jones challenged Michigan's approval of a Permit to Install for Ajax Materials Corporation's facility in Flint, Michigan. The permit authorized Ajax to install and operate emission units and was issued under Michigan law as a minor-source New Source Review permit. The Environmental Appeals…
M.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Baychester Station, Bronx, NY
Board upholds termination of postal carrier's benefits for refusing work (ECAB 21-1034)
A postal carrier with an accepted wrist condition declined a modified city carrier position offered by her employer. OWCP terminated wage loss compensation and schedule award eligibility after finding the job suitable. The Board agreed that the duties fit the restrictions given by a second opinion…
K.K. and Department of Agriculture, Food Safety & Inspection Service, Springdale, AR
Board upholds denial of a larger left leg schedule award (ECAB 21-0712)
A federal food safety inspector sought a larger schedule award for permanent impairment of his left leg after receiving an award based on 11 percent impairment. His treating surgeon estimated 17 percent impairment, including impairment from a left foot ulcer and Charcot foot. An OWCP medical…
J.B. and Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, Washington, DC
Board upholds five percent left arm schedule award (ECAB 21-0566)
A federal aviation safety inspector injured his left shoulder while lifting baggage at an airport and later received a schedule award for five percent permanent impairment of his left arm. His physician estimated a higher rating, including 34 percent impairment in a later report. The Board found…
T.B. and Department of Defense, Defense Logistics Agency, Barstow, CA
Board upholds denial of disability recurrence claim for a defined period (ECAB 21-0480)
A Defense Logistics Agency worker injured her neck and ankles in a workplace fall and later returned to regular work. She claimed that the accepted injury caused a renewed period of disability from April 22, 2019 through October 13, 2020. The Board found that her doctors' reports did not adequately…
A.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Colesville Post Office, Silver Spring, MD
Board reverses termination of postal carrier's injury benefits (ECAB 21-0150)
A postal carrier injured her right knee in a fall while delivering a package and received wage loss compensation after knee surgery. OWCP later terminated her compensation and medical benefits, relying on an impartial medical examiner's view that her work injury had resolved and her remaining…
E.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Austin, TX
Board sends schedule award reconsideration back for evidence review (ECAB 20-1569)
A postal worker with accepted shoulder and cervical conditions received a schedule award for 12 percent permanent impairment of his left arm. He sought reconsideration and submitted letters from physicians who disputed aspects of the impairment rating, including its treatment of his right shoulder…
D.F., claiming as widow of T.F., and Department of the Army, Rocky Mountain Arsenal, Commerce City, CO
Board orders an explanation of widow's reconsideration request (ECAB 20-1387)
D.F. sought survivor compensation after her husband, a former Army munitions operator, died; OWCP had denied the underlying claim. She later asked OWCP to reconsider and resubmitted a 1967 workplace incident form; medical evidence was also in the record. The Board agreed that her request arrived…
Maria T. Walker v. Capurro Trucking
Discrimination complaint dismissed on summary decision
Maria Walker filed her own Mine Act discrimination case after MSHA declined to prosecute her complaint against former employer Capurro Trucking. She alleged disparate treatment and challenged the company's reasons for terminating her ore-haul truck driver employment. Judge John T. Sullivan reviewed…
Phox v. The Savoy at 21c
FSMA appeal dismissed as untimely
An ALJ denied LaRonda Phox's FSMA whistleblower complaint on May 25, 2021. Phox moved for reconsideration more than ten days later, and the ALJ denied that motion as late. She then petitioned the Board on July 28 and challenged only the May merits decision. The Board held that an untimely…
A.A. and Department of Agriculture, Food Safety & Inspection Service, Enterprise, AL
Board upholds denial of poultry inspector's hand condition claim (ECAB 21-1113)
A federal food inspector claimed that repetitive poultry inspection work caused cubital tunnel syndrome in her right arm and tenosynovitis in her right middle finger. Her supervisor confirmed the repeated hand and arm motions involved in inspecting poultry carcasses. The Board found that the…
M.F. and Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, San Juan, PR
Board upholds refusal of late written-record review request (ECAB 21-0878)
A Department of Agriculture employee filed an emotional condition claim, which OWCP denied in October 2020. She requested review of the written record on November 7, one day beyond the 30-day period after OWCP's October 7 decision. The Board agreed that she was not entitled to review as of right…
A.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Brockton Post Office, Brockton, MA
Board upholds denial of mail carrier's knee injury claim (ECAB 21-0766)
A mail carrier was struck by a vehicle while delivering mail and later sought compensation for a torn left knee meniscus. OWCP accepted that the incident occurred but denied the injury claim. The Board found that her surgeon's statement that the collision and fall "could have" caused the tear was…
S.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Greensboro, NC
Board upholds denial of carrier's motor vehicle injury claim (ECAB 21-0760)
A postal carrier reported neck and back pain after another vehicle struck his while he was working. OWCP accepted that the collision occurred but denied his traumatic injury claim. The only medical report in the record came from a chiropractor who described spinal subluxations based on an…
R.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Dayton Processing & Distribution Center/Facility, Dayton, OH
Board finds postal worker's reconsideration request timely (ECAB 21-0676)
A postal worker sought reconsideration of OWCP's denial of his back injury claim. OWCP rejected his December 14, 2020 request as late, measuring one year from its December 13, 2019 decision. The Board found that the anniversary fell on a Sunday, so the filing period extended to Monday, December 14…
H.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Placentia Post Office, Placentia, CA
Board orders further review of postal carrier's lumbar claim (ECAB 21-0546)
A postal carrier claimed that two workplace falls and repeated lifting, bending, and delivery duties contributed to her lower back conditions. OWCP denied her occupational disease claim. The Board found that her doctor's reports described the work activities and offered a medical explanation…
M.G. and Department of Justice, U.S. Marshals Service, Pierre, SD
Board upholds denial of renewed shoulder treatment claim (ECAB 21-0427)
A U.S. marshal injured his left shoulder in training in 2008, and OWCP accepted the dislocation and later granted a schedule award. In 2020 he sought coverage for a renewed need for shoulder treatment, reporting pain and reduced strength without a new injury. His doctor diagnosed recurrent…
G.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Scranton, PA
Board orders a new impairment evaluation after knee replacement (ECAB 21-0418)
A postal carrier with an accepted right knee injury and a later knee replacement had received schedule awards totaling 34 percent permanent impairment of his right leg. He sought a larger award after a second opinion surgeon gave a higher impairment rating. The surgeon first calculated 75 percent…
R.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Niagara Falls Post Office, Niagara Falls, NY
Board confirms overpayment but orders its amount recalculated (ECAB 21-0243)
A postal worker received FECA wage loss compensation and Social Security retirement benefits attributable in part to federal service. OWCP determined that it had failed to apply the required offset during several periods and sought recovery of an overpayment, while finding the worker was not at…
E.D. and Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration, Washington, DC
Board confirms health premium overpayment but reopens waiver question (ECAB 20-0963)
An Energy Department employee received FECA wage loss compensation while enrolled in a federal health insurance plan. OWCP did not withhold the plan's premiums from her compensation between April 2012 and January 2019 and determined that this created a $46,507.36 overpayment for which she was not…
S.G. and U.S. Postal Service, The Woodlands Metro Station Office, The Woodlands, TX
Board upholds denial of carrier's claimed disability recurrence (ECAB 20-0828)
A postal carrier had accepted neck and back conditions from a work-related vehicle accident and later worked in a modified sedentary position. She claimed renewed disability beginning November 30, 2018. The Board found that her doctors did not adequately explain why the accepted conditions…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1612, Council of Prison Locals #33 and United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Medical Center for Federal Prisoners, Springfield, Missouri
Federal Medical Center Springfield and AFGE Local 1612 (FLRA 0-AR-5658): Authority upholds overtime-payment award
AFGE Local 1612 alleged that a federal prison medical center failed to pay employees overtime on time. The arbitrator found some overtime was paid after the pay period in which it was earned, but concluded that the agency paid it as soon as practicable and used audits and procedures to support…
H.R. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons, Pollack, LA
Board upholds denial of prison worker's thumb condition claim (ECAB 21-0877)
A Bureau of Prisons employee said years of gripping and turning keys caused pain and arthritis in his right thumb. His doctor recorded thumb pain and linked the symptoms to repeated key use, but the Board found that pain was a symptom rather than a compensable medical diagnosis. The Board also…
J.H. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs & Border Protection, Los Angeles, CA
Board upholds back injury claim denial and late hearing refusal (ECAB 21-0870)
A customs officer reported back pain after bending and turning to inspect an aircraft compartment at work. OWCP accepted that the incident occurred but denied his injury claim. The Board found that one doctor's report diagnosed only pain, while the doctors who diagnosed a lumbar strain did not give…
R.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Ontario, CA
Board orders more medical review of postal carrier's hip claim (ECAB 21-0752)
A rural mail carrier claimed that years of walking, standing, twisting, and other delivery duties contributed to labral tears and arthritis in both hips. OWCP denied the occupational disease claim. The Board found that his treating doctor's reports described the accepted work factors and gave a…
D.C. and U.S. Postal Service, B Station Cleveland Post Office, Cleveland, OH
Board upholds foot injury denial while correcting its basis (ECAB 20-1453)
A postal carrier reported sharp left foot pain while delivering mail and sought compensation for a sprain. OWCP denied the claim, and a hearing representative found that the evidence did not establish a diagnosis connected to the incident. The Board found that an orthopedic surgeon did diagnose a…
R.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Warren Post Office, Warren, MI
Board orders new examination for postal worker's impairment claim (ECAB 20-1052)
A postal carrier sought a schedule award for permanent impairment from accepted right hip and lumbar conditions. His treating doctor and an OWCP medical adviser disagreed about the degree and source of impairment. OWCP referred the case to an impartial examiner, who concluded there had been no work…
Rolly Marine Service Company
Hydraulic-press citations vacated
A Rolly Marine yard foreman died from blunt-force injuries after a metal bar was ejected from a modified hydraulic press and struck his abdomen. OSHA cited the shipyard under the general duty clause for operating a press altered from its original design and under the machine-guarding standard for…
Haiducek v. American Airlines, Inc.
Late AIR21 appeal dismissed
Mark Haiducek filed a late petition asking the Board to review his AIR21 claim against American Airlines. After the Board ordered him to show why the appeal should not be dismissed, he explained that he could not afford outside counsel and needed time to prepare the petition himself. The Board held…
What these documents are
- The agencies: Federal workers' compensation appeals from the Department of Labor's Employees' Compensation Appeals Board (ECAB), federal-sector labor-relations cases from the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), Longshore Act and Black Lung Benefits Act appeals from the Department of Labor's Benefits Review Board (BRB), precedent decisions of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), environmental permit and penalty appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board (EAB), and whistleblower and other labor appeals from the Department of Labor's Administrative Review Board (ARB). Each decision page names its agency.
- Commission, Board and Authority decisions: Rulings by the agency's highest review level (the Commission at OSHRC and FMSHRC, the Authority at FLRA, the Board of Immigration Appeals, the Administrative Review Board at Labor, and 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.