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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Kathy D. Graham, widow of and on behalf of the estate of John H. Graham, Jr. v. Doss Fork Coal Company, Incorporated
Graham v. Doss Fork Coal (BRB 18-0053 and 18-0089): miner and survivor benefits upheld
Kathy Graham pursued her late husband's black lung claim and her own survivor claim. The judge found 19.27 years of underground coal mine work and total respiratory disability, invoking the presumption of disability due to pneumoconiosis in the miner's claim. Doss Fork failed to rebut it, so the…
Kathy D. Graham, widow of and on behalf of the estate of John H. Graham, Jr. v. Doss Fork Coal Company, Incorporated
Graham v. Doss Fork Coal (BRB 18-0053 and 18-0089): miner and survivor benefits upheld
Kathy Graham pursued her late husband's black lung claim and her own survivor claim. The judge found 19.27 years of underground coal mine work and total respiratory disability, invoking the presumption of disability due to pneumoconiosis in the miner's claim. Doss Fork failed to rebut it, so the…
Marlin D. Rice v. Karst Robbins Coal Company
Rice v. Karst Robbins Coal (BRB 17-0625): modified black lung award upheld
Marlin Rice pursued modification of an earlier black lung benefits denial. The judge found complicated pneumoconiosis arising from coal mine work and awarded benefits. The carrier challenged both entitlement and its responsibility for the claim, including a request to rescind its policy with the…
W.H. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Indianapolis, IN
18-1265 (ECAB): Left arm impairment award denied
W.H., a Veterans Affairs housekeeping aide, sought a schedule award after an accepted left shoulder sprain. His physician estimated a four percent impairment but did not provide the detailed findings and rating analysis requested by OWCP. The Board found that the record did not establish a ratable…
A.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Providence Processing & Distribution Center, Providence, RI
18-1116 (ECAB): Mail lifting injury claim denial affirmed
A.J., a postal mail handler, reported an injury after lifting a tray of mail at work. The Board accepted that the incident occurred but found that the medical reports did not explain how it caused the diagnosed conditions. A checked box asserting causation did not supply that explanation. It…
D.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Monroe Township, NJ
18-1038 (ECAB): Late reconsideration request denied
D.G., a postal carrier, sought reconsideration of an earlier injury claim decision. The Board found that OWCP received the request on December 12, 2017, one day after the extended one-year deadline. It also found that the submission did not demonstrate clear evidence of error. It affirmed OWCP’s…
D.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Williamsville, NY
18-1025 (ECAB): Emotional condition claim denial affirmed
D.B., a postal worker, alleged workplace harassment after coworkers and managers discussed a personal online advertisement. The Board found that the record lacked specific evidence establishing the alleged harassment or a claimed demotion. It concluded that she had not established a compensable…
K.S. and Department of the Air Force, 99th Medical Support Squadron, Nellis Air Force Base, NV
18-0996 (ECAB): Late hearing request denial affirmed
K.S., an Air Force secretary, requested a hearing after OWCP issued a decision on her foot injury claim. Her request was postmarked more than 30 days after the decision. The Board found that OWCP considered discretionary relief and did not abuse its discretion by denying the late request. It…
E.I. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Oakland Park, IL
18-0634 (ECAB): Delayed reconsideration decision remanded for merits review
E.I., an Internal Revenue Service revenue officer, asked OWCP to reconsider the denial of her occupational disease claim. OWCP waited 518 days before issuing a decision that declined to reopen the merits. The Board found that the delay impaired her ability to submit further evidence under the…
C.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, St. Louis, MO
17-1981 (ECAB): Knee injury claim denial affirmed
C.C., a postal carrier, reported a left knee injury from an accepted workplace incident. The Board found that the medical evidence did not adequately explain how the incident caused or aggravated his knee condition. Physical therapy and diagnostic reports did not fill that gap. It affirmed OWCP’s…
W.C. and Department of the Army, Civilian Personnel Advisory Center, Fort Drum, NY
18-1386 (ECAB): Injury claim remanded for specialist opinion
W.C., an Army telecommunications mechanic, reported neck and shoulder injuries after a rope snapped while he pulled cable at work. After an earlier claim denial, he submitted a physician’s detailed explanation linking the incident to diagnosed conditions. The Board found that report sufficient to…
C.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bath, PA
18-1156 (ECAB): Injury claim and late record review denial affirmed
C.F., a postal rural carrier, reported a fall on a snowy driveway while delivering parcels. The Board found that her medical evidence did not adequately connect her pelvic and back conditions to the accepted incident. It also upheld OWCP’s denial of her late request for review of the written…
C.B. and Department of State, Chicago Passport Agency, Chicago, IL
18-1108 (ECAB): Reconsideration denial in disability claim affirmed
C.B., a State Department employee, sought reconsideration of a decision about disability arising from accepted conditions. The Board found that Dr. Shah’s new report repeated an earlier report verbatim and did not require merit review. Other resubmitted reports had already been considered, and she…
P.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Woodland Hills, CA
18-0973 (ECAB): Rib injury claim denial affirmed
P.F., a postal carrier, reported rib pain after lifting a tray of mail at work. The Board found that she had a diagnosed condition but that the medical evidence did not adequately explain how the accepted lifting incident caused it. It affirmed OWCP’s injury claim denial.
A.E. and U.S. Postal Service, Valley Stream Post Office, Valley Stream, NY
18-0891 (ECAB): Termination of injury benefits reversed
A.E., a postal carrier, received wage-loss compensation and medical benefits for accepted shoulder and neck conditions. OWCP ended those benefits effective July 7, 2016. The Board found that OWCP had not met its burden to establish that the work-related conditions had ceased. It reversed the…
I.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Thousand Oaks, CA
17-1684 (ECAB): Disability claim remanded for light-duty evidence
I.C., a postal carrier, sought wage-loss compensation for disability after an accepted injury. The Board found that the record lacked proof that a suitable light-duty position was actually offered and that he received written notice of it at the relevant time. It set aside OWCP’s decision and…
J.S. and Department of the Army, The Surgeon General Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, DC
17-0626 (ECAB): Disability recurrence remanded for medical review
J.S., an Army medical center secretary, claimed a recurrence of disability from an accepted back injury. OWCP used an impartial examiner to address conflicting medical opinions. The Board found that the examiner’s report did not adequately explain whether the accepted injury caused the claimed work…
Secretary of Labor obo Delbert Leimbach v. Huber Carbonates, LLC
Challenge to temporary reinstatement denied
MSHA sought temporary reinstatement for Delbert Leimbach after Huber Carbonates fired him following his transmission of a company email to an MSHA investigator. Huber argued that the email was privileged and asked the Judge to dismiss the application or require MSHA to recuse investigators and…
Maria Jordan v. DynCorp International, LLC
Jordan v. DynCorp International (BRB 18-0128): dismissal upheld on reconsideration
Maria Jordan asked the Benefits Review Board to reconsider its earlier order dismissing her appeal. She also requested review by the full Board and asked that the panel members be disqualified. DynCorp and its insurer opposed the requests. No panel member voted to grant disqualification, en banc…
Betty Sue Haynes, widow of and on behalf of Albert L. Haynes v. Good Coal Company, Incorporated
Haynes v. Good Coal (BRB 18-0021 and 18-0023): miner and survivor benefits upheld
Betty Haynes pursued her late husband's later black lung claim and her own survivor claim. A judge on remand found 24 years of underground mining, total respiratory disability, and no rebuttal of the statutory presumption. Good Coal challenged the miner's benefits award. The Board upheld the…
Betty Sue Haynes, widow of and on behalf of Albert L. Haynes v. Good Coal Company, Incorporated
Haynes v. Good Coal (BRB 18-0021 and 18-0023): miner and survivor benefits upheld
Betty Haynes pursued her late husband's later black lung claim and her own survivor claim. A judge on remand found 24 years of underground mining, total respiratory disability, and no rebuttal of the statutory presumption. Good Coal challenged the miner's benefits award. The Board upheld the…
F.H. and Department of the Navy, Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth, VA
18-1238 (ECAB): Denial of additional conditions and hearing request affirmed
F.H., a Navy shipyard electrician, fell at work and received acceptance of a right thigh contusion. He sought to add right hip osteoarthritis, cervical myelopathy with radiculopathy, and lumbar radiculopathy to the accepted claim. The Board found that the medical reports did not adequately explain…
T.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Atlanta Processing & Distribution Center, Atlanta, GA
18-1196 (ECAB): Denial of claimed total disability affirmed
T.J., a postal clerk with accepted right elbow conditions, sought compensation for total disability from February 25 through March 22, 2017. Her treating physician said pain and medication prevented her from performing light duty, but did not explain in detail how the accepted conditions caused…
R.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Cooperstown, NY
18-1097 (ECAB): Postal vehicle injury claim remanded for medical review
R.A., a rural postal carrier, reported a cervical injury after his delivery vehicle rolled over while he avoided road debris. OWCP doubted the rollover account, but police reports showed the vehicle came to rest on its roof. The Board found the rollover established. A physician explained how the…
M.D. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Washington, DC
18-1073 (ECAB): Right arm impairment claim remanded for complete rating
M.D., an IRS employee, challenged the rating of his right arm impairment. OWCP’s medical adviser used a diagnosis based method because the file lacked the measurements needed for a range of motion rating. The Board held that OWCP had to follow its procedure for obtaining those measurements before…
S.C. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH
18-0814 (ECAB): Refusal to reopen workplace injury claim affirmed
S.C., a VA nurse, sought reconsideration after OWCP denied a claim for an injury in a crowded patient room. OWCP had found that she had not established how the claimed incident occurred. Her new medical records did not address that factual question, and she supplied no personal or witness statement…
B.O. and Department of Veterans Affairs, San Francisco Veterans Medical Center, San Francisco, CA
17-1986 (ECAB): Emotional condition claim denial affirmed
B.O., a VA dispatcher assistant, attributed emotional stress to management actions after an emergency dispatch incident and to alleged harassment. The Board found no evidence that management acted unreasonably in investigating the incident or temporarily changing her work assignment. It also found…
B.Y. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Port Chester, NY
17-1822 (ECAB): Emotional condition and reconsideration denials affirmed
B.Y., a postal letter carrier, attributed an emotional condition to alleged improper discipline and other management actions. The Board found no evidence that management erred or acted abusively in those personnel matters, so he had not established a compensable work factor. His reconsideration…
Secretary of Labor v. Richmond Sand & Stone, LLC
Natural-cause mine death required immediate reporting
An excavator operator at Richmond Sand & Stone's Rhode Island quarry suffered a fatal heart attack from natural causes while at the mine. The company learned of his condition that afternoon but did not notify MSHA until the following morning. Judge Jacqueline R. Bulluck held that every death at a…
Giuseppe Cutietta v. National Steel and Shipbuilding Company
Cutietta v. National Steel and Shipbuilding (BRB 18-0368): attorney fee request remanded
Giuseppe Cutietta's lawyer sought additional attorney fees after longshore compensation proceedings and a prior remand. The judge treated an earlier $46,000 fee agreement as barring any further award for the initial proceedings. The Board held that the agreement did not foreclose a later fee…
Carl Vernon Mullins v. Tatoo Trucking
Mullins v. Tatoo Trucking (BRB 18-0061): black lung benefits award upheld
Carl Mullins filed another black lung claim after earlier denials. The judge found 17 years and three months of qualifying coal mine work and total respiratory disability, invoking the statutory presumption of disability due to pneumoconiosis. Tatoo Trucking challenged the work history, disability…
A.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Tukwila, WA
18-1154 (ECAB): Infection claim and reconsideration denials affirmed
A.F., a postal mail processing clerk, claimed that a parasitic infection arose from something placed in his food at work. The Board found that he had not identified a specific work event or factor with enough detail to establish the factual basis of the claim. His reconsideration request supplied…
L.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Tampa, FL
18-1134 (ECAB): Back injury denial affirmed with diagnosis correction
L.C., a rural carrier, reported lower back pain after moving heavy boxes at work. The Board found that an x-ray report established a diagnosis of minimal lumbar degenerative disease. That corrected OWCP’s treatment of the diagnosis evidence, but the report did not explain whether the accepted work…
R.V. and Department of Veterans Affairs, American Lake Veterans Administration Medical Center, Takoma, WA
18-1125 (ECAB): Refusal to reopen intermittent disability claim affirmed
R.V., a VA practical nurse with an accepted injury from a workplace fall, sought reconsideration of denied compensation for intermittent disability beginning in September 2016. Her new reports repeated an earlier medical opinion or did not address disability for the disputed periods. The Board…
M.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, St. Petersburg, FL
18-1101 (ECAB): Retirement offset overpayment and recovery affirmed
M.B., a postal clerk receiving FECA wage loss compensation, also received Social Security retirement benefits attributable to federal service without the required offset. The Board upheld OWCP’s $120,114.57 overpayment calculation for November 2007 through March 2017. Although she was without…
J.S. and Department of the Army, U.S. Army Medical Command, Fort Riley, KS
18-1086 (ECAB): Continuation of pay denial affirmed
J.S., an Army radiologic technologist, reported a shoulder injury while positioning equipment at work on January 9, 2018. She said she tried to file electronically soon afterward and told her supervisor, but her written injury claim was filed on March 15. The Board held that the written notice came…
Mandel Williams v. CB & I Offshore Services, Incorporated
Williams v. CB & I Offshore Services (BRB 18-0311): reconsideration denied
Mandel Williams asked the Benefits Review Board to reconsider its November 2018 decision in his longshore case. The order does not describe the earlier decision or the arguments in his motion. After reviewing them, no panel member voted to vacate or modify the decision. The Board denied…
S.M. and Department of State, Bureau of Diplomatic Security, Washington, DC
18-1158 (ECAB): Refusal to reopen training injury claim affirmed
S.M., a State Department special agent, sought reconsideration of a claim concerning injuries during a law enforcement training drill. His new witness statement described the event but did not address the disputed medical causal link. A physician’s new letter repeated an earlier opinion without…
V.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Tickfaw, LA
18-1124 (ECAB): Insurance premium debt upheld, fault finding set aside
V.H., a postal employee, received too much compensation because OWCP withheld too little for insurance premiums. The Board confirmed the $1,519.53 debt, despite a higher figure printed in OWCP’s notices. It found no evidence that she knew of the withholding error, so she was without fault. The…
T.D., representative of the estate of S.B., and Department of Veterans Affairs, Illiana Health Care System, Danville, IL
18-1071 (ECAB): Denial of estate schedule award claim affirmed
T.D. pursued a schedule award claim for a deceased VA nursing assistant who had accepted right shoulder injuries. The employee had not submitted a physician’s impairment rating under the required guide during her lifetime, and none was in the record after her death. The Board also found that T.D…
L.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, North Houston, TX
18-1027 (ECAB): Post return to work overpayment and waiver denial affirmed
L.W., a postal maintenance mechanic, received wage loss compensation after returning to full time work. The Board upheld OWCP’s $1,755.23 overpayment for December 22, 2017 through January 6, 2018. It found her without fault because the payment arrived electronically before she could review it. She…
J.B. and Department of the Army, Pine Bluff Arsenal, Pine Bluff, AR
18-0522 (ECAB): Denial of additional conditions affirmed
J.B., an Army arsenal worker, had accepted cervical and lumbar sprains from a 1992 fall from a bus. He sought to add later arm, back, leg, and neck conditions as consequences of that injury. The Board found that his medical reports did not adequately explain a causal link between those conditions…
J.S. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Boston HCS, Brockton, MA
17-1932 (ECAB): Termination of injury benefits reversed
J.S., a VA employee, had accepted a concussion, post concussion syndrome, and a left forehead contusion after a workplace injury. OWCP ended wage loss compensation and medical benefits based on second opinion reports. The Board found that those physicians did not address whether the accepted…
T.B. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Metropolitan Detention Center, Los Angeles, CA
17-1777 (ECAB): Customer complaint clerk earning capacity affirmed
T.B., a federal prison communications specialist with an accepted knee injury, could not return to his prior job. OWCP selected a customer complaint clerk position to measure his earning capacity. The Board found that the job fit his physician’s restrictions and that vocational evidence showed it…
Swisslog Logistics, Inc., and Wal-Mart Stores East, L.P. d/b/a Distribution Center 7019
Lockout citations vacated
A Swisslog employee sustained a serious leg injury when an automated trolley moved while he was working inside Wal-Mart's monorail system. OSHA cited both companies for willfully failing to use documented lockout procedures. The judge found that the lockout standard did not apply because the…
B.T. and Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, Washington, DC
18-1397 (ECAB): Refusal to reopen air traffic controller claim affirmed
B.T., an air traffic controller, sought reconsideration of an emotional condition claim following his involvement with an aircraft that later crashed fatally. OWCP had accepted the work event but required medical evidence linking a diagnosed condition to it. His reconsideration materials repeated…
K.B. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Kansas City, MO
18-1392 (ECAB): Refusal to reopen emotional condition claim affirmed
K.B., an IRS supervisor, sought reconsideration of an emotional condition claim arising from workplace events. The unresolved issue was whether she had established a compensable work factor. Her new medical reports discussed psychological conditions but did not supply relevant factual evidence…
A.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Randolph Post Office, Charlotte, NC
18-1172 (ECAB): Late prerecoupment hearing request denied
A.B., a postal employee, requested a prerecoupment hearing after OWCP issued a preliminary overpayment notice on September 5, 2017. Her request was postmarked October 13, beyond the 30 day period. The Board held that the hearing request was late and that the cited rules supplied no exception for…
J.P. and Department of the Army, 81st Readiness Division, Area Maintenance Support Activity, Fort Buchanan, PR
18-1165 (ECAB): Right knee injury claim denial affirmed
J.P., an Army mechanic, reported a right knee injury while repairing a truck at work. OWCP accepted the February 7, 2018 incident, but the Board found no medical opinion explaining how it caused the diagnosed knee conditions. The treating reports described osteoarthritis and a meniscal tear without…
J.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Carrier Annex, Tampa, FL
18-1079 (ECAB): Left ankle injury claim denial affirmed
J.R., a postal city carrier assistant, claimed a left ankle injury on November 22, 2017. Her accounts referred to exiting a vehicle and to a fall on steps, but did not clearly explain the time, place, and manner of the claimed injury. She did not answer OWCP’s request for more detail before its…
R.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Laurinburg, NC
18-0898 (ECAB): Refusal to reopen shoulder claim affirmed
R.B., a postal city carrier, sought reconsideration of a denied left shoulder injury claim. Her new records included diagnoses and imaging, but no physician explained how the accepted lifting incident caused a diagnosed condition. Other reports came from providers whose opinions did not qualify as…
S.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Gretna, LA
18-0397 (ECAB): Earning capacity claim remanded for proper job comparison
S.S., a postal worker, claimed that worsening accepted conditions prevented her from performing the private sector manager trainee job used to set her earning capacity. OWCP asked a second opinion physician about her former mail carrier duties instead of the manager trainee job. The Board held that…
D.M. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Manchester Veterans Medical Center, Manchester, NH
17-1563 (ECAB): Shoulder surgery request remanded for medical review
D.M., a VA physician with accepted shoulder conditions, sought authorization for left shoulder surgery. OWCP relied on a second opinion that attributed his shoulder limitation to diabetes rather than to an accepted condition. The Board found that the physician’s premise conflicted with OWCP’s…
M-Class Mining, LLC v. Secretary of Labor
Accident-control order upheld after suspected carbon monoxide exposure
A miner at M-Class Mining's Illinois underground coal mine became ill near a diesel air compressor and was hospitalized after an emergency-room doctor diagnosed carbon monoxide poisoning. MSHA issued a section 103(k) accident-control order, initially restricted the affected section, and later kept…
Coastal Drilling East, LLC
Unsecured rig-brake citation affirmed
A drilling employee's finger was amputated when suspended pipe drifted downward after a supervisor left the rig controls without securing the drawworks brake. Coastal and the industry recognized the crushing hazard and the practice of tying down or locking the brake before leaving the controls. The…
Lake Building Products, Inc.
Repeat steel-erection fall violation affirmed
Two employees landed decking bundles about 28 feet above the ground without using fall protection. The judge held that landing and unhooking decking did not make them “connectors,” because connectors must be placing and connecting structural members or components. The connector exception and…
Millard R. Sluss v. Hosanna, LLC
Sluss v. Hosanna (BRB 18-0521): attorney fee order vacated with benefits award
Millard Sluss obtained a black lung benefits award and his lawyer received an attorney fee award. The benefits award was later vacated because the judge had taken significant action before being properly appointed, and a new judge would rehear entitlement. The employer's appeal of the fee order was…
Deloris J. Seay, widow of Jerry Seay v. Island Creek Kentucky Mining Company
Seay v. Island Creek Kentucky Mining (BRB 18-0020): survivor benefits denial upheld
Deloris Seay sought survivor benefits after her husband's death. Although the judge accepted 18 years of underground mine work, he found no proof of total respiratory disability and no basis for either the 15-year or complicated-pneumoconiosis presumption. He also found the medical evidence…
B.C. and Department of Homeland Security, Customs & Border Protection, El Paso, TX
18-1389 (ECAB): Lung impairment award denial affirmed
B.C., a customs canine officer, sought a schedule award for lasting lung impairment after an accepted respiratory condition. One physician rated asthma impairment based in part on daily medication. The Board found that his pulmonary function result, 88 percent of the predicted value, fell outside…
A.G. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs & Border Protection, Chula Vista, CA
18-1314 (ECAB): Thumb and arm impairment claim remanded
A.G., a border patrol agent, sought a higher award for left arm impairment after accepted thumb and shoulder conditions. OWCP’s medical adviser calculated an impairment rating from the thumb diagnosis but lacked enough motion measurements to compare the permitted rating methods. The Board held that…
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.