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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C.E. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, La Tuna, Anthony, NM
C.E. (ECAB 16-1079): Two percent leg awards upheld
A Bureau of Prisons employee challenged schedule awards of two percent permanent impairment in each lower extremity. The Board found that the evidence did not establish a greater ratable impairment of either leg. It affirmed OWCP’s award decision.
J.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, New York, NY
J.M. (ECAB 16-0781): Request for another hearing denied
A postal employee requested another hearing after a hearing representative had already affirmed denial of her injury claim. The Board found that OWCP reasonably exercised its discretion to deny the later request and leave reconsideration available. It affirmed the hearing denial without reviewing…
A.S. and Department of Veterans Affairs, VA Medical Center, Mountain Home, TN
A.S. (ECAB 16-0735): Door incident and hearing claims denied
A Department of Veterans Affairs employee claimed a heavy door struck his left hand at work. The Board found that the evidence did not establish the alleged August 2015 door incident as described. It also found no abuse of discretion in OWCP’s denial of an oral hearing. The Board affirmed both OWCP…
V.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Old Chelsea Station, New York, NY
V.D. (ECAB 16-0578): Early overpayment waiver question returned
A postal employee received a $2,979.42 overpayment after returning to work while total disability payments continued. The Board affirmed the amount but found he was without fault for the first six days, November 11 through 16, 2013, and at fault afterward. It set aside part of OWCP’s decision and…
Tarkett Alabama, Inc.
Turret-winder guarding citation vacated
Tarkett Alabama used turret winders to roll flooring products onto large cardboard cores. An employee entered a malfunctioning winder and became entangled in a spinning shaft, suffering multiple serious injuries. OSHA cited two winders under the general machine-guarding standard for caught-in and…
P.P. and Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, Washington, DC
P.P. (ECAB 15-0753): Air traffic controller emotional claim denied
An air traffic controller described a stressful training episode involving aircraft proximity. The Board found that he established a compensable work factor for the October 2014 event. He submitted no medical evidence establishing an emotional condition caused by it, however. The Board affirmed…
Matsu Ohio, Inc.
Lockout and power-press citation items vacated
Matsu Ohio manufactured stamped automotive parts using partial-revolution mechanical power presses. OSHA alleged several lockout/tagout and power-press violations involving servicing procedures, employee training, lock identification, die-setting procedures, and operating-mode selectors. The judge…
United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees, National Council of HUD Locals 222 (Union)
HUD and AFGE Council 222 (FLRA 0-AR-4586): Reconsideration and stay denied
A long-running HUD arbitration dispute produced implementation meetings, written summaries, and remedial orders. The Authority had previously dismissed some agency exceptions to three disputed implementation rulings and denied the rest. HUD sought reconsideration, arguing that the prior Authority…
C.S. and Federal Aviation Administration, Charlotte/Douglas International Airport, Charlotte, NC
C.S. (ECAB 16-1437): Overpayment claim returned until pay rate is resolved
An FAA employee challenged a $16,740.25 overpayment calculated from a disputed weekly pay rate. In a related appeal, the Board had already ordered OWCP to develop the correct pay rate, including whether the employee was in a learner’s capacity at injury. The Board set aside the overpayment decision…
A.W. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons, Houston, TX
A.W. (ECAB 16-1344): Late reconsideration request denied
A Bureau of Prisons employee requested reconsideration more than a year after the last merits decision. The Board found the request untimely and held that the submission did not demonstrate clear evidence of OWCP error. It affirmed the refusal to reopen the merits.
M.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Gansevoort, NY
M.P. (ECAB 16-1325): Overpayment decision returned for review of timely response
A postal employee challenged a $95,128.32 overpayment finding tied to undisclosed self-employment earnings. OWCP stated that he had not responded to its preliminary finding. The Board found that OWCP received his request for a telephone conference and completed recovery questionnaire on the same…
K.W. and Department of Defense, Defense Logistics Agency, New Cumberland, PA
K.W. (ECAB 16-1176): Shoulder and neck injury claim denied
A Defense Logistics Agency employee claimed left shoulder and neck injuries from a June 2015 work incident. The Board accepted that the incident occurred but found the medical evidence insufficient to connect the claimed injuries to it. It affirmed OWCP’s denial.
A.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Nampa, ID
A.S. (ECAB 16-0944): Left carpal tunnel claim denied
A postal employee attributed left carpal tunnel syndrome to repetitive motions at work. OWCP asked her for specific information about the duties, their duration, and other activities relevant to the claim. The Board found that the record did not establish the occupational claim. It affirmed OWCP’s…
A.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Cincinnati Bulk Mail Center, Cincinnati, OH
A.M. (ECAB 16-0816): Right ankle impairment award affirmed
A postal employee sought a larger schedule award for a work-related right ankle fracture. OWCP had wrongly treated old examination findings as creating a medical conflict, so its designated examiner’s report did not receive special weight. The Board found that OWCP’s medical adviser correctly…
J.L. and Department of Homeland Security, Customs & Border Protection, El Paso, TX
J.L. (ECAB 16-0778): Insurance premium overpayment affirmed
OWCP did not deduct health and life insurance premiums from a customs officer’s compensation during March 2014 through March 2015. The Board upheld the resulting $5,860.80 overpayment. Although the officer was without fault, his financial evidence did not support waiving recovery. The Board also…
D.T. and U.S. Capitol Police, Patrol Division, Washington, DC
D.T. (ECAB 16-0710): Dependent-rate overpayment affirmed
OWCP continued to pay a Capitol Police employee compensation at the dependent rate after her son no longer qualified as a dependent. The Board upheld a $64,497.04 overpayment for April 2002 through February 2014. It also upheld the denial of her subpoena requests, the finding that she was at fault…
R.T. and Department of the Interior, National Park Service, Deer Lodge, MT
R.T. (ECAB 16-0374): Chemical exposure claim returned for medical explanation
A National Park Service worker claimed chemical encephalopathy after cleaning a hazardous materials shed. OWCP relied on an impartial physician who concluded that the work exposure did not cause a medical condition. The Board found that the physician had not adequately explained his conclusion or…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 0922 (Union) and United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Federal Correctional Complex, Forrest City, Arkansas (Agency)
AFGE Local 0922 and FCC Forrest City (FLRA 0-AR-5206): Powerhouse overtime period upheld
Correctional officers operating a federal prison powerhouse exchanged equipment and information and checked tools, inmates, and machinery between shifts that had no scheduled overlap. An arbitrator found that this work was compensable and awarded each affected officer fifteen minutes of overtime…
Matter of Gordon Ndok TIMA
Fraud waiver cannot waive a separate moral-turpitude removability charge
The Board reviewed a Cameroonian respondent's appeal on remand from the Third Circuit. The respondent had been convicted of making materially false statements about his marriage and was charged with marriage fraud, failure to maintain conditional permanent resident status, and removability for a…
S.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Clarksville, AR
S.T. (ECAB 16-1277): Additional lumbar disc conditions denied
OWCP accepted a postal carrier’s lumbosacral strain after a January 2012 workplace trip but did not accept his later claimed lumbar disc conditions. His doctor attributed the current condition to lifting parcels in 2011 and did not explain a link to the accepted 2012 incident. The Board found that…
P.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, New York, NY
P.D. (ECAB 16-1171): Disability claim returned for medical development
A postal custodian stopped work after injuring his neck and back while lifting a bucket. His doctor linked continuing disability to the work injury, but the reports did not fully explain the medical cause. The Board found that the reports raised enough of a causal link to require further…
L.R. and Department of the Navy, Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth, VA
L.R. (ECAB 16-1158): Right elbow injury claim denied
A naval shipyard insulator struck his right elbow on a foundation while pulling wire in December 2015. The Board accepted that the incident occurred but found that the medical reports did not link his diagnosed elbow condition to it. One physician attributed symptoms to a June 2015 event, and…
M.H. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, San Francisco, CA
M.H. (ECAB 16-1149): Reconsideration request returned for explanation
OWCP rejected M.H.’s late reconsideration request, stating only that it did not present clear evidence of error. The Board found that OWCP had failed to explain how the submitted evidence and arguments related to the existing record or whether they showed an error. It ordered OWCP to review the…
S.L. and Department of the Interior, Flandreau Indian School, Flandreau, SD
S.L. (ECAB 16-1132): Right hand claim denied for lack of medical evidence
A school employee reported that an insect bit her right hand while she checked a student’s luggage. OWCP accepted that the workplace incident occurred. She submitted no medical evidence diagnosing a resulting condition or linking it to the incident. The Board affirmed the denial because the…
R.P. and Department of the Navy, Marine Corps Barracks, Barstow, CA
R.P. (ECAB 16-0893): Reconsideration denial returned for evidence review
R.P. sought reconsideration of a denied claim for continuing cervical and lumbar conditions after a work-related automobile accident. OWCP denied merit review after discussing reports by Drs. Pathi and Buenviaje-Smith. The Board found that OWCP had not addressed four new reports from three other…
J.B., claiming as widow of J.B., and Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation, Granite, CO
J.B. (ECAB 16-0707): Dual-benefit overpayment affirmed
The widow of a Bureau of Reclamation employee received FECA survivor benefits and Social Security benefits attributable to his federal service at the same time. The Board upheld an $18,933.61 overpayment for 2009 through 2014. Although she was without fault, her income and assets did not support…
J.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bellmawr, NJ
J.G. (ECAB 16-0328): Impairment claim returned for new referee physician
A postal employee challenged the ratings of his right arm and left leg impairments. OWCP chose a physician who had previously served as an impartial examiner in another claim by the same employee. The Board found that his prior connection created an appearance of impropriety and left the medical…
T.N. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Chicago, IL
T.N. (ECAB 15-0690): Knee impairment award returned for independent review
A postal carrier received a two percent right leg schedule award after a knee injury. OWCP relied on an impairment rating by the physician who had treated her knee and performed surgery. The Board found that his earlier role created an appearance of impropriety when he later served as OWCP’s…
Matthew A. Varady v. Veris Gold USA, Inc. and Jerritt Canyon Gold, LLC
Sua sponte dismissal followed bankruptcy sanction threat
Matthew Varady had established that Veris Gold discriminated against him under the Mine Act, but relief and potential successor liability against Jerritt Canyon Gold remained unresolved. A bankruptcy court enforced its free-and-clear sale order, enjoined Varady and Daniel Lowe from pursuing…
United Contractors Midwest, Inc. d/b/a R.A. Cullinan & Son
Willful trench citation left affirmed after split vote
United Contractors Midwest employees worked in a seven-to-eight-foot-deep excavation whose Type B soil walls were not properly sloped or benched. The judge affirmed a willful violation of 29 C.F.R. § 1926.652(a)(1) and rejected the company's unpreventable employee misconduct defense. The Commission…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Thomas McGary and Ron Bowersox, et al. v. The Marshall County Coal Co., et al.
Secretary of Labor obo Thomas McGary and Ron Bowersox, et al. v. The Marshall County Coal Co., et al. (FMSHRC WEVA 2015-583-D, et al.): Penalties cut back to the proposed amount on remand, CEO statement rewritten
At five underground coal mines owned by Murray Energy, CEO Robert Murray held mandatory "awareness meetings" announcing that miners who complained to MSHA also had to tell management. Judge Miller had already found that this interfered with the miners' right under section 103(g) to request an…
Secretary of Labor v. Carson Hill Rock Products
Default reopened where the answer went to MSHA but not to the judge
Carson Hill Rock Products was hit with a default order after the Commission's records showed no answer to MSHA's March 18, 2014 penalty petition. The Chief Administrative Law Judge issued an order to show cause on June 20, 2014, and it became a default order on July 21, 2014. Carson Hill said it…
Secretary of Labor v. Jesse Creek Mining, LLC
Default reopened over a dissent on unreliable office procedures
Jesse Creek Mining did not answer MSHA's July 14, 2015 penalty petition, so the Chief Administrative Law Judge issued an order to show cause that became a default order on September 28, 2015. The company moved to reopen, giving three reasons: its safety director had been reassigned, an office…
Secretary of Labor v. Bluff City Minerals
Default vacated after both sides litigated a case that was already closed
Bluff City Minerals was defaulted on September 2, 2014 when the Commission's records showed no answer to MSHA's April 25, 2014 penalty petition. Bluff said it had responded to the order to show cause on August 14, 2014 and filed an answer, and the Secretary confirmed receiving that answer, but…
A.M. and Department of the Navy, Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Pearl Harbor, HI
A.M. (ECAB 16-1307): Late request for written-record review denied
OWCP accepted a Navy employee’s work-related hearing loss but found it too mild for a schedule award. He sought written-record review more than three years after OWCP’s January 2013 award decision. The Board held that the request missed the 30-day period and that OWCP had reasonably declined…
L.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Buffalo, NY
L.H. (ECAB 16-1194): Right knee injury claim denied
A postal carrier fell when her right knee buckled as she stepped from a curb. OWCP accepted that the June 2013 incident occurred and that doctors had diagnosed right knee conditions. The Board found that her physician did not explain how this fall, rather than an earlier fall or preexisting knee…
B.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Edison, NJ
B.D. (ECAB 16-1177): Schedule award reconsideration denied
OWCP had denied a former postal worker’s schedule award after finding no ratable impairment from his accepted injury. He sought reconsideration with two doctors’ reports and a renewed challenge to the medical evidence. The Board found that the reports did not give a reasoned impairment rating under…
P.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Youngstown, OH
P.C. (ECAB 16-1145): Heel spur reconsideration denied
A former postal clerk sought to reopen a denied claim for heel spurs she attributed to prolonged standing and walking at work. OWCP gave her more time to submit evidence, but received no new medical evidence or relevant legal argument with her reconsideration request. The Board held that she had…
J.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Main Post Office, San Leandro, CA
J.S. (ECAB 16-1014): Wage-loss claim after dog bite denied
A postal carrier sought compensation for 33.52 hours of leave without pay after a work-related dog bite to her right index finger. Her doctor restricted her work hours and right-hand use. The Board found that the doctor did not explain why those restrictions during the claimed November 2015 period…
D.A. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Detroit, MI
D.A. (ECAB 16-0879): Left shoulder injury claim denied
A VA vehicle operator reported shoulder pain after lifting an oversized walker into a van. OWCP accepted that the work incident occurred, but denied the injury claim. The Board found that the medical reports lacked a reasoned explanation linking the diagnosed shoulder condition to the incident. One…
M.B. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Hospital, Chicago, IL
M.B. (ECAB 16-0559): Termination of compensation reversed
OWCP ended a VA employee’s compensation and medical benefits after an impartial examiner found her work injury had resolved. The Board found that the examiner relied on a statement of accepted facts that omitted several conditions OWCP had accepted. His opinion did not address whether those…
Secretary of Labor v. Premier Elkhorn Coal Company
Settlement on remand cuts a fatal haul truck penalty from $70,000 to $7,500
A coal haulage truck driver was killed on December 12, 2009 when he lost control of a loaded truck descending the haul road at Premier Elkhorn's PE Southern Pike Co. mine. MSHA issued Premier Elkhorn two citations: one under 30 C.F.R. § 77.1607(b) for failure to keep full control of moving mobile…
M.M. and Department of Veterans Affairs, New York Harbor Healthcare System, Brooklyn, NY
M.M. (ECAB 16-1180): Left elbow injury claim denied
A VA pharmacist reported elbow symptoms after a technician struck his left elbow with a medication container. OWCP accepted that the incident occurred but denied his injury claim. The Board found that the physicians who linked his diagnosed elbow and nerve conditions to the incident did not explain…
E.P. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Anthony, TX
E.P. (ECAB 16-1154): Six percent awards for both legs affirmed
A federal prison employee sought larger schedule awards for leg impairment caused by accepted lumbar nerve conditions. His treating doctor used a whole-person rating method that did not properly rate the scheduled legs. An OWCP referral physician measured the leg sensory and motor deficits under…
S.E. and U.S. Postal Service, Village Station Post Office, Los Angeles, CA
S.E. (ECAB 16-1077): Disability reconsideration denied
A postal employee sought to reopen a disability claim related to her accepted back and psychiatric conditions. The Board found that she repeated arguments and submitted medical records OWCP had already considered. Other reports did not address the claimed disability period. Because the request…
A.M. and Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers, Louisville, KY
A.M. (ECAB 16-0811): Consequential bipolar disorder claim denied
An Army Corps employee sought to add aggravation of bipolar disorder to a claim for a work-related neck condition. His psychiatrist said the stress of the injury and disability worsened his mood symptoms. The Board found that the report lacked treatment records and did not explain specifically how…
E.L. and Department of Defense, Defense Logistics Agency, New Cumberland, PA
E.L. (ECAB 16-0719): Shoulder tear claim denied
A Defense Logistics Agency employee reported bilateral shoulder tears after opening an unusually large cardboard box and pulling a strap at work. The Board accepted that the incident occurred but found that her physician did not explain how it caused the tears, particularly given earlier shoulder…
K.A. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, Federal Air Marshal Service, Houston, TX
K.A. (ECAB 16-0592): Intermittent disability claim denied
A federal air marshal sought wage-loss compensation for intermittent absences after an accepted work-related back injury. The Board found that the physicians’ reports did not explain why the accepted injury prevented full-time work on the particular dates claimed. It affirmed OWCP’s denial of…
United States Department of Labor (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 12 (Union)
Department of Labor and AFGE Local 12 (FLRA 0-AR-5186): Unfair-labor-practice finding removed
The Department of Labor contracted out a medical-review function without giving AFGE Local 12 the notice and consultation required by the parties' agreement. An arbitrator found a contract violation and an unfair labor practice, ordered a notice posting, and declined to return the affected employee…
Daniel B. Lowe v. Veris Gold USA, Inc. and Jerritt Canyon Gold, LLC
Sua sponte dismissal followed bankruptcy sanction threat
Daniel Lowe had established that Veris Gold discriminated against him under the Mine Act, but relief and potential successor liability against Jerritt Canyon Gold remained unresolved. A bankruptcy court enforced its free-and-clear sale order, enjoined Lowe and Matthew Varady from pursuing successor…
F.N. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, New Jersey Health Care System, Lyons, NJ
F.N. (ECAB 16-0597): Emotional condition claim denied for unproven work factors
A VA registered nurse attributed an emotional condition to alleged harassment, retaliation, and other workplace events. OWCP treated this as a new occupational disease claim because she alleged events after the injury accepted in her earlier claim. The Board found that the new allegations of…
Henry T. Flores v. MMR Constructors, Incorporated and Zurich Mutual Insurance Company
Flores v. MMR Constructors (BRB 16-0133): injury on floating platform hull covered by Longshore Act
Henry Flores injured his left Achilles tendon while inspecting electrical systems on a platform hull floating at a dock in Corpus Christi Bay. An administrative law judge denied Longshore Act coverage, finding that Flores did not work for a statutory maritime employer and that the hull was not a…
D.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Pittsburgh, PA
D.M. (ECAB 16-1166): Right leg impairment award not increased
A postal letter carrier had received a schedule award for two percent right leg impairment after an accepted heel injury and plantar fasciitis. He sought a larger award and submitted a physician’s 11 percent rating that combined a tendon condition with arthritis. The Board found that the physician…
J.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Newcastle, DE
J.L. (ECAB 16-1114): Ankle claim denied after conflicting incident accounts
A postal carrier assistant said he fractured his left ankle after stepping on a snow-covered brick while delivering mail on February 19, 2015. Medical records dated before that day documented ankle pain and described a different incident, while a supervisor reported seeing him limp earlier in…
S.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Palmyra, NY
S.M. (ECAB 16-1105): Late request for written review denied
A postal rural carrier asked OWCP to review the written record after it denied her right wrist claim. Her request came more than 30 days after the claim decision. The Board held that she had no right to written review after that deadline and that OWCP reasonably declined to grant a discretionary…
W.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Port Chester, NY
W.H. (ECAB 16-1047): Benefit termination reversed; additional conditions remanded
W.H., a postal postmaster, received compensation after a 2005 fall down stairs caused several accepted injuries, including vertigo and a right hand nerve injury. OWCP ended her wage-loss compensation and medical benefits based chiefly on a second-opinion physician’s report. The Board found that…
R.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Postal Service, Detroit, MI
R.B. (ECAB 16-0815): No increase in right leg impairment award
R.B., a postal letter carrier, had accepted work-related knee conditions and received a schedule award for 31 percent permanent impairment of her right leg after a knee replacement. She sought an increased award based on a physician’s 34 percent rating. OWCP’s medical adviser agreed with the…
F.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Philadelphia, PA
F.T. (ECAB 16-0097): No wage loss established after August 2012
F.T., a postal clerk, received compensation after a fall on ice caused an accepted lumbar sprain. She reported for work in August 2012 but performed no regular duties and was placed on administrative leave during an investigation. She then sought wage-loss compensation for the period after August…
Secretary of Labor, Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) v. Black Beauty Coal Company
Secretary of Labor v. Black Beauty Coal Company (FMSHRC LAKE 2009-412, et al.): Settlement resolves S&S and unwarrantable failure questions sent back by the Commission
This settlement closes out four violations at two Black Beauty coal operations, the Riola Mine Complex-Vermillion Grove and the Air Quality #1 Mine. After a 2014 hearing, Judge Manning had thrown out the inspectors' "significant and substantial" findings on all four and the unwarrantable failure…
M.H. and Department of the Air Force, Tinker Air Force Base, OK
M.H. (ECAB 16-1098): Hearing-loss award reconsideration denied
M.H., an Air Force electronics worker, had an accepted claim for hearing loss caused by workplace noise, but OWCP found the loss too slight for a schedule award under the applicable impairment guide. She requested reconsideration of that award decision and said she was submitting two hearing tests…
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.