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.
No decisions match these filters
Try fewer or different words, check the spelling, or clear the filters to browse everything.
C.B. and Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, Hampton, GA
C.B. and Federal Aviation Administration (ECAB 16-0154): Late reconsideration denial upheld
C.B., an air traffic control specialist, sought compensation for anxiety after aircraft he was directing lost standard separation. OWCP denied the claim in May 2014, and he requested reconsideration more than one year later. The Board found the request untimely. It held that his additional account…
C.G. and Social Security Administration, JFK Federal Building, Boston, MA
C.G. and Social Security Administration (ECAB 15-0891): Overpayment decision returned for fresh notice
C.G., a Social Security Administration employee, returned to full-time work while partial disability payments continued. OWCP found a $3,072.00 overpayment and denied waiver, and the Board earlier remanded because OWCP had not considered financial records she submitted. After OWCP issued another…
Administrator, Wage and Hour Division v. Best Miracle Corp.
Administrator v. Best Miracle Corp. (DOL ARB 2014-0097): Wage penalty reduced
Best Miracle Corp. and its owners faced civil penalties for repeated or willful wage violations under the Fair Labor Standards Act. An administrative law judge raised the penalty to $54,931.25. The Board agreed that a higher penalty was warranted, but found two errors in the calculation: the amount…
K.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, South Plainfield, NJ
K.B. and South Plainfield Post Office (ECAB 16-1046): Related injury files required for review
K.B., a postal employee, claimed right chest, arm, and hand injuries from work. OWCP denied the claim after referring to evidence from her other right arm claims. The Board found that those other claim files were missing from the record before it, preventing informed review. It set aside the denial…
V.R. and Department of Justice, U.S. Marshals Service, Philadelphia, PA
V.R. and U.S. Marshals Service (ECAB 16-0969): Ankle claim not reopened for merit review
V.R., a deputy marshal, sought a schedule award for left ankle impairment after an incident during a pursuit. OWCP had paid limited medical expenses administratively but had never formally accepted the injury claim. When he requested reconsideration after a denial, he relied on a medical report…
C.H. and Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation, Grand Coulee, WA
C.H. and Bureau of Reclamation (ECAB 16-0968): Duplicate knee award rescinded
C.H., a Bureau of Reclamation mechanic, received a 2009 award for 26 percent right leg impairment after a knee injury. OWCP later paid a second award for 21 percent impairment based on the same knee replacement. The Board agreed that the later award duplicated compensation already paid and that its…
T.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Westminster, MD
T.L. and Westminster Post Office (ECAB 16-0964): Vehicle crash injury denial upheld
T.L., a rural postal carrier, reported injuries after another vehicle struck her truck while she was delivering mail. OWCP accepted that the collision occurred but denied her injury claim. The Board found that her orthopedic surgeon’s reports lacked a firm diagnosis and an explanation linking a…
R.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Louisville, KY
R.H. and Louisville Post Office (ECAB 16-0857): Shoulder claim and late record review denied
R.H., a postal distribution manager, reported a shoulder injury after tripping over hardware at work. OWCP accepted the incident but denied the claim because the medical reports diagnosed shoulder conditions without explaining how that incident caused them. R.H. requested a review of the written…
J.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Camarillo, CA
J.G. and Camarillo Post Office (ECAB 16-0835): Late reconsideration denial affirmed
J.G., a city mail carrier, attributed back, shoulder, neck, and arm symptoms to repetitive postal work. OWCP denied the occupational disease claim in December 2014. Her reconsideration request reached OWCP more than a year later, so the Board applied the clear evidence of error standard. It found…
M.Z. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Milwaukee, WI
M.Z. and Milwaukee Post Office (ECAB 16-0766): Thumb award changed to arm award
M.Z., a postal letter carrier, received a schedule award after accepted left thumb, hand, and arm conditions and thumb surgery. OWCP rated his impairment as 26 percent of the thumb. The Board accepted the medical adviser’s rating but noted that the accepted conditions included the hand and arm and…
B.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Main Post Office, Columbus, OH
B.W. and Columbus Post Office (ECAB 16-0588): Rehabilitation penalty reversed
B.W., a postal clerk with accepted thumb and wrist conditions, was receiving wage-loss compensation while OWCP pursued vocational rehabilitation. OWCP reduced her benefits to zero after finding that she had not cooperated with the rehabilitation counselor. The Board found that she had reported two…
J.M. and Department of the Army, Joint Munitions & Lethality Command, Pine Bluff, AR
J.M. and Army munitions command (ECAB 16-0820): Leg impairment claim remanded
J.M., an Army firefighter, received a schedule award for one percent impairment of his left leg after an accepted Achilles tendon injury. His physician rated the impairment higher than OWCP’s medical adviser. The Board found a conflict in the medical opinions about the correct impairment rating. It…
D.W. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Biloxi, MS
D.W. and VA medical center (ECAB 16-0639): Hypertension claim denied
D.W., a nurse temporarily assigned to acting manager duties, claimed that the increased workload caused or aggravated his hypertension. OWCP accepted that his duties had increased but denied the claim. The Board found that his treating physician did not adequately explain how the added work caused…
M.N. and Department of the Navy, Military Sealift Command, Norfolk, VA
M.N. and Military Sealift Command (ECAB 16-0607): Refusal to reopen claim affirmed
M.N. sought reconsideration after OWCP denied his traumatic injury claim because the claimed event was not established. He resubmitted medical records already in the file. The Board held that the repeated records did not address the factual reason for the denial or meet any other standard for…
R.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Margate, NJ
R.R. and Margate Post Office (ECAB 16-0595): Termination of benefits affirmed
R.R. received benefits for accepted bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome. Her physician continued to report work disability and symptoms, while OWCP’s second-opinion physician found no continuing work limitations or need for treatment. The Board gave special weight to an impartial specialist who…
D.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Tampa, FL
D.D. and Tampa Post Office (ECAB 16-0558): Schedule award claim remanded
D.D. sought a schedule award for permanent impairment after accepted neck and back injuries. OWCP sent her file to a medical adviser with an incomplete account of the accepted conditions and a question focused only on the right arm. The Board found that the adviser’s opinion could not reliably…
J.K. and Department of the Army, Anniston Army Depot, Anniston, AL
J.K. and Anniston Army Depot (ECAB 16-0255): Claimed tank injury unproven
J.K. claimed that he was hurt while stepping into a tank turret at work on March 7, 2012. He filed the claim more than three months later, and medical visits near that date did not mention a new workplace accident. The record also contained a similar claim about an earlier injury. The Board found…
S.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Fresno, CA
S.B. and Fresno Post Office (ECAB 15-0281, 15-0679): Disability claim remanded
S.B., a letter carrier with accepted injuries from a work-related vehicle accident, sought compensation for disability beginning May 22, 2014. OWCP denied the claim, although it had sent him to an impartial physician to resolve conflicting medical opinions. The Board found that OWCP had not clearly…
Secretary of Labor obo Curtis Logsdon v. Park County Government
The Secretary's internal case file stays private
MSHA brought a discrimination case for miner Curtis Logsdon against Park County, Colorado, which operates the Nine Pit. Park County asked the Secretary to hand over two documents: the letter the Mine Act requires MSHA to send a miner telling him whether it found a violation, and the internal…
Secretary of Labor v. Ash Grove Cement Company
Elevator exam citation vacated on fair notice, $7,500 total
Ash Grove Cement runs the Seattle Plant, a cement operation in King County, Washington. MSHA issued four citations in 2014, two from a regular inspection and two after a customer's truck driver was seriously hurt falling from a trailer ladder. The judge vacated the workplace examination citation…
Christenson v. The Orvis Company, Inc.
Appeal dismissed after missed briefing order
David Christenson sought Board review in a case against The Orvis Company. The Board set a deadline for his opening brief and warned that failing to meet it could lead to dismissal. Christenson did not file the brief. The Board then ordered him to explain why the appeal should remain open, but he…
Martin McCray v. Automotive Component Carrier, LLC
McCray v. Automotive Component Carrier (DOL ARB 2016-0050): Appeal dismissed for missed brief
Martin McCray appealed an administrative law judge decision in a case against Automotive Component Carrier. The Board set an April 13, 2016 deadline for his opening brief and warned that missing it could lead to dismissal. McCray did not file the brief. The Board then ordered him to explain why the…
In re Pascack Builders, Inc.
Pascack Builders (DOL ARB 2016-0045): Petty's wage and debarment appeal abandoned
The case involved prevailing wage, fringe benefit, record falsification, and proposed debarment disputes concerning Pascack Builders, Tri-State Building Company, and Franklin Petty Jr. Petty appealed to the Board but submitted a brief without proof that he had served the opposing party and counsel…
Administrator, Wage and Hour Division v. Efficiency3 Corporation
Administrator v. Efficiency3 Corporation (DOL ARB 2015-0005): H-1B back pay affirmed
Efficiency3 Corporation employed Xiaosi (Paris) Liu under the H-1B visa program. A Labor Department judge found that the company paid him below the required wage in December 2009 and for much of January through September 2012. The Board agreed that neither regulatory exception to the wage…
S.O. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Palatine, IL
S.O. (16-0973): Recurrence and reopening request denied
S.O. sought compensation for total disability from August 17 to 21, 2015 related to an accepted 1995 work injury. His physician’s reports did not address that precise period with a reasoned explanation linking disability to accepted conditions. He later requested reconsideration but did not submit…
P.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Monroe, LA
P.M. (16-0930): Existing leg impairment ratings upheld
P.M. sought larger schedule awards for both legs after accepted back, knee, and ankle conditions. He had already received awards totaling 33 percent impairment of the left leg and 3 percent of the right. A new physician’s impairment evaluation, even accounting for disputed tarsal tunnel impairment…
A.H. and Department of the Army, Medical Command CPAC, Fort Carson, CO
A.H. (16-0888): Sidewalk injury claim denied
A.H. reported slipping on ice outside her workplace and breaking an ankle before work. The Board said an injury on employer premises while arriving for work can be compensable. Her claim form, however, gave too little detail to establish the circumstances and place of the fall, and she did not…
S.H. and Department of Defense, Defense Logistics Agency, Woodinville, WA
S.H. (16-0680-P): Retirement overlap overpayment upheld
S.H. received FECA compensation while also receiving Office of Personnel Management retirement benefits for the same period. OWCP found a $32,957.67 overpayment and found him without fault. The Board upheld the amount and held that waiver was properly denied because he had not supplied the…
F.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Torrance Post Office, Torrance, CA
F.C. (16-0091): Emotional condition claim denied
F.C. said a coworker berated her at work and that a supervisor mishandled the incident. A supervisor who witnessed the exchange gave a different account, and F.C. offered no corroborating evidence of abuse. The Board found no established compensable work factor and affirmed denial of the emotional…
C.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Coppell, TX
C.M. (15-1851-P): Hypertension claim acceptance rescinded
OWCP had accepted C.M.’s claim that encounters with a supervisor aggravated her hypertension. It later rescinded acceptance after reviewing conflicting witness accounts and the lack of an established compensable work factor. The Board held that the original acceptance had omitted that factual…
S.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Somerset, NJ
S.S. (15-1736): Leg impairment award remanded
S.S. challenged schedule awards of seven percent right leg impairment and two percent left leg impairment. OWCP used an impartial physician to resolve conflicting medical ratings. The Board found that the physician’s right leg rating appeared to rely on findings from a separate, denied 2013 injury…
P.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Main Post Office, Atlanta, GA
P.H. (15-1453): Merits review required on benefits termination
P.H. asked OWCP to reconsider termination of her wage-loss and medical benefits. She supplied a new physician’s report discussing examination findings and continued effects of the accepted injury. The Board found the report relevant to the termination issue and not previously reviewed. It ordered…
T.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Roseland Post Office, Chicago, IL
T.P. (15-0063): Additional left leg award denied
T.P. had received schedule awards totaling 28 percent impairment of her left leg for accepted foot and ankle conditions. Her podiatrist proposed higher ratings but did not adequately explain how he used the impairment guide. An OWCP medical adviser’s rating did not exceed the amount already paid…
G.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Monsey, NY
G.G. (14-1848): Earnings omission led to forfeiture and debt
G.G. received compensation while making online sales through an eBay account and did not report that activity on required earnings forms. She said she was selling items for a friend, but the Board found that her account activity and payments had to be reported. It affirmed forfeiture for December…
Wind River Oil and Gas Permits
In re Wind River Oil and Gas Permits (EAB NPDES Appeal Nos. 15-02, 15-03, 15-04, and 15-05): petitions dismissed with prejudice
Wesco Operating, Inc., the Natural Resources Defense Council, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, and Phoenix Production Company asked the Environmental Appeals Board to dismiss their Clean Water Act permit appeals. The petitioners reported that EPA Region 8, the Northern Arapaho…
Matter of Hussam FATAHI
Bond denial affirmed based on dangerousness evidence
The Board reviewed a Syrian citizen's appeal from an Immigration Judge's denial of bond. The Immigration Judge relied on evidence that the respondent had used a falsified passport obtained through unofficial channels, gave inconsistent explanations about it, and had used a passport from a group of…
A.S. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, Waco, TX
A.S. (ECAB 16-0946): Unsupported reconsideration requests
A.S. asked OWCP twice to reconsider denial of a traumatic injury claim. He supplied no supporting evidence or legal argument with either request. The Board held that neither request met a standard for reopening the claim and affirmed both refusals.
S.G. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration Medical Center, Murfreesboro, TN
S.G. (ECAB 16-0817): Upper extremity condition claim denied
S.G. claimed that her VA work caused bilateral carpal and ulnar tunnel syndromes. Medical testing supported the diagnoses, but the Board found that her physician did not adequately explain how her specific work duties caused or aggravated them. It affirmed denial of the upper extremity claim.
K.P. and Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Albuquerque, NM
K.P. (ECAB 16-0685): Right leg impairment claim returned for medical rating
K.P. sought a schedule award after an accepted right knee injury, surgery, and resulting right leg thrombosis. His physician rated 11 percent permanent right leg impairment from peripheral vascular disease. OWCP referred that evidence to a medical adviser but denied the award before completing the…
S.M. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA
S.M. (ECAB 15-1303): Missed telephone hearing treated as abandoned
S.M. requested a telephone hearing after OWCP denied her traumatic injury claim. OWCP mailed the hearing details to her last known address. She did not join the scheduled call, request a postponement, or explain her absence within ten days. On appeal, she said she had never received the notice, but…
United States Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees, National Citizenship and Immigration Services Council 119 (Union)
Citizenship and Immigration Services and AFGE Council 119 (FLRA 0-AR-5040): Awards-data dispute remanded again
An agreement required Citizenship and Immigration Services to provide performance-award information and, when lawful and needed for a grievance, additional normally maintained information. The union sought recipients' names, while the agency argued that the award amounts could reveal protected…
M.V. and U.S. Postal Service, Inspection Service, Washington, DC
M.V. (ECAB 16-0915): Late reconsideration request rejected
M.V. sought reconsideration of a decision denying a right shoulder injury claim related to a workplace fitness activity. His request arrived more than one year after the merits decision. The Board found that the repeated records and arguments did not show clear error in OWCP’s earlier finding that…
F.V. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Upstate New York Health Care System, Buffalo, NY
F.V. (ECAB 16-0786): MRSA exposure claim remanded for workplace records
F.V. claimed that dirty identification cards and an inadequately cleaned workplace restroom exposed him to MRSA. A coworker supported the account of poor cleaning, but the VA did not answer OWCP’s questions about possible workplace infections. The Board held that F.V. should not be penalized for…
A.K. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, San Antonio, TX
A.K. (ECAB 16-0728): Post-return compensation overpayment upheld
A.K. returned to full-time work on June 25, 2015 but received temporary total disability compensation covering time after that date. The Board agreed that this created a $1,582.61 overpayment. It also upheld OWCP’s finding that she was at fault because she accepted payment she knew or should have…
T.F. and Department of the Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, Marine Corps Base Camp Butler, Okinawa, Japan
T.F. (ECAB 16-0436): Expired award payments created overpayment
T.F. continued receiving schedule award payments after the award ended on August 14, 2013. OWCP calculated a $94,981.93 overpayment. The Board found that he knew or should have known the later payments were incorrect and affirmed the fault finding. Because he was at fault, the debt could not be…
S.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Savannah, GA
S.R. (ECAB 15-0927): Repeated medical reports did not reopen claim
S.R. sought reconsideration after a prior Board decision found that she had not established a causal link between an accepted workplace event and her right elbow condition. She submitted medical reports that OWCP had already considered. The Board found no new relevant evidence or legal argument and…
L.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Pittsburgh, PA
L.C. (ECAB 15-0877): Continued injury residuals unproven
L.C. sought renewed benefits for neck, back, and shoulder conditions accepted after a work injury. A later physician attributed ongoing symptoms to that injury but gave no adequate medical explanation and also discussed a fracture OWCP had not accepted. Diagnostic records and witness statements did…
I.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Chicago Network Distribution Center, Forest Park, IL
I.B. (ECAB 16-1095): Additional shoulder conditions and disability unproven
I.B. injured her left shoulder while handling mail, and OWCP accepted a sprain and impingement. She sought recognition of further shoulder and neck diagnoses and wage-loss compensation from October 26, 2015 to January 8, 2016. The Board found that the physicians had not adequately explained how the…
L.B. and U.S. Postal Service, International Service Center, Chicago, IL
L.B. (ECAB 16-0924): Bilateral hand condition claim denied
L.B. attributed bilateral hand and elbow symptoms to her mail processing duties. OWCP accepted that she performed the listed lifting, sorting, and hand-intensive tasks. The Board found that the physicians did not explain how those duties caused or aggravated the diagnosed carpal or cubital tunnel…
C.O. and Department of the Air Force, Rickenbacker Air National Guard, Columbus, OH
C.O. (ECAB 16-0918): Loss of smell claim and reopening denied
C.O. claimed that a 2002 workplace incident caused his loss of smell. The Board found no physician’s explanation linking that condition to the incident. His later reconsideration request supplied no new evidence or argument. The Board affirmed both the merits denial and the refusal to reopen.
T.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Foresight Carrier Annex, Grand Junction, CO
T.P. (ECAB 16-0718): Cervical and shoulder injury claim remanded
T.P. sought to add left shoulder and cervical conditions and related disability after an assault at work. His physician and an OWCP referral physician disagreed about whether the incident aggravated those conditions. The Board found that OWCP had treated a physician as impartial before a conflict…
S.L. and U.S. Postal Service, New York Logistics & Distribution Center, Bethpage, NY
S.L. (ECAB 16-0222): Elbow injury claim and reopening denied
S.L. claimed a left elbow condition after a September 2014 work incident. The Board found the medical evidence insufficient to link the condition to that incident. His later reconsideration letters did not provide a qualifying legal argument or relevant new evidence. It affirmed both the claim…
Prestige Roofing, Inc.
Late contest dismissed and $2,000 citation affirmed
Prestige Roofing received a serious citation but did not file a written notice of contest within 15 working days. Its formal contest arrived almost a year after the citation, and the company did not respond to repeated orders inviting evidence for relief. The judge found no deception by OSHA…
I.B. and Defense Agencies, DECA Headquarters, Fort Lee, VA
I.B. (ECAB 15-1228-p): Emotional condition claim returned for medical review
I.B. claimed emotional distress after a commissary reorganization placed her on a grocery team with new tasks and heavy demands. Her supervisor supported her account of multiple supervisors, unfamiliar assignments, and short staffing. The Board held that her reaction to performing the assigned…
J.K. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bellevue, WA
J.K. (ECAB 15-0856): Cashier wage-capacity reduction reversed
J.K. received wage-loss benefits for accepted arm conditions. OWCP reduced them based on wages it said he could earn as a cashier. The Board found that the position demanded substantially more repetitive handling than his medical restrictions allowed. It reversed the reduction because OWCP had not…
Bayer CropScience LP and Nichino America, Inc.
In re Bayer CropScience LP and Nichino America, Inc. (EAB FIFRA Appeal No. 16-01): Flubendiamide registrations canceled
EPA conditionally registered the pesticide flubendiamide for Bayer CropScience LP and Nichino America, Inc., subject to a written condition requiring the companies to request voluntary cancellation if EPA determined that continued registration would cause unreasonable adverse effects on the…
Brucker v. BNSF Railway Co.
Brucker v. BNSF Railway (DOL ARB 2014-0071): Injury report complaint remanded
Robert Brucker reported shoulder injuries while working for BNSF Railway. He said BNSF later fired him in retaliation for the injury report. BNSF said it dismissed him after discovering that he had answered a criminal history question incorrectly on his employment application. An administrative law…
National Association of Government Employees, Local R3-10, SEIU (Union) and United States Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration (Agency)
NAGE Local R3-10 and Federal Aviation Administration (FLRA 0-AR-5175): Union exceptions rejected
NAGE Local R3-10 filed exceptions to an arbitration award involving the Federal Aviation Administration. The Authority declined to consider a reply that only repeated or could have added arguments already available in the union's exceptions. It dismissed a claim that the arbitrator violated the…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 836 (Union) and Social Security Administration (Agency)
AFGE Local 836 and Social Security Administration (FLRA 0-AR-5110): One-day suspension claim remanded
The Social Security Administration imposed separate one-day and fourteen-day suspensions on a claims representative who also served as union president. After two expedited hearings held the same day, the arbitrator found just cause for both suspensions but declined to decide an anti-union-animus…
Secretary of Labor v. Nyrstar Gordonsville, LLC
15-minute clock starts when the operator first learns of a death
Nyrstar operates the Cumberland Mine, an underground zinc mine in Smith County, Tennessee. A miner was found dead in the mine change house on November 16, 2014, and an hourly hoistman phoned the mine superintendent at 1:08 p.m. to report it. The superintendent drove to the mine and gathered…
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.