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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N.U. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Washington, DC
N.U. (ECAB 15-0934): Cervical condition claim lacks medical explanation
N.U., an FBI special agent, reported neck symptoms after changing a tire while on duty. OWCP accepted that the November 16, 2014 incident occurred. His physician diagnosed cervical spondylosis and stenosis and indicated that lifting triggered symptoms, but did not explain medically how the incident…
G.L. and Department of Homeland Security, Immigration & Customs Enforcement, Los Angeles, CA
G.L. (ECAB 15-1487): Knee injury benefits termination upheld
G.L., an immigration detention officer, received benefits for a right knee injury sustained in 1984. OWCP ended wage-loss and medical benefits after a referral physician concluded that the accepted injury had resolved and that current arthritis reflected progression of a preexisting condition. The…
M.A. and Department of the Army, Fort Drum, NY
M.A. (ECAB 15-1463): Vehicle accident claim lacks medical proof of injury
M.A., an Army construction control inspector, was involved in a vehicle collision while on duty and reported low back pain. The Board accepted that the collision occurred. Her physician recorded the accident and symptoms but stated that no traumatic injury occurred and gave no opinion linking a…
M.M. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons, New York, NY
M.M. (ECAB 15-1353): Termination of spine injury benefits upheld
M.M., a correctional officer, received benefits for accepted neck and back strains from a 2004 work incident. A referral physician reviewed the records, imaging, and examination and concluded that the accepted conditions had resolved. The Board found this reasoned report was the weight of the…
M.M. and Department of Homeland Security, Customs & Border Protection, Fort Lauderdale, FL
M.M. (ECAB 15-0760): Reconsideration request received after the one-year deadline
M.M. asked OWCP to reconsider an injury claim denial, but OWCP received her request more than one year after its last merits decision. The Board applied the receipt date rather than the mailing date to determine timeliness. It found that the previously considered and newly submitted medical records…
R.H. and General Services Administration, Pacific Rim Region, San Francisco, CA
R.H. (ECAB 15-0563): Retirement offset overpayment and recovery upheld
R.H. received FECA wage-loss payments and Social Security retirement benefits attributable to federal service without the required offset. The Board upheld OWCP’s $11,875.55 overpayment calculation for September 2009 through September 2014. It found he was at fault because OWCP had warned him about…
Richard Hargrove d/b/a R. H. Construction
Five repeat construction items vacated for lack of employer coverage
OSHA cited R. H. Construction after observing framing work from a narrow, unsecured forklift-supported platform nearly ten feet above the ground. The workers also lacked cited head, eye, and fall protection, and OSHA alleged that one worker had not received required scaffold training. All five…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2145 (Union) and United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical Center, Richmond, Virginia (Agency)
AFGE Local 2145 and Richmond VA Medical Center (FLRA 0-AR-5135): Retention-incentive grievance barred
The Richmond VA Medical Center discontinued retention-incentive payments to certain nurses. An arbitrator found the grievance non-arbitrable for registered nurses but awarded relief to licensed practical nurses under their incentive agreements. The Authority held that an OPM regulation expressly…
R.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Marietta, GA
R.B. (ECAB 15-1652): Repetitive work injury claim lacks medical evidence
R.B., a postal distribution clerk, said decades of sorting and distributing mail injured her neck, shoulders, and back. OWCP told her what medical evidence the claim required. The Board found that she had not submitted a reasoned medical opinion connecting a diagnosed condition to those duties. It…
S.S. and Department of the Air Force, Tinker Air Force Base, OK
S.S. (ECAB 15-1470): Hearing award increased using left-ear rating
S.S., an Air Force production controller, received a schedule award calculated from 6.6 percent loss of hearing in both ears. The Board found that the percentage should have been rounded to seven percent. It also found that her 39 percent loss in the left ear yielded more weeks of compensation…
P.B. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons, Metropolitan Detention Facility, Brooklyn, NY
P.B. (ECAB 15-1461): Neck injury claim lacks medical reasoning
P.B., a prison engineering technician, reported neck and arm symptoms after trying to lift a case of paper at work. OWCP accepted that the lifting incident occurred. His orthopedic surgeon diagnosed cervical conditions and attributed them to the incident, but did not explain the medical mechanism…
A.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Madison, WI
A.J. (ECAB 15-1438): Right knee injury claim lacks a reasoned causal opinion
A.J., a postal worker, fell at work and claimed a right knee injury. OWCP accepted the fall, but the Board found that the medical reports did not explain a connection between that event and her diagnosed knee conditions. Earlier records showed right knee changes before the fall, and the later…
J.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Carol Stream, IL
J.S. (ECAB 15-1006): Recurrence claim remanded after light-duty job withdrawn
J.S., a postal worker with accepted injuries, claimed disability after the Postal Service withdrew his light-duty assignment. The Board found too little information about the job he had held or the medical restrictions in effect when it was withdrawn. It directed OWCP to obtain job details from the…
P.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Indianapolis, IN
P.S. (ECAB 15-0942): Shoulder disability claims lack medical explanation
P.S., a postal employee with accepted left shoulder injuries, sought disability compensation for periods in 2014 and 2015. Her physicians documented pain and restricted work, but did not explain how the accepted conditions caused disability on the specific dates claimed. Physical therapy notes did…
K.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Virginia Beach, VA
K.G. (ECAB 15-0894): Heat-related renal condition claim lacks explained work link
K.G., a postal letter carrier, claimed that heat exposure while delivering mail caused heat illness and renal failure. Two physicians attributed his conditions to work, but the Board found their opinions did not explain how the specific work activities caused them. The record lacked details about…
A.L. and Department of Homeland Security, Customs & Border Protection, Madawaska, ME
A.L. (ECAB 15-1418): Injury and reconsideration denials upheld
A.L. reported an injury after reaching into a truck to move a tire while working for Customs and Border Protection. OWCP accepted the incident, but the Board found no physician opinion connecting a diagnosed condition to it. A physician’s report diagnosed strains without giving a causal opinion…
T.V. and Department of the Air Force, Ogden Utah OAMA, Randolph Air Force Base, TX
T.V. (ECAB 15-1336): Parking lot injury claim lacks work-duty details
T.V. said he slipped on ice while exiting his vehicle in an Air Force base parking lot and injured his neck. The Board found the record did not explain why he was at his vehicle several hours after the stated start of his workday or whether he was engaged in employment duties then. He did not…
Y.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Philadelphia, PA
Y.C. (ECAB 15-1302): Wage-earning capacity request remanded for review of medical reports
Y.C. sought modification of an earlier wage-earning capacity determination. Several orthopedic reports were received by OWCP before its March 19, 2015 decision, but the decision did not identify or discuss them. The Board held that OWCP had to consider all evidence received before issuing a final…
H.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Downtown Delivery Annex, Baltimore, MD
H.G. (ECAB 15-1217): Timely reconsideration request reviewed under wrong standard
H.G. sought reconsideration of a denial involving continuing injury-related disability. OWCP treated his request as late because it measured the one-year period from its own earlier decision. The Board found that its June 16, 2014 merits decision had started a new one-year period and that OWCP…
A.T. and Tennessee Valley Authority, Shawnee Fossil Plant, Paducah, KY
A.T. (ECAB 15-1210): Back injury claim lacks reasoned medical causation
A.T., a Tennessee Valley Authority worker, slipped at work and caught himself before falling, then reported back and leg symptoms. The Board accepted that the event occurred. His physician attributed aggravation of preexisting degenerative spine changes to the slip chiefly because A.T. had been…
D.R. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Memphis, TN
D.R. (ECAB 15-1185): Emotional condition claim lacks explained medical link
D.R., a Veterans Affairs employee with preexisting post-traumatic stress disorder, said a patient video shown at work worsened her condition. OWCP accepted that watching the video was a compensable work factor. The Board found that the physicians who connected it to her symptoms did not explain how…
M.W. and Department of the Air Force, Robins Air Force Base, GA
M.W. (ECAB 15-0949): Accepted work incident lacks medical evidence of injury
M.W., an Air Force employee, claimed injury after a September 18, 2014 work incident. OWCP accepted that the incident occurred and requested medical evidence of a diagnosed related condition. M.W. submitted work status and personnel documents but no medical report establishing injury or causation…
H.H. and Department of the Navy, Naval Surface War Center, Port Hueneme, CA
H.H. (ECAB 15-0770): Wage-loss claim remanded for clarification of medical opinion
H.H., a Navy systems accountant, sought wage-loss compensation after leaving her job in July 2010. OWCP had accepted right shoulder and cervical conditions and asked a referral physician to address her work capacity. The physician’s supplemental report discussed disability before she stopped…
P.H. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Cleveland, OH
P.H. (ECAB 15-0153): Schedule award overpayment remanded pending impairment finding
P.H., a Veterans Affairs employee, received a right leg schedule award based on 12 percent impairment. OWCP later reduced the rating to 10 percent and declared a $1,244.16 overpayment. Before P.H. appealed, an OWCP hearing representative set aside the revised schedule award decisions and directed a…
United States Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and American Federation of Government Employees, National Border Patrol Council, Local 2455
CBP and AFGE Local 2455 (FLRA 0-AR-5109): Suspension grievance award upheld
CBP suspended a Border Patrol agent for five days after an off-duty vehicle accident and a suspected impaired driving arrest that did not lead to criminal charges. An arbitrator found that CBP had not proved the charged misconduct under the parties' agreed evidentiary standard and sustained the…
D.C. and Department of Labor, Employment & Training Administration, Clearfield, UT
D.C. (ECAB 15-1485): Jaw injury wage-loss termination upheld
D.C., a Job Corps apprentice, received wage-loss compensation after another apprentice fractured his jaw. An OWCP referral physician found that he could perform his prior work despite possible continuing jaw or dental problems. The Board found that opinion adequately explained and that treating…
W.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bedford Park, IL
W.D. (ECAB 15-1469): Two percent right leg schedule award upheld
W.D., a postal letter carrier, sought a larger schedule award after a work-related hamstring injury and surgery. His treating physician rated the permanent impairment of the right leg at two percent. OWCP’s medical adviser agreed and explained the diagnosis-based calculation and the maximum medical…
J.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Buffalo, NY
J.G. (ECAB 15-1468): Back condition claim lacks qualifying medical causation opinion
J.G., a seasonal postal mail handler, attributed a back condition to repetitive package work. The Board accepted that he performed the duties but found no reasoned physician opinion connecting them to the diagnosed condition. A diagnostic report gave findings without a causal opinion. The…
S.V. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Indianapolis, IN
S.V. (ECAB 15-1310): Continuation of pay denied for late written notice
S.V., a postal carrier, sought continuation of pay for a November 23, 2013 work injury. She called in sick that day but did not give written notice of the injury until January 3, 2014. The Board found no earlier written claim under the relevant case file and held that the notice arrived after the…
C.M. and Department of Labor, Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs, Dallas, TX
C.M. (ECAB 15-1250): Elbow condition not shown to follow accepted upper-body injuries
C.M., a Labor Department employee, had accepted wrist, shoulder, and neck conditions and later claimed a related condition in both elbows. Her orthopedic surgeon linked the elbow diagnoses to accepted wrist and shoulder conditions and said working with her elbows flexed aggravated them. He did not…
R.A. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Federal Corrections Institute, Miami, FL
R.A. (ECAB 15-0553): Emotional condition claim lacks substantiated workplace factors
R.A., a prison correctional officer, attributed an emotional condition to alleged discriminatory comments, threats, and the handling of his workplace discrimination complaint. The Board found no supporting witness statement, incident report, or other evidence establishing the alleged harassment or…
R.V. and Department of the Navy, Naval Sea Systems Command, Panama City, FL
R.V. (ECAB 15-0159): Hearing loss claim remanded for clearer medical opinion
R.V., a Navy employee, claimed hearing loss after exposure to hazardous workplace noise. OWCP’s referral specialist attributed the loss to gun blast noise, but also said workplace noise could have been sufficient and did not adequately explain why it played no role. The Board found the opinion…
D.G. and Department of the Navy, Naval Station, Norfolk, VA
D.G. (ECAB 15-0068): Shipboard illness claim lacks qualifying medical evidence
D.G., a Navy third officer, claimed she contracted mononucleosis aboard the USS Whitney after a large group embarked. She suggested exposure through shared dishes or utensils. The Board found that the submitted forms were signed by nurses, not qualifying physicians under FECA, and did not establish…
Secretary of Labor v. Coeur Alaska, Inc.
Special-assessment review forms ordered disclosed
Coeur Alaska sought MSHA's special-assessment review forms for six citations, while the Secretary asserted that the forms were protected by the deliberative-process privilege. After reviewing the documents privately, Judge David P. Simonton found that they contained factual summaries and brief…
H.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Pacific Beach Station, San Diego, CA
H.A. (ECAB 15-1449): Back injury claim lacks qualifying causal opinion
H.A., a postal worker, claimed a back injury from an April 7, 2015 work incident. The Board accepted that the incident occurred. His chiropractor did not diagnose an x-ray-confirmed spinal subluxation and therefore did not qualify as a physician for this claim under FECA. Another physician…
M.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Houston, TX
M.F. (ECAB 15-1367): Compensation suspension upheld after missed examination
M.F., a postal carrier receiving compensation, did not attend a scheduled impartial medical examination. She said route inspections required her to work and that she received notice too late to arrange leave. The Board found that OWCP had warned her of the appointment and possible suspension, and…
D.K. and Department of the Air Force, Tinker Air Force Base, OK
D.K. (ECAB 15-1312): No ratable leg impairment shown for schedule award
D.K., an Air Force sheet metal mechanic with accepted lumbar conditions, sought a schedule award based on claimed impairment in both legs. One physician rated 17 percent impairment but did not explain values that conflicted with other examination findings. A second opinion physician found no…
A.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Elk Grove Village, IL
A.S. (ECAB 15-1193): Arm schedule award denied without impairment rating
A.S., a postal mail handler, fractured her right radius in a work fall and later sought a schedule award. A physician noted limited elbow extension and crepitus but did not give the findings or rating needed to establish permanent impairment under the A.M.A. Guides. OWCP requested an impairment…
L.D. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Coast Guard, Warwick, RI
L.D. (ECAB 15-0865): Late reconsideration request remanded for correct review standard
L.D. asked OWCP to reconsider a claim more than one year after its April 4, 2012 merits decision. The Board found the request untimely because OWCP received it in June 2014. OWCP had denied the request under the standard for timely reconsideration instead of assessing clear evidence of error. The…
T.R. and Department of the Army, Physical Security Division, Directorate of Emergency Services, Fort McCoy, WI
T.R. (ECAB 15-0321): Knee surgery dispute remanded for impartial examination
T.R., an Army employee, requested surgery for both knees after a work fall. OWCP’s referral physician attributed the conditions to preexisting problems, while her treating osteopath linked the knee damage and surgical need to the fall. The Board found a conflict between those medical opinions. It…
J.B. and U.S. Postal Service, High Point Post Office, High Point, NC
J.B. (ECAB 15-0201): Back injury and reconsideration denials upheld
J.B., a postal worker, reported back pain after twisting away from a dog that bit his shoe. OWCP accepted the incident, but the Board found the medical reports did not connect a diagnosed back condition to it with a reasoned opinion. His later reconsideration request resubmitted a report already…
Sherwin Alumina Company, LLC v. Secretary of Labor; Secretary of Labor v. Sherwin Alumina Company, LLC; United Steelworkers, Local 235A, Intervenor
Sherwin Alumina Company, LLC v. Secretary of Labor (FMSHRC CENT 2015-0151-RM, et al.): Locked-out miners retained walkaround representation
Sherwin Alumina locked out about 450 union-represented miners and temporarily replaced them, then barred their designated miners' representative from accompanying MSHA inspections. Judge Thomas P. McCarthy distinguished Commission precedent involving economic strikers because locked-out employees…
K.K. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Glenshaw, PA
K.K. (ECAB 15-1515): Vehicle collision established but medical injury unproven
K.K., a postal carrier, reported neck and shoulder symptoms after another vehicle struck his postal vehicle. An emergency medical services report corroborated the collision, so the Board corrected OWCP’s finding that the event had not been established. It nevertheless found no adequate medical…
L.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Plano, TX
L.W. (ECAB 15-1411): Finger injury and reconsideration denials upheld
L.W., a postal rural carrier, claimed a right index finger injury while casing mail. The Board found no medical evidence linking a diagnosed condition to the accepted work activity. Her reconsideration request supplied a new account of the incident but no relevant medical opinion or new legal…
P.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Pontiac, MI
P.H. (ECAB 15-1383): Reconsideration denial upheld for lack of new medical evidence
P.H., a postal employee with accepted left foot injuries, sought reconsideration of a denial of total disability compensation. She raised disputes about her supervisor and resubmitted documents already in the record. The Board found that those arguments did not identify a legal error and that the…
W.S. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Jackson, MS
W.S. (ECAB 15-1271): Scope-cleaning injury claim lacks medical causation
W.S., a Veterans Affairs medical supply technician, said bending and lifting while cleaning scopes aggravated preexisting back and neck conditions. The Board accepted the July 10, 2014 work incident and found no evidence supporting the employer’s allegation of willful misconduct. It nevertheless…
M.P. and Department of the Navy, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, WA
M.P. (ECAB 15-1192): Hearing loss claim lacks identified noise exposure
M.P., a Navy shipyard employee, claimed hearing loss and tinnitus from workplace noise. OWCP asked him to identify the noise source, address a previously denied hearing claim, and describe earlier hearing problems. OWCP received personnel records from the Navy and an audiology report, but M.P. did…
W.S. and Department of the Air Force, Tinker Air Force Base, OK
W.S. (ECAB 15-0969): Hearing award remanded to combine related claim files
W.S., an Air Force employee, appealed a schedule award corresponding to 11 percent hearing loss in both ears. He pointed to a later examination in another hearing loss claim file, but that file was not before the Board. The Board found that the related claims should be combined so OWCP could…
B.E. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Atlanta Veterans Administration Medical Center, Decatur, GA
B.E. (ECAB 15-0815): Respiratory condition claim denied for lack of medical causation
B.E., a medical technician, claimed respiratory symptoms after exposure to wet ceiling tiles, mold, and construction at work. OWCP accepted that the exposure occurred but denied the claim because the medical evidence did not establish that it caused her condition. The Board found that reports…
J.V. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Regional Office, Insurance Center, Philadelphia, PA
J.V. (ECAB 15-0389): Carpal tunnel claim denial affirmed after impartial examination
J.V. claimed that repetitive office work aggravated a bilateral carpal tunnel condition. His treating physician and an OWCP examiner disagreed, and several impartial examinations followed. The Board found that OWCP properly sought a new examiner when earlier opinions could not be clarified. It gave…
Spartan Mining Company v. Secretary of Labor
Imminent-danger order upheld for miner in red zone
An MSHA inspector saw a continuous-miner operator standing beside an energized machine while it trammed forward and backward in the prohibited red zone. The inspector immediately flashed his cap lamp to remove the miner, then notified nearby foremen within a minute that he had issued an…
J.G. and Department of Veterans Affairs, American Lake Veterans Administration Medical Center, Tacoma, WA
J.G. (ECAB 15-1784): Physical therapy authorization denial affirmed
J.G. sought authorization for physical therapy after OWCP accepted work related right toe and hip conditions. His physician recommended therapy for calf and limb pain, and later described hip, knee, and back symptoms. The Board found that the physician did not adequately explain why the requested…
J.G. and Department of Veterans Affairs, American Lake Veterans Administration Medical Center, Tacoma, WA
J.G. (ECAB 15-1448): Missed telephone hearing request deemed abandoned
J.G. requested a hearing after OWCP denied his schedule award claim. OWCP scheduled a telephone hearing for May 14, 2015 and mailed notice to his address of record. J.G. said he misread the date and called the following day. The Board found that he did not attend at the scheduled time or request…
A.B. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, Menlo Park, CA
A.B. (ECAB 15-1446): Head injury claim returned for review of medical report
A.B., a medical support assistant, claimed she injured her head when she struck a shelf at work. OWCP denied the claim, stating that it had received no medical evidence. The record showed that OWCP had received an emergency room physician’s report before issuing the denial. The Board set aside the…
R.S. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, Las Vegas, NV
R.S. (ECAB 15-1229): Wage earning capacity reduction left in place
R.S., a baggage screener with accepted neck and shoulder conditions, sought to change a wage earning capacity determination based on an information clerk position. He said his neck condition had worsened and that physicians limited him to four hours of work a day. The Board found that the medical…
F.L. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, St. Louis, MO
F.L. (ECAB 15-1172): Sidewalk fall claim returned for workplace premises inquiry
F.L., a clerk at a Veterans Affairs medical center, fell on a sidewalk in front of her building shortly before her shift began. OWCP denied her injury claim without developing whether the sidewalk was on the employer’s premises or fell within a proximity exception. The Board held that this location…
A.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Severna Park, MD
A.D. (ECAB 15-0730): Termination of back injury benefits affirmed
A.D., a postal letter carrier, received benefits for a back injury sustained while moving mail bags. OWCP later terminated his wage loss and medical benefits after an impartial specialist found that the accepted sprain had resolved and attributed ongoing problems to longstanding spinal conditions…
J.W. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service National Office, Richmond, VA
J.W. (ECAB 15-0325): Disability claim for 2011 period denied
J.W., an IRS tax examiner, sought compensation for total disability during part of 2011 after an accepted work related brachial neuritis or radiculitis condition. An earlier Board decision had required OWCP to review all medical evidence before deciding the claim. On this appeal, the Board found…
S.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Office of Inspector General, Carol Stream, IL
S.D. (ECAB 14-0701): Emotional condition claim denial affirmed
S.D., a Postal Service auditor, attributed depression and anxiety to alleged harassment, discrimination, and disputes over supervision and leave. The Board reviewed her account and the employer’s responses. It found that she had not established harassment or error or abuse in the administrative…
S.T. and Department of Agriculture, Food Safety and Inspection Service, Alameda, CA
S.T. (ECAB 15-1362): Shoulder and back injury claim denial affirmed
S.T. claimed a right shoulder and back injury while stacking paper at work on January 29, 2015. The Board accepted that the work incident occurred. Her physician diagnosed strains and reported periods of disability but did not explain how the specific incident caused the diagnosed conditions. The…
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.