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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A.D. and Department of the Navy, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, WA
A.D. (ECAB 14-1622): Hearing loss award returned to compare audiograms
A.D., a Navy shipyard electrician and supervisor, had accepted work related hearing loss. OWCP granted a schedule award based on an April 2014 audiogram showing 11 percent bilateral impairment. A January 2014 audiogram from another specialist showed greater loss, but OWCP had not evaluated it or…
M.R. and Department of the Army, Fort Monmouth, NJ
M.R. (ECAB 14-1405): Wage loss and treatment termination upheld
M.R., an Army supply technician, had several accepted shoulder, hip, and back conditions after falling on steps. OWCP later ended his wage loss and treatment benefits. The Board credited a second opinion physician who found no remaining disability or treatment need from the accepted work injury. It…
L.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Joliet, IL
L.W. (ECAB 14-1292): Overpayment amount returned for work date check
L.W., a postal employee receiving wage loss compensation for an accepted neck sprain, returned to limited duty in late 2013. OWCP found a $2,121.88 overpayment based on a November 16 return date, but other records suggested she did not resume work until December 2. The Board found that the actual…
J.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Baltimore, MD
J.S. (ECAB 14-1233): Management stress claim lacked a compensable work factor
J.S., a postal customer service manager, attributed anxiety and depression to disputes with upper management about office operations, overtime, and his schedule. The Board found that his complaints concerned administrative and personnel matters rather than compensable work duties. It found no…
D.R. and Department of Homeland Security, Federal Protection Service, Boston, MA
D.R. (ECAB 14-0871): New medical evidence required merit review
D.R., a federal protection officer with an accepted foot and ankle injury, disputed the maximum medical improvement date used for a schedule award. He submitted a new physician opinion giving a different date and argued that OWCP should revisit the award. The Board found the new medical opinion…
Secretary of Labor v. Kirk Fenoff & Son Excavating
Mine Act interrogatories presumptively limited to 25
Kirk Fenoff & Son initially served 64 interrogatories in a case involving two related highwall orders, then reduced the request to 39 after court-directed discussions. The Secretary sought a 25-question limit. Judge William B. Moran held that Commission procedural rules govern the scope of…
Secretary of Labor v. DQ Fire & Explosion Consultants, Inc.
High negligence affirmed for unauthorized accident-zone entry
After the Upper Big Branch explosion killed 29 miners and injured two, a section 103(k) order restricted investigative access to Zone 5, the suspected origin area. DQ Fire & Explosion Consultants entered Zone 5 on January 11 and 12, 2011 without obtaining the required formal modification. The…
Secretary of Labor v. DQ Fire & Explosion Consultants, Inc.
Scientific consultant training order vacated for lack of fair notice
DQ's scientific consultant investigated the Upper Big Branch explosion underground after receiving hazard training but not the 40-hour comprehensive training required for new miners. The Commission vacated the withdrawal order and $112 penalty because DQ lacked fair notice that the consultant fell…
Joint Base Lewis-McChord Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System
In re Joint Base Lewis-McChord Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (EAB NPDES Appeal No. 13-09): petition dismissed after settlement
The United States Department of the Army petitioned for review of an NPDES permit for the Joint Base Lewis-McChord municipal separate storm sewer system. The Army later moved to dismiss the petition with prejudice, reporting that the parties had reached a settlement agreement resolving the issues…
Buckley Air Force Base Municipal Storm Sewer System
In re Buckley Air Force Base Municipal Storm Sewer System (EAB NPDES Appeal No. 13-07): petition dismissed after ADR
The United States Department of the Air Force petitioned for review of an NPDES permit for the Buckley Air Force Base municipal storm sewer system. The Air Force later moved to dismiss the petition with prejudice, reporting that the parties had resolved all outstanding issues through the EAB's…
L.K. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Odenville, AL
L.K. (ECAB 14-1770): Right shoulder tear not medically linked to mail duties
L.K., a rural mail carrier, claimed that casing and delivering mail caused a right rotator cuff tear. She underwent shoulder surgery and submitted reports from her orthopedic surgeon. The Board found that one opinion speculated about an unestablished injury and a later opinion named work duties…
L.K. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Odenville, AL
L.K. (ECAB 14-1769): Left shoulder condition not medically linked to mail duties
L.K., a rural mail carrier, claimed that repetitive mail work caused a tear in her left shoulder. Her surgeon described the tear and later named lifting, casing, and loading duties as possible causes. The Board found that his earlier opinion was speculative and based on an unestablished injury…
S.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Detroit, MI
S.G. (ECAB 14-1759): Hand condition denial affirmed with work factor finding changed
S.G., a postal safety specialist, claimed that repetitive work caused bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome and trigger finger. The Board found that her job involved some typing, data entry, and computer use, though the record did not support her claim that this work had increased. Her physicians’…
D.K. and Department of Defense, Fort Belvoir Community Hospital, Fort Belvoir, VA
D.K. (ECAB 14-1654): Injury claim returned for review of omitted report
D.K., a hospital appointment assistant, said she twisted a leg on a floor mat and fell while leaving work. OWCP denied her injury claim for lack of a medical link. The Board found that OWCP had received a physician report addressing her diagnoses and the incident but had not considered it in the…
W.A. and Tennessee Valley Authority, Paradise Fossil Plant, Drakesboro, KY
W.A. (ECAB 14-1197): Hearing loss claim barred by filing deadline
W.A., a former boilermaker and welder at a Tennessee Valley Authority plant, filed a hearing loss claim in 2013 after retiring in 1991. He said he noticed the loss in 2003 but first learned of its possible work connection from a doctor in 2013. The Board found it unreasonable on this record that he…
K.K. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Melrose Park, IL
K.K. (ECAB 14-1066): Leg impairment claim returned for fuller medical review
K.K., a postal carrier, had accepted lower back conditions including lumbar radiculopathy and sought a schedule award for impairment in both legs. Her physicians gave impairment ratings, but OWCP denied the award based on a second opinion finding no ratable impairment. The Board found that the…
J.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Pittsburgh, PA
J.C. (ECAB 14-1002): Back and hip claim denied despite proven work duties
J.C., a postal mail handler, attributed back and hip pain to repeated lifting and bending. OWCP had found the work activities unproven, but the Board found that the job descriptions and a supervisor’s statement established them. It still affirmed the claim denial because the medical notes did not…
M.S. and Department of the Navy, Pacific Fleet Shipyard, Pearl Harbor, HI
M.S. (ECAB 14-0661): Arm impairment ratings returned for clearer calculation
M.S., a Navy shipyard mechanic, had accepted shoulder and cervical conditions and received schedule awards for 3 percent left arm and 14 percent right arm impairment. He sought higher ratings. The Board found that OWCP’s medical adviser had not identified the diagnosis and grade adjustments behind…
B.W. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Richmond, VA
B.W. (ECAB 14-0379): Shoulder impairment rating returned for independent opinion
B.W., an IRS revenue agent, received a schedule award for seven percent right arm impairment after an accepted shoulder injury. He sought a higher rating. The Board found conflicting medical opinions about which diagnosis to use under the impairment guides, including disagreement about whether…
Davis H. Elliot Construction Company, Inc.
Outrigger-pad item affirmed and qualified-worker item vacated
A line worker was injured while transferring energized power lines from an old utility pole to a new one from an aerial-lift bucket. The judge affirmed an outrigger item because the truck's rear outriggers were set on loose garden soil without separate pads, and the electrical-line standard did not…
United States Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service (Agency) and National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 25 (Union)
IRS and NTEU Chapter 25 (FLRA 0-AR-5038): Modified work schedule restored
After a work-related injury, an IRS employee and her supervisor agreed that she could take unpaid leave every Friday. She followed that schedule for more than a decade before the IRS required her to use family and medical leave instead. An arbitrator found that the written agreement bound the…
United States Environmental Protection Agency (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3331 (Union)
EPA and AFGE Local 3331 (FLRA 0-AR-5019): Promotion and backpay award upheld
An EPA employee was removed from an upward mobility training program without promotion to its target grade. An arbitrator found that she had met the program requirements and that the agency had violated its policy and labor agreement. The award ordered a retroactive promotion and backpay. The…
A.F. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Benefits Administration, Baltimore, MD
Late reconsideration request denied
A.F., a veterans service representative, sought reconsideration of an OWCP decision about a fall from his chair at work. His April 2014 request came more than a year after OWCP’s September 2012 merits decision. The Board found that the physician report he submitted did not show clear evidence of…
S.A. and U.S. Post Office, Post Office, Bellmawr, NJ
Shoulder claim not reopened on reconsideration
S.A., a postal automation clerk, claimed a right shoulder injury from sweeping mail at work. OWCP denied the injury claim and later refused to reopen it for a merits review. The Board found that her reconsideration argument identified no legal error or new relevant legal issue. A medical report…
D.J. and Department of the Navy, Marine Corps Logistics Base, Barstow, CA
Left knee and back conditions not added to accepted claim
D.J., a Marine Corps logistics base computer assistant, had an accepted right knee injury after tripping on a damaged restroom floor. He sought to add left knee and lumbar conditions to the claim. The Board found that his physicians did not explain how the right knee injury caused or aggravated…
P.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Monroe, LA
Leg impairment award returned for a supported rating
P.M., a postal employee, challenged the extent of schedule awards for his legs. The Board found that the medical ratings did not adequately explain the knee findings or assess the possible effect of polyneuropathy. It also found that OWCP’s medical adviser had not properly accounted for the prior…
C.M. and Department of the Treasury, Bureau of the Mint, Philadelphia, PA
Knee claim and compensation overpayment rulings affirmed
C.M., a Mint packaging machine operator, sought to add osteoarthritis and synovitis to her accepted left knee injury claim. The Board found no medical explanation linking those conditions to the work injury. It also upheld a $5,394.79 overpayment arising after she elected retirement benefits while…
P.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Jacksonville, FL
Wage earning capacity determination left in place
P.P., a postal employee with accepted carpal tunnel syndrome, sought to change an earlier wage earning capacity determination after her work hours were reduced. The Board found that she had not shown the prior job was makeshift or otherwise established a basis to modify the determination. The…
N.T. and General Services Administration, Public Building Service, Kansas City, MO
Emotional condition claim denial affirmed
N.T., a General Services Administration employee, claimed that a fitness for duty examination aggravated a preexisting emotional condition. His psychologist described the incident and its effect on him. The Board found the reports did not give enough medical reasoning to establish that the…
Southern Pan Services Co.
Parking-garage collapse items remanded under exposing-employer and supervisor-knowledge rules
A parking garage partially collapsed during a concrete pour, killing one Southern Pan employee and injuring another along with more than twenty workers. The Commission held that the construction-load standard applied to the conditions and that Southern Pan, as an exposing employer, could have a…
Daniel B. Lowe v. Veris Gold USA, Inc.
Bankruptcy stay did not halt discrimination claim
Daniel Lowe brought a personal Mine Act discrimination complaint against Veris Gold USA while the company was subject to a Chapter 15 bankruptcy stay. Veris argued that the bankruptcy court's injunction barred the administrative case and that Lowe's claim did not qualify for the governmental…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Justin Greenwell v. Armstrong Coal Company
Miner directed to file separate claim against coworker
Justin Greenwell alleged that coworker Chris Oglesby threatened him after he reported concerns about respirable dust sampling at Armstrong Coal Company's Parkway Mine. The Secretary filed a Mine Act discrimination complaint against Armstrong based on allegations that the company encouraged…
In re David A. Bramble, Inc.
In re David A. Bramble (DOL ARB 14-090 and 14-091): Premature wage appeals dismissed
David A. Bramble challenged proposed additional Davis-Bacon job classifications and wage rates for two contracts. The company sought further Wage and Hour review after an initial response and then petitioned the Board while that review was still pending. The Administrator asked the Board to dismiss…
S.R. and U.S. Postal Service, West Station, Nashville, TN
Reconsideration refusal upheld
S.R. sought reconsideration after a Board decision on his emotional condition claim. His attorney argued that OWCP should have waited 30 days for supporting evidence sent after the request. The Board found no rule requiring that wait, and OWCP had received no new evidence when it ruled. The request…
R.R. and Department of Homeland Security, Customs & Border Protection, Philadelphia, PA
Requested sacroiliac fusion surgery denied
R.R., a customs and border protection officer, requested sacroiliac fusion surgery after an accepted fall at work. OWCP relied on a detailed medical opinion that the proposed surgery was unlikely to relieve his condition and could increase pain and disability. The Board found that OWCP did not…
B.L. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Murfreesboro, TN
Right knee injury denial and reconsideration refusal upheld
B.L., a medical center food service worker, reported that his right knee gave out while he carried a tray at work. The Board found that his physician had not adequately explained whether the incident caused a new injury or aggravated longstanding knee conditions. It upheld the injury claim denial…
L.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Frazer, PA
Arm impairment rating returned for review of prior carpal tunnel condition
L.J., a postal rural letter carrier, received a schedule award for four percent right arm impairment from accepted thumb and wrist conditions. OWCP excluded her preexisting right carpal tunnel syndrome from the rating because it was not accepted as work related in this claim. The Board held that…
C.K. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Lake City, FL
C.K. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center (ECAB 14-1226): Twenty-five percent left leg impairment award affirmed
C.K., a Veterans Affairs nursing assistant, received a schedule award after surgery for an accepted left knee condition. Her surgeon rated her left leg impairment at 40 percent but did not explain how he reached that figure under the applicable AMA Guides. OWCP’s medical adviser used the surgeon’s…
H.T. and Department of the Interior, Lake Havasu Field Office
Late reconsideration request denied
H.T., an Interior Department public contract representative, sought to reopen the denial of a left shoulder injury claim. Her attorney said he had mailed a reconsideration request within the one-year period, but the mailing receipts did not identify her claim and the medical records received then…
J.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Highpoint Branch, Clearwater, FL
J.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Highpoint Branch (ECAB 14-0558): Wage loss denial set aside for new medical opinion
J.S., a postal clerk, sought wage loss compensation after tripping on a strap at work and sustaining accepted shoulder and back conditions. OWCP denied compensation for August 3, 2009 through January 7, 2011, relying on a second opinion physician. The Board found that the physician had examined…
R.M. and U.S. Postal Service, South Bend Processing and Distribution Center
Refusal to reconsider arm impairment award affirmed
R.M., a postal clerk, had received a schedule award for 10 percent left arm impairment after an accepted shoulder injury. He sought reconsideration, reporting more pain and difficulty lifting. The Board found that his physician’s later reports did not assess any increase in permanent impairment and…
K.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Indianapolis, IN
K.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Indianapolis (ECAB 14-0204): Arm and leg impairment denial sent back for medical review
K.C., a postal carrier, sought a schedule award for left arm and leg impairment after a work vehicle collision. OWCP had accepted spinal sprains and later accepted nerve conditions, but denied an impairment award based in part on an examiner’s finding of no ratable loss. The Board found that the…
National Association of Independent Labor, Local 7 (Union) and United States Department of the Air Force, Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, North Carolina (Agency)
NAIL Local 7 and Seymour Johnson Air Force Base (FLRA 0-NG-3180): Sick leave ruling stands
The Air Force sought reconsideration of an Authority ruling on a negotiated sick leave provision. The earlier ruling required the agency to rescind its disapproval of language allowing employee self-certification in specified circumstances. The Authority denied reconsideration because the agency…
Energy Answers LLC
In re Energy Answers LLC (EAB PSD Appeal No. 14-07): appeal dismissed for lack of jurisdiction
Leonardo Ramos-Hernandez petitioned the Environmental Appeals Board to review a permit issued by Puerto Rico's Environmental Quality Board to Energy Answers LLC. He characterized the permit as a Clean Air Act Prevention of Significant Deterioration permit. The Board determined that the permit was…
D.B. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Carl Vinson Veterans Medical Center, Dublin, GA
D.B. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Carl Vinson Veterans Medical Center (ECAB 14-1815): Telephone duty injury claim denied
D.B., a Veterans Affairs nurse, attributed neck and right shoulder symptoms to holding a telephone between her neck and shoulder while assigned to answer calls. OWCP accepted that she performed the telephone duty but denied the injury claim. The Board found that one physician described a possible…
W.W. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration Medical Center, Durham, NC
W.W. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Durham Medical Center (ECAB 14-1811): Back injury claim denial affirmed
W.W., a nursing assistant, reported lower back pain after turning a patient and moving a bed at work. OWCP accepted that the incident happened but denied compensation because the medical evidence did not establish that it caused or aggravated his back condition. The Board found that the physicians…
M.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Philadelphia, PA
M.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Philadelphia (ECAB 14-1674): Carpal tunnel impairment ratings sent back for medical review
M.M., a postal distribution clerk, received schedule awards for five percent impairment of each arm after accepted bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome. Her physician rated eight percent in each arm, while OWCP’s medical adviser rated five percent. The Board found that neither physician explained the…
C.L. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, Biloxi, MS
C.L. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration (ECAB 14-1585): Hip claim and reconsideration denial affirmed
C.L., a Veterans Affairs health technician, attributed right hip and groin pain to repeatedly turning and adjusting her chair while examining patients. OWCP accepted her work duties but denied the claim because the medical reports did not adequately link the diagnosed hip condition to those…
A.M. and Department of the Navy, Fleet Forces Command, Portsmouth, VA
A.M. and Department of the Navy, Fleet Forces Command (ECAB 14-1546): Overpayment and fault findings affirmed
A.M., a Navy painter, received schedule award payments after his left leg award was due to end on December 21, 2010. OWCP continued paying him through June 2013 because of a system failure and later assessed a $90,329.86 overpayment. The Board found that the award notice stated the end date and was…
C.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Los Angeles, CA
C.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Los Angeles (ECAB 14-1209): Overpayment confirmed despite no fault finding
C.D., a postal distribution clerk, received disability payments after an earlier Board decision had upheld termination of her benefits. OWCP had mistakenly resumed payments while handling a remand and later assessed a $104,646.54 overpayment. The Board agreed that C.D. was without fault because…
T.A., claiming as widow of D.A., and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Chicago, IL
T.A., widow of D.A., and U.S. Postal Service (ECAB 14-0629): Overpayment decision returned for explanation
T.A., the widow of a postal employee, appealed an OWCP decision finding a $66,562.58 overpayment involving a Social Security offset. The preliminary notice listed two deduction figures, but the final decision did not explain the factual basis or calculation of the overpayment. The Board held that…
S.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing and Distribution Center, Toledo, OH
S.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Toledo Processing and Distribution Center (ECAB 14-0343): Recurrence of disability claim denied
S.W., a postal bulk mail technician, worked in a modified position after an accepted back and knee injury. Her supervisor sent her home after she presented a functional capacity evaluation indicating she could not work, and she sought wage loss compensation from that date. The Board found that the…
Speegle v. Stone & Webster Construction, Inc.
Speegle v. Stone & Webster Construction (DOL ARB 14-079): Dismissal of retaliation complaint affirmed
James Speegle, a painter and foreman at a nuclear plant, raised safety concerns about allowing apprentices to perform painting repair work. After management approved the plan, he made an outburst at a meeting and was suspended and fired. Earlier proceedings established that his protected activity…
T.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Dallas, TX
T.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Dallas (ECAB 14-1867): Sidewalk incident established; injury claim still denied
T.T., a postal carrier assistant, said she twisted her left ankle on an uneven sidewalk while delivering mail. OWCP denied her claim on factual and medical grounds. The Board found her account consistent and held that the work incident occurred, even though she reported it the next day. It still…
G.S. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, Portland, OR
G.S. and Transportation Security Administration, Portland (ECAB 14-1732): Back injury and reconsideration denials affirmed
G.S., a transportation security officer, reported back pain after moving a bag at work. OWCP accepted that the incident occurred but found no firm medical diagnosis from a qualified physician. The Board held that a physical therapy evaluation countersigned by a physician counted as physician…
D.U. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bellmawr, NJ
D.U. and U.S. Postal Service, Bellmawr (ECAB 14-1670): Shoulder injury claim denial affirmed
D.U., a postal city carrier, claimed that his delivery work on May 19, 2012 injured his right shoulder. OWCP accepted that he performed the described duties but denied the claim for lack of adequate medical evidence connecting those duties to a shoulder injury. The Board found that the physicians…
D.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Chicago, IL
D.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Chicago (ECAB 14-1648): Schedule award denial affirmed
D.C., a mail processing clerk, had an accepted work-related parastomal hernia and sought a schedule award after surgery. OWCP denied the request because the medical evidence did not show permanent loss of a scheduled body member or function. The Board agreed: no physician identified such a…
A.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Charlotte, NC
A.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Charlotte (ECAB 14-1633): Additional shoulder award denied
A.F., a postal clerk, received a schedule award for five percent permanent impairment of his right arm after an accepted shoulder injury. He sought a larger award based on a physician’s range of motion measurements. OWCP’s second opinion physician and medical adviser rated the impairment at five…
F.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Willimantic, CT
F.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Willimantic (ECAB 14-1379): Back injury claim sent for further medical review
F.B., a postal carrier, attributed a lumbar condition to driving and exiting his mail truck during snowy weather. After an earlier Board decision found his medical evidence inadequate, his surgeon submitted a new report explaining how the work activities could cause a disc injury. The Board held…
S.A. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, Houston, TX
S.A. and Transportation Security Administration, Houston (ECAB 14-1345): Late reconsideration refusal affirmed
S.A., a transportation security screener, sought to reopen a denial of wage-loss compensation following accepted back and psychological injuries. OWCP received her request more than one year after its last merit decision. The Board held that the receipt date controlled timeliness, and her new…
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.