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.W. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Benefits Administration, St. Petersburg, FL
C.W. (ECAB 13-1248): Disability benefit termination reversed
C.W., a Veterans Affairs worker, had accepted neck and back injuries and later underwent authorized cervical surgery. OWCP terminated his wage loss benefits based on an impartial specialist’s report. The Board found that the report did not adequately address all accepted injuries or explain why…
L.L., also known as L.P., and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Houston, TX
L.L. (ECAB 13-1203): Suitable work refusal supported benefit termination
L.L., a postal worker, challenged termination of compensation after refusing an offered job. The Board credited an impartial specialist who found she could work within sedentary restrictions and found the offered position fit those restrictions. It also found that OWCP had followed the required…
E.Y. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Milwaukee, WI
E.Y. (ECAB 13-1132): Higher bilateral leg awards denied
E.Y., a postal letter carrier, had received schedule awards for 37 percent impairment of each leg after accepted knee injuries and replacement surgery. He sought higher awards. The Board found that the evidence did not establish greater impairment of either leg. It affirmed OWCP’s March 27, 2013…
T-Mobile US, Inc.
In re T-Mobile US, Inc. (EAB MM Appeal No. 13-02C): consent agreement ratified
T-Mobile US, Inc. was the respondent in a multimedia EPA proceeding involving EPCRA, CWA, CAA, and RCRA dockets. The Environmental Appeals Board ratified the attached Consent Agreement under 40 C.F.R. § 22.18(b)-(c). The Board ordered T-Mobile US, Inc. to comply with all terms of the Consent…
Hibbing Taconite Company v. Secretary of Labor, MSHA
Hibbing Taconite Company v. Secretary of Labor (FMSHRC LAKE 2013-406-M, LAKE 2013-236-RM): Conveyor-maintenance citation reduced
A Hibbing Taconite welder installed mesh guarding on a handrail beside an operating conveyor without locking out the conveyor. Judge Margaret A. Miller held that installing the guard was maintenance of the conveyor system because the guard was needed to bring the moving equipment into safe…
A.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Morristown, TN
A.H. (ECAB 13-1715): Missed examination supported suspension
A.H., a postal employee receiving compensation for an accepted back condition, missed an OWCP second opinion examination. He cited illness and travel difficulty, but the Board found that he had not provided sufficient evidence of good cause after OWCP offered travel assistance. It affirmed OWCP’s…
L.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Los Angeles Processing & Distribution Center, Los Angeles, CA
L.L. (ECAB 13-1624): Late reconsideration did not reopen claim
L.L., a postal mail handler with an accepted back strain, requested reconsideration of an OWCP decision. The Board found that her request was late and that the submitted medical reports did not show clear evidence of error in the earlier decision. It affirmed OWCP’s January 8, 2013 refusal to…
W.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Los Angeles, CA
W.S. (ECAB 13-1589): Claimed disability lacked medical causation proof
W.S., a postal employee with an accepted injury, sought compensation for total disability beginning November 24, 2010. The Board found that the medical evidence did not sufficiently connect the claimed disability period to the accepted injury. It affirmed OWCP’s May 15, 2013 denial.
K.M. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Nebraska Western Iowa Healthcare System, Grand Island, NE
K.M. (ECAB 13-1459): Patient lifting claim lacked injury proof
K.M., a Veterans Affairs nursing assistant, claimed a right arm injury while lifting a patient in bed. The Board found that she did not establish a compensable injury from the incident. It also upheld OWCP’s refusal to reopen the merits on reconsideration. It affirmed OWCP’s March 15 and April 19…
D.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Fort Collins, CO
D.B. (ECAB 13-1355): Impartial knee opinion needed clarification
D.B., a postal letter carrier, sought a schedule award for impairment after a claimed aggravation of preexisting right knee arthritis. OWCP had accepted a temporary work aggravation and obtained an impartial specialist’s opinion about whether the condition was permanent. The Board found that the…
M.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Miami, FL
M.R. (ECAB 13-1279): Impairment report required medical adviser review
M.R., a postal clerk, sought a schedule award after an accepted workplace fall caused several conditions. Her physician provided ratings for her left arm and leg. The Board found that OWCP had denied the claim without sending the report to its medical adviser as its procedures required. It set…
J.K. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Tyler, TX
J.K. (ECAB 13-1250): Extremity impairment award denied
J.K., a postal rural carrier, sought a schedule award for permanent arm or leg impairment after accepted spinal and shoulder conditions. The Board found that the medical evidence did not establish ratable extremity impairment caused by the work injuries. It affirmed OWCP’s April 1, 2013 denial.
Michael Buckly
Roofing citations affirmed by default
OSHA cited Michael Buckly after observing one employee removing shingles from a three-story roof without fall protection and another cleaning debris below without a protective helmet. After filing a notice of contest, Buckly did not file an answer, return the Secretary's calls, participate in the…
A.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bell, CA
A.H. (ECAB 13-0967): Dual benefits overpayment and fault upheld
A.H., a postal employee, received both FECA compensation and federal retirement benefits for the same period. The Board upheld OWCP’s finding that this created an $11,753.48 overpayment from May 3, 2011 through June 2, 2012. It also upheld the finding that he was at fault, which prevented waiver of…
S.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Tulsa, OK
S.J. (ECAB 13-0781): Disease denial upheld with corrected findings
S.J., a postal mail handler, claimed back, arm, neck and wrist conditions from her work duties. The Board found that she had established diagnoses and identified relevant duties, but the medical opinions did not adequately explain how those duties caused the conditions. It affirmed OWCP’s November…
M.S. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, Oklahoma City, OK
M.S. (ECAB 13-1693): Headache and memory claims lacked injury causation proof
M.S., a Veterans Affairs worker, claimed headaches and memory loss as consequences of an October 2005 work injury. The Board found that the medical evidence did not establish a causal connection to the accepted injury. It affirmed OWCP’s January 2, 2013 denial.
L.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, New Castle, DE
L.J. (ECAB 13-1654): Left arm rating upheld, right arm rating remanded
L.J., a postal clerk, challenged schedule award ratings for both arms. The Board found the two percent left arm rating supported. It found that the competing right arm neuropathy calculations did not adequately apply the impairment guide’s testing rule. It affirmed the left arm portion of OWCP’s…
E.T. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, San Jose, CA
E.T. (ECAB 13-1643): Back condition claim lacked work causation proof
E.T., a transportation security officer, attributed a back condition to lifting heavy bags at work. The Board found that the medical evidence did not establish that her work duties caused the claimed condition. It affirmed OWCP’s May 28, 2013 denial.
K.H. and Department of the Army, U.S. Army Training & Doctrine Command, Fort Rucker, AL
K.H. (ECAB 13-1555): Work stress claim lacked a compensable factor
K.H., an Army fire protection inspector, claimed anxiety and depression from his work environment. The Board found his descriptions of job duties too general to establish a compensable factor and found no proof of error or abuse in the personnel matters he raised. It affirmed OWCP’s April 22, 2013…
O.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bellmawr, NJ
O.S. (ECAB 13-1554): New knee rating required review before decision
O.S., a postal worker, sought a higher schedule award for his accepted left knee condition. His physician submitted a new impairment rating before OWCP issued its March 11, 2013 decision, but OWCP did not address it. The Board set aside that decision and remanded for a medical adviser to review the…
C.G. and Department of Homeland Security, Customs & Border Protection, San Antonio, TX
C.G. (ECAB 13-1385): Hearing loss award upheld
C.G., a customs officer, sought a larger schedule award for work-related hearing loss and tinnitus. OWCP awarded 16 weeks of compensation for an eight percent binaural hearing loss. The Board found that the audiogram and medical adviser’s calculations supported that rating, including five percent…
M.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Tampa, FL
M.C. (ECAB 13-1335): Late reconsideration request denied
M.C., a postal worker, sought reconsideration of OWCP’s rescission of an accepted cervical disc condition. She filed more than one year after OWCP’s last merit decision, so OWCP required clear evidence of error. The Board found that her medical submissions did not address why the rescission was…
D.S. and Department of Health & Human Services, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD
D.S. (ECAB 13-1273): Wage capacity ruling upheld
D.S., a National Institutes of Health worker, sought to change OWCP’s wage earning capacity decision based on a desk clerk position. He argued that his medical conditions prevented him from doing that work. The Board found that the medical evidence supported light or sedentary work with…
T.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Lexington, KY
T.P. (ECAB 13-0740): Benefits suspension upheld
T.P., a postal worker, missed an impartial medical examination scheduled to resolve a dispute over his permanent impairment. OWCP warned him about the examination and suspended future compensation after he did not attend. The Board found that his objections to the physician, travel, and the need…
G.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Camden, NJ
G.S. (ECAB 13-1731): Injury denial upheld, medical expenses returned
G.S., a postal letter carrier, reported being struck by a vehicle while delivering mail. OWCP accepted that the incident happened but denied the injury claim for lack of medical evidence linking a diagnosed condition to it. The Board agreed that the medical submissions did not establish a…
N.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Fort Worth, TX
N.B. (ECAB 13-1604): Suspension for missed examination upheld
N.B., a postal worker, missed a second opinion examination ordered after an earlier Board remand concerning disability from her accepted cervical condition. OWCP suspended her compensation effective May 28, 2013. She argued that the examination was unnecessary and retaliatory, but the Board found…
B.H. and Department of the Army, Red River Army Depot, Texarkana, TX
B.H. (ECAB 13-1481): Fall established, injury claim still denied
B.H., an Army depot welder, reported slipping on ice while working in Afghanistan. OWCP denied the claim because it found the incident unproven. The Board found that witness and supervisor statements did establish the work incident. It still found the medical evidence insufficient to connect his…
E.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Philadelphia, PA
E.C. (ECAB 13-1307): Overpayment fault finding set aside
E.C., a postal worker, elected retirement benefits retroactively while OWCP continued compensation payments. The Board upheld an overpayment finding for the overlapping period but set aside OWCP’s finding that he was at fault. It found no evidence that he received retirement payments during that…
J.J. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Baltimore, MD
J.J. (ECAB 13-1276): Medical link to patient transfer injury unproved
J.J., a VA nurse, reported shoulder and back injuries while transferring a patient. OWCP accepted that the transfer occurred but denied his injury claim. The Board found the medical reports did not adequately explain how the work event caused or aggravated his claimed conditions. It affirmed OWCP’s…
H.R. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Jackson Veterans Administration Medical Center, Jackson, MS
H.R. (ECAB 13-1264): Arm impairment awards upheld
H.R., a VA worker, sought higher schedule awards for impairment of both arms. The Board reviewed the medical ratings under the impairment guides and found no more than 19 percent impairment of her left arm and 9 percent of her right. It rejected her objections to the referral examination and…
L.J. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, New Orleans, LA
L.J. (ECAB 13-1261): Recurrence claim required wage capacity review
L.J., a VA nurse, claimed renewed disability after OWCP had issued a formal wage earning capacity decision. OWCP denied the filing as a recurrence claim. The Board held that OWCP should instead decide whether the evidence warranted modification of the wage capacity ruling. It set aside the February…
L.J. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, New Orleans, LA
L.J. (ECAB 13-1261): Counsel corrected in remand order
The Board issued an erratum concerning its order remanding L.J.’s claim to OWCP. The earlier order identified L.J. as appearing without counsel. This erratum states that Debra Hauser, Esquire, represented L.J. It changes the appearance entry without revisiting the remand’s merits.
C.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Main Post Office, Winter Haven, FL
C.R. (ECAB 13-1258): Impairment award requires organ rating
C.R., a postal worker, sought a schedule award for impotence related to accepted work conditions. An impartial physician rated whole person impairment, which FECA does not compensate through a schedule award. The Board found that OWCP needed a rating of impairment to the penis, a scheduled organ…
E.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, San Juan, Puerto Rico
E.M. (ECAB 13-1255): Late award reconsideration denied
E.M., a postal worker, sought reconsideration of a schedule award decision. OWCP received the request more than one year after its last merit decision. The Board found that the new submissions did not address impairment of a scheduled body member or show clear evidence of error in the earlier…
Town of Newmarket, New Hampshire
In re Town of Newmarket, New Hampshire (EAB NPDES Appeal No. 12-05): Nitrogen effluent limit upheld
EPA Region 1 issued the Town of Newmarket, New Hampshire, an NPDES permit for its wastewater treatment plant's discharges to the Lamprey River. The permit set a 3.0 milligrams-per-liter total-nitrogen effluent limit to protect water quality in the Lamprey River and Great Bay. The Great Bay…
P.T. and U.S. Postal Service, DeMoss Station, Houston, TX
P.T. (ECAB 13-1862): Knee injury claim denied
P.T., a postal carrier, fell near a car block and claimed a right knee injury. OWCP accepted that she fell but found the medical evidence insufficient to link the diagnosed knee conditions to the event. The Board agreed that the reports did not provide a reasoned medical explanation of causation…
T.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Cincinnati, OH
T.B. (ECAB 13-1827): Old claim not reopened
T.B., a postal worker, requested reconsideration of an earlier compensation ruling. Her January 2013 request came more than 11 years after OWCP’s last merit decision in March 2001. The Board found that the request was late and did not present clear evidence of error in the earlier decision. It…
J.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Jackson, MI
J.H. (ECAB 13-1702): Occupational injury denial upheld
J.H., a rural postal carrier, sought compensation for back conditions she attributed to work activities. Following an earlier Board decision, she supplied another report from her treating physician. The Board found that report did not overcome the specially weighted opinion of the impartial medical…
T.D. and Department of Defense, Defense Finance & Accounting Service, Columbus, OH
T.D. (ECAB 13-1597): Schedule award pay rate needs review
T.D. received a schedule award for an additional one percent impairment of his left arm. OWCP used a pay rate from a 1993 injury without resolving the Board’s earlier direction to examine a 1995 injury date as well. The Board set aside the award decision and remanded for OWCP to determine the…
K.L. and Tennessee Valley Authority, Watts Bar Nuclear Plant, Spring City, MN
K.L. (ECAB 13-1595): Dermatitis benefits termination upheld
K.L., a nuclear plant painter, received compensation for accepted contact dermatitis. OWCP terminated benefits after finding the work-related condition had resolved. The Board found the medical evidence sufficient to show that the accepted condition no longer caused residuals or disability. It…
D.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Peekskill, NY
D.D. (ECAB 13-1518): Knee injury account unproved
D.D., a postal worker, claimed a right knee injury after a table allegedly collapsed at work. After earlier appeals, OWCP reviewed additional statements and photographs. The Board found that the record still did not establish the incident at the time, place, and in the manner alleged. It affirmed…
E.S. and Department of the Army, Watervliet Arsenal, Watervliet, NY
E.S. (ECAB 13-1444): Timely medical report requires review
E.S. sought reconsideration of an Army workplace injury claim. OWCP denied reopening while stating that it had received no new medical evidence. The Board found that OWCP had received an orthopedic report the same day it issued that decision but had not considered it. It set aside the refusal to…
K.R. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Bennettsville, SC
K.R. (ECAB 13-1389): Injury denial and reopening refusal upheld
K.R., a prison medication technician, reported back pain after moving a box at work. OWCP accepted the work event but denied the injury claim. The Board found that the medical reports did not adequately link a diagnosed condition to the event, despite a physician’s later signature on an assistant’s…
R.J. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA
R.J. (ECAB 13-1350): Reconsideration request timely
R.J., a VA worker, requested reconsideration of a June 17, 2011 OWCP merit decision. OWCP treated the request received Monday, June 18, 2012 as late, although the anniversary date fell on Sunday. The Board held the filing timely and found that OWCP had applied the wrong, stricter clear error test…
G.B. and Department of the Interior, BIA Regular Employee Functions, Many Farms, AZ
G.B. (ECAB 13-1260): Late reconsideration refused
G.B., an Interior Department maintenance worker, requested reconsideration of a wrist injury claim more than one year after OWCP’s last merit ruling. OWCP denied the request as untimely. The Board found that the submitted materials did not demonstrate clear evidence of error in the prior decision…
Secretary of Labor, MSHA v. Austin Powder Company, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Austin Powder Company, Inc. (FMSHRC KENT 2010-1529-M): Hazardous-highwall citation affirmed
An Austin Powder employee entered beneath a highwall with extensive loose material to mark drilling locations for a future blast. Judge Priscilla M. Rae found that the full safety bench, loose rock, and sloped debris could send falling material into the work area. A danger sign about 500 feet away…
M.O. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, Lubbock, TX
M.O. (ECAB 13-1822): Advance travel wage claim denied
M.O., a transportation security officer, sought eight hours of wage-loss compensation for travel the day before a medical appointment. OWCP denied that part of her request. The Board found no showing that distant care was necessary when appropriate care appeared available near her home, or that her…
T.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Crocker, MO
T.L. (ECAB 13-1811): Additional conditions denied, treatment request returned
T.L., a postal carrier, sought recognition of additional conditions after an accepted vehicle accident injury. The Board found insufficient medical evidence linking those additional conditions to the work accident. It affirmed OWCP’s denial on that issue but found that OWCP still needed to address…
B.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Calvin Street Annex, Greenville, SC
B.G. (ECAB 13-1774): Occupational claim not reopened
B.G., a postal worker, sought reconsideration after OWCP denied her occupational back condition claim. The Board reviewed the June 2013 refusal to reopen and found no qualifying new evidence, new legal argument, or error of law. It affirmed OWCP’s nonmerit decision without deciding the underlying…
L.S. and Department of Homeland Security, Federal Protection Service, Newark, NJ
L.S. (ECAB 13-1628): Asbestos exposure claim denied
L.S., a federal police officer, alleged that asbestos abatement at his workplace caused a pulmonary condition. OWCP denied the occupational disease claim. The Board found that his medical submissions did not establish an asbestos-related diagnosis connected to his work exposure. It affirmed OWCP’s…
M.S. and Department of the Army, U.S. Army Reserves, Sparta, WI
M.S. (ECAB 13-1583): Benefits termination reversed
M.S. received compensation for an accepted back injury. OWCP terminated his benefits for allegedly refusing suitable work as a military pay technician. The Board found that OWCP had failed to give him the required chance to accept the job after its final suitability determination. It reversed the…
C.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Havana, FL
C.S. (ECAB 13-1492): Total disability claim denied
C.S., a postal worker, sought wage-loss compensation from June 20, 2012 for accepted neck and back sprains. The Board found that his physician’s reports did not establish total disability for the claimed period. It affirmed OWCP’s May 1, 2013 denial of the additional wage-loss claim.
V.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Homecrest Station, Brooklyn, NY
V.G. (ECAB 13-1462): Second opinion needs clarification
V.G., a postal letter carrier, claimed ongoing total disability from an accepted left knee injury. OWCP denied wage-loss compensation based in part on a second opinion report. The Board found that the treating evidence did not establish the claim, but the second opinion required clarification about…
W.K. and Department of Commerce, National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration, Woods Hole, MA
W.K. (ECAB 13-1452): Wage-loss disability unproved
W.K., a seaman, sustained accepted knee, ankle, and elbow injuries after falls aboard an agency vessel. He sought wage-loss compensation beginning December 1, 2011. The Board found that his medical evidence did not establish inability to work during the claimed period because of those accepted…
D.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Carrier Annex, Inglewood, CA
D.J. (ECAB 13-1377): Recurrence claim denied
D.J., a postal worker, sought wage-loss compensation after an accepted hand and buttock contusion. OWCP treated her filing as a claim for recurrent disability. The Board found the evidence insufficient to show that her accepted injury caused renewed inability to work beginning in December 2012. It…
S.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, New Orleans, LA
S.S. (ECAB 13-1008): Reconsideration request timely
S.S., a postal worker, asked OWCP to reconsider a June 27, 2011 schedule award decision. OWCP found her request untimely; the envelope postmark was unreadable. The Board applied the rule for that decision date and used the June 22, 2012 request letter date, which was within one year. It set aside…
Secretary of Labor, MSHA v. Chemical Lime Company of Alabama, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Chemical Lime Company of Alabama, LLC (FMSHRC SE 2010-1107-M): Partial summary decision denied
MSHA alleged that Chemical Lime failed to provide or ensure proper use of protective equipment for miners exposed to lime dust around a baghouse. The company sought partial summary decision on the respirator-related portion of the citation. Judge Priscilla M. Rae found genuine disputes over whether…
M.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Denver, CO
M.S. (ECAB 13-1614): Orthopedic mattress request denied
M.S., a postal carrier, asked OWCP to authorize an orthopedic mattress for accepted work-related back sprains. OWCP denied the request. The Board found that the submitted medical evidence did not establish the mattress was necessary treatment for the accepted conditions. It affirmed OWCP’s January…
C.C. and Department of Veterans Affairs, New Port Richey Outpatient Clinic, New Port Richey, FL
C.C. (ECAB 13-1490): Mold exposure injury claim denied
C.C., a VA worker, claimed that workplace mold exposure aggravated an allergy and caused headaches. OWCP accepted that exposure occurred but denied the occupational disease claim. The Board found that her medical reports did not adequately explain how the exposure caused or worsened the claimed…
M.W. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, Roseburg, OR
M.W. (ECAB 13-1447): Accepted cervical claim restored
M.W., a VA worker, had an accepted claim for a cervical disc condition. OWCP later rescinded that acceptance. The Board found an unresolved conflict in the medical opinions about whether the condition was work related, so OWCP had not met its burden to undo the accepted claim. It reversed OWCP’s…
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.