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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J.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bryan, TX
J.S. (ECAB 12-0061): Treatment notes did not reopen schedule award
J.S., a former Postal Service mail processor, disputed a schedule award for an accepted foot condition. She sought reconsideration because she disagreed with her own physician's impairment rating and submitted treatment records. The Board found that most records duplicated evidence already…
K.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Houston, TX
K.C. (ECAB 12-0042): Heavy package delivery established, injury unproven
K.C., a Postal Service city carrier, reported back and hip pain after delivering heavy packages over several weeks. The Board found that he had established the package delivery activity. His physician, however, described pain without a firm diagnosis and did not explain how the work caused a…
G.M. and Environmental Protection Agency, Health & Safety Office, Chicago, IL
G.M. (ECAB 11-1733): Overpayment upheld, fault finding set aside
G.M., an EPA database administrator, received disability compensation after an accepted back injury. A direct deposit covered time after he returned to work, creating a $2,560.29 overpayment. The Board upheld the amount but found that the automatic deposit gave him no chance to assess the payment…
Big Ridge, Inc., Peabody Midwest Mining, LLC, Independence Coal Company, Inc., Inman Energy Corporation, Process Energy, Spartan Mining Company, Road Fork Development Company, Knox Creek Coal Corporation
Big Ridge, Inc., et al. (FMSHRC WEVA 2011-398-R, et al.): MSHA may obtain payroll and medical records for Part 50 audits
Eight mine operators refused to produce payroll, time-sheet, and accident-related medical records requested during MSHA audits of Part 50 reporting, leading to section 50.41 citations and failure-to-abate orders. The Commission held that sections 103(a) and 103(h) of the Mine Act and 30 C.F.R. §…
Bacardi Corporation
In re Bacardi Corporation (EAB NPDES 11-07): petition dismissed after permit modification
Bacardi Corporation asked the Environmental Appeals Board to dismiss its petition for review of an NPDES permit. Bacardi stated that EPA Region 2 had issued a permit modification that resolved the matter. The Board dismissed the petition with prejudice. The released order does not describe the…
Barbara Jean Wright v. Eastern Associated Coal Corporation
Wright v. Eastern Associated Coal Corporation (BRB 11-0613): survivor benefit award affirmed
Barbara Jean Wright applied for survivor benefits after her husband, a coal miner who was receiving federal black lung benefits, died. Eastern Associated Coal argued that the 2010 survivor benefit amendment could not apply because the miner had filed his own claim decades earlier. It also…
C.A. and Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rapid City, SD
C.A. (ECAB 12-0833): Timely reconsideration request sent back for correct review
C.A., a Forest Service forestry technician, sought reconsideration of an OWCP decision denying his left knee injury claim. OWCP used the stricter clear-error standard reserved for untimely requests, even though his request was timely. The OWCP Director acknowledged the mistake and asked the Board…
N.B. and Department of the Army, Civilian Personnel Operations Center, Taegu, Korea
N.B. (ECAB 12-0539): Overpayment amount upheld, waiver denial remanded
N.B., an Army human resources specialist, received compensation for an accepted emotional condition. OWCP paid her using an incorrect weekly rate, creating a $38,040.79 overpayment between 2004 and 2010. The Board upheld that amount and accepted that she was without fault. It found that OWCP had…
D.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Richland Station, Dallas, TX
D.W. (ECAB 12-0268): Further physical therapy not shown necessary
D.W., a Postal Service carrier technician, had accepted shoulder and neck strains from a 1997 lifting injury. She sought additional physical therapy years later. A referral orthopedic surgeon found no medical indication for formal therapy and questioned whether her current symptoms came from the…
L.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Newark, NJ
L.S. (ECAB 12-0263): Total disability recurrence not established
L.S., a Postal Service mail handler, had accepted arm tendinitis and right carpal tunnel syndrome and was working limited duty. She claimed that she became totally disabled on February 23, 2004. Her orthopedic surgeon supported that claim but did not reconcile it with a neurologist's…
J.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Lansdowne, PA
J.B. (ECAB 12-0196): Work pressures established, medical link unproven
J.B., a Postal Service mail processing clerk, claimed an emotional condition arising from work. In an earlier appeal, the Board accepted overtime, overlapping tasks, and inadequate equipment as compensable work factors. On this appeal, it found that her medical reports did not clearly connect the…
V.R. and Department of Homeland Security, Customs & Border Protection, El Paso, TX
V.R. (ECAB 12-0175): Tire lifting established, back injury unproven
V.R., a Customs and Border Protection officer, reported back pain after lifting a tire during a vehicle inspection. The Board accepted that the lifting happened at work. Her medical reports described pain and work restrictions but did not adequately explain how the activity caused a diagnosed back…
G.G. and Department of the Air Force, Robins Air Force Base, Warren Robins, GA
G.G. (ECAB 12-0159): Second prerecoupment hearing request denied
G.G., an Air Force employee, was notified of a preliminary $6,196.11 overpayment and requested a hearing. He did not attend the scheduled hearing, and OWCP finalized the overpayment. He later asked for a second prerecoupment hearing. The Board found that the hearing right no longer applied after…
J.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Carol Stream, IL
J.C. (ECAB 12-0107): Medical evidence warrants further review of mail handler claim
J.C., a Postal Service mail handler, claimed arm, hand, hip, and knee conditions from years of lifting and sorting mail. Her surgeon connected several diagnosed conditions to those duties, but the reports did not fully explain the mechanism of injury or directly address the rotator cuff tear. The…
Y.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Anchorage, AK
Y.J. (ECAB 12-0003): Late recurrence reconsideration showed no clear error
Y.J., a former Postal Service clerk, had accepted neck and arm conditions from a 1979 work injury. After earlier decisions denied a claimed recurrence of disability, she sought reconsideration in 2011. The Board found her request more than one year after the latest merits decision. The medical…
F.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Dallas Bulk Mail Center, Dallas, TX
F.L. (ECAB 11-2083): New foot testing requires merits review
F.L., a former Postal Service bulk mail clerk, sought review of disputed foot conditions and disability after an accepted left heel injury. OWCP refused to reopen his case for a merits review. Most reports he resubmitted were already in the record, but a right foot nerve study and part of another…
D.C. and U.S. Postal Service, New Jersey Internation & Bulk Mail Center, Jersey City, NJ
D.C. (ECAB 11-2062): Impartial examiner selection must be documented
D.C., a Postal Service employee, contested a schedule award for four percent impairment of her left leg. OWCP had relied on a physician designated as an impartial examiner to resolve conflicting impairment ratings. The Board found that the record did not document the required rotating selection of…
H.A. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical & Regional Office Center, San Juan, PR
H.A. (ECAB 11-1922): Compensation must resume after earnings form filed
H.A., a VA housekeeping aide, had compensation suspended after he failed to return a required earnings report. He later submitted the completed Form CA-1032, which OWCP received on March 5, 2010. OWCP withheld reinstatement because it was uncertain whether his veterans benefits had changed. The…
Dayton Tire, Bridgestone/Firestone
Ninety-nine lockout violations reclassified as serious
The Commission had previously affirmed ninety-nine lockout/tagout violations as willful and assessed $1,975,000 in penalties against Dayton Tire. The D.C. Circuit vacated the willful classifications for insufficient evidence and remanded for the Commission to reassess the violations and penalties…
J.B. and Department of the Navy, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Ballston Spa, NY
J.B. (ECAB 12-0238): Reconsideration evidence did not reopen shoulder claim
J.B., a Navy machinery mechanic leader, claimed that work duties caused a left shoulder rotator cuff tear. OWCP denied the claim because the medical evidence relied on inconsistent accounts of how the tear developed. On reconsideration, J.B. submitted unsigned physical therapy notes and repeated…
K.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Conroe, TX
K.J. (ECAB 12-0232): Conflicting accounts undermine ankle claim
K.J., a Postal Service rural carrier, said he rolled his left ankle after stepping from a customer's deck while delivering mail in November 2010. He filed his claim almost nine months later. His supervisor did not recall receiving a report, and medical records described a different date and…
L.K. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Champaign, IL
L.K. (ECAB 12-0215): Oral hearing request arrived after deadline
L.K., a Postal Service clerk with accepted foot conditions, sought a hearing after OWCP refused to change its wage-earning capacity determination. She mailed the hearing request more than 30 days after OWCP's decision. The Board found that she had no hearing right after that deadline. OWCP…
R.B. and Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Rogersville, AL
R.B. (ECAB 12-0180): Old hearing reports did not reopen award claim
R.B., an Army Corps of Engineers mechanic, received a schedule award for two percent hearing loss in his left ear. He sought a larger award and a longer payment period. His reconsideration request resubmitted old medical reports and did not offer new evidence or a relevant legal argument about the…
J.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Northern Ohio Performance Cluster, Cleveland, OH
J.R. (ECAB 12-0160): Part-time job cannot set full-time worker's wage capacity
J.R., a Postal Service clerk, worked full time when she sustained an accepted back and neck injury. She later returned to a modified clerk job for 20 hours per week, and OWCP used those earnings to reduce her compensation. The Board found that OWCP's own procedures did not permit a part-time…
C.T. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, Birmingham, AL
C.T. (ECAB 12-0108): Hearing request too late for wage-loss dispute
C.T., a VA nurse with an accepted injury, sought wage-loss compensation and later requested an oral hearing. Her request came well after the 30-day period following OWCP's April 2010 decision. The Board found that she had no hearing right after the deadline. OWCP also reasonably denied a…
C.B. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Richmond, VA
C.B. (ECAB 12-0087): Insurance premium overpayment recoverable without financial proof
C.B., a retired IRS employee receiving injury compensation, elected postretirement basic life insurance. OWCP failed to deduct the insurance premiums from her compensation, creating a $7,225.25 overpayment. Although she was without fault, she did not submit the requested financial information to…
C.L. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Border Patrol, El Centro, CA
C.L. (ECAB 12-0047): No increase in shoulder or leg schedule award
C.L., a Border Patrol employee, had accepted right shoulder and left knee injuries and sought a larger schedule award. He had already received an award for thirteen percent impairment of the left leg. The Board found that updated medical reports supported seven percent right arm impairment and no…
C.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, New Paris, OH
C.B. (ECAB 12-0013): Unreviewed medical reports require a new benefits decision
C.B., a Postal Service employee with an accepted back condition, challenged termination of her wage-loss and medical benefits. Before OWCP's hearing decision, her treating physician submitted three reports supporting continued disability. The hearing representative noted one report but did not show…
R.R. and Department of Justice, Federal Correctional Institution, La Tuna, TX
R.R. (ECAB 11-2124): Disputed gym membership sent to independent specialist
R.R., a federal correctional institution employee with accepted back and neck injuries, requested coverage for a YMCA membership. His treating surgeon said the exercise program helped his symptoms and was medically necessary. OWCP's medical adviser said a home program could provide the same…
H.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, San Jose, CA
H.M. (ECAB 11-2047): Knee claim lacked work details and medical causation
H.M., a Postal Service mail handler and forklift operator, claimed a left knee contusion and meniscus tear related to work. He described swelling that made walking and forklift use difficult but did not give a detailed account of the work activities he believed caused the condition. His duty status…
K.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Willmar, MN
K.C. (ECAB 11-2012): Emotional claim denial needed clear reasons
K.C., a Postal Service employee, appealed OWCP's denial of an emotional condition claim. OWCP said both that she had not established compensable work factors and that she lacked medical evidence of causation. The Board found that OWCP's explanation did not make clear the precise defect in her claim…
E.K. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Philadelphia, PA
E.K. (ECAB 11-1835): Psychiatric reports require further claim development
E.K., an IRS revenue officer, sought compensation for an emotional condition after learning that a taxpayer in her caseload had died by suicide. The Board accepted that event as a work factor. Her psychiatrist connected diagnosed conditions to the event, though the reports did not fully explain the…
W.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Omaha, NE
W.R. (ECAB 11-1830): Shoulder claim files must be consolidated
W.R., a Postal Service mail handler, filed separate occupational disease claims for his left and right shoulders. OWCP used evidence from the right shoulder file when denying the left shoulder claim. The Board found that both claims concerned similar mail handling duties and that each file's…
J.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Detroit, MI
J.C. (ECAB 11-1714): New medical report requires claim review
J.C., a Postal Service city carrier, claimed that walking at work caused a hip condition. OWCP denied the claim and later refused to reopen it on reconsideration. The Board found that a physician's November 2010 report discussing her work activities and hip condition was relevant evidence that OWCP…
E.N. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Fort Lauderdale, FL
E.N. (ECAB 11-1321): Missing claim records require remand
E.N., a Postal Service mail handler, claimed that management pressure concerning his medical work restrictions and his supervisor's conduct caused an emotional condition. OWCP denied the claim and later denied reconsideration. The Board found that the record lacked essential material from his…
M.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Alpharetta, GA
M.G. (ECAB 11-1285): Unreviewed medical reports require remand
M.G., a Postal Service employee, had an accepted claim for carpal tunnel syndrome and asked OWCP to add a right thumb condition. OWCP denied that request. Before OWCP's hearing representative affirmed the denial, M.G.'s physician submitted reports addressing the cause of the thumb condition. The…
V.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Palatine, IL
V.G. (ECAB 11-1243): Related injury files must be combined
V.G., a retired Postal Service employee, claimed that her modified work caused back and shoulder pain. OWCP denied her occupational disease claim while referring to two other claims involving overlapping conditions. The Board found that those related files needed to be combined so OWCP could…
Stone & Webster Construction, Inc., Bartlett Nuclear, Inc.
Privilege-related discovery orders vacated
Stone & Webster Construction and Bartlett Nuclear sought draft OSHA citation worksheets for use in a jurisdictional defense involving the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The judge rejected the Secretary's deliberative-process privilege claim, ordered disclosure, and issued a show-cause order that…
D.B. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Atlanta, GA
D.B. (ECAB 12-0247): Refusal to reopen right arm award affirmed
D.B., a Veterans Affairs medical supply technician, injured his right shoulder and arm in a workplace fall. OWCP awarded him a schedule award for 10 percent right arm impairment, and he asked OWCP to reconsider, seeking a higher rating. The Board found that his later medical reports addressed his…
B.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Santa Ana, CA
B.J. (ECAB 12-0150): Compensation overpayment and fault finding affirmed
B.J., a postal mail carrier, returned to limited duty after an accepted back injury but continued to receive compensation for total disability. OWCP found that her earnings reduced the compensation due for January 21 through February 12, 2011, leaving a $667.45 overpayment. The Board upheld that…
L.R. and Social Security Administration, Southeastern Region, Birmingham, AL
L.R. (ECAB 12-0129): Additional arm award and hearing denied
L.R., a Social Security Administration employee, had received schedule awards totaling 17 percent left arm impairment for accepted neck and shoulder conditions. She sought an additional award and a hearing. The Board gave weight to an impartial physician's finding that cervical radiculopathy did…
L.P. and Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection, Washington, DC
L.P. (ECAB 12-0093): Back injury claim denial affirmed
L.P., a Customs and Border Protection officer, reported back pain after falling on stairs at work. OWCP accepted that the fall occurred but denied his claim because the medical evidence did not link his diagnosed sacroiliac osteoarthritis to the incident. The Board found that one physician…
V.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, High Point, NC
V.L. (ECAB 12-0092): Occupational claim denial and refusal to reopen affirmed
V.L., a postal clerk, claimed that her work caused right shoulder pain, stress and depression. OWCP asked her to describe the alleged work factors with supporting details, but she did not provide enough factual information to establish what occurred. The Board found that the medical reports rested…
W.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Glenridge Station, Atlanta, GA
W.T. (ECAB 11-1994): Additional arm award and reopening refused
W.T., a postal employee, had received a schedule award for 15 percent right arm impairment and sought a larger award. His physician's new reports again assessed 15 percent impairment; the Board found that one calculation omitted required steps, while OWCP's adviser calculated the same 15 percent…
P.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Carrier Annex, Santa Barbara, CA
P.H. (ECAB 11-1905): Later wage-loss claim denied for lack of medical proof
P.H., a postal carrier, received wage-loss benefits for a limited period after OWCP accepted a work-related lumbar disc injury. He then claimed compensation for August 14, 2010 and later periods. The Board found that his orthopedic surgeon reported disability but did not explain how the accepted…
B.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, San Francisco, CA
B.T. (ECAB 11-1857): Late reconsideration denial affirmed
B.T., a postal employee, had lost compensation after OWCP found that she refused a suitable job offer. She sought reconsideration more than seven years after OWCP's last merits decision and argued that she had accepted the offered job. The Board found her request outside the one-year filing period…
E.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Savannah, GA
E.R. (ECAB 11-1689): Hearing denied; reconsideration sent back to OWCP
E.R., a postal employee, sought a hearing and reconsideration of an old compensation denial. The Board held that he had no right to an OWCP hearing after a Board decision and that OWCP reasonably denied a discretionary hearing. It reached a different result on his reconsideration request. The…
C.G. and Department of the Navy, Naval Research Laboratory, Chesapeake Beach, MD
C.G. (ECAB 11-0454): Forfeiture and overpayment of compensation upheld
C.G. received compensation for accepted injuries while operating a charter fishing business that he did not report on OWCP questionnaires. The Board found that the evidence supported forfeiture of compensation during the specified reporting periods and an overpayment of $303,724.66 after a $60,000…
Empire Iron Mining Partnership
Part 48 training violations may carry S&S designations
MSHA cited Empire Iron Mining Partnership for alleged violations of new-miner and new-task training requirements and designated both violations significant and substantial. Empire sought partial summary decision, arguing that Part 48 training regulations are not mandatory health or safety standards…
L.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Cleveland, OH
L.C. (ECAB 12-0530): Three-day disability claim denied
L.C., a postal carrier with an accepted back injury, claimed compensation for three days when he said increased back pain kept him from working. His physician reported pain after longer routes and overtime and recommended time off, but her examinations recorded normal gait and leg strength. The…
M.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Distribution Center, Des Moines, IA
M.S. (ECAB 12-0234): Arm condition claim returned for medical development
M.S., a postal employee, claimed that repetitive tray sorting in a new job aggravated conditions in both arms. OWCP denied the claim for lack of medical proof connecting the conditions to her new duties. The Board found that her physician's reports did not establish the claim, but raised an…
L.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Indianapolis, IN
L.D. (ECAB 12-0186): Refusal to reopen arm condition claim affirmed
L.D., a postal mail handler, sought reconsideration of a denied claim for arm conditions that he linked to repetitive duties. OWCP had found that the medical evidence lacked a firm diagnosis and a reasoned explanation connecting the condition to his work. L.D. submitted a job description, a routing…
M.T. and Department of the Army, U.S. Army Europe, 7th Army, APO, AE
M.T. (ECAB 12-0074): Overpayment and partial waiver decision affirmed
M.T. continued to receive wage-loss payments after OWCP terminated her benefits for an accepted injury. The Board upheld OWCP's finding that $6,825.72 paid from January 26 through May 8, 2010 was an overpayment. OWCP waived recovery of the first $1,230.93 but found M.T. at fault for accepting the…
W.M. and Department of Energy, Pantex Courier Section, Amarillo, TX
W.M. (ECAB 12-0072): Wage-loss suspension for overlapping VA benefits upheld
W.M., a Department of Energy courier, received FECA wage-loss compensation after OWCP accepted PTSD among his work-related conditions. The VA also rated the same condition as fully disabling. OWCP asked him to elect between the overlapping wage-loss benefits and suspended FECA payments when he did…
J.L. and Department of the Interior, Isle Royale National Park, Houghton, MI
J.L. (ECAB 12-0044): Parts clerk wage-loss reduction reversed
J.L., a park maintenance worker, received wage-loss compensation after an accepted shoulder injury. OWCP reduced his compensation based on earnings it said he could make as a parts clerk. The Board found that the job required frequent reaching, while his physician barred reaching above shoulder…
E.C. and Department of the Navy, Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Philadelphia, PA
E.C. (ECAB 11-2089): Additional lymphoma-related wage loss denied
E.C., a Navy electrician, had an accepted claim for work-related lymphoma and sought compensation for intermittent time away from work during 2000 and 2001. OWCP paid for nine hours tied to documented treatment but denied the remaining 940.5 hours. The Board found that the medical reports discussed…
C.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Camp Hill, PA
C.F. (ECAB 11-2028): Termination of injury benefits reversed
C.F., a postal employee, received benefits for a workplace injury that OWCP accepted for a foot contusion, a metatarsal fracture, and pulmonary embolism and infarction. OWCP terminated her benefits after a second opinion physician found that the foot injuries had resolved. The Board found that the…
W.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Brooklyn, NY
W.M. (ECAB 11-2000): Dependent-rate overpayment affirmed
W.M., a postal letter carrier, received compensation at the higher rate available to workers with an eligible dependent. Her son turned 18 and was a full-time college student only from March 2 through May 10, 2009. OWCP calculated that she received $2,210.89 too much during the other disputed…
M.R. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Brocton, MA
M.R. (ECAB 11-1419): Termination of injury benefits reversed
M.R., a nursing assistant, received benefits for a back injury sustained while turning a patient. OWCP ended her wage-loss and medical benefits after obtaining an examination by a physician it designated as impartial. The Board found no medical opinion conflict that justified that designation, so…
J.C. and Department of the Army, Pine Bluff Arsenal, Pine Bluff, AR
J.C. (ECAB 12-0575): Reconsideration refusal affirmed
J.C., a former Army warehouseman and environmental specialist, sought medical treatment for back and foot conditions years after an accepted 1991 back injury. OWCP denied his recurrence claim and later declined to reconsider it. The Board found that his reconsideration request identified no legal…
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.