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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D.D. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons, Anthony, TX
D.D. (ECAB 10-1493): Claim for larger leg awards sent back
D.D., a Bureau of Prisons cook foreman, sought larger schedule awards for leg impairment associated with an accepted back injury. Two physicians gave detailed findings and higher ratings, but used the fifth edition of the impairment guides. OWCP denied the request without asking its medical adviser…
T.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Spokane, WA
T.L. (ECAB 10-1122): Finger impairment award sent back for medical review
T.L., a postal carrier, received a schedule award for right-index-finger impairment after a work-related dog bite injured his hand. His treating surgeon rated impairment across all five fingers, while an OWCP medical adviser rated only the injured index finger. The Board found both opinions…
C.H. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Portland, OR
C.H. (ECAB 10-987): Approval of $115.50 attorney fee upheld
C.H.'s attorney requested $2,594 for work on her compensation case, and she contested the fee. OWCP approved $115.50 after reviewing the billed services. The Board found that OWCP could consider whether each service was necessary, provided, and useful to the claimant. The attorney had not…
Drummond Company, Inc.
Missed counsel email excused over dissent
Drummond Company management emailed counsel instructions to contest an assessment while counsel was caring for his wife during and after surgery. The email escaped counsel's notice, and the contest was not filed on time. The Secretary did not oppose reopening, and a four-member Commission majority…
Austin Powder Company
Inactive email account excused late contest
Austin Powder Company attempted to send its penalty contest to counsel by email, but the message went to an inactive account and the contest was not filed on time. The company discovered the error after MSHA sent a delinquency notice. The Secretary did not oppose reopening but warned that the…
Bonham Concrete, Inc.
Reopening denied for unexplained late contest
Bonham Concrete said it did not contest a 12-citation assessment because it thought the penalty was automatic and did not know it could request a reduction. The Secretary opposed reopening, noting that the assessment stated the deadline, the company had successfully contested assessments before…
R.J. and Department of Veterans Affairs, North Texas Health Care System, Dallas, TX
R.J. (ECAB 10-1901): Secondary emotional condition claim denial upheld
R.J., a Veterans Affairs medical support assistant, claimed that chronic pain and limits from accepted right carpal tunnel syndrome caused a depressive condition. His psychiatrist supported a connection, while an OWCP medical adviser disputed it. The Board gave special weight to an impartial…
A.G. and Department of the Army, Fort Jackson MEDDAC, Columbia, SC
A.G. (ECAB 10-1861): Late reconsideration request rejected
A.G., an Army information technology specialist, sought reconsideration of a denied claim that she contracted a herpes virus from a coworker. She filed more than one year after OWCP's last merit decision, so she had to show clear evidence that OWCP had erred. Her physician could not identify where…
M.I. and U.S. Postal Service, General Mail Facility, Miami, FL
M.I. (ECAB 10-1816): Schedule award claim not reopened
M.I., a postal mail handler, had an accepted right elbow condition and later requested a schedule award. OWCP denied the award after medical reports found no permanent impairment. She sought reconsideration, but submitted no relevant new evidence or new legal argument and identified no specific…
K.L. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, Beckley, WV
K.L. (ECAB 10-1803): Overpayment confirmed, amount returned for calculation
K.L., a Veterans Health Administration secretary, received wage-loss compensation after knee surgery. OWCP later determined that she had been paid for three waiting days and assessed a $425.23 overpayment. The Board agreed that the three-day waiting period applied, establishing an overpayment. It…
T.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Carteret, NJ
T.W. (ECAB 10-1799): Workplace fall accepted, injury claim denied
T.W., a postal mail handler, fell from a tow motor at work and sought compensation for head, face, and arm injuries. The Board treated the fall as unexplained, finding no evidence that a personal medical condition caused it. It nonetheless upheld the claim denial because her physician's letters…
M.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Carol Stream, IL
M.P. (ECAB 10-1573): Reported dispenser injury not established
M.P., a postal processing clerk, reported that a toilet paper dispenser cover struck her head and shoulder in a workplace restroom. The supervisor inspected the dispenser soon afterward and found its cover still attached. The Board also found uncertainty about the cover's position relative to M.P…
S.K. and Department of Homeland Security, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Bothell, WA
S.K. (ECAB 10-1553): Assault claim denied as outside assigned duties
S.K., a FEMA disaster assistance employee working away from home, was sexually assaulted at another hotel's premises after dinner. She argued that she had gone there partly to assess lodging for agency staff. The Board found her contemporaneous description of entering the assailant's room to watch…
J.F. and Department of Health & Human Services, Navajo Area Indian Health Service, Window Rock, AZ
J.F. (ECAB 10-1188): Emotional condition claim denied for lack of a covered work factor
J.F., an Indian Health Service employee, attributed an emotional condition to management decisions and alleged harassment by his supervisor. The Board found no established error or abuse in the disputed assignments, supervision, and administrative actions. It also found the harassment and…
M.G. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons, Federal Detention Center, Philadelphia, PA
M.G. (ECAB 10-818): Right arm condition and surgery authorization rejected
M.G., a federal detention center employee, had an accepted left upper extremity injury and later sought coverage for a right upper extremity condition. The Board found that she had not established a medical connection between the two. OWCP had authorized right elbow surgery without proper review…
United States Department of the Army, United States Army Corps of Engineers, New York District, New York, New York (Agency) and International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, Local 98 (Union)
Army Corps of Engineers New York District and IFPTE Local 98 (FLRA 0-AR-4732): Agency exception denied
The Army Corps of Engineers New York District challenged an arbitrator's award involving IFPTE Local 98. The Authority denied the agency's exception, concluding that the award was not deficient on the ground the agency raised. The short decision cites the standard for deciding whether an award…
National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 238 (Union) and United States Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service (Agency)
NTEU Chapter 238 and IRS (FLRA 0-AR-4418): Reconsideration of grade and pay retention ruling denied
An arbitrator had ordered the IRS to provide grade and pay retention to an employee who accepted a lower-graded position after a reorganization. The Authority set aside that award in an earlier decision because the regulatory conditions for retention were not met. NTEU Chapter 238 asked the…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1547 (Union) and United States Department of the Air Force, Luke Air Force Base, Arizona (Agency)
AFGE Local 1547 and Luke Air Force Base (FLRA 0-AR-4354): Reduction-in-force grievance denied
A reduction in force at Luke Air Force Base displaced four employees whose union said they should have received other positions. An arbitrator rejected the grievance after applying the federal rules for retreating to a previously held position and bumping an employee in a lower retention group. The…
Mach Mining, LLC
Four accumulation violations modified, two citations vacated
Mach Mining operated an underground coal mine where MSHA cited combustible accumulations on roof bolters and belt drives, an inadequate preshift examination, and unguarded moving parts on a ratio feeder. Judge Richard W. Manning affirmed four accumulation violations but removed their S&S…
C.F. and Department of the Navy, Camp Smedley D. Butler, Okinawa, Japan
C.F. (ECAB 10-2163): Overpayment decision set aside for improper notice
C.F., a former Navy athletic director, received total disability payments while working part time. OWCP assessed a $12,074.08 overpayment and ordered $150 deductions from continuing compensation. The Board found that OWCP sent its preliminary notice to an old address despite having C.F.'s updated…
S.D. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Hampton, VA
S.D. (ECAB 10-1820): Some leave buyback denied, treatment dates returned
S.D., a VA program specialist, sought leave buyback for absences after OWCP accepted respiratory and swallowing conditions linked to her workplace. The Board found inadequate medical evidence of disability or treatment for several claimed dates in 2008 and 2009. It directed OWCP to clarify…
A.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Louisville, MS
A.M. (ECAB 10-1753): No additional left arm schedule award
A.M., a postal carrier, had an accepted left wrist injury and had already received a schedule award based on 40 percent left arm impairment. She sought a greater award using a physician's higher rating and proposed additional diagnoses. The Board found the higher rating inadequately explained under…
L.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Los Angeles, CA
L.H. (ECAB 10-1742): Late reconsideration request did not reopen claim
L.H. sought to reopen a claim denied in 1994 because OWCP found he had not established federal employee status. He requested reconsideration in May 2010, about 14 years after the last merits decision. The Board found the request untimely. A page from an unidentified book repeated material OWCP had…
T.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Indianapolis, IN
T.T. (ECAB 10-1640): Prior reconsideration barred hearing as of right
T.T., a postal worker, requested an oral hearing after earlier seeking reconsideration of her claim. The Board held that a claimant who has already pursued reconsideration has no hearing right under the cited FECA provision. It also found that OWCP did not abuse its discretion by declining a…
S.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Philadelphia, PA
S.S. (ECAB 10-1536): No permanent impairment shown for schedule award
S.S., a postal worker, sought a schedule award after accepted back and left knee injuries. His physician and an OWCP medical adviser disagreed about lasting impairment. OWCP referred the dispute to an impartial orthopedic surgeon, who found no injury-related permanent impairment. The Board rejected…
C.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Long Beach, CA
C.F. (ECAB 10-1461): Termination of emotional condition benefits upheld
C.F., a postal equipment operator, received compensation for an accepted emotional condition. Medical opinions conflicted about whether the accepted condition still caused disability, so OWCP obtained an impartial psychiatric examination. The Board gave weight to the impartial psychiatrist's…
S.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, New Brunswick, NJ
S.G. (ECAB 10-1265): Recurrence and sciatica claims returned for medical review
S.G., a postal worker with an accepted 2004 injury, claimed that he could no longer perform light duty as of December 22, 2007 and that his sciatica was related to that injury. The Board found OWCP had incorrectly treated two medical opinions as conflicting when one physician had not addressed the…
A.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Oak Park, IL
A.H. (ECAB 10-1187): One percent right arm schedule award upheld
A.H., a postal letter carrier, received a schedule award for one percent right arm impairment after an accepted shoulder condition. His physician proposed a five percent rating, but used a table the Board found unsuitable for assigning the diagnosis-based shoulder impairment. OWCP's medical adviser…
Sapphire Coal Company
Reopening denied for unexplained four-month delay
Sapphire Coal asked the Commission to reopen two penalty assessments that became final orders. The company said it had faxed contest forms to MSHA six business days after the assessments were issued, although the fax confirmation did not identify the documents or case numbers. MSHA had no record of…
Matter of Alfred Kebbie SESAY
Qualifying K-1 marriages can support adjustment after divorce
The Board reviewed a Sierra Leonean respondent's appeal after the denial of adjustment-of-status applications based on a K-1 fiancé visa and later marriage. The Board held that a K-1 visa holder may adjust status based on a bona fide marriage to the fiancé(e) petitioner made within 90 days, even if…
S.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Charlottesville, VA
S.T. (ECAB 11-502): Foot impairment award returned for medical calculation
S.T., a postal letter carrier, challenged a schedule award based on 10 percent impairment of his right leg. OWCP’s second-opinion orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Punyanitya, proposed a 49 percent rating but did not explain how the impairment guide tables and formula produced that number or separate the two…
C.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Carol Stream, IL
C.G. (ECAB 10-1773): Shoulder and neck claim lacked medical causation evidence
C.G., a postal mail processor, attributed shoulder and muscle symptoms to her work duties. OWCP accepted that she performed the reported activities. The Board found that the medical reports described symptoms and test results but did not give a reasoned opinion connecting a diagnosed condition to…
R.M. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, Broadview Heights Veterans Medical Center, Brecksville, OH
R.M. (ECAB 10-1709): No medical link between nursing work and Tourette syndrome
R.M., a VA nurse, claimed that conditions on a spinal cord unit aggravated her Tourette syndrome. OWCP accepted that her duties involved monitoring paralyzed patients. The Board found no medical evidence explaining how those duties caused or aggravated the condition. Her belief that work worsened…
A.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Main Post Office, Indianapolis, IN
A.C. (ECAB 10-1644): Wage-earning capacity finding left in place
A.C., a postal worker, had worked for years in a modified distribution clerk position earning at least her preinjury wages. When that work later became unavailable, she sought to change OWCP's formal wage-earning capacity finding. The Board found no proven error in the original calculation…
A.E. and Department of the Navy, Consolidated Civil Personnel Office, Washington, DC
A.E. (ECAB 10-1618): Late reconsideration request failed to show clear error
A.E. sought reconsideration of a denial of compensation after March 24, 1997. Her November 2009 request came more than one year after the last merits decision. She argued that OWCP had selected a new impartial physician improperly, relying in part on a letter from a previously disqualified…
D.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Chicago, IL
D.L. (ECAB 10-1565): Emotional condition claim lacked supported work factor
D.L., a postal clerk, attributed depression and anxiety symptoms to alleged harassment and administrative actions at work. The Board found no supported harassment or verbal abuse and no established error in leave, pay, or discipline matters. A grievance settlement did not itself admit an employer…
J.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Aliquippa, PA
J.M. (ECAB 10-1525): Claimed consequence of back injury not established
J.M., a postal worker with an accepted back injury, sought coverage for erectile dysfunction as a consequential condition. An impartial medical specialist attributed the condition to vascular insufficiency rather than the accepted injury or surgery. J.M.'s physician disagreed but did not adequately…
M.B. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Richmond, VA
M.B. (ECAB 10-1401): Claimed disability periods lacked medical support
M.B., an IRS analyst with an accepted emotional condition, sought compensation for time away from work in January and April through September 2006. Her physician attributed continuing symptoms to job stress but did not give adequate medical reasoning connecting inability to work on those dates to…
M.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Charlotte, NC
M.B. (ECAB 10-1077): Missed hearing treated as abandoned
M.B., a postal processing clerk, had requested a telephone hearing about her occupational disease claim. OWCP mailed notice to her address of record with the hearing time and access information. She did not call, seek postponement, or explain her absence within 10 days. The Board upheld the finding…
United States Department of Veterans Affairs, VA Maryland Healthcare System (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 331 (Union)
VA Maryland Healthcare System and AFGE Local 331 (FLRA 0-AR-4655): Union president's suspension remains overturned
The VA Maryland Healthcare System suspended a union president for seven days after a confrontation with an employee who was withdrawing from the union. An arbitrator found the evidence insufficient to prove the charged physical contact or intimidation, overturned the suspension, and ordered backpay…
United States Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Richmond, Virginia (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2145 (Union)
Richmond VA Medical Center and AFGE Local 2145 (FLRA 0-AR-4315): Union president's computer access restored
The Richmond VA Medical Center cut off a local union president's computer access after she was discharged from employment, though she continued to serve as union president. An arbitrator found that the union office's contractual right to computer and email services required restoring her access…
C-E Minerals
Reopening denied for incomplete late-contest explanation
C-E Minerals asked the Commission to reopen a one-citation penalty assessment issued to Mullite Company of America. C-E said the citation had been contested but did not explain its relationship to Mullite or why the contest was late. The Secretary stated that the assessment was delivered on October…
Smith Farm Enterprises, LLC
In re Smith Farm Enterprises, LLC (EAB CWA Appeal No. 08-02): jurisdiction, liability, and $34,000 penalty affirmed
Smith Farm Enterprises, LLC appealed an administrative law judge's remand decision concerning wetlands at Smith Farm. The Environmental Appeals Board held that the wetlands were within EPA's Clean Water Act jurisdiction because they had a significant nexus with downstream navigable waters. The…
United States Department of the Air Force, Tyndall Air Force Base, Tyndall AFB, Florida (Activity) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1113, AFL-CIO (Union/Petitioner)
Tyndall Air Force Base and AFGE Local 1113 (FLRA AT-RP-10-0016): Civilian police officers remain in bargaining unit
AFGE Local 1113 asked whether civilian police officers at Tyndall Air Force Base belonged in its bargaining unit. A regional director found that the officers performed security work related to national security, but that their duties did not directly affect national security as required for the…
J.N. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Kansas City, MO
J.N. (ECAB 10-1819): Reconsideration did not reopen wage-loss claim
J.N., a postal worker, asked OWCP to reconsider a prior denial of wage-loss benefits. Her representative submitted a physician's report discussing carpal tunnel syndrome and work restrictions. The Board found that the report repeated earlier information and addressed the cause of the accepted…
J.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Atlanta, GA
J.W. (ECAB 10-1795): Late reconsideration showed no clear error
J.W., a postal worker, sought reconsideration of a 2001 denial of an emotional condition claim. Her 2010 request came years after the last merits decision, so she had to show clear evidence of error. She repeated an earlier timeliness argument and submitted material about a different injury file…
R.O. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bemidji, MN
R.O. (ECAB 10-1777): Nine percent impairment of each leg upheld
R.O., a postal worker with accepted osteoarthritis of both hips, sought a larger schedule award. His physician's rating did not conform to the applicable impairment guide table. OWCP's medical adviser used the hip arthritis diagnosis and the guide's adjustment formula to calculate nine percent…
M.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Madison, WI
M.S. (ECAB 10-1763): Twenty-five percent left leg impairment upheld
M.S., a postal letter carrier, sought more compensation after a left knee replacement. His physician estimated 50 percent impairment but did not explain the rating under the impairment guides. OWCP's medical adviser applied the sixth edition knee replacement grid and calculated 25 percent. The…
P.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Raymond Annex, Pasadena, CA
P.G. (ECAB 10-1724): Six percent left arm schedule award upheld
P.G., a postal carrier, sought a larger award after accepted neck, shoulder, and back conditions. His physician used an older edition of the impairment guides and calculated whole-person ratings, which the Board found unsuitable for this schedule award. OWCP's medical adviser applied the sixth…
D.B. and Department of the Air Force, Air Logistics Center, Tinker Air Force Base, OK
D.B. (ECAB 10-1683): Right knee recurrence claim lacked medical evidence
D.B., an Air Force employee, had an accepted right knee injury from 2004 and later claimed disability beginning April 21, 2009. He had returned to regular work years earlier and retired in 2008. The Board found no medical evidence bridging that interval or explaining how the accepted injury caused…
S.D. and Department of the Air Force, Robins Air Force Base, GA
S.D. (ECAB 10-1568): Workplace fall accepted but back injury claim denied
S.D., an aircraft sheet metal mechanic, reported a fall while working on a sloping panel in September 1999. OWCP accepted that the workplace incident occurred. The Board found that the later medical notes did not explain how that event caused a diagnosed back condition; some notes instead discussed…
W.J. and Department of the Navy, Long Beach Naval Shipyard, Long Beach, CA
W.J. (ECAB 10-1427): Left leg award upheld, right leg returned for review
W.J., a former shipyard sheet metal worker, challenged awards for both legs after knee conditions and surgery. The Board upheld the 59 percent left leg rating under the applicable impairment guide. For the right knee, his physician and OWCP's medical adviser disagreed about whether imaging showed…
B.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Cincinnati, OH
B.B. (ECAB 10-940): Hearing loss claim returned for noise evidence
B.B., a postal employee, claimed hearing loss from workplace noise. Neither she nor her employer supplied details about the sources, levels, and duration of exposure after OWCP requested them. The Board held that OWCP should have followed up with the employer for information normally available from…
C.S. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Bay Pines, FL
C.S. (ECAB 10-926): Overpayment upheld, first deposit fault finding reversed
C.S., a VA employee, returned to work but continued receiving total disability payments. The Board upheld OWCP's $5,264.37 overpayment calculation. It held that he was at fault for $4,698.54 received in later deposits, when he knew or should have known they were incorrect. For the first mistaken…
C.B. and Department of the Army, Medical Command, Fort Bragg, NC
C.B. (ECAB 10-824): Emotional condition claim lacked medical causation proof
C.B., an Army employee, sought compensation for an emotional condition. A prior Board decision had recognized work factors involving a coworker's memorandum, overtime, and equipment problems. Her psychiatrist described depression and attributed symptoms to workplace events, but relied in part on…
R.W. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, Philadelphia, PA
R.W. (ECAB 10-1991): Head injury claim and reconsideration denied
R.W., a Coast Guard Auxiliary member, fell after tripping over a cord and struck his head. The medical instructions in the record did not identify a specific injury diagnosis, so the Board held that he had not established a compensable injury from the incident. His reconsideration request checked a…
E.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Tampa, FL
E.R. (ECAB 10-1839): Late emotional claim reconsideration rejected
E.R., a postal worker, sought reconsideration years after a Board decision had upheld denial of his emotional condition claim. He repeated allegations of supervisor harassment and error but did not provide precise new evidence showing that OWCP's earlier decisions were clearly wrong. The Board…
B.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Gaithersburg, MD
B.B. (ECAB 10-1826): Reconsideration did not reopen emotional claim
B.B., a postal worker, had an accepted workplace incident of verbal abuse by a supervisor. OWCP denied compensation because medical evidence did not connect her condition to that incident. For reconsideration, she filed another claim form describing the already accepted event and a social worker's…
J.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Dominick V. Daniels Processing & Distribution Center, Kearny, NJ
J.S. (ECAB 10-1822): Three percent left leg award upheld
J.S., a postal worker, sought a larger award for a left knee meniscal injury. His physician applied the sixth edition impairment guide and calculated three percent using the knee grid and adjustment factors. OWCP's medical adviser agreed, and the Board found no stronger evidence for a higher…
N.H. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Richmond, VA
N.H. (ECAB 10-1748): Back condition lacked medical link to repetitive work
N.H., a VA health technician, attributed a back condition to lifting and moving patients. OWCP accepted those work activities. The Board found that one physician diagnosed lumbar conditions without addressing their cause and another gave only a speculative connection to an unclear work incident. It…
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.