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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Williams Pipe Line Company and L&C Services, Inc.
In re Williams Pipe Line Company and L&C Services, Inc. (EAB CAA Appeal No. 97-3): reconsideration denied
EPA Region VII appealed an initial decision that dismissed its complaint against Williams Pipe Line Company and L&C Services, Inc. The Region filed a revised notice of appeal six days after the Board's deadline and asked the Board to reconsider its dismissal of the appeal. The Board held that…
American Federation of Government Employees, Council of Locals 163 and U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Contract Audit Agency, Northeastern Region
Defense Contract Audit Agency and AFGE Council 163 (FLRA 0-NG-2285): performance rating proposal outside bargaining duty
AFGE Council 163 proposed a rule for when employees of the Defense Contract Audit Agency would receive an overall rating of minimally successful. The proposal tied that rating to scores on at least two critical performance elements. The Authority held that setting those criteria would improperly…
National Association of Government Employees, Local R5-184 and U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical Center, Lexington, Kentucky
VA Lexington and NAGE Local R5-184 (FLRA 0-NG-2224.01): dental staffing proposals are optional bargaining subjects
The VA medical center in Lexington planned to rotate dental laboratory technicians into dental assistant duties as demand increased. NAGE Local R5-184 proposed three alternatives: add staff, use a dental hygienist, or use temporary employees. The Authority found that each proposal concerned…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1858 and U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Commissary Agency, Redstone Arsenal Commissary
Redstone Arsenal Commissary and AFGE Local 1858 (FLRA 0-AR-2903): arbitration award stands
AFGE Local 1858 challenged an arbitration award involving the Defense Commissary Agency's Redstone Arsenal commissary. The Authority reviewed the union's exceptions under the rule allowing it to set aside awards that conflict with law, rule, or regulation or are deficient on comparable judicial…
Williams Pipe Line Company and L&C Services, Inc.
In re Williams Pipe Line Company and L&C Services, Inc. (EAB CAA Appeal No. 97-3): appeal dismissed with prejudice
EPA Region VII appealed an initial decision that dismissed its complaint against Williams Pipe Line Company and L&C Services, Inc. The Board granted the Region a seven-day extension to submit a revised notice of appeal specifying the issues for review, with a deadline of February 20, 1997. The…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2408 and U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical Center, San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan VA medical center and AFGE Local 2408 (FLRA 0-AR-2777): nurse reprimand returned for clarification
A registered nurse at the San Juan VA medical center left during a shift and reported sick leave hours later; the VA reprimanded him for absence without leave and leaving without authorization. An arbitrator upheld the reprimand. The Authority found that the nurse had supplied acceptable medical…
Secretary of Labor v. Mingo Logan Coal Company
Operator liability for contractor training violation affirmed
Mingo Logan Coal Company operated an underground coal mine and used an independent contractor for construction work. MSHA found that one contractor employee received the shorter experienced-miner training instead of the required 40-hour training for a newly employed inexperienced miner. The…
Secretary of Labor v. Bellefonte Lime Co., Inc.
Citation modified and penalty assessed
Bellefonte Lime operated a limestone quarry in Pennsylvania. The judge found that falling rocks and other material exposed miners to a ground-condition hazard, but concluded the evidence did not establish that an injury-producing event was reasonably likely during continued normal mining. The judge…
Kay Donovan, widow of Gray Donovan, v. Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company
Donovan v. Newport News Shipbuilding (BRB 96-0717): annual death benefit adjustments affirmed
Gray Donovan died from work-related lead poisoning after years in a shipyard lead department, and his widow Kay was awarded death benefits from the Special Fund. The employer argued that future annual increases had to stop when her weekly benefit reached Gray Donovan's former average weekly wage…
Sandra K. Kerby and William C. Rodriquez v. Southeastern Public Service Authority and Hartford Accident and Indemnity Company
Kerby and Rodriquez v. Southeastern Public Service Authority (BRB 96-0705): benefits reversed for lack of covered worksite
Sandra Kerby and William Rodriquez worked at a power plant that supplied steam and electricity to the Norfolk Naval Shipyard. The judge awarded them Longshore Act benefits after workplace injuries. The Board agreed that operating and maintaining power equipment for shipbuilding and repair met the…
Secretary of Labor v. Hobet Mining, Inc.
Bulldozer citation vacated
Hobet Mining operated a surface coal mine. MSHA cited the company after finding that a Caterpillar D-10 bulldozer was missing a platform and handrail used for radiator maintenance. The judge found that operators could safely mount and dismount the bulldozer from the other side during normal dozing…
Secretary of Labor v. Eastern Ridge Lime Company
Two violations affirmed and one order dismissed
Eastern Ridge Lime operated an underground limestone mine where a roof fall killed a supervisor and seriously injured another miner. The judge found that the mine had failed to provide needed ground support and had exposed miners to falling material during scaling, and found both violations…
Charles C. Warren v. Ingalls Shipbuilding, Incorporated
Warren v. Ingalls Shipbuilding (BRB 93-1367): claim remanded and fee request denied for now
Charles Warren's claim returned to the Board after a federal appeals court reversed an earlier Board decision. The Board sent the claim to a labor judge for further proceedings consistent with the court's ruling. Warren's counsel sought a fee for work on the Board appeal. The Board denied the…
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration, New York Region and American Federation of Government Employees, Council 220
Social Security Administration and AFGE Council 220 (FLRA 0-AR-2735): second official-time pay ruling stands
AFGE Council 220 sought reconsideration after the Authority set aside an arbitrator's award of straight-time pay to union officials for official-time work outside regular hours. The earlier ruling held that none of the officials had been denied official time during duty hours, so the pay award…
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration, New York Region and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3369
Social Security Administration and AFGE Local 3369 (FLRA 0-AR-2711): official-time pay ruling left in place
AFGE Local 3369 asked the Authority to reconsider its earlier decision setting aside straight-time pay for union officials who worked on official-time matters outside their regular hours. In that earlier decision, the Authority found that management had not denied official time that the officials…
Lendon Shepherd v. Consol of Kentucky, Inc.
Discrimination complaint dismissed as untimely
Lendon Shepherd alleged that Consol of Kentucky discharged him in violation of the Mine Act's miner-protection provision after a work-related injury and a disputed pre-employment physical. He said he had contacted MSHA within the required period, but the judge credited testimony that no complaint…
In re C-A-L-, Respondent
In re C-A-L- (BIA ID 3305): asylum appeal dismissed after failure to prove protected-ground or country-wide persecution
The Board reviewed a Guatemalan respondent's appeal from the denial of asylum and withholding of deportation. He had served as an artillery specialist in the Guatemalan Army and feared guerrillas who had obtained his military file and sought to contact him. The Board held that the record did not…
In re Bartolome Jhonny SORIANO, Respondent
AEDPA bar applied to pending section 212(c) applications
The Attorney General reviewed a deportation case involving a Dominican Republic native and lawful permanent resident who had been convicted in New York of attempted criminal sale of a controlled substance. The Board had held that the 1996 AEDPA amendment did not bar his pending application for…
Auxvasse Stone & Gravel Co.
Defective haul-truck steering citation affirmed
Auxvasse Stone & Gravel operated an open-pit limestone mine near Auxvasse, Missouri. The judge found that a Caterpillar 769B haul truck had two defective steering components, including a missing bearing on the left steering cylinder and a damaged bearing on the right tie rod. Because the defects…
In re Modesto Adalberto Melo-Pena, Respondent
In re Modesto Adalberto Melo-Pena (BIA ID 3313): narcotics trafficking supported detention without bond
The Board reviewed a lawful permanent resident's appeal from an Immigration Judge's denial of release on bond during deportation proceedings. The respondent had two drug-trafficking convictions and argued that his family ties, long residence, and rehabilitation showed he was not dangerous and would…
In re T-M-B-, Respondent
In re T-M-B- (BIA ID 3307): criminal extortion did not establish persecution on account of political opinion
The Board reviewed a Filipino respondent's appeal from the denial of asylum and withholding of deportation. The New People's Army demanded money from her family's shoe business, beat her when she could not pay an increased amount, cut her arm, and threatened to kill her. The Board held that the…
Geo & Ted Electric Corp.
Two of four contested items upheld against an electrical contractor, two vacated
Geo & Ted Electric Corp. (G&T), a Brooklyn electrical contractor, was one of several contractors renovating New York City's medical examiner building. OSHA inspected after a fatal accident involving a different contractor's employee and cited G&T for serious and repeat violations. By the time of…
Commonwealth Chesapeake Corp.
In re Commonwealth Chesapeake Corp. (EAB PSD Appeal Nos. 96-2 through 96-5): permit review denied
Commonwealth Chesapeake Corporation received a PSD permit and approval to construct a peaker power plant in Accomack County, Virginia. Four local residents petitioned for review, raising concerns about health, environmental effects, visibility, acid rain, groundwater, land use, and noise. The…
Buffalo Crushed Stone, Inc.
Mixed rulings on conveyor and walkway safety violations
Buffalo Crushed Stone operated a limestone quarry in New York. The Commission held that a slack emergency stop cord alongside a conveyor did not meet the requirement that a person falling against the conveyor be able to readily deactivate its motor, reversing the judge’s no-violation finding and…
U.S. Penitentiary, Florence, Colorado and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1301
Florence penitentiary and AFGE Local 1301 (FLRA DE-CA-50537, DE-CA-50625): threats about union help violated labor law
At the Florence federal penitentiary, a food service administrator told a union representative that management would write up other food line supervisors if the union challenged one employee's counseling letter. A recreation supervisor made statements discouraging an employee from involving the…
C.E.M. Plumbing, Inc.
Trench violation affirmed as serious, not willful
C.E.M. employees worked for 15 to 20 minutes in a six-foot-deep trench with vertical walls and no protective system. The company president said shoring costs would have affected the bid, but he also believed clay soil and tree roots made the trench safe. The Commission found that OSHA did not prove…
Broken Hill Mining Company
Eight violations affirmed after default
MSHA sought $26,300 in civil penalties against Broken Hill Mining Company for eight alleged violations of mandatory mine-safety standards in 30 C.F.R. Part 75. The company did not appear at the scheduled hearing, so the judge proceeded without it and found the company in default. Based on the…
Marie Kischel, d/b/a Schiller's Window Cleaning Service
Settled case remanded for disposition
The Acting Secretary informed the Commission that the case had settled. The Secretary asked that it be returned to the ALJ for disposition together with related docket 96-0627. The Commission granted the motion and remanded the case.
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Plant Protection and Quarantine Program, Seattle, Washington and National Association of Agriculture Employees
USDA plant inspection and agriculture employees (FLRA 0-AR-2621): overtime pay reconsideration denied
The National Association of Agriculture Employees asked the Authority to reconsider an earlier decision setting aside backpay for USDA workers whose Sunday overtime shifts ended early. The earlier decision held that the agency could end the shifts for lack of work and that employees were not owed…
IMC-AGRICO Company
One fatal-accident citation modified and one vacated
IMC-AGRICO operated the Fort Green phosphate mine in Florida. After a lineman was electrocuted while climbing onto a power-pole cross arm, the judge found that the company violated the requirement to de-energize and lock out the power circuit before work, but found no operator negligence because…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1858 and U.S. Department of the Army, U.S. Army Missile Command, Redstone Arsenal Support Activity
Redstone Arsenal Support Activity and AFGE Local 1858 (FLRA 0-AR-2870): arbitration award stands
AFGE Local 1858 challenged an arbitration award involving the Army's Redstone Arsenal Support Activity. The Authority reviewed the union's exception under the rule allowing it to set aside an award that conflicts with law, rule, or regulation or is deficient on comparable judicial grounds. It found…
Borg-Warner Protective Services Corporation, d/b/a Burns International Security Services
Bloodborne-pathogen items split and reduced
Burns security guards at a manufacturing plant treated minor cuts and burns, transported injured workers, and were expected to provide CPR when needed. The judge found that these duties created occupational exposure under the bloodborne-pathogens standard even though actual blood contact was…
Employers Insurance of Wausau and Group Eight Technology, Inc.
In re Employers Insurance of Wausau and Group Eight Technology, Inc. (EAB TSCA Appeal No. 95-6): penalty ruling partially vacated and remanded
A 1987 fire destroyed a building owned by Group Eight Technology, Inc. in Wyandotte, Michigan. Seven electrical transformers remained at the site during demolition, including one PCB Transformer whose fluids were later mixed with fluids from other transformers and sent to an oil recycling facility…
United Mine Workers of America on Behalf of William Keith Burgess, Glenn Loggins, and David McAteer
United Mine Workers of America (FMSHRC SE 96-367-D, SE 97-18-D): Consolidated discrimination complaints dismissed
The United Mine Workers of America brought two consolidated discrimination complaints involving alleged disclosures of miner complaint identities and other conduct by MSHA and individual MSHA employees. The judge held that MSHA and its employees are not “persons” subject to suit under section…
Portland Water District
In re Portland Water District (EAB NPDES Appeal No. 95-10): permit review denied
Portland Water District sought review of the denial of an evidentiary hearing request concerning total residual chlorine limits in an NPDES permit for its Cape Elizabeth Wastewater Treatment Facility in Maine. Maine's Department of Environmental Protection certified that the permit's monthly…
In re Jose VALLES-Perez, Respondent
In re Jose VALLES-Perez (BIA ID 3306): Immigration Judge retained bond jurisdiction after an appeal
The Board reviewed the government's appeals from two bond redeterminations for a Mexican lawful permanent resident. The Immigration Judge first reduced the bond from $15,000 to $10,000, then released the respondent on his own recognizance after the government filed an appeal from the first bond…
The Edward R. Hart Co.
Three serious scaffold and training violations affirmed
The Edward R. Hart Co. was an insulation subcontractor working at the Dover Chemical plant in Dover, Ohio. Responding to a complaint about workers on unguarded scaffolds, OSHA inspected and issued a three-item serious citation. OSHA charged that the company failed to train employees to recognize…
Empire Company, Inc.
Marine-terminal coverage affirmed
Empire repaired and rented equipment at a Puerto Rico facility about one-half mile from a municipal wharf. Most of its chassis, container, and finger-lift work served maritime customers, although it did not itself move cargo between vessels and shore. The Commission accepted OSHA's interpretation…
Tri-State Steel Construction, Inc., and National Engineering & Contracting Company
Attorney-fee applications denied
This order resolves a request for legal fees after two consolidated OSHA cases arising from a highway bridge rehabilitation project in Cincinnati, Ohio. Tri-State Steel Construction, a wholly-owned subsidiary of National Engineering & Contracting Company (NEC), had prevailed on several citation…
United States Department of the Navy, Fleet and Industrial Supply Center, Norfolk, Virginia and AFGE Local 53, IAM Local 97, NAGE Local R4-1, and other labor organizations
Navy Fleet Supply Center and its unions (FLRA WA-CU-50061, WA-CU-50062): transferred staff join existing units
A Navy supply reorganization moved about 26 employees at Yorktown and 23 at Charleston under the Fleet and Industrial Supply Center in Norfolk. Unions that had represented some of those employees sought to keep their representation after the transfer, while the Navy asked to add them to the…
Winn Construction Co., Inc.
Pump-house transport citations affirmed after electrical contact
Winn Construction was moving a steel pump house at the Browns Valley Mine when the load shifted and the boom of the cherry picker contacted an energized 7,200-volt overhead line. A worker touching the pump house suffered electrical burns and was treated in intensive care before returning to work…
Cobre Mining Company
Discrimination complaint dismissed
Patricia Ann Villines, a Cobre Mining safety office clerk, claimed that the company terminated her because she cooperated with an MSHA investigation. The judge found that her cooperation was not shown to have motivated the termination and that the evidence instead supported the company’s stated…
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical Center, Martinsburg, West Virginia and National Association of Government Employees, Local R4-78
Martinsburg VA medical center and NAGE Local R4-78 (FLRA 0-AR-2785): performance award changed to reevaluation
An employee at the Martinsburg VA medical center challenged a lower performance rating after two years of higher ratings. An arbitrator found that the VA had not adequately told the employee about performance concerns and ordered an overall rating of “highly successful.” The Authority agreed that…
Qualitech Steel Corporation
In re Qualitech Steel Corporation (EAB PSD Appeal Nos. 96-12, 96-15, 96-17, 96-18, and 97-1 through 97-7): petitions withdrawn and files closed
Qualitech Steel Corporation received a Prevention of Significant Deterioration permit for a mini-mill steel recycling facility in Pittsboro, Indiana. Nine citizens filed petitions challenging the original permit, its amendments, or both, across eleven PSD appeal numbers. Each petitioner withdrew…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1867 and U.S. Department of the Air Force, U.S. Air Force Academy
Air Force Academy and AFGE Local 1867 (FLRA 0-AR-2855): arbitration award stands
AFGE Local 1867 challenged an arbitration award involving the U.S. Air Force Academy. The Authority reviewed the union's exceptions under the rule allowing it to set aside awards that conflict with law, rule, or regulation or are deficient on comparable judicial grounds. It found no such defect and…
Wellmore Coal Corporation
Dismissal reversed; miner reinstated
Billy R. McClanahan, a truck driver and later an independent contractor for Wellmore Coal Corporation, complained that the company's requirement to haul at least 24 tons was unsafe for his truck and working conditions. After he was fired for failing to meet the requirement, the ALJ dismissed his…
In re S-M-J-, Applicant
In re S-M-J- (BIA ID 3303): country-conditions evidence required and asylum case remanded
The Board reviewed a Liberian applicant's appeal from the denial of asylum and withholding of exclusion and deportation. It held that general background information about the applicant's country, when available, must be included in the record, while documentary corroboration of personal experiences…
H M I a.k.a. Heatherly Mining, Incorporated
Penalty proceedings dismissed
HMI, also called Heatherly Mining, asked to dismiss six civil penalty proceedings based on a settlement payment covering violations issued on or before June 30, 1996. The listed cases were not included in the settlement agreement's attached list, but the Secretary later identified them as pending…
Walker Stone Company, Inc.
Crusher safety violation reversed and remanded
Walker Stone operated an open-pit limestone quarry in Kansas. During efforts to clear rock that had clogged a crusher, a worker reentered the crusher and was caught when the rotor was jogged, suffering fatal injuries. The Commission held that removing the rock to restore the crusher was repair or…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1770 and U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Commissary Agency, Central Region
AFGE Local 1770 and Defense Commissary Agency (FLRA 0-NG-2348): proposed layoff area excluded from bargaining
AFGE Local 1770 proposed a single competitive area for bargaining unit employees at several Defense Commissary Agency stores during a reduction in force. The Authority read the proposal as limiting that area to union represented employees. It held that 5 C.F.R. § 351.402(b) requires competitive…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1917 and U.S. Department of Justice, Immigration and Naturalization Service, New York District
AFGE Local 1917 and INS New York District (FLRA 0-AR-2882): union exceptions to award denied
AFGE Local 1917 challenged an arbitration award involving the Immigration and Naturalization Service's New York District. The Authority reviewed the union's exceptions under 5 U.S.C. § 7122(a). It concluded that the award was not contrary to law, rule, or regulation or deficient on the other…
U.S. Department of the Air Force, Warner Robins Air Logistics Center, Robins Air Force Base, Georgia and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 987
Robins Air Force Base and AFGE Local 987 (FLRA 0-AR-2878): temporary promotion backpay upheld
Four parachute packers at Robins Air Force Base said they had performed higher graded fabric worker duties without temporary promotions. An arbitrator found that the employees were entitled to temporary promotions and backpay under their union agreement. The Air Force argued that the grievance was…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3039 and U.S. Department of Defense, Arkansas Air National Guard, 189th Airlift Wing
AFGE Local 3039 and Arkansas Air National Guard (FLRA 0-AR-2872): union exceptions to arbitration award denied
AFGE Local 3039 challenged an arbitration award involving the Arkansas Air National Guard's 189th Airlift Wing. The Authority reviewed the union's exceptions under 5 U.S.C. § 7122(a). It found no basis in the record to conclude that the award was contrary to law, rule, or regulation, or deficient…
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Navajo Area Indian Health Service and Laborers' International Union of North America, Navajo Nation Health Care Employees, Local 1376
Navajo Area Indian Health Service and Local 1376 (FLRA 0-AR-2756): standby pay calculation remanded
Nurses at the Navajo Area Indian Health Service performed assigned work that continued from their regular shifts into scheduled standby duty. An arbitrator awarded backpay equal to the difference between overtime and standby premium pay, then instructed the agency to calculate that difference for…
U.S. Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers, Memphis District and National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 259
Army Corps Memphis District and NFFE Local 259 (FLRA 0-AR-2714): official time for representational lobbying upheld
The Army Corps of Engineers' Memphis District denied a union officer official time to present bargaining-unit views to Congress during NFFE's Lobby Week. An arbitrator found that the denial violated the parties' agreement and ordered the agency to replace 24 hours of annual leave with official…
In re Valentin VALDEZ-Valdez, Respondent
In re Valentin VALDEZ-Valdez (BIA ID 3302): transition custody rules applied to bond appeal
The Board reviewed a bond redetermination appeal involving a Mexican lawful permanent resident who had a controlled-substance conviction and had been released from immigration custody before the transition rules took effect. The Board held that the transition rules applied to covered…
HMI a.k.a. Heatherly Mining, Inc.
Penalty cases dismissed as moot
HMI and P & K Co., Ltd. asked the Commission to accept late answers and dismiss penalty cases in which ALJ default orders had been entered. They said a $75,000 settlement covered the outstanding citations issued through June 30, 1996. The Secretary later advised that the penalties covered by the…
National Association of Government Employees, Local R4-78 and U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical Center, Martinsburg, West Virginia
NAGE Local R4-78 and Martinsburg VA Medical Center (FLRA 0-AR-2796): union exceptions to two awards denied
NAGE Local R4-78 challenged two arbitration awards involving the Martinsburg VA Medical Center. The agency filed its opposition after the deadline, so the Authority did not consider it. After reviewing the record under 5 U.S.C. § 7122(a), the Authority found neither award deficient on any available…
Costain Coal Inc.
Settlement approved with reduced penalties
Costain Coal faced consolidated contest and civil penalty proceedings involving alleged violations of mandatory standards in Parts 70 and 75. The parties reached a comprehensive settlement that reduced the proposed penalties from $43,258 to $32,001. The settlement vacated one citation, changed…
United States Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colorado and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1867
Air Force Academy and AFGE Local 1867 (FLRA DE-CA-20651, DE-CA-20757): union activity restrictions remedied, misconduct memo upheld
The Air Force Academy restricted union steward Michael Parmelee's official time and access to telephones and issued memoranda about his union activity and alleged discourteous conduct. The Authority adopted findings that the restrictions retaliated against protected union activity. It ordered the…
What these documents are
- The agencies: Federal workers' compensation appeals from the Department of Labor's Employees' Compensation Appeals Board (ECAB), federal-sector labor-relations cases from the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), Longshore Act and Black Lung Benefits Act appeals from the Department of Labor's Benefits Review Board (BRB), precedent decisions of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), environmental permit and penalty appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board (EAB), and whistleblower and other labor appeals from the Department of Labor's Administrative Review Board (ARB). Each decision page names its agency.
- Commission, Board and Authority decisions: Rulings by the agency's highest review level (the Commission at OSHRC and FMSHRC, the Authority at FLRA, the Board of Immigration Appeals, the Administrative Review Board at Labor, and the Environmental Appeals Board at EPA). These are citable as precedent, though a decision may have been appealed to a U.S. Court of Appeals after issuance.
- ALJ decisions: Rulings by the agency's Administrative Law Judges after a hearing. When no Commissioner directs review, an ALJ decision becomes a final order that binds the parties in that case but is not binding precedent: under 29 U.S.C. § 661(j) at OSHRC, and after the 40-day window of 30 U.S.C. § 823(d)(1) at FMSHRC.
- Why finality matters: Every page here says which kind of decision you are reading, so you know whether it is precedent you can cite or a final order that only shows how one judge ruled on one set of facts.
- Where they come from: Every page links the official public release from the deciding agency, and the full text on the page is that release. The plain-English summaries are written by Ezel.