Federal Agency Decisions
Workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), and environmental appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board, each with a plain-English summary, the standards it cites, and whether it counts as precedent. More agencies are coming.
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Secretary of Labor v. Bresee Trucking
Defective coal truck brakes supported an $11,306 penalty
Bresee Trucking used a heavy coal truck on steep, winding roads while its braking system had an audible air leak and two slack adjusters beyond the permitted travel limit. Judge Jacqueline R. Bulluck credited the inspector's evidence that those defects reduced braking capacity and could cause loss…
Barlament Erection Crane Rentals
Crane tag, latch, and inspection items affirmed
Barlament used a truck-mounted crane to hoist bundled wooden roof trusses at a residential construction site. Its fabricated chain sling lacked the required capacity and manufacturer tag, the hoist hook's self-closing latch had been intentionally removed, and its monthly and annual inspection…
Secretary of Labor v. Savage Services Corporation
New safety director's late contest was reopened
Savage Services missed the 30-day penalty-contest deadline while its new safety director contacted MSHA representatives to understand the contest procedure. After receiving instructions, the company filed a late contest and adopted new procedures to prevent another delay. The Secretary did not…
Secretary of Labor v. United Mine Services
Claimed timely contest was reopened
United Mine Services said it mailed a penalty-contest notice two days after receiving the proposed assessment. MSHA had no record of the filing, and the company learned of the discrepancy from a later delinquency notice. The Secretary did not oppose reopening but urged the company to ensure…
Secretary of Labor v. Freeport-McMoRan Morenci, Inc.
Timely contest sent to the wrong office was reopened
Freeport-McMoRan said it mailed a timely penalty-contest notice to MSHA's St. Louis payment office instead of the Arlington civil penalty office. It discovered the mistake after a collection agency contacted it. The Secretary did not oppose reopening but noted the earlier delinquency notice and…
Boart Longyear Company v. Secretary of Labor
Alternative platform charge rejected before trial
MSHA had cited Boart Longyear for a foreman's failure to use fall protection while working on a truck bed and proposed a $70,000 penalty. Shortly before trial, the Secretary sought to add an alternative charge that the truck bed was an unsafe work platform without handrails. Judge David Barbour…
Sierra Pacific Industries (Anderson Processing Facility)
In re Sierra Pacific Industries (Anderson Processing Facility) (EAB PSD Appeal Nos. 13-01 through 13-04): Public hearing ordered, other issues denied
EPA Region 9 issued Sierra Pacific Industries a PSD permit for a new biomass and natural gas boiler in Anderson, California. Four petitions challenged the permit, including the Region's decision not to hold a public hearing, its treatment of comments, its classification of the project, its…
Secretary of Labor v. Duffy, Inc. and Dennis S. Bell
Consent to a stay defeated the delay-based dismissal request
Duffy, Inc. and foreman Dennis Bell sought dismissal of company and individual penalty proceedings based on alleged enforcement delays. Judge William S. Steele held that the Secretary timely filed the company penalty petition and that later delays were reasonable or occurred during a stay Duffy had…
Secretary of Labor v. Hubble Mining Company, LLC
Accounting clerical error was excused
Hubble Mining missed the 30-day penalty-contest deadline because of a clerical error in its accounting department. The company discovered the problem after receiving a delinquency notice and said it implemented new procedures to prevent recurrence. The Secretary did not oppose reopening but urged…
Matter of J-G-, Respondent
Matter of J-G- (BIA ID 3788): changed country conditions can support reopening without rescinding an in absentia order
The Board reviewed a Chinese respondent's appeal from the denial of a motion to reopen removal proceedings. The respondent had been ordered removed in absentia after failing to appear and later sought reopening to apply for asylum and withholding of removal based on changed conditions in China. The…
American Performance Technologies, Inc.
In re American Performance Technologies, Inc. (EAB CAA 13-02C): consent agreement ratified
American Performance Technologies, Inc. was the respondent in a Clean Air Act penalty matter before the Environmental Appeals Board. The Board incorporated an attached Consent Agreement into its Final Order by reference and ratified it. The Board ordered the respondent to comply with all terms of…
Secretary of Labor v. Pyne Sand and Stone Co., Inc.
Contest-procedure misunderstanding was excused
Pyne Sand and Stone missed the 30-day penalty-contest deadline while trying to discuss the underlying citations with MSHA. The company said it did not understand the formal contest procedure and later received a delinquency letter. The Secretary did not oppose reopening but urged Pyne to ensure…
Secretary of Labor v. Blue Mountain Energy, Inc.
Timely mailed contest was reopened after nonreceipt
Blue Mountain Energy said it mailed a penalty-contest notice one week after receiving the proposed assessment. MSHA had no record of receiving the form, and the company discovered the problem after a delinquency notice arrived. The Secretary did not oppose reopening but urged reliable future filing…
Secretary of Labor v. Tennco Energy, Inc.
Three rib-hazard enforcement actions vacated
Tennco Energy operated the Hance Mine No. 1, an underground coal mine in Kentucky. After a miner was injured by falling coal, MSHA alleged that Tennco failed to record hazardous rib conditions during weekly and preshift examinations and failed to support or control the ribs. Judge Jeffrey Tureck…
Matter of Oleg B. ZELENIAK, Beneficiary of a visa petition filed by Serge V. Polajenko, Petitioner
Matter of Oleg B. ZELENIAK (BIA ID 3787): lawful same-sex marriages can support immigration benefits
The Board reviewed a petitioner's appeal from the denial of a visa petition filed for his same-sex spouse. The petitioner and beneficiary were both men, and the Director had determined that their marriage was valid under Vermont law. After the Supreme Court held that section 3 of the Defense of…
Secretary of Labor v. Barber & Sons Aggregate
Unopposed reopening request was granted
A proposed MSHA penalty against Barber & Sons Aggregate became a final Commission order after the statutory contest period passed. Barber asked the Commission to reopen the assessment, and the Secretary did not oppose the request. The official order does not state the factual reason for the missed…
Secretary of Labor v. Halliburton Energy Services, Inc.
Law department oversight was excused
Halliburton's safety manager instructed the company's law department to contest a proposed MSHA penalty on the day it was received. An administrative oversight in the law department prevented timely filing. The plant manager found the delinquency on MSHA's website nine days after the assessment…
Prairie State Generating Company, LLC v. Secretary of Labor
Plan dispute partly affirmed and partly remanded
Prairie State and MSHA disputed ventilation and roof control provisions for the new Lively Grove underground coal mine. The Commission majority held that the judge correctly reviewed the district manager's decisions for arbitrariness, caprice, or abuse of discretion. It affirmed MSHA's requirements…
Secretary of Labor v. Hanson Aggregates Midwest, LLC
Quarry citations resulted in $1,317 total penalties
Hanson Aggregates operated the Upton Quarry, a surface limestone mine in Kentucky. MSHA cited a broken pressure gauge on a portable air tank, the absence of a visible no-smoking sign at a used-oil fire hazard, and defective access steps on a haul truck. Judge Michael E. Zielinski affirmed all three…
Secretary of Labor v. S & S Dredging Company
Defective loader steps were significant and substantial
S & S Dredging used a wheel loader whose loose bottom step was unusable, leaving the first usable step three feet above the ground. The operator admitted the defect had existed for about two years and conceded the underlying equipment-maintenance violation. The Commission reversed the judge's…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Darrick Piper v. KenAmerican Resources, Inc.
Laid-off miner remained eligible for temporary reinstatement
KenAmerican laid off Darrick Piper, who later filed a discrimination complaint and then alleged that the company refused to recall him because he had filed that complaint. The judge found the second complaint was not frivolously brought and ordered Piper's temporary reinstatement. KenAmerican…
Pinnacle Mining Company, Inc. v. Secretary of Labor
Discovery compelled in stayed contest cases
Pinnacle Mining filed contests to two MSHA orders, and the cases were stayed while proposed penalties were pending. The Secretary moved to compel complete discovery responses and depositions or, alternatively, to dismiss the contests. Pinnacle said it wanted assurance that discovery would not lead…
Applied Masonry, Inc.
Repeat scaffold access and planking items affirmed
Applied Masonry used fabricated-frame scaffolds while renovating a city courthouse. An employee climbed cross braces to reach an upper platform and walked across platforms that were not fully planked. The judge rejected the company's claim that the scaffold was being dismantled because the employee…
Secretary of Labor v. Trivette Trucking
Loss-of-control citation reduced and brake order vacated
A Trivette Trucking driver was fatally injured after his loaded coal truck left a steep mine haul road and overturned. MSHA alleged that the truck was overloaded, that the driver failed to maintain control, and that defective brakes were inadequate, seeking $140,000 for two violations. Judge…
Livingston Stone Company, Inc.
Missed penalty contest remained final
Livingston Stone Company asked the Commission to reopen a proposed penalty assessment that became final when no contest was filed within 30 days. The company's safety director had sent the assessment and supporting materials to counsel, but counsel mistakenly believed the company had already filed…
Matter of Ivan Enedelio FLORES-Aguirre, Respondent
Matter of Ivan Enedelio FLORES-Aguirre (BIA ID 3786): distributing drug proceeds is not illicit trafficking
The Board reviewed a Mexican lawful permanent resident's appeal from an order of removal and the denial of cancellation of removal. The respondent had pleaded guilty to traveling in interstate commerce with intent to distribute proceeds from an unlawful drug business. The Board held that this…
Secretary of Labor v. Amistad Ready Mix
Five final penalty assessments remained closed
Amistad Ready Mix asked the Commission to reopen five penalty assessments that had become final after the company did not contest them within 30 days. Four motions were filed more than one year after the assessments became final, making them untimely under the rule governing relief for mistake…
Secretary of Labor v. L & W Quarries, Inc.
Company payment did not prejudice individual defenses
L & W Quarries paid a final penalty assessment but later asked the Commission to reopen it after MSHA proposed individual penalties against two employees. The company wanted to ensure that its payment would not be treated as an admission by the employees in later section 110(c) litigation. The…
Secretary of Labor v. L & L Gravel
Late reopening motion denied with prejudice
L & L Gravel asked the Commission to reopen a final penalty assessment because its office manager had forgotten to mark one citation on the contest form. The assessment became final in November 2011, and the company did not file its reopening motion until December 2012. The Commission applied the…
Matter of V-X-, Respondent
Matter of V-X- (BIA ID 3785): asylum termination comes before removal issues
The Board reviewed an Albanian respondent's appeal from an order of removal and denials of asylum, withholding of removal, and Convention Against Torture protection. The respondent had received derivative asylum and later pleaded guilty in Michigan to drug offenses and home invasion, with one…
Sec. of Labor obo Timothy Orr v. CML Metals Corp.
MSHA jurisdiction upheld
CML Metals processed iron ore at the GDC Crusher #1 Mine, and employee Timothy Orr repaired railroad cars and a rail spur used to move ore. After Orr reported an injury, the Secretary sought temporary reinstatement and CML challenged MSHA’s jurisdiction, arguing that the railroad facilities were…
Matter of E-S-I-, Respondent
Matter of E-S-I- (BIA ID 3784): notice service safeguards for respondents with apparent incompetency
The Board reviewed the Department of Homeland Security's appeal after an Immigration Judge terminated removal proceedings involving a Nigerian lawful permanent resident with apparent mental incompetency. The Board held that when indicia of incompetency are manifest, DHS should serve the notice to…
Northshore Mining Company
Mixed citation rulings and $31,389 penalty
Northshore Mining operated an iron-ore pellet plant and mine in Minnesota. The Judge ruled on contested citations involving equipment guarding, electrical protection, and walkways, and approved settlements covering additional citations. He vacated some citations, modified others to non-S&S findings…
Matter of Giovanny Rivas
Section 212(h) waiver requires a concurrent adjustment application
The Board reviewed the Department of Homeland Security's appeal from an Immigration Judge's decision granting a section 212(h) waiver to a Colombian lawful permanent resident who had two petit larceny convictions in Florida. The Immigration Judge granted the waiver nunc pro tunc without a…
Subzero Technologies, Inc.
Late contest relief denied
OSHA issued Subzero Technologies twenty-one serious and two other-than-serious violations with proposed penalties totaling $37,800. The company missed the 15-working-day contest deadline, contacted OSHA only after receiving a payment demand, and then waited several more months before asking the…
Duraframe Dipnet
Contest dismissed after repeated procedural defaults
OSHA cited Duraframe Dipnet for sixteen serious, three repeat, and one other-than-serious violation, with proposed penalties totaling $71,400. The employer timely contested but then failed to answer discovery, comply with multiple orders, attend the final pretrial conference, respond to a sanctions…
Gipson-Ricketts, LLC
Lead protection items affirmed for shooting-range recovery work
Gipson-Ricketts recovered lead shot from a shooting range by screening dry, dusty topsoil. The judge treated the work as general industry rather than construction because the company's primary activity was collecting lead and returning the soil, not permanently changing the site. Employees used…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Reuben Shemwell v. Armstrong Coal Company, Inc. and Armstrong Fabricators, Inc.
Retaliatory state lawsuit had to be dismissed
Armstrong filed a Kentucky tort lawsuit against welder Reuben Shemwell after he used the Mine Act process to allege that his discharge was retaliatory. Judge Jerold Feldman found that the lawsuit interfered with Shemwell's protected right to file a discrimination complaint and would discourage…
Secretary of Labor v. Gopher Construction, Inc. and Donald Tibbals
Berm violations upheld and owner liability vacated
Gopher Construction argued that MSHA lacked jurisdiction because its sand and gravel pit was temporarily closed and its crews were only rebuilding a boundary fence. Judge William B. Moran found that the work remained mining activity because it was inseparable from mineral removal and reclamation…
Everclear Enterprises, Inc.
High-rise window-washing citations vacated
Everclear employees washed high-rise windows while connected to independent fall-restraint or fall-arrest systems. OSHA alleged that workers had to secure themselves within the seatboard before suspension and that ropes needed specific permanent markings. The judge found that the seatboard and…
Bowie Resources, LLC
One citation modified and one vacated
Bowie Resources operated the Bowie No. 2 Mine, where two citations were adjudicated after a hearing and four other citations were settled. Judge Richard W. Manning found that a miner performed maintenance on a pick breaker without blocking the feeder breaker against motion, modified Citation No…
Secretary of Labor v. The American Coal Company
Nine violations upheld with $18,500 in penalties
The American Coal Company litigated ten citations involving an unclean bathhouse, unsupported roof and ribs, missing cutting goggles, an exposed electrical conductor, muddy travelways, and loose bridge boards at its large underground coal mine. Judge Michael E. Zielinski upheld nine violations but…
Consolidation Coal Company
Coal accumulation and examination violations affirmed with $25,739 penalty
MSHA cited Consolidation Coal Company at the Shoemaker Mine for coal accumulations and an inadequate examination of a hazardous condition. Judge John Kent Lewis affirmed two orders under 30 C.F.R. § 75.400 and one citation under 30 C.F.R. § 75.360(b)(3). He found the violations significant and…
Secretary of Labor v. Jim Walter Resources, Inc.
Flooded escapeway violation reduced to no negligence
An MSHA inspector found a 52-foot section of Jim Walter Resources' alternate escapeway covered by clear water up to 11 inches deep. Judge L. Zane Gill held that the water violated the escapeway standard because even a limited obstruction could slow miners during an emergency evacuation. He denied…
Secretary of Labor v. Hidden Splendor Resources, Inc.
Bankruptcy did not stay safety-enforcement review
Hidden Splendor Resources filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy while the Commission was reviewing three civil penalties from a 23-citation case. The company argued that the bankruptcy filing automatically stayed the Commission proceeding. The Commission held that MSHA penalty litigation falls within the…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Darrick Piper v. KenAmerican Resources, Inc.
Temporary reinstatement ordered
Darrick Piper alleged that KenAmerican Resources terminated him because of protected activity and later failed to recall him. Judge Kenneth R. Andrews found that Piper’s discrimination complaint was not frivolously brought and ordered his immediate temporary reinstatement at the same pay, hours…
OmniLytics, Inc.
In re OmniLytics, Inc. (EAB FIFRA Appeal No. 13-04C): Consent Agreement ratified
OmniLytics, Inc. was the respondent in a Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act proceeding. The Environmental Appeals Board ratified the attached Consent Agreement under 40 C.F.R. § 22.18(b)-(c) and ordered OmniLytics to comply with all of its terms immediately. A footnote explains…
White Buck Coal Company
Requested stay denied and docket assigned
The Secretary’s Conference and Litigation Representative asked the Judge to stay assignment of the docket for 180 days because of a high contest rate and limited staff. Judge Robert J. Lesnick denied the motion, citing the Acting Secretary’s assurance that the Department of Labor had resources to…
Dominion Coal Corporation
One order affirmed, one dismissed with $4,000 penalty
MSHA brought proceedings against Dominion Coal Corporation over orders and a citation involving its Mine #36. Judge William S. Steele affirmed an order concerning a failure to report a communication-system condition. He dismissed a separate order because the cited entry had been dangered off and…
Secretary of Labor v. Pay Car Mining, Inc. and Dynamic Energy, Inc.
Late contests reopened after medical disruption
Pay Car Mining and Dynamic Energy missed the 30-day deadline to contest proposed penalty assessments after their representative placed the papers in a secretary's work box. Unforeseen medical developments prevented the secretary from filing the contests until after the assessments became final. The…
Raw Coal Mining Company, Inc.
Citations affirmed with $69,348 penalty
MSHA brought civil penalty proceedings against Raw Coal Mining Company at the Sewell Mine B. The case involved four citations and two orders concerning mine safety conditions, including belt equipment, accumulations, and examinations. Judge William S. Steele affirmed the citations and orders as…
Secretary of Labor v. Justice Energy Company, Inc.
Truck and haul-road citations cut to $3,802
Justice Energy contested six citations involving contractor and company trucks, dusty haul roads, a dump-site berm, and a rock in the roadway at its surface coal mine. Judge Jeffrey Tureck upheld a contractor-truck maintenance citation but reduced the mine operator's negligence and penalty because…
Secretary of Labor v. Clintwood Elkhorn Mining Company, LLC
Adjacent-mine mapping charges vacated
MSHA alleged that Clintwood Elkhorn's maps did not show the full extent of an abandoned adjacent mine after a horizontal borehole intercepted an unexpected void. The engineer who certified the adjacent mine's final 1996 map testified that it showed the complete workings and that open and closed…
Matter of Eugene Reagan OTIENDE
A child’s petition must be considered separately from a spouse’s marriage-fraud bar
The Board reviewed a United States citizen's visa petition for his Kenyan stepson after the petition for the child's mother had been denied under the marriage-fraud bar in section 204(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. The Board held that section 204(c) applies to the alien who entered into…
Secretary of Labor v. Leeco, Inc.
Ventilation order reduced and two penalties set at $70,000
MSHA found a continuous miner operating with most of its ventilation curtain on the floor, no measurable airflow at the face, and thick suspended dust. Leeco admitted violating its approved ventilation plan, and Judge David F. Barbour found the condition significant and substantial because…
Progressive Interest, Inc.
Late contest dismissed over mail-handling failure
Progressive Interest received an OSHA citation while the employee responsible for mail was outside the country. Its backup employee signed for the certified mail and left it unopened on the responsible employee's desk, following the company's existing procedure. The employee returned two days…
Georgia Power Company
Existing-conditions citation vacated after line-repair fatality
A Georgia Power crew responded to repair a 7,200-volt distribution line downed during a thunderstorm. The line later moved close to an energized jumper, became energized, and a journeyman lineman was electrocuted. The cited standard required a reasonable evaluation of existing safety conditions…
Secretary of Labor v. Tilcon New York, Inc.
Contest sent to wrong MSHA office was reopened
Tilcon New York mailed a timely contest notice and payment for uncontested citations to MSHA's St. Louis office instead of the Civil Penalty Compliance Office in Arlington. The assessment became final, and Tilcon discovered the routing error after receiving a delinquency notice. It contacted MSHA…
Secretary of Labor v. Preston Contractors, Inc.
Unopposed final assessment reopening granted
Preston Contractors asked the Commission to reopen a penalty assessment that had become a final order after the contest deadline. The official order does not describe why the deadline was missed. The Secretary did not oppose reopening. The Commission granted relief in the interests of justice and…
Secretary of Labor v. Kiah Creek Transport, LLC
Untracked contest mailing led to reopening
Kiah Creek Transport asked the Commission to reopen three penalty assessments that became final after MSHA recorded no timely contests. The company said its counsel mailed contest notices on time but did not use certified mail. It discovered the problem after receiving delinquency notices about six…
What these documents are
- The agencies: Workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), and environmental permit and penalty appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board (EAB). Each decision page names its agency.
- Commission and Board decisions: Rulings by the agency's highest review level (the Commission at OSHRC and FMSHRC, 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.