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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Align Roofing, LLC
Late notice of contest dismissed
Align Roofing received an OSHA citation on December 16, 2011, making January 9, 2012 the last day to file a written notice of contest. The company had been told before the citation issued that any contest had to be in writing, but it did not send its notice until January 20, eleven days late. The…
Straight Ahead Construction, Inc.
Excavation water and cave-in items vacated
Straight Ahead Construction dug a street excavation in Miami to install drainage structures during intermittent rain. OSHA alleged that employees worked in accumulated water and lacked cave-in protection in an excavation more than 5 feet deep. The judge found no reliable measurement showing that…
West Alabama Sand & Gravel, Inc.
Unwarrantable failure removed and fall-protection penalty reduced to $760
An independent truck driver climbed onto a loaded trailer about ten feet above the ground without fall protection while at West Alabama Sand & Gravel's mine. The operator did not dispute the violation or its significant-and-substantial designation, but it challenged the unwarrantable-failure…
Christian County Generation, LLC
In re Christian County Generation, LLC (EAB PSD Appeal No. 12-01): petition dismissed as moot after permit withdrawal
Christian County Generation, LLC was the permit holder for PSD Permit No. 02106ACB in Illinois. The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency withdrew the permit in its entirety while a petition by the Sierra Club and Natural Resources Defense Council was pending before the Environmental Appeals…
Recon Refractory & Construction, Inc.
Mine Act jurisdiction applied during cement-plant construction
RECON was a subcontractor building part of a new cement-processing facility at Drake Quarry before the plant or adjoining quarry had begun operating. It argued that MSHA lacked jurisdiction because the site had produced no cement or miner hours and Arizona administered its own OSHA plan. Judge Alan…
Garabar, Inc.
Informal-conference request did not preserve a contest
Garabar, a roofing and general contractor, received two serious OSHA citations with $5,400 in proposed penalties on November 16, 2011. Its written contest deadline was December 8, but it did not submit anything until a December 22 letter requesting more time for an informal conference. The…
NLJ Builders, Inc.
Controlling contractor held responsible for unsafe scaffold
NLJ Builders subcontracted carpentry work at a Florida bank project and supplied the subcontractor with a scaffold owned by NLJ. A subcontractor employee worked about 15 feet above the ground on a platform that was less than half planked, lacked a firm base and guardrails, and had not been erected…
SeaWorld of Florida, LLC
Killer-whale hazard and stairway items affirmed as serious
SeaWorld trainer Dawn Brancheau died after the killer whale Tilikum pulled her into a performance pool during a close-contact interaction. OSHA alleged that trainers faced recognized struck-by and drowning hazards when performing drywork with Tilikum and drywork or waterwork with other killer…
Highland Enterprises, LLC
Handrail and guarding violations affirmed with two negligence reductions
Highland Enterprises operated a portable crushed-stone plant at the Mt. Solo Pit and contested five citations involving a work platform, conveyor pulleys, a bulldozer fan, and missing rear lights. Judge Thomas P. McCarthy affirmed an S&S handrail violation because tying off did not replace the…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Reuben Shemwell v. Armstrong Coal Company, Inc. and Armstrong Fabricators, Inc.
Temporary reinstatement affirmed despite shop layoff
Reuben Shemwell worked as a welder for Armstrong entities and alleged that he was terminated after complaining about the need for respirator protection from welding fumes. The operators said he was discharged for unauthorized personal cell-phone use and argued that a shop layoff affected any…
Pacific Rim International West Inc., Haili Icebear Inc., and Huzhou Daixi Zhenhua Technology Trade Co., Ltd.
In re Pacific Rim International West Inc., Haili Icebear Inc., and Huzhou Daixi Zhenhua Technology Trade Co., Ltd. (EAB CAA 12-02C): consent agreement ratified
Pacific Rim International West Inc., Haili Icebear Inc., and Huzhou Daixi Zhenhua Technology Trade Co., Ltd. were respondents in a Clean Air Act enforcement matter. The Environmental Appeals Board incorporated the attached Consent Agreement into its Final Order and ratified it under the cited EPA…
Maple Coal Company
One-day date-stamp error excused and penalty reopened
Maple Coal Company's proposed penalty assessment became a final Commission order after the 30-day contest period expired. The company's safety manager had mistakenly stamped the assessment as received one day later than its actual delivery date. Senior counsel relied on that stamp and filed the…
Ernest B. Matney, employed by Knox Creek Coal Corp.
Individual-liability penalty settled at $2,160
An earlier ALJ decision found that Knox Creek agent Ernest Matney was not personally liable for inadequate preshift examination and roof-control violations. The Commission reversed in part, holding Matney personally liable for knowingly failing to address readily apparent hazardous roof conditions…
Elmore Sand and Gravel, Inc.
Confused penalty deadline excused and contest reopened
Elmore Sand and Gravel's proposed penalty assessment became a final Commission order when it was not contested within 30 days. The company's safety director was recovering from a head injury and experiencing short-term memory problems. He became confused when a later assessment referenced the first…
Strack Excavating, LLC
Missed penalty contest reopened after employee error
Strack Excavating's proposed penalty assessment became a final Commission order when no contest was filed within the 30-day deadline. The owner said a newly hired safety coordinator had assured him that she timely contested the assessment, but she did not do so and was later terminated. The…
Northern Excavating Co., Inc.
Willful cave-in violations affirmed, training and egress items vacated
Northern Excavating employees worked in a Type C soil excavation that ranged from about 7.5 to 12 feet deep without a trench box, shoring, or adequate sloping. The excavation used prohibited benching, had soil sloughing into it, and sat beside a heavily traveled access road where truck vibrations…
Consolidation Coal Co.
Special-assessment review forms ordered disclosed
Consolidation Coal sought the forms MSHA used to recommend special assessments for alleged violations, including a proposed $50,700 penalty for a roof-control order. After reviewing the forms privately, Judge David F. Barbour found that the Secretary had adequately explained how the proposed…
Tiffany Myers v. Freeport-McMoRan Morenci, Inc.
Driver-monitoring discrimination complaint dismissed
Freeport used driver-state sensors in large haul trucks to detect fatigue, distraction, and tampering. Driver Tiffany Myers complained that false alarms, voice warnings, and monitoring made her work unsafe and caused physical and emotional symptoms, and she alleged that management harassed…
Christian Miller and Willie Rowe, employed by South Carolina Minerals, Inc.
Individual-penalty dismissal motions denied
The Secretary sought individual penalties against South Carolina Minerals agents Willie Rowe and Christian Miller under section 110(c). They argued that the petitions did not identify facts showing knowing conduct and that the cited orders had not been attached, so the claims should be dismissed…
Matter of Ignacio GUZMAN MARTINEZ
Illegal activity at a port of entry can trigger admission treatment
The Board reviewed the Department of Homeland Security's appeal after an Immigration Judge terminated removal proceedings against a Mexican lawful permanent resident who was accused of trying to bring an undocumented juvenile into the United States at a port of entry. The Board held that a…
Kloepfer Inc.
Guarding violations upheld but special findings removed
MSHA cited Kloepfer's newly started portable crushing plant for four missing guards, a removed handrail section, and an allegedly inadequate workplace examination. Judge William B. Moran held that the portable plant properly remained under the company's existing mine ID because the two plants had…
Bear Lake Properties, LLC
In re Bear Lake Properties, LLC (EAB UIC Appeal No. 11-03): UIC permits remanded in part
EPA Region 3 issued two permits for Class II underground injection wells at the Bittinger site in Pennsylvania. Petitioners challenged the Region's treatment of drinking-water wells, well depth, gas wells, population growth, earthquake risk, and late-filed comments. The Board held that the record…
MHA Nation Clean Fuels Refinery
In re MHA Nation Clean Fuels Refinery (EAB NPDES Appeal Nos. 11-02, 11-03, 11-04, and 12-03): Petitions dismissed and review denied
The MHA Nation proposed a petroleum refinery on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation in North Dakota, with wastewater discharges regulated under an NPDES permit. Four petitioners challenged different parts of the permit and the environmental review supporting it. The Board dismissed two appeals…
L & L Painting Company, Inc.
Lead-monitoring exception rejected and citation items split
L & L Painting removed lead-based paint from the George Washington Bridge after employees were found to have elevated blood lead levels. The company performed no lead-exposure monitoring on the New York side and argued that monitoring from its earlier New Jersey work qualified under the…
Stansley Mineral Resources, Incorporated
Unguarded tail pulley upheld with penalty reduced to $1,000
A Stansley employee repeatedly shoveled spillage within a few feet of an unguarded, fluted conveyor tail pulley at a sand-and-gravel plant. The operator admitted the guarding violation but disputed the S&S and unwarrantable-failure designations. Judge David F. Barbour found a serious entanglement…
Matter of Agustin VALENZUELA GALLARDO
Accessory to felony is an aggravated felony relating to obstruction of justice
The Board reviewed a Mexican lawful permanent resident's appeal from an aggravated-felony removal order based on his California conviction for accessory to a felony. It held that an offense relates to obstruction of justice when it includes an affirmative and intentional attempt, motivated by…
FMC Corporation
Default vacated after answer reached the Secretary
FMC Corporation asked the Commission to reopen a penalty case after its failure to answer a penalty petition led to a default. FMC said it timely responded to the show-cause order, and the Secretary confirmed that the regional solicitor received a copy of the answer. The answer did not show that…
Robles Aggregates, Inc.
Default vacated where petition delivery could not be verified
Robles Aggregates asked the Commission to reopen a penalty case after an unanswered show-cause order became a default. The operator said it had timely contested the penalties and received no later communication until the Treasury Department contacted it about the debt. The Secretary did not oppose…
ArcelorMittal Cleveland Inc.
In re ArcelorMittal Cleveland Inc. (EAB NPDES Appeal No. 11-01): Variance modification remanded
ArcelorMittal Cleveland asked to modify ammonia-nitrogen limits in the Clean Water Act variance covering wastewater from two blast furnaces at its Cleveland steel mill. EPA Region 5 denied the request as untimely, reasoning that the statute's 270-day deadline for variance applications also barred…
Austin Powder Company
Default vacated after answers used wrong docket number
Austin Powder Company asked the Commission to reopen a penalty case after an unanswered show-cause order became a default. The company supplied fax confirmations showing that counsel sent an answer to MSHA and the Commission after the penalty petition, then sent it again after the show-cause order…
Bethlehem Apparatus Company, Inc.
In re Bethlehem Apparatus Company, Inc. (EAB TSCA 12-03C): $103,433 penalty paid and case resolved
Bethlehem Apparatus Company, Inc. was accused of violating sections 8(a), 12(b), and 13 of the Toxic Substances Control Act. EPA's complaint proposed a $103,433 civil penalty. The company paid the full proposed penalty, and EPA informed the Environmental Appeals Board that it had received the…
Bethlehem Apparatus Company, Inc.
In re Bethlehem Apparatus Company, Inc. (EAB TSCA Appeal No. 12-02C): $103,433 penalty resolved by payment
EPA's Office of Civil Enforcement charged Bethlehem Apparatus Company, Inc. with violations of sections 8(a), 12(b), and 13 of the Toxic Substances Control Act. The complaint proposed a civil penalty of $103,433. Under the Consolidated Rules of Practice, the company could resolve the proceeding by…
Chemtura Corporation
In re Chemtura Corporation (EAB TSCA 12-02C): $55,901 penalty paid and case resolved
Chemtura Corporation was accused of violating section 8(a) of the Toxic Substances Control Act. EPA's complaint proposed a $55,901 civil penalty. Chemtura paid the full proposed penalty, and EPA informed the Environmental Appeals Board that it had received the payment instrument. The Board issued a…
Bonita Grande Aggregates
Default vacated after ownership change and misdirected answer
Bonita Grande Properties acquired the mine after a penalty case had already begun and later learned that the case had gone into default. The previous owner said it timely answered the Secretary's penalty petition but sent the answer only to an MSHA representative because it did not know a copy also…
Memphis Stone & Gravel Company
Default vacated after answer reached MSHA
Memphis Stone & Gravel Company asked the Commission to reopen a penalty case after its failure to answer a petition led to a default. The company said it timely responded to the show-cause order and continued negotiating with an MSHA representative, so it did not know a default had taken effect…
Trivette Trucking
Defaults vacated so settlements could proceed
Trivette Trucking asked the Commission to reopen two penalty cases after show-cause orders became defaults. The company said it did not forward the penalty petitions to counsel because it believed answers had already been filed, and counsel did not receive the show-cause orders. Trivette had also…
Bledsoe Coal Corporation
Defaults vacated after timely answers
Bledsoe Coal Corporation asked the Commission to reopen two penalty cases after show-cause orders became defaults. The company said it had timely answered both penalty petitions and believed those earlier answers were enough to avoid default. The Secretary did not oppose reopening and confirmed…
Forrest Aggregate
Defaults vacated after MSHA follow-up failed
Forrest Aggregate asked the Commission to reopen two penalty cases after unanswered show-cause orders became defaults. The operator said it had requested a conference and spoke several times with an MSHA paralegal, who said someone would contact it, but no one did before a Treasury bill arrived…
Leeco, Inc.
Roof-plan violation upheld but significant and substantial designation rejected
Leeco admitted that a continuous miner cut a corner clip larger than the 5-foot-by-5-foot limit in its approved roof control plan. A roof fall in the transition area struck and injured the continuous-miner operator. Judge Avram Weisberger affirmed the violation but found that the Secretary did not…
Mid-Tex Minerals, Inc.
Settlement approval vacated for factual review
Mid-Tex Minerals asked the Commission to reopen an approved settlement and payment order. The operator said it did not understand that telephone discussions with MSHA had produced a final settlement and had sent MSHA a letter saying the discussions were unsatisfactory. The Secretary said the MSHA…
Michels Corporation
Highwall citation vacated for lack of proof of loose rock
Michels operated a limestone quarry where blasting contractors worked below a 60-foot highwall. An MSHA inspector cited the company after observing fractured rock and concluding that loose material could fall on workers, but he inspected only from the base and did not see any rock fall. Michels and…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Reuben Shemwell v. Armstrong Coal Company, Inc. and Armstrong Fabricators, Inc.
Temporary reinstatement ordered after respirator complaint
Reuben Shemwell worked as a welder maintaining equipment for affiliated Armstrong companies and complained that existing respirators did not protect welders from smoke and fumes. Soon afterward, he received disciplinary warnings for cell-phone use and was later terminated. Judge Jerold Feldman…
Matter of Orlando FERNANDEZ TAVERAS
Adjustment applicants bear the admissibility burden
The Board reviewed the Department of Homeland Security's appeal after an Immigration Judge granted a Dominican respondent adjustment of status and a waiver despite his admissions to two crimes involving moral turpitude. The respondent had previously received cancellation of removal based on a…
D & D Masonry Services, Inc.
Scaffold violations largely affirmed with reduced penalties
D & D Masonry used a multilevel scaffold for masonry work at a Georgia construction site. OSHA found wide platform gaps, damaged planks, unsecured scaffold legs, missing fall protection and a midrail, and a closed stepladder used as access. The judge affirmed those scaffold and ladder conditions as…
Raymond Sand and Gravel
Unanswered admissions establish highwall and backup-alarm violations
MSHA cited Raymond Sand and Gravel for leaving unsupported, overhanging material on a 100-foot quarry highwall and for operating a loader with a backup alarm that could not be heard over surrounding noise. The operator did not answer the Secretary's requests for admission, did not respond to the…
Puna Rock, Ltd.
Fall-protection and access violations upheld with penalties cut to $6,000
Two miners at Puna Rock's quarry climbed over a guardrail onto a wet, muddy, narrow surface more than six feet above rocky ground to repair a conveyor motor. The usual manlift was unavailable, and the miners used neither fall protection nor another safe means of access. Judge Margaret A. Miller…
7/11 Materials, Inc.
Late-notification settlement approved for $750
A miner fell, struck his head, and suffered a concussion and bleeding at 7/11 Materials. MSHA alleged that the company failed to report an injury with a reasonable potential to cause death within 15 minutes. The company said it called emergency services immediately and notified MSHA within 15…
Magic Valley Sand & Gravel, Inc.
Hard-hat penalty cut from $60,000 to $10,000
A miner helping construct a screen tower at Magic Valley's sand-and-gravel mine worked beneath suspended steel braces without a hard hat. A brace fell and struck his head, causing a concussion, skull fracture, and serious ear injury. The company agreed that the hard-hat violation was S&S…
Cemex Construction Materials of Florida, LLC
Electric-shock reporting citation vacated
A contractor mechanic received an electrical shock while maintaining Cemex's dragline, dislocated his shoulder, and suffered a burn to his hand. MSHA cited Cemex thirteen months later for failing to report within 15 minutes an injury with a reasonable potential to cause death. Judge Thomas P…
Consolidation Coal Co.
Penalty explanations and discovery responses ordered
Consolidation Coal faced five alleged roof-support and roof-control violations with proposed penalties totaling $67,200, including one proposed $50,700 penalty. Judge David F. Barbour found the Secretary's filed materials did not clearly explain how the proposed penalties were calculated or…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Charles Scott Howard v. Cumberland River Coal Company
Retaliatory termination found and reinstatement ordered
Charles Scott Howard repeatedly reported mine-safety concerns, filed discrimination complaints, contacted MSHA, testified publicly, and pursued related litigation while working for Cumberland River Coal Company. After a work injury, numerous physicians released him to return, but the company sought…
Matter of Valentin ISIDRO-Zamorano
Qualifying relative must exist when cancellation is adjudicated
The Board reconsidered a Mexican respondent's cancellation-of-removal case after the Ninth Circuit remanded a question concerning a qualifying child. The respondent filed his application while his United States citizen son was under 21, but the son turned 21 before the Immigration Judge decided the…
Jim Walter Resources, Inc.
Guarding, coal-dust, and roof-support citations dismissed
MSHA issued several citations at Jim Walter Resources' No. 7 Mine involving an uncovered pressure-washer belt, alleged float coal dust inside an energized power center, and roof support at the site of a fatal roof fall. Judge Avram Weisberger dismissed the guarding citation because the regulation…
Bledsoe Coal Corporation
Immediate review of pattern rulings denied
Bledsoe Coal challenged MSHA's pattern-of-violations notice and ten related withdrawal orders at its Abner Branch Rider Mine. Judge William B. Moran held that MSHA had followed the Part 104 screening, pattern, corrective-action, and notice procedures, and he rejected Bledsoe's broader claim that…
Matter of C. VALDEZ
Pre-2009 CNMI admission was not admission into the United States
The Board reviewed a Philippine respondent's appeal after an Immigration Judge denied adjustment of status and a waiver of inadmissibility. The Board held that a pre-November 28, 2009, admission to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands by the CNMI Immigration Service was not an…
P.J. Spillane Company, Inc.
Respirator and scaffold citation items split
P.J. Spillane employees performed masonry tuck-pointing from scaffolds at a Boston worksite. The judge affirmed a serious respirator-program item after OSHA found a dirty, deteriorated respirator and facial hair that interfered with face seals. A missing safety data sheet for a corrosive cleaner…
Cranesville Block Company, Inc. / Clark Division
Respirator violations affirmed and drowning item vacated
Cranesville manufactured ready mix concrete at its Teall Avenue plant in Syracuse, New York. An employee chipping hardened concrete from a mixer drum was exposed to silica at four times the permissible limit while wearing an organic-vapor cartridge instead of the appropriate particulate filter. The…
Signal Peak Energy LLC
Reporting and accident-site violations bring $83,750 ALJ penalty
A longwall roof cave created an air blast that damaged 78 stoppings and propelled miner Mike Stewart 50 to 80 feet, causing serious injuries. Signal Peak did not notify MSHA, resumed mining through the accident area, and MSHA learned of the event from a newspaper reporter days later. Judge William…
National Steel Erection, Inc.
Gas-cylinder barrier violation affirmed
National Steel Erection stored oxygen, acetylene, and propane cylinders on a rack at a Tennessee construction site. The oxygen and acetylene cylinders were adjacent to each other behind a quarter-inch metal partition with one-inch gaps on both sides. The judge found that the partition lacked the…
West Boise Wastewater Treatment Facility
In re West Boise Wastewater Treatment Facility (EAB NPDES 12-02): petition withdrawn and dismissed with prejudice
EPA Region 10 issued an NPDES permit to the City of Boise for the West Boise Wastewater Treatment Facility. Idaho Rivers United petitioned the Environmental Appeals Board for review and later asked to withdraw its petition after the Region, the City of Boise, and the Idaho Department of…
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.