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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Kennith J. Bowman v. Upper Mill Mining Company
Bowman v. Upper Mill Mining (BRB 22-0510): Black Lung denial remanded
Kennith Bowman sought Black Lung benefits from Upper Mill Mining in a subsequent claim. The judge denied the claim after finding fewer than 15 years of qualifying mine work and no totally disabling respiratory impairment. The Board upheld the mine-work finding but found that the judge had…
Joyce T. Browning, on behalf of Carl Edward Browning v. Island Creek Kentucky Mining
Browning v. Island Creek Kentucky Mining (BRB 22-0467): miner's award affirmed
Joyce Browning pursued her late husband Carl Browning's Black Lung claim against Island Creek Kentucky Mining. The judge credited 16.84 years of underground coal mine work and found a disabling respiratory impairment, invoking the statutory presumption that his disability was due to pneumoconiosis…
Harry E. Orr v. Consolidation Coal Company
Orr v. Consolidation Coal (BRB 22-0404): Black Lung denial affirmed
Harry Orr sought Black Lung benefits from Consolidation Coal Company after 20 years of underground mine work. The judge denied the claim because Orr had not proved a totally disabling respiratory impairment, which he needed to invoke the 15-year presumption or establish entitlement without it. The…
J.W. and Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, Westbury, NY
Board dismisses late appeal (ECAB 23-0818)
An FAA employee appealed an OWCP decision dated March 15, 2022. The Board received the appeal on May 22, 2023, more than 180 days after the decision. It found no basis to exercise jurisdiction over the late appeal. The Board dismissed without reviewing the compensation issue.
E.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, La Puente, CA
Board dismisses appeal of its own earlier order (ECAB 23-0741)
A postal worker filed an appeal naming an April 2023 decision. That document was the Board’s own earlier order dismissing a prior appeal, rather than a new OWCP decision. The Board therefore lacked a final adverse OWCP decision to review in the new docket. It dismissed this appeal and said the…
R.M. and Department of Homeland Security, Federal Protective Service, San Antonio, TX
Board affirms denial of calf injury claim (ECAB 23-0726)
A Federal Protective Service inspector reported a right calf injury after stepping in to stop an altercation during a work assignment. Medical imaging identified a clot and fluid collection in the leg. The Board found that the reports did not provide a reasoned explanation linking a diagnosed…
S.B. and Department of the Air Force, 566th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, Tinker Air Force Base, OK
Board upholds wage loss reduction based on hotel clerk work (ECAB 23-0700)
An Air Force aircraft mechanic could not return to his former job after accepted work injuries. OWCP reduced his wage loss benefits using a constructed hotel clerk position. The Board found that the job fit his medical restrictions and represented a reasonable wage earning capacity. It affirmed the…
R.M. and Social Security Administration, Orlando, FL
Board upholds refusal to reopen knee claim (ECAB 23-0666)
A Social Security employee sought reconsideration in a claim involving an accepted left knee injury. The Board found that her request did not identify a new relevant legal argument. The submitted evidence also did not meet the rule for pertinent new evidence requiring a merit review. It affirmed…
L.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Dallas Performance Cluster, Coppell, TX
Board upholds suspension for missing earnings report (ECAB 23-0632)
A postal worker receiving compensation did not return the requested Form EN-1032 about employment and earnings. OWCP mailed the form to her address of record and warned that benefits would be suspended if she did not complete it within 30 days. The Board found that the required notice and deadline…
J.S. and Department of the Navy, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, WA
Board finds hearing loss claim timely and remands merits (ECAB 23-0556)
A retired shipyard worker filed a hearing loss claim years after his last workplace noise exposure. OWCP denied the claim as late. The Board found that the employer’s hearing conservation tests had documented loss while he was employed and gave the employer notice of a possible work injury. It held…
K.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Plainfield Post Office, Plainfield, IN
Board denies continuation of pay and therapy authorization (ECAB 23-0446)
A postal rural delivery specialist reported an elbow injury from a food drive at work. She filed the injury notice more than 30 days after the event, so the Board held she was ineligible for continuation of pay. It also found no medical explanation showing the proposed physical therapy was needed…
J.F. and Department of Homeland Security, Federal Air Marshal Service, El Segundo, CA
Board orders review of travel policy in air marshal crash claim (ECAB 22-0151)
A federal air marshal was injured in a vehicle crash while driving from home toward an airport for a mission. OWCP denied coverage using an agency travel policy issued after the crash. The Board found that the later policy did not establish the rules in force on the accident date. It ordered OWCP…
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 335
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and NTEU Chapter 335 (FLRA 0-AR-5756): Authority revises management-rights test and requests briefing
An arbitrator set aside a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau employee's reprimand because the employee did not receive an opportunity to respond before the agency decided on discipline. The Authority rejected the agency's claims that the arbitrator exceeded his authority, misread the agreement…
Virginia Strawser, on behalf of Richard R. Strawser v. Potomac Coal Company
Strawser v. Potomac Coal (BRB 22-0344): miner's Black Lung award affirmed
Virginia Strawser pursued her late husband Richard Strawser's Black Lung claim against Potomac Coal Company. The judge found complicated pneumoconiosis based on CT scan evidence, invoking the irrebuttable presumption of disability due to the disease. The employer challenged the weight given to the…
J.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Boggs Road Post Office, Duluth, GA
Board affirms denial of back injury claim (ECAB 23-0634)
A postal worker sought benefits for a back condition after an accepted workplace incident. A physician diagnosed a sprain or strain and checked a box indicating a work connection. The Board found that the medical evidence did not explain how the incident caused the condition. It affirmed the denial…
C.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Havre de Grace, MD
Board orders new COVID exposure date review for pay claim (ECAB 23-0631)
A postal carrier technician sought continuation of pay after a COVID diagnosis. OWCP denied the request because her injury notice was filed more than 30 days after the date she identified. The Board found that OWCP had not adequately developed the date of last workplace exposure used under its…
K.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Boggs Road Post Office, Duluth, GA
Board affirms denial for lack of diagnosed condition (ECAB 23-0451)
A postal rural carrier reported stress after two vehicle accidents and sought benefits based on the June 3 incident. OWCP accepted that the reported incident occurred but found no medical diagnosis connected to it. The Board agreed that the submitted hand x-ray and other material did not establish…
L.P. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, East Elmhurst, NY
Board finds sidewalk fall outside covered workplace (ECAB 23-0378)
A TSA employee fell on a sidewalk after leaving work and walking toward an airport parking lot. The Board found that the lot was not controlled or reserved by her employer and that she was not required to use it. The sidewalk therefore did not count as part of the employer’s premises or a required…
M.E. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons, Federal Correctional Institution, Fort Worth, TX
Board orders impartial rating of right leg impairment (ECAB 23-0193)
A federal correctional officer sought a schedule award greater than one percent for right leg impairment. His treating physician and an OWCP examiner reported conflicting physical findings and impairment ratings. The Board held that OWCP needed an impartial medical examination to resolve that…
J.V. and U.S. Postal Service, FDR Station Post Office, New York, NY
Board denies continuation of pay after late COVID notice (ECAB 22-0508)
A postal worker claimed COVID exposure at work on December 18, 2021 and stopped working that day. He filed the traumatic injury notice on February 2, 2022. The Board found that the notice came more than 30 days after the last exposure date used as the injury date. It affirmed OWCP’s denial of…
V.K. and U.S. Postal Service, West Caldwell Post Office, West Caldwell, NJ
Board denies increased left arm schedule award (ECAB 21-1006)
A postal clerk sought an increased schedule award for left arm impairment after an accepted wrist injury. OWCP obtained an impartial examination because her physician and its medical adviser disagreed. The Board found the impartial examiner’s rating did not establish impairment greater than the six…
Secretary of Labor v. R.E. Pierson Materials Corp.
Mail-processing errors excused two missed contests
R.E. Pierson received two proposed assessments, but mine administrative staff did not forward them to the operations manager for review and processing. The company discovered the errors only after MSHA sent delinquency notices and then contacted outside counsel. It reported taking corrective…
Lawrence White v. Mingo Services, Incorporated
White v. Mingo Services (BRB 23-0174): Black Lung denial affirmed
Lawrence White sought Black Lung benefits from Mingo Services. The judge credited 15 years of underground coal mine work but found no totally disabling respiratory impairment. The Board upheld the judge's decision to discount the only medical opinion supporting disability because the doctor did not…
Betty J. Deel (o/b/o and Widow of Jessee J. Deel) v. Clinchfield Coal Company
Deel v. Clinchfield Coal Company (BRB 22-0417 and 22-0343): miner and survivor benefits affirmed
Betty J. Deel pursued a black lung claim on behalf of her late husband, Jessee J. Deel, and sought survivor's benefits. On remand, the administrative law judge found a totally disabling respiratory impairment, applied the presumption under 30 U.S.C. § 921(c)(4), and awarded benefits. Clinchfield…
Jimmy D. Burke v. Glamorgan Coal Corporation
Burke v. Glamorgan Coal (BRB 22-0374): Black Lung denial remanded for pulmonary evaluation
Jimmy Burke sought Black Lung benefits from Glamorgan Coal in a subsequent claim. The judge found that he had 19 years of qualifying mine work but had not proved a totally disabling respiratory impairment. On appeal, the Director of the Office of Workers' Compensation Programs acknowledged that the…
Charles M. Thacker v. Humphreys Enterprises, Incorporated
Thacker v. Humphreys Enterprises (BRB 22-0359): denial remanded for rebuttal findings
Charles Thacker sought Black Lung benefits from Humphreys Enterprises after more than 40 years of coal mine work, including at least 15 qualifying years. The judge denied benefits after finding he had not proved total disability or pneumoconiosis. The Board held that a qualifying pulmonary function…
Susan Reavis, widow of Willard Reavis v. Electric Boat Corporation
Reavis v. Electric Boat (BRB 22-0348): denial of modification and benefit award affirmed
Willard Reavis worked at Electric Boat's shipyard and was exposed to asbestos and welding dust. Electric Boat initially accepted that his lung disease was work-related, then sought to change the compensation order after later medical evidence raised doubt about the diagnosis. His widow Susan…
Betty J. Deel, on behalf of and widow of Jessee J. Deel v. Clinchfield Coal Company
Deel v. Clinchfield Coal (BRB 22-0343, 22-0417): miner and survivor awards affirmed
Betty Deel pursued her late husband Jessee Deel's Black Lung claim and her own survivor's claim against Clinchfield Coal. After an earlier Board remand, the judge again found a disabling respiratory impairment and applied the 15-year presumption based on 15.72 years of qualifying mine work. The…
Bedford D. Turner v. Jericol Mining Company
Turner v. Jericol Mining (BRB 22-0223): Black Lung denial remanded
Bedford Turner sought Black Lung benefits from Jericol Mining after 12.28 years of surface mine work. The judge found a disabling respiratory impairment but denied benefits because she found no pneumoconiosis. The Board held that the judge had summarized conflicting doctors' views on whether coal…
Lonnie Cox, Jr. v. Bob & Tom Coal Company
Cox v. Bob & Tom Coal (BRB 22-0183): Black Lung award affirmed
Lonnie Cox sought Black Lung benefits from Bob & Tom Coal Company after 9.76 years of mine work, too little to invoke the 15-year presumption. The judge found that Cox proved a disabling obstructive lung impairment caused in part by coal dust exposure. The Board upheld her decision to credit a…
Randall F. McMillin v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company
McMillin v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal (BRB 22-0148): Black Lung award affirmed
Randall McMillin sought Black Lung benefits after at least 35 years of coal mine work. Consol Pennsylvania Coal argued that his claim was filed too late and that his lung impairment was caused by smoking rather than coal dust. The Board upheld the judge's finding that the claim was timely and that…
L.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Yonkers Post Office, Yonkers, NY
Board orders two related back claim files combined (ECAB 23-0654)
A postal carrier sought wage loss compensation for back disability after an accepted 2016 injury. She also had a separate claim for a 2020 back injury, which OWCP mentioned in denying the wage loss request. The Board found that the related files needed to be combined before deciding which injury…
D.G. and U.S. Postal Service, North Texas Processing & Distribution Center, Coppell, TX
Board orders fuller record on postal worker’s stress claim (ECAB 23-0628)
A postal expeditor claimed stress and depression from alleged harassment and administrative actions at work. OWCP asked the employer for a knowledgeable supervisor’s response, but none was provided. The Board found it could not determine which alleged events were established on the incomplete…
E.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Federal Way Post Office, Federal Way, WA
Board orders three related leg claims combined (ECAB 23-0464)
A postal carrier claimed a torn left knee meniscus from walking, stairs, sorting, and lifting at work. He had two earlier claims involving the same leg, including an accepted knee sprain. OWCP denied the newer claim without combining all three files. The Board ordered the files combined and a new…
S.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Montclair Post Office, Montclair, NJ
Board orders new impairment examination using complete injury facts (ECAB 21-1380)
A postal carrier sought a schedule award for permanent impairment after accepted neck, shoulder, and back injuries. OWCP relied on an impartial examiner who received a statement of accepted facts that omitted accepted lumbar and thoracic sprains. The Board found that the incomplete statement…
A.W. and U.S. Postal Service, John F. Kennedy Airport Post Office, Jamaica, NY
Board reverses wage loss termination over unclear job offer (ECAB 21-1287)
A postal employee receiving wage loss compensation declined a modified mail processing clerk assignment. OWCP terminated her benefits under the rule for refusal of temporary limited duty work. The Board found that the offer did not establish whether the position was temporary or permanent. Because…
S.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Network Distribution Center, Richmond, CA
Board reverses termination of knee injury benefits (ECAB 21-0611)
A postal worker challenged termination of benefits for accepted right knee conditions. OWCP relied on a second opinion examiner who found no continuing work related disability. Her treating physician disagreed and described continuing knee problems. The Board found an unresolved medical conflict…
C.C. and Department of the Air Force, The Pentagon, Washington, DC
Board denies Pentagon employee’s emotional condition claim (ECAB 21-0519)
An Air Force employee attributed an emotional condition to alleged workplace treatment. The Board found that she had not established a compensable employment factor. The alleged harassment and discrimination lacked sufficient corroboration, and comments outside her presence did not establish the…
M.H. and Department of the Navy, Naval Aviation Depot, San Diego, CA
Board upholds retirement offset overpayment and reporting suspension (ECAB 21-0356)
A former Navy budget analyst received FECA wage loss compensation and Social Security retirement benefits without the required federal service offset. The Board upheld a $75,493.35 overpayment, later compromised to $49,137.08, and found her without fault. It affirmed denial of waiver because her…
United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Southern Nevada Health Care System and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1224
VA Southern Nevada Health Care System and AFGE Local 1224 (FLRA 0-AR-5835): Authority dismisses pay-reduction exceptions
A VA dental hygienist accepted a move from Reno to Las Vegas at a lower grade but a higher salary after the agency offered GS-9, step 9. Three years later, the agency said the offer should have been step 7 and reduced the employee's pay. An arbitrator found that the employee reasonably relied on…
Secretary of Labor obo James Louis Groves v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor obo James Louis Groves v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company (FMSHRC PENN 2023-0049): Default denied and late answer accepted
The Secretary sought default judgment after Consol Pennsylvania Coal did not answer a discrimination complaint by the deadline. Consol's original attorney stated under oath that the electronically sent complaint and related emails never reached his inbox, and new counsel filed an answer after…
James Allen Braham v. ICG Tygart Valley, LLC
Braham v. ICG Tygart Valley (BRB 22-0328): Black Lung award affirmed
James Braham sought Black Lung benefits from ICG Tygart Valley after nearly 40 years of underground coal mine work. The judge found complicated pneumoconiosis, invoking the irrebuttable presumption that Braham was disabled by the disease. The employer challenged the exclusion of an X-ray reading…
Mehrotra v. General Electric Co.
SOX termination and blacklisting claims dismissed as late
Shashi Mehrotra alleged that General Electric selected him for a reduction in force and then blacklisted him from later GE jobs because he reported a compliance violation. The Board held that his termination claim accrued when GE gave final notice of the reduction in force, not when his employment…
Booker v. Exelon Generation Co., LLC
Nuclear access and hostile-environment claims remanded
Patricia Booker, an administrative coordinator at a nuclear plant, alleged retaliation after she reported backdating of safety documents and later lost job duties, unescorted-access authorization, and ultimately her employment. The Board held that the national-security rule insulating government…
R.W. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Martinsburg VA Medical Center, Martinsburg, WV
Board denies continuation of pay after late COVID notice (ECAB 23-0706)
A VA employee sought continuation of pay after a claimed workplace COVID exposure. Her last exposure and positive test were on November 29, 2022, but she filed her injury notice on December 30. The Board held that the notice arrived more than 30 days after the injury date under the applicable COVID…
R.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Capitol Heights, MD
Board upholds retirement offset overpayment and recovery (ECAB 23-0595)
A postal employee received FECA wage loss compensation and Social Security retirement benefits without the required federal service offset. The Board upheld a $16,111.14 overpayment and found him without fault. It affirmed denial of waiver after reviewing his financial resources. The Board also…
B.L. and Department of Labor, Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs, New York, NY
Board denies claimed total disability after shoulder injury (ECAB 23-0551)
A Department of Labor claims examiner sought wage loss benefits for a period after an accepted May 2018 shoulder and back injury. The Board had previously considered much of the medical evidence. It found that the later reports and scans did not adequately explain how the accepted injury caused…
T.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Oklahoma City Post Office, Oklahoma City, OK
Board dismisses postal worker’s appeal at her request (ECAB 23-0521)
A postal worker appealed an OWCP decision issued in November 2022. Through counsel, she later asked the Board to dismiss the appeal. The Board granted that request and closed the appeal without reviewing the merits.
K.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Minuet Annex Post Office, Charlotte, NC
Board orders correct review of timely reconsideration request (ECAB 23-0318)
A postal clerk with accepted carpal tunnel syndrome sought compensation for intermittent disability in May 2020. She requested reconsideration within one year of OWCP’s denial. OWCP mistakenly treated the request as late and applied the stricter clear error standard. The Board set aside that…
D.B. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Federal Correctional Institution Milan, Milan, MI
Board orders merit review of prison employee’s disability claim (ECAB 22-0502)
A prison cook supervisor sought reconsideration of a denied disability claim. She submitted a new physician report addressing whether an accepted work injury caused disability during the claimed period. The Board found that the report was relevant new evidence requiring OWCP to reopen the merits…
Secretary of Labor v. Greenbrier Minerals, LLC
One-day deadline mistake excused
Greenbrier Minerals' safety specialist miscalculated the assessment deadline and filed the contest one day late. The company sought to contest five citations and moved to reopen within ten days after the assessment became final. It made payments to avoid delinquency while expressly maintaining its…
Secretary of Labor v. Westmoreland Absaloka Mining, LLC
Contest mailed with payment was reopened
Westmoreland timely mailed its payment for uncontested citations to MSHA's St. Louis lockbox, but mistakenly included its contest rather than sending the contest to MSHA's Arlington address. Two days after the assessment became final, MSHA told Westmoreland about the error. The company immediately…
Secretary of Labor v. Mulberry Limestone Quarry Co., Inc.
Contest mailed with payment was reopened
Mulberry Limestone correctly mailed payment for uncontested citations to MSHA's St. Louis lockbox. It mistakenly placed its contest in the same envelope instead of sending it to the Arlington office. Mulberry said MSHA later located the contest, but it did not learn of the mistake until a…
Roy E. Hill v. Presley Trucking Company, Incorporated
Hill v. Presley Trucking (BRB 22-0422): award remanded for medical-opinion findings
Roy Hill sought Black Lung benefits from Presley Trucking in a subsequent claim. After an earlier Board remand, the judge found 24.75 years of mine work, only 12.46 of them qualifying for the 15-year presumption, and awarded benefits based on medical evidence without that presumption. The Board…
Deborah A. Leavelle (Widow of Glen W. Leavelle) v. Reitz Coal Company and Old Republic Insurance Company
Leavelle v. Reitz Coal (BRB 22-0389): survivor's benefit denial remanded
Deborah Leavelle sought Black Lung survivor's benefits after the death of her husband, Glen Leavelle, who had nine years of coal mine employment. The administrative law judge found legal pneumoconiosis but denied benefits because he found no proof that it caused the miner's death. On the employer's…
Luke Halbert v. Consol of Kentucky, Incorporated and Consol Energy, Incorporated
Halbert v. Consol of Kentucky (BRB 22-0347): disability finding remanded
Luke Halbert sought Black Lung benefits in a subsequent claim after 24 years of underground coal mine work. The judge denied benefits, finding that Halbert had not proved a totally disabling respiratory condition. The Board affirmed the finding that he had not proved complicated pneumoconiosis, but…
G.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Kansas City, MO
Board orders new lower limb impairment examination (ECAB 23-0600)
A postal worker sought schedule awards above the existing 13 percent right leg and 10 percent left leg ratings. OWCP relied on an impartial examiner’s supplemental opinion. The Board found that the examiner had not properly applied the required impairment rating guidance. It ordered a new impartial…
M.S. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Federal Correctional Institution Medium II, Victorville, CA
Board recognizes reported workplace back incident (ECAB 23-0502)
A prison education technician reported back pain while unloading a box of books at work. His injury form identified a witness, and a supervisor agreed with his account. The Board found no strong evidence refuting the reported December 2, 2022 incident. It reversed OWCP’s denial and returned the…
E.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Houston, TX
Board orders reasoned decision on reconsideration request (ECAB 23-0472)
A postal worker sought reconsideration of an OWCP claim decision. OWCP refused review with a brief statement that did not adequately explain its treatment of his evidence and arguments. The Board found that the worker could not understand the specific defect in his request from that notice. It…
B.M. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Secret Service, Washington, DC
Board orders three related back injury claims combined (ECAB 23-0426, 23-0427, 23-0428)
A Secret Service investigator filed three claims involving lower back symptoms after required fitness activities. OWCP denied the claims in separate files. The Board found that the files needed to be combined because each concerned a lumbar condition and the evidence could affect all three. It set…
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.