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. Kerneos, Inc.
MSHA jurisdiction upheld at specialty cement plant
MSHA issued citations at Kerneos' Chesapeake Plant, which makes specialty calcium aluminate cement from alumina and quicklime. Kerneos argued that OSHA, not MSHA, had jurisdiction because the plant did not extract minerals and used materials already processed elsewhere. Judge L. Zane Gill held that…
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…
Lincoln Sand and Gravel Company
Citations and $168 penalty affirmed after hearing absence
Lincoln Sand and Gravel did not appear at a scheduled hearing after the ALJ granted its request for a hearing and moved the start time later on the same day. The Secretary presented evidence on three citations, and the ALJ affirmed each citation and assessed a total of $168. The Commission rejected…
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 When no Commissioner directs review, an ALJ decision becomes a final order that binds the parties in that case but is not binding precedent: under 29 U.S.C. § 661(j) at OSHRC, and after the 40-day window of 30 U.S.C. § 823(d)(1) at FMSHRC.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.