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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Vulcan Construction Materials, L.P.
Transformer citations vacated
Vulcan operated a limestone quarry in Wisconsin with two transformers mounted about four feet above ground and enclosed by fences. MSHA cited the company under the transformer-installation standard because energized bus wires were less than three feet from the fences, even though the wires were…
Texasgulf Inc.
Transformer citation vacated
MSHA cited Texasgulf after finding that a transformer casing was less than three feet from a chain-link fence at the Lee Creek Mine. Judge George A. Koutras held that the cited standard required a substantial fence at least three feet from energized parts, casings, or wiring, but the Secretary did…
Concrete Materials
Settlement approved for substation fence citation
Concrete Materials was cited because the fence around an electrical substation was below the required six-foot height and had rips and tears. The Secretary proposed reducing the penalty from $690 to $50 and deleting the significant-and-substantial designation because the fence was only slightly…
Concrete Materials
Settlement rejected and additional information ordered
The Solicitor asked to reduce a proposed civil penalty from $690 to $50 for a citation involving a fence around an electrical substation. The citation stated that the substation had exposed energized high-voltage components and that contact might result in a fatality. Judge Paul Merlin denied the…
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.