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. Consolidation Coal Company
Tie leaves non-S&S finding in place
Consolidation Coal took a 22-to-23.5-foot coal cut where its roof control plan limited cuts to 20 feet because adverse roof conditions were present, resulting in a citation under 30 C.F.R. § 75.220(a)(1) and a proposed $3,405 penalty. The judge found a violation but vacated its…
Williams Brothers Coal Co., Inc.
Six citations affirmed, three vacated, and $501 penalty assessed
MSHA charged Williams Brothers Coal Company with ten violations at its underground No. 3 Mine involving fire-fighting equipment, roof control, ventilation, electrical equipment, and other safety conditions. Judge Jerold Feldman affirmed six citations, vacated three, and ordered the company to pay…
Jim Walter Resources, Inc.
Consolidated contest and penalty proceedings resolved
These consolidated proceedings involved one contest and four civil penalty proceedings arising from alleged dust-control and other mine-safety violations. The judge affirmed the violation in the contested withdrawal order, vacated its significant-and-substantial finding, and found unwarrantable…
Energy West Mining Company
Several citations modified and one vacated
Energy West Mining Company faced civil penalty proceedings involving eight alleged violations at the Cottonwood Mine, with four enforcement documents litigated at hearing. Judge Michael A. Lasher, Jr. approved the parties' resolution of two citations, affirmed one citation, modified two others by…
Consolidation Coal Company
Five citations settled for $538
Consolidation Coal faced five citations involving ventilation stoppings, an unmarked circuit breaker, a high-voltage cable on the mine floor, and excessive spacing between fire hose outlets. The parties agreed to remove the significant-and-substantial designations and settle the five citations for…
Toler Creek Energy, Inc.
Settlement partly approved and merger requests denied
Toler Creek Energy asked the judge to approve a settlement covering citations and orders at its No. 1 and No. 2 Mines. Judge William Fauver approved reduced penalties for six citations and orders, totaling $4,850, and required payment within 30 days. He denied requests to merge several other…
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.