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. Wolf Mountain Coal, Inc.
Conveyor pull-cord violation affirmed with no negligence
A conveyor stopped when its pull cord was activated but unexpectedly restarted as soon as the switch was reset, rather than requiring a separate restart from the control panel. Judge Richard W. Manning held that the malfunction violated the electrical-maintenance standard and was S&S because a…
Secretary of Labor v. Black Beauty Coal Company
Unsupported 80 percent settlement reduction rejected
The Secretary proposed resolving 12 citations by reducing total penalties from $104,464 to $20,394, changing six citations to non-S&S, reducing gravity on three, vacating two, and leaving one unchanged. Judge Margaret A. Miller found that the motion did not supply enough facts to justify the more…
Powder River Coal, LLC
Mixed ruling set a $2,603 total penalty
Powder River operated the North Antelope Rochelle Mine, a large open-pit coal mine in Wyoming, and contested eight citations. Four citations were resolved by partial settlement before the hearing. Of the four litigated citations, the Judge vacated a monthly pull-cord testing citation because MSHA…
Williams Brothers Coal Co., Inc.
Four citations modified and $561 penalty assessed
Williams Brothers Coal Company operated the small No. 3 underground coal mine in Pike County, Kentucky. MSHA cited the mine after an inspection found electrical grounding and de-energization problems, conveyor and belt-line maintenance issues, a missing mine map, and a non-functioning fire sensor…
Mettiki Coal Company
Lockout violations affirmed and imminent-danger order modified
Mettiki Coal operated the Mettiki General Preparation Plant. An MSHA inspection found that a padlocked disconnect breaker for a conveyor could still be turned on because its lockout device was defective. Judge William Fauver found violations of 30 C.F.R. §§ 77.502 and 77.507, but concluded that 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.