United States of America

OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH REVIEW COMMISSION

1120 20th Street, N.W., Ninth Floor

Washington, DC 20036-3457

 

 

SECRETARY OF LABOR,

 

Complainant,

 

v.

OSHRC Docket Nos. 09-2011 & 09-2055

CRANESVILLE AGGREGATE COMPANIES, INC., d/b/a SCOTIA BAG PLANT,

 

Respondent.

 

 

REMAND ORDER

Before:  MacDOUGALL, Chairman; ATTWOOD and SULLIVAN, Commissioners.

BY THE COMMISSION:

This case is before the Commission on remand from the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.  Sec’y of Labor v. Cranesville Aggregate Cos., 878 F.3d 25 (2d Cir. 2017).  Former Administrative Law Judge Ken S. Welsch vacated six citations issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, concluding that the Mine Safety and Health Administration’s standards, rather than OSHA’s, applied to the cited conditions.  Cranesville Aggregate Cos., 24 BNA OSHC 1115, 1123 (No. 09-2011, 2013) (consolidated) (ALJ) (“Because MSHA has statutory authority to regulate the working conditions[,] . . . MSHA preempts OSHA’s authority under
§ 4(b)(1) of the [OSH] Act.”).  The judge’s decision became the final order of the Commission.  Cranesville Aggregate Cos., 25 BNA OSHC 2001 (No. 09-2011, 2016) (consolidated).  The Second Circuit reversed, ruling that “the Commission did not afford proper deference to the Secretary’s reasonable determination” regarding applicability of OSHA’s standards.  878 F.3d at 36.

 

By mandate filed February 27, 2018, the court has remanded this case to the Commission.  We, in turn, remand this case to the Chief Administrative Law Judge for reassignment and further proceedings consistent with the court’s opinion.

 

SO ORDERED.

 

 

/s/                                                        

                                                                                    Heather L. MacDougall

                                                                                    Chairman

 

 

 

                                                                                    /s/                                                        

                                                                                    Cynthia L. Attwood

Commissioner

 

 

 

/s/                                                        

James J. Sullivan, Jr.

Dated: March 13, 2018                                               Commissioner