Agriculture Decisions Publication

About

Agriculture Decisions is an official publication by the Secretary of Agriculture that consists of decisions and orders issued in adjudicatory proceedings conducted for the Department under various statutes and regulations. Selected court decisions concerning the Department’s regulatory programs are also included. The Department is required to publish its rules and regulations in the Federal Register; therefore, rules and regulations are not included in Agriculture Decisions.

Format

The Office of Administrative Law Judges (OALJ) publishes a comprehensive volume of Agriculture Decisions for each calendar year. Two books comprise the annual volume: Book One, which contains the decisions and orders issued from January through June; and Book Two, which contains decisions and orders issued from July through December.

Each Agriculture Decisions book is divided into four sections, or “Parts.” Part One is organized alphabetically, by statute, and contains general decisions and orders (i.e., all decisions and orders other than those that pertain to the Packers and Stockyards Act or the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act). Part Two covers decisions and orders relating to the Packers and Stockyards Act. Part Three contains decisions and orders that involve the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act, including reparation decisions. Part Four includes an alphabetical list of decisions and orders reported and a subject-matter index.

Parts One, Two, and Three of Agriculture Decisions incorporate the following: (1) Initial Decisions issued by the Administrative Law Judges, Decisions and Orders issued by the Judicial Officer on appeal, and selected court decisions; (2) a list of Miscellaneous Orders and Dismissals entered by the Administrative Law Judges and complete texts of any Miscellaneous Orders entered by the Judicial Officer; (3) a list of Default Decisions issued by the Administrative Law Judges; and (4) a list of Consent Decisions. While Agriculture Decisions generally does not include full texts of Miscellaneous Orders, Default Decisions, or Consent Decisions, those decisions and orders are available in their entirety on the OALJ webpage.

Publication and Citation

Beginning with Volume 72 (2013), Agriculture Decisions is published exclusively online. Volumes 71 and earlier are available on the University of Arkansas’s National Agricultural Law Center website.

In addition to appearing in Agriculture Decisions, all OJO and OALJ decisions are posted individually to the OHA website as they are issued.

Both Agriculture Decisions and standalone decisions are considered primary sources.

To cite a decision published in Agriculture Decisions, please provide the volume number, page number, and year (e.g., Smith, 77 Agric. Dec. 472 (U.S.D.A. 2018)).
To cite a decision that appears on the OHA website but has not yet been published in Agriculture Decisions, please provide the docket number, date, and year (e.g., Miller, Docket No. 22-J-0123 (U.S.D.A. 2022)).

For questions regarding publication, please contact the Editor of Agriculture Decisions by email at sm.oha.editor@usda.gov.