Woodruff v. United StatesWoodruff v. United States
Frank W. Donaldson, U.S. Atty., Herbert J. Lewis, III, Asst. U.S. Atty., Birmingham, Ala., Jeffrica Jenkins Lee, Robert S. Greenspan, U.S. Dept. of Justice, Civil Div., Appellate Staff, Washington, D.C., for defendants-appellees.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama.
Before FAY and COX, Circuit Judges, and HENDERSON, Senior Circuit Judge.
PER CURIAM:
Linda Woodruff, as Administratrix of the Estate of Gordon R. Woodruff, appeals a judgment of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama (1) granting summary judgment to the defendant, the United States, and (2) dismissing her late husband‘s Federal Tort Claims Act (“FTCA“) complaint against the United States for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. The amended complaint alleged that the Employees’ Compensation Appeals Board (“the ECAB“), a subdivision of the Department of Labor, deprived her husband, Gordon Woodruff, of due process of law and violated a clear statutory mandate when it found that he was eligible to receive compensation benefits under the Federal Employees’ Compensation Act (“FECA“),
Since the facts of this case are not in dispute, the grant of summary judgment and dismissal of the complaint for lack of subject matter jurisdiction are questions of law which are reviewable de novo on appeal. Morrison v. Washington County, Ala., 700 F.2d 678, 682 (11th Cir.1983).
I. BACKGROUND
The Federal Employees’ Compensation Act
Enacted in 1916, FECA provides workers’ compensation coverage for federal civilian employees who are injured while in the performance of their duties.
After being presented with a claim by an employee, the Director must make final findings of fact and decide whether the employee is entitled to compensation under FECA.
The Secretary‘s decision to award or deny compеnsation to a particular claimant is not subject to judicial review.
Facts
Gordon R. Woodruff was a civilian employee of the United States Army stationed at Redstone Arsenal, Alabama. His office was located in a particular building on the base, but he was occasionally required to travel to other locations around the base to perform special tasks. He was also assigned a regular unpaid lunch break between 11:00 to 11:30 A.M. each working day, during which he was free to travel off-base to eat or perform personal errands.
On Februаry 26, 1987, Woodruff‘s supervisor directed him to obtain signatures on a document from three persons stationed at three separate worksites on the base. Before leaving his office, Woodruff told another supervisor that he would take a longer than usual lunch hour while procuring these signatures so that he could travel off the base to purchase a coat.
By 11:00 that morning, Woodruff had obtained the first two signatures on his list. He then decided to begin his lunch hour, and headed onto the main road leading out of the army base. His destination was nearby Huntsville, Alabama, where he intended to purchase the coat.
Before Woodruff could leave Redstone Arsеnal, however, a military bus ran through a red light and crashed into his car. As a result of this collision, Woodruff suffered severe injuries that left him incapacitated and that required treatment in a rehabilitation center for three years. Woodruff never recovered from his injuries, and died during the pendency of this appeal.
Woodruff‘s FECA Claim
Woodruff‘s wife applied for FECA benefits for her husband on March 2, 1987, a few days after the accident. After filing the application, Mrs. Woodruff retained an attorney who told her that her husband might have a cause of action under the Federal Tort Claims Act,
On September 14, 1987, the OWCP found that Woodruff was eligible for FECA benefits because he had been injured while in the performance of his duties. The OWCP relied upon the “premises rule” in making this determination. The “premises rule” states that “as to employees having fixed hours and places of work, injuries occurring on the premises of the employing establishment, while the employee is going to or from work, before or after working hours, or at lunch time are compensable.” Annette Stonework, 36 ECAB 306 (1983); see generally 1 Arthur Larson, The Law of Workmen‘s Compensation § 15 (1990) (discussing the “premises rule” in the context of state workers’ compensation law). Applying the “premises rule” to the facts of this case, the OWCP found that Woodruff was injured while still on the premises of Redstone Arsenal and while he was on his way to lunch. Consequently, it concluded that he was eligible for FECA compensation.
Woodruff exercised his right of appeal under
Woodruff‘s FTCA claim
During the pendency of his FECA claim, Woodruff filed an action pursuant to FTCA in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama. The FTCA waives the immunity of the United States for liability to suits in tort. The Federal Tort Claims Act,
The district court concluded that the ECAB had not violated a clear statutory mandate, that the ECAB had not committed any constitutional violations and that § 2-804-4 was not impermissibly vague. It therefore dismissed Counts II, III, and IV, finding that it lacked subject matter jurisdiction to review the ECAB‘s determination concerning Woodruff‘s eligibility for FECA coverage. Since Woodruff had beеn awarded FECA benefits and was therefore not entitled to pursue his tort claim, the court also dismissed his FTCA action against the United States.
FECA is a comprehensive workers’ compensation law for federal employees that is designed to provide quick and uniform coverage for work-related injuries. Gill v. United States, 641 F.2d 195 (5th Cir. Unit A Feb.1981). The Secretary‘s final determination to award or deny coverage under FECA in a particular case is usually not subject to judicial review that could prolong the administrative process.
There are two instances, however, in which a federal court may exercise jurisdiction over a final decision of the Secretary under FECA. Staacke v. United States Secretary of Labor, 841 F.2d 278 (9th Cir.1988). The federal courts retain jurisdiction to review charges that the Secretary violated a clear statutory mandate or prohibition, and to consider constitutional claims. Id.
Woodruff applied for and was awarded FECA coverage for his injuries. Therefore, we are barred from reviewing the Secretary‘s actions unless Mrs. Woodruff can show that the Secretary violated either a clear statutory mandate or the Constitution.
Clear Statutory Mandate Claim
On appeal, Mrs. Woodruff contends that the Secretary violated the clear statutory mandate contained in
Congress has not defined the phrase “in the performance of duty.” Mrs. Woodruff thus maintains that it is up to the courts to construe the congressional intent behind
The Secretary has consistently used the “premises rule” to bring an employee‘s trаvel to and from work, or to and from lunch, while on the employer‘s premises within the definition of the phrase “in the performance of duty.” See Wilmar Lewis Prescott, 22 ECAB 318 (1971); Emma Varnerin, M.D., 14 ECAB 253 (1963). The ECAB has classified Woodruff‘s activity at the time of his injury as a lunch interval. That decision is a determination of fact or law under FECA that we are unable to review.
In light of the authority that Congress has vested in the Secretary to administer FECA, we cannot say that the ECAB‘s decision to award FECA coverage for injuries Woodruff sustained during his lunch hour and while on the property of his employer conflicts with the phrase “sustained while in the performance of his duty.” We therefore agree with the district court that the Secretary did not violate a clear statutory mandate in this case.14
Constitutional Claims
Mrs. Woodruff‘s three constitutional challenges fall into two categories. First, she makes two contentions that her husband was effectively deprived of an FTCA cause of action without due process by reason of the Secretary‘s award of FECA benefits. Second, she claims that the ECAB contravened the separation of powers doctrine by refusing to follow federal case law in affirming the award.
Due process. Our inquiry into whether there was a denial of due process involves a two-part analysis. Cleveland Bd. of Educ. v. Loudermill, 470 U.S. 532, 541, 105 S.Ct. 1487, 1492, 84 L.Ed.2d 494 (1985). We must determine whether Woodruff was deprived of a protected property interest, and if so, what process was due that interest. Id.
The answer to the first question is found in Logan v. Zimmerman Brush Co., 455 U.S. 422, 102 S.Ct. 1148, 71 L.Ed.2d 265 (1982).15 There, the Court stated that “a cause of action is a species of property protected by the ... Due Process Clause.” Id. at 428, 102 S.Ct. at 1154 (footnote omitted) (citing Mullane v. Central Hanover Bank & Trust Co., 339 U.S. 306, 70 S.Ct. 652, 94 L.Ed. 865 (1950)). The government cannot deprive someone who hаs an entitlement to access to the courts to assert that right unless the government‘s interests outweigh those of the private litigant. Logan, 455 U.S. at 430 n. 5, 102 S.Ct. at 1154 n. 5.
Mrs. Woodruff first charges that § 2-804-4 of the Federal (FECA) Procedural Manual (“FECA Manual“) is void for vagueness. The FECA Manual establishes policies, guidelines and procedures for determining whether an injured employee is eligible for compensation. After a FECA claim is filed and the OWCP finds that an employee has in fact been injured, the FECA Manual directs the OWCP to decide whether the employee was in the performance of duty when the injury occurred. § 2-804-1.
The FECA Manual divides the performanсe of duty question into two general categories of employees: those who work on the employer‘s premises and those who perform part or all of their duties off the employer‘s property.17 Since Woodruff worked in a specific location on Redstone Arsenal, his duties fell within § 2-804-4, the sub-chapter covering employees who work on the premises.
Section 2-804-4 provides that “[a]n employee who has a fixed place of employment, and is injured on the premises of the employer, has the protection of FECA unless engaged in an activity which removes the employee from the scope of employment.” Two elements must be shown to entitle an employee working on the premises to compensation: 1) he was injured while on the premises and 2) he was performing assigned duties or engaged in a reasonable incident of employment. § 2-804-4(a).
In seeking the answer to the second question of the two-part due process analysis, we note that Mrs. Woodruff does not contend that the government‘s interests in providing prompt and uniform FECA coverage for injured federal employees are insufficient to override the private interests of those who have FTCA causes of action. Her claim therefore does not fall within the analytical framework of Logan. Nоr does she claim that the procedures used by the Secretary denied Woodruff a meaningful opportunity to be heard.
Instead, Mrs. Woodruff maintains that § 2-804-4 is void for vagueness because it does not provide a standard or definition of “premises” to guide the OWCP in its assessment of a FECA claim. She argues that this standardless rule impermissibly delegates public policy to the OWCP and results in ad hoc determinations made on a subjective basis. She does not challenge a particular decision of the Secretary in a specific case, but rather the way in which the Secretary‘s decision-making process deprives a claimant of an FTCA cause of action.
“A decision of law or fact ‘under’ a statute is made by the Administrator in the interpretation or application of a particular provision of the statute to a particular set of facts.” Johnson v. Robison, 415 U.S. 361, 367, 94 S.Ct. 1160, 1166, 39 L.Ed.2d 389 (1974) (discussing
“It is a basic principle of due process that an enactment is void for vagueness if its prohibitions are not clearly defined.” City of Mesquite v. Aladdin‘s Castle, Inc., 455 U.S. 283, 289, 102 S.Ct. 1070, 1075, 71 L.Ed.2d 152 (1982) (emphasis in the original) (quoting Grayned v. City of Rockford, 408 U.S. 104, 108, 92 S.Ct. 2294, 2298, 33 L.Ed.2d 222 (1972)). Vague enactments offend due process because they do not provide sufficient notice of what is prohibited so that people may guide their behavior accordingly, and because they risk arbitrary application by not furnishing explicit standards for those who enforce them. Grayned, 408 U.S. at 108-09, 92 S.Ct. at 2298-99.
Section 2-804-4 does not attempt to guide conduct, but is merely an interpretive rule for the OWCP to follow in making FECA coverage determinations. Mrs. Woodruff‘s assertion that it is subject to the void-for-vagueness doctrine is wholly without merit.
In an effort to demonstrate that an enactment that does not attempt to regulate conduct can still be attacked for vagueness, Mrs. Woodruff relies principally on Browning-Ferris Indus. of Ala., Inc. v. Pegues, 710 F.Supp. 313 (M.D.Ala.1987). Pegues does not stand for this proposition. In Pegues, a statute that required legislative approval for the site of any hazardous waste treatment facility was declared unconstitutionally vague because it provided no guideline for applicants seeking to obtain a license for such a facility. The Pegues statute required those wishing to operate a treatment facility to apply first for a license, but did not tell them what they had to do to comply with the legislature‘s requirements. In contrast, an employee is not going to restrict the place of his injury to whatever definition of “premises” is outlined in the FECA Manual. The employee‘s behavior is simply not being directed by § 2-804-4.
Even if the void-for-vagueness doctrine could be applied to an interpretive rule that does not purport to control behavior in any way, § 2-804-4 is not vague. A rule that does not reach constitutionally protected conduct is void for vagueness only if it is impermissibly vague in all its applications. Hoffman Estates v. Flipside, Hoffman Estates, Inc., 455 U.S. 489, 499, 102 S.Ct. 1186, 1193, 71 L.Ed.2d 362 (1982). The test is whether the enactment is substantially incomprehensible. Exxon Corp. v. Busbee, 644 F.2d 1030, 1033 (5th Cir. May 1981), cert. den., Exxon Corp. v. Georgia Assn. of Petroleum Retailers, 454 U.S. 932, 102 S.Ct. 430, 70 L.Ed.2d 239 (1981). Here, Woodruff was employed by the United States Army. He was injured on property that was owned by his employer. Although “premises” may be read both more expansively and more narrowly, it is a sufficiently clear standard to include the property owned by Woodruff‘s employer. Therefore, the facial challenge to § 2-804-4 must fail.18
Separation of powers. Finally, the appellant asserts that the ECAB violated the separation of powers doctrine when it declared that it was not bound by federal court decisions.
This allegation centers on a statement by the ECAB that “decisions of the federal courts [while instructive] are not binding on either the [OWCP] or the [ECAB].” Gordon R. Woodruff, No. 89-390 n. 11 (ECAB May 26, 1989). The ECAB was responding to Woodruff‘s argument that the theory that an entire military base may be considered the “premises” of an employer has been rejected explicitly by the federal courts. Before the ECAB, Woodruff relied principally upon this court‘s decision in Bailey v. United States, 451 F.2d 963 (5th Cir.1971), for this contention. In his later FTCA action, Woоdruff changed his argument slightly. He maintained that Bailey prohibits the ECAB from using the “premises rule” to provide automatic coverage for injuries occurring on military reservations while journeying to or from work or to lunch. Mrs. Woodruff still urges on appeal that the ECAB violated the separation of powers doctrine because it did not adhere to Bailey‘s application of the “premises rule.”
Bailey dealt with whether an FTCA claim by a civilian army employee who was injured while traveling home from work on a road open to all persons authorized to be on the base presented a “substantial question” of FECA coverage. The court stated that the “premises rule” “must be treated as but one of a number of factors to be taken into consideration in reaching a decision as to whether or not [an employee‘s] injury is compensable” under FECA. Bailey, 451 F.2d at 966 (emphasis omitted) (quoting United States v. Browning, 359 F.2d 937, 940 (10th Cir.1966)); accord, Avasthi v. United States, 608 F.2d 1059, 1061 (5th Cir.1979). Bailey held that a federal court must defer hearing an FTCA action where there is a substantial question of FECA coverage. The court found in that case that there was not a substantial question of FECA coverage on the facts before it, and therefore entertained the FTCA suit.
Mrs. Woodruff correctly points out that Bailey requires more than a mere showing that Woodruff was injured on his employer‘s premises while going to lunch for there to exist a substantial question of FECA coverage. As this court made clear in Avasthi, however, whether there is a substantial question of FECA coverage is rеlevant only to determine “which of two mutually exclusive statutes [FECA or FTCA] applies to this claim.” Avasthi, 608 F.2d at 1061. “[An] employee must first seek and be denied relief under FECA unless his injuries do not present any substantial question of compensability under that act.” Id. at 1060 (citing Somma v. United States, 283 F.2d 149, 150-51 (3d Cir.1960). The procedural posture of both Bailey and Avasthi placed the issue of FECA coverage before the court prior to any determination of the issue by the Secretary of Labor.
Additionally, FECA protects the government from suits brought pursuant to statutes such as the FTCA that were enacted to waive the government‘s sovereign immunity. Lockheed Aircraft Corp. v. United States, 460 U.S. 190, 103 S.Ct. 1033, 74 L.Ed.2d 911 (1983). Whether an injury suffered by an employee on his employer‘s premises while on the way to lunch is one “sustained while in the performance of his duty” is an issuе that must be resolved under FECA. See Johnson, 415 U.S. at 367, 94 S.Ct. at 1165. Congress decided to preclude judicial review of any question of law or fact that arises under FECA.
Accordingly, for the foregoing reasons, the judgment of the district court is
AFFIRMED.