Case No. RK272-04185

July 2, 1997

DECISION AND ORDER

OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Supplemental Order

Name of Case: Randy Cape et al.

Dates of Filing: February 1, 1997 et al.

Case Numbers: RK272-04185 et al.

Pursuant to the long-standing policy of the Department of Energy (DOE), thousands of purchasers of petroleum products have applied for, and been granted, refunds from crude oil overcharge funds under jurisdiction of the DOE's Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA). See Statement of Modified Restitutionary Policy To Be Implemented In Crude Oil Cases, 51 Fed. Reg. 27899 (August 4, 1986). The standards for considering Applications for Refund from these crude oil funds are set forth at 10 C.F.R. Part 205, Subpart V.

The OHA has approved more than 87,000 requests for refund from the pool of crude oil overcharge funds. In Subpart V crude oil refund cases, a claimant is generally eligible for a refund equal to the number of gallons of eligible refined petroleum products it purchased during the period from August 19, 1973 through January 27, 1981, multiplied by a per gallon amount. That per gallon refund amount is derived by dividing the total refund monies available by the total U.S. consumption of petroleum products during the crude oil price control period. Refunds had been calculated by multiplying the number of gallons of eligible refined petroleum products purchased by the applicant by $0.0008 (the volumetric factor). That volumetric factor had been in use since April 1989, when it replaced an earlier volumetric factor of $0.0002 per gallon. Any applicant who received a refund at the lower volumetric factor has also received a supplemental refund based on an additional $0.0006 per gallon. See Crude Oil Supplemental Refund Distribution, 18 DOE ¶ 85,878 (1989).

Additional crude oil overcharge funds have become available for disbursement and we can now issue additional refund checks to applicants. Sufficient funds are available to pay applicants at a new, aggregate rate of $0.0016 per gallon.(1) Thus, the amount of the supplemental refund will be equal to the refund already received. Refunds are rounded to the nearest dollar.

In order to receive a supplemental refund check, applicants are being required to verify (directly or through their representatives) that their name and address in our records are correct, to correct any information that is not accurate, and to indicate whether there has been any change in circumstances affecting the payment of the refund. We intend to issue a series of Decision and Orders approving supplemental refunds as we receive completed verification forms from all applicants or certifications from their representatives.

The Appendix to this Decision and Order contains the names and addresses of a group of recipients receiving these supplemental refund checks. In each case, we were informed that there had been a change of circumstances since the previous refund was disbursed. Accordingly, we set up a new case file (designated RK272-)(2) and investigated whether the individual or firm that submitted the verification form (or upon whose behalf the form was submitted) was the proper party to receive the supplemental refund. On the basis of that investigation, we have determined that the parties listed in the Appendix are the proper recipients of those supplemental refunds.(3) The Appendix also indicates the dollar amount of the supplemental refund for each applicant. The total amount of additional refunds being approved in this Order for the benefit of 17 recipients is $16,322.

It Is Therefore Ordered That:

(1) The Director of Special Accounts and Payroll, Office of Departmental Accounting and Financial Systems Development, Office of the Controller of the Department of Energy shall take appropriate action to disburse a supplemental refund to each Crude Oil Refund Recipient set forth in the Appendix to this Order.

(2) The funds shall be disbursed from the escrow fund denominated Crude Tracking-Claimants IV, Account No. 999DOE010Z, maintained at the Department of the Treasury.

(3) To facilitate the payment of future refunds, an applicant shall notify the Office of Hearings and Appeals in the event that there is a change of address, or if an address correction is necessary. Such notification shall be sent to:

Director of Management Information

Office of Hearings and Appeals

Department of Energy

Washington, D.C. 20585-0107

(4) Any conditions that applied to an applicant's receipt of the initial crude oil refund shall also apply to that applicant's receipt of this supplemental refund.

(5) This is a final Order of the Department of Energy.

George B. Breznay

Director

Office of Hearings and Appeals

Date: July 2, 1997

(1)We are now paying first-time crude oil refund recipients at the volumetric rate of $0.0016 per gallon.

(2)The new case number, RK272-, replaces the case number (designated RF272-) which had formerly been assigned to each application. For all future purposes, the application will be known by the new case number.

(3)In two instances, we were informed that a firm had been dissolved and that each of the former owners wished to receive an individual refund check. In another case, an individual applicant has passed away and his three daughters are his sole beneficiaries. Therefore, each owner or beneficiary was assigned a separate RK272- case number, and the approved volume claim was allocated to each owner or beneficiary based on the percentage of his or her ownership or beneficial interest. In this Decision case numbers RK272-04307 and RK272-04478 were assigned to RF272-01681 and case numbers RK272-04409 and RK272-04410 were assigned to RF272-23130. Case numbers RK272-04390, RK272-04391, and RK272-04392 were assigned to RF272-12890. If there are any future disbursements of crude oil funds, these cases will be known by their RK272- numbers and the refunds will be calculated on the adjusted gallonage amounts.

Appendix
CASE NO. APPLICANT CONTACT/FIRM STREET ADDRESS CITY/STATE VOLUME REFUND RF NUM
RK272-04185 RANDY CAPE C/O EMMA JEAN HEARNE 412 HOLLYOAK DR. TYLER, TX 75703 3,425,732 $2,741 RF272-23347
RK272-04307 FLETCHER PLANTING CO. OR LESLIE R. FLETCHER 500 E. PERCY ST. INDIANOLA, MS 38751 163,307 $131 RF272-01681
RK272-04382 OCEAN LAKE READY MIX CO. OR T.W. COWGILL P.O. BOX 934 LINCOLN CITY, OR 97367 1,021,107 $817 RF272-26817
RK272-04390 JANA MORRAY 652 8TH RD., S.W. GRIDLEY, KS 66852 119,228 $95 RF272-12890
RK272-04391 NANCY DENTON 320 N. SUNSET LEBO, KS 66856 119,228 $95 RF272-12890
RK272-04392 GWEN R. BIRK 355 10TH RD., S.W. GRIDLEY, KY 66852 119,228 $95 RF272-12890
RK272-04398 FAYLOR MIDDLECREED LIQ. TRUST C/O RICHARD R. LEFEVER 100 PINE ST., P.O. BOX 1166 HARRISBURG, PA 17101 3,853,439 $3,083 RF272-29835
RK272-04399 MARTIN FARMS C/O JOHN E. MARTIN III RD 2, BOX 366 MILTON, DE 19968 258,967 $207 RF272-25854
RK272-04403 NORTH AMERICAN SALT CO. C/O JIM BLAIR P.O. BOX 10 LYDIA, LA 70569 1,485,318 $1,188 RF272-00487
RK272-04409 THORLEY ALDERSON TRUST C/O GAYLE JACOBS RT. 2, BOX 3154 OSAGE BEACH, MO 65065 289,280 $231 RF272-23130
RK272-04410 ROBERT JACOBS & GAYLE JACOBS RT. 2, BOX 3154 OSAGE BEACH, MO 65065 471,984 $378 RF272-23130
RK272-04413 CHEROKEE PAVING CO. C/O SMITH, SHEW, SCRIVNER & CORBIN, P.C. P.O. BOX 1373 ADA, OK 748211373 6,111,665 $4,889 RF272-02197
RK272-04438 ABBOTT NORTHWESTERN HOSPITAL C/O BOB HALLMAN 800 E. 28TH ST. MINNEAPOLIS, MN 554073799 1,150,910 $921 RF272-24198
RK272-04440 SIMMONS-BELK, INC. ATTN: SUSAN CATHCART C/O VALLEY VIEW AGRI-SYSTEMS 1607 CASTLE DR. JONESBORO, AR 72401 695,360 $556 RF272-07032
RK272-04441 GEORGE E. CARR C/O FRANK CARR P.O. BOX 82 WINIFRED, MT 59489 274,462 $220 RF272-22497
RK272-04478 FLETCHER PLANTING CO. OR W.B. FLETCHER 500 E. PERRY ST. INDIANOLA, MS 38751 163,307 $131 RF272-01681
RK272-04479 REYNOLD MINNERATH RR 1, BOX 44 HOVEN, SD 57450 679,956 $544 RF272-21762
Totals: 17       20,402,478 $16,322  
               


Last Updated on 7/9/97
By OHA