Case No. RF272-94787

November 25, 1997

DECISION AND ORDER

OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Applications for Refund

Names of Petitioners: Boise City Farmers Cooperative, et al.

Dates of Filings: July 9, 1993, et al.

Case Numbers: RF272-94787, et al.

This Decision and Order will consider Applications for Refund filed by eight claimants that purchased refined petroleum products during the period August 19, 1973 through January 27, 1981. Each applicant listed in the Appendix attached to this Decision and Order has requested a refund from crude oil monies available for disbursement by the Office of Hearings and Appeals of the Department of Energy pursuant to the Statement of Modified Restitutionary Policy In Crude Oil Cases, 51 Fed. Reg. 27899 (August 4, 1986).

In order to receive a refund for crude oil overcharges, an applicant generally must (1) document its purchase volumes and (2) show that it was injured by the overcharges. However, applicants that were end users of petroleum products and whose business was unrelated to the petroleum industry are presumed to have been injured. City of Columbus, Georgia, 16 DOE ¶ 85,550 (1987).

The applicants considered in this Decision and Order are either end users or agricultural cooperatives that bought petroleum products for resale to their members, who were end- users. We consider a claim by an agricultural cooperative that resold petroleum products to its members as a claim on behalf of the members. Farmers Union Oil Co., 17 DOE ¶ 85,644 (1988). Therefore, we afford such a cooperative the presumption of end- user injury on the condition that it certify that it will pass through the refund to its members. All of the cooperatives considered in this Decision and Order have provided this certification.

One of the eight cooperatives also resold petroleum products to non-members.(1) In the Subpart V refund proceedings, we have treated a cooperative’s sales to non-members in the

same manner as sales by other resellers. Upland Farmers Union Coop. Inc., 19 DOE ¶ 85,041 (1989). Consequently, a cooperative is not eligible to receive a crude oil refund for gallons sold to non-members without providing a detailed demonstration of injury. A. Tarricone Inc., 15 DOE ¶ 85,495 (1987). That cooperative has not attempted to make an injury showing with respect to the gallons that it resold to non-members. Thus, the cooperative is eligible for a refund based solely on the percentage it resold to its members, and we have adjusted the volume of its refund claim accordingly.

Each of the applicants listed in the Appendix has documented its purchase volumes. The purchase volumes and refunds approved for each applicant are set forth in the Appendix. The total volume for which refunds are approved in this Decision is 26,422,690 gallons and the sum of the refunds granted is $42,276.

The final deadline for the crude oil proceeding was June 30, 1995. It is the current policy of the DOE to pay eligible crude oil refund claimants at the rate of $0.0016 per gallon. We will decide after the resolution of a few outstanding enforcement proceedings whether sufficient funds are available for additional refunds.

It Is Therefore Ordered That:

(1) The Applications for Refund filed by the claimants listed in the Appendix to this Decision and Order for all available crude oil overcharge funds are hereby approved as set forth in Paragraph (2) below.

(2) 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 the refund amounts set forth in the Appendix to this Decision and Order from the DOE deposit fund escrow account maintained at the Department of the Treasury denominated Crude Tracking-Claimants IV, Account No. 999DOE010Z, to the applicants listed in the Appendix to this Decision and Order.

(3) All cooperatives listed in the Appendix to this Decision and Order shall pass through to their members any refunds that they receive on a dollar for dollar basis.

(4) To facilitate the payment of future refunds, the applicants shall notify the Office of Hearings and Appeals in the event that there is a change in its 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

1000 Independence Avenue, S.W.

Washington, D.C. 20585-0107

(5) The determinations made in this Decision and Order are based upon the presumed validity of the statements and documentary material submitted by the applicants. This Decision and Order may be revoked or modified at any time upon a determination that the basis underlying a refund application is incorrect.

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

George B. Breznay

Director

Office of Hearings and Appeals

Date: November 25, 1997

(1)Boise City Farmers Co-Op (RF272-94787) resold 3 percent.


Appendix
CASE NO. APPLICANT CONTACT STREET ADDRESS CITY/STATE VOLUME REFUND
RF272-94787 BOISE CITY FARMERS COOPERATIVE C/O JOHN M. MILLS BOX 576 BOISE CITY, OK 73933 6,899,010 $11,038
RF272-95213 NICHOLS COOPERATIVE ASSN. C/O MIKE WICHMANN BOX 168 NICHOLS, WI 54152 15,324,451 $24,519
RF272-95221 TAMA BENTON COOPERATIVE CO. C/O RONALD W. MURPHY P.O. BOX 459 DYSART, IA 52224 2,312,550 $3,700
RF272-95257 HUNLOCK SAND & GRAVEL CO. C/O JUDY RAMPP RR 1, BOX 275A HUNLOCK CREEK, PA 18621 191,888 $307
RF272-95271 BOHEMIAN DISTRIBUTING CO. C/O GERARD DUBUC 21018 OSBORNE, UNIT 2 CANOGA PARK, CA 91304 703,822 $1,126
RF272-95289 SCHUYLKILL HAVEN AREA SCHOOL C/O RICHARD J. RADA 120 HAVEN ST. SCHUYLKILL HAVEN, PA 17972 408,103 $653
RF272-95290 M.S.A.D. #16 C/O LEON LEVESQUE LINCOLN ST. HALLOWELL, ME 04347 544,861 $872
RF272-95297 OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS OR RICHARD G. GEHRINGER 2001 EVANS RD. CARY, NC 27513 38,005 $61
Totals: 8       26,422,690 $42,276


Last Updated on 12/3/97
By OHA