Case No. RF272-39710
June 25, 1997
DECISION AND ORDER
OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Applications for Refund
Names of Petitioners: Norman Lumpkin et al.
Dates of Filings: January 7, 1988 et al.
Case Numbers: RF272-39710 et al.
This Decision and Order will consider the Applications for Refund filed by seven claimants that purchased refined petroleum products during the period August 19, 1973, through January 27, 1981 (the crude oil price control period). Each applicant has requested a refund from crude oil monies available for disbursement by the Office of Hearings and Appeals of the Department of Energy under 10 C.F.R. Part 205, Subpart V. We have established refund procedures for these funds, which have been made available through consent orders entered into by the DOE and numerous firms that sold crude oil during the price control period. E.g., Berry Holding Co., 16 DOE ¶ 85,405 (1987) (Berry); A. Tarricone, Inc., 15 DOE ¶ 85,495 (1987); Mountain Fuel Supply Co., 14 DOE ¶ 85,475 (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 as a result of the alleged overcharges. However, as we discussed in City of Columbus, Georgia, 16 DOE ¶ 85,550 (1987), applicants who were end-users of petroleum products and whose businesses were unrelated to the petroleum industry are presumed to have absorbed the crude oil overcharges, and generally need not submit proof of injury to receive a refund in the Subpart V proceeding. See also Berry.
In general, a claimant is eligible for a refund equal to the number of gallons it purchased multiplied by $0.0016 per gallon, the volumetric refund amount currently available. We derived the volumetric refund amount by dividing the total crude oil refund monies currently available by the total U.S. consumption of petroleum products during the period of crude oil price controls (2,020,997,335,000 gallons).
Each of the applicants considered in this Decision and Order is an end-user. Each bought petroleum products to operate its business.
Each applicant has derived its purchase volume claim by using actual records or a reasonable estimation technique. We have carefully reviewed the information submitted by the applicants, and have determined that the information provided by the applicants sufficiently supports their requests for refunds.(1)
One application considered in this decision was filed on behalf of Thaddeus Damon, Case No. RF272-57263. Mr. Damon passed away in 1994, leaving his wife as his sole heir. We therefore direct that the refund be granted in her name.
Since the applicants listed in the Appendix to this Decision are end-users of refined petroleum products, they are presumed injured by the crude oil overcharges and are entitled to receive their full allocable share of the crude oil monies. The refund amounts are calculated by multiplying the approved purchase volumes by the volumetric refund amount of $0.0016 per gallon. 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 13,401,169 gallons, and the sum of the refunds granted is $21,440.
Two of the applicants, Thames Shipyard & Repair Co., Case No. RF272-57058, and Santa Barbara Metro. Transit, Case No. RF272-57068, filed their applications through Federal Action, another private filing service. However, their refund checks will be sent to those applicants directly for the reason described in Crude Oil Supplemental Refund Distribution, 26 DOE ¶ 85,039 (1997). The other five applicants will also have their checks sent to them directly.
The final deadline for the crude oil refund proceeding was June 30, 1995. It is the current policy of the DOE to pay crude oil refund claimants at the current rate of $0.0016 per gallon. We will decide whether sufficient crude oil overcharge funds are available for additional refunds for these and other successful applicants when we are better able to determine how much additional money will be collected from firms that have either outstanding obligations to the DOE or enforcement cases currently in litigation.
It Is Therefore Ordered That:
(1) The Applications for Refund filed by the seven claimants listed in the Appendix attached 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 from the escrow account maintained at the Department of the Treasury denominated Crude Tracking- Claimants IV, Account No. 999DOE010Z, the amounts specified in the Appendix to this Decision and Order to the applicants specified in that Appendix.
(3) To facilitate the payment of future refunds, each applicant 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
(4) 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.
(5) This is a final Order of the Department of Energy.
George B. Breznay
Director
Office of Hearings and Appeals
Date: June 25, 1997
[Case Nos. RF272-39710 et al.]
APPENDIX
Case No.
Payee
Purchase
Refund
and Applicant
and Address
Volume
[Gallons]
________________________ ____
______________________ ____
__________ _
__________ _
RF272-39710
Norman Lumpkin
115,937
$185
Norman Lumpkin
302 N. Highland Avenue
Cuthbert, GA 31740
RF272-57058
Thames Shipyard and Repair Co.
680,804
$1,089
Thames Shipyard and Repair Co.
c/o John Peter Wronowski, Pres.
2 Ferry Street, P.O. Box 791
New London, CT 06320
RF272-57068
Santa Barbara Metro. Transit
1,727,044
$2,763
Santa Barbara Metro. Transit
c/o Bradley P. Davis, Mgr. of Acct.
550 East Cota Street
Santa Barbara, CA 93103
RF272-57263
Mrs. T.J. Damon
9,672
$15
Thaddeus Damon
80 Tremont Avenue
Kenmore, NY 14217
RF272-98783
Jones Bros., Inc.
1,677,486
$2,684
Jones Bros., Inc.
c/o Ken Luttrell, CFO
P.O. Box 727
Mt. Juliet, TN 37122
RF272-98791
Swire Pacific Holdings, Inc.
7,059,644
$11,295
Swire Pacific Holdings, Inc.
c/o Lori Ekins
875 South West Temple
Salt Lake City, UT 84101
RF272-98797
City of Jackson
2,130,582
$3,409
City of Jackson
c/o Rebecca W. Hayes
Assistant City Recorder, City Hall
314 E. Main Street
Jackson, TN 38301
________________________ ____
______________________ ____
__________ _
__________ _
Seven Applicants
13,401,169
$21,440
(1)One applicant, Swire Pacific Holdings, Inc. (Swire), Case No. RF272-98791, was granted an earlier refund under Case No. RF272-31806. We are convinced that the more recent application is for the purchases of different distribution centers than those applied for in the earlier application, and therefore, there is no duplication of gallonage between the two claims.