Case No. RF272-98907

August 5, 1998

DECISION AND ORDER

OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Applications for Refund

Names of Petitioners:Valley Farmers Co-op, Inc. et al.

Dates of Filing: July 6, 1994 et al.

Case Numbers: RF272-98907 et al.

This Decision and Order will consider Applications for Refund filed by 19 claimants that purchased refined petroleum products during the period August 19, 1973 through January 27, 1981. Each applicant listed in the Appendices attached to the 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 that was an end-user (i.e., consumer) of refined petroleum products must document its purchase volumes. City of Columbus, Georgia, 16 DOE ¶ 85,550 (1987). Each applicant's refund share is calculated using the current refund amount of $0.0016 per gallon.

We have reviewed the information submitted by these applicants and determined that each was an end-user of petroleum products.(1)Each of the applicants has demonstrated the volume of its claim by consulting actual records or by using a reasonable estimation technique.

The gallonage amounts listed in the Appendices to this Decision and Order reflect the approved purchase volume for each applicant.(2)

Each of the applicants listed in the Appendices is eligible to receive a refund. The purchase volumes and refunds approved for each applicant are set forth in the Appendices. The applicants considered in this Decision applied either on their own behalf or through a private filing service. In accordance with each applicant's request, refund checks will be sent to either the applicant or its representative. The total volume for which refunds are approved in Appendix A in this Decision is 64,010,111 gallons and the sum of the refunds granted is $102,417; the total volume for which refunds are approved in Appendix B in this Decision is 97,011,663 and the sum of the refunds granted is $155,219.

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 claimants listed in the Appendices 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 Appendices to this Decision and Order from the DOE deposit fund escrow account maintained at the Department of the Treasury denominated Crude Tracking-Claimants 4, Account No. 999DOE010Z, to the applicants listed in the Appendices.

For those applicants listed in Appendix A, the checks should be made payable to the applicant and sent to that address.

For those applicants listed in Appendix B, the checks should be made payable to “[the applicant] or Energy Refunds, Inc.” and sent to:

Energy Refunds, Inc.

31 Small Lane

Hardin, KY 42048

(3) Each cooperative shall notify its membership of the receipt of the refund and shall pass through to its member customers all crude oil refunds received in Subpart V refund proceedings conducted by the Office of Hearings and Appeals.

(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 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

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. Any of these determinations may be revoked or modified at any time upon a finding that the basis underlying any 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:August 5, 1998

(1)

1/ Interested parties were given an opportunity to submit comments regarding individual crude oil refund applications. No such comments were filed with respect to any application involved in this determination.

(2)All of the applicants are agricultural cooperatives. In Subpart V refund proceedings, we have generally regarded refund applications filed by cooperatives as claims filed on behalf of their members because cooperatives are in a position to pass through any refunds received to their members. Thus, to the extent that the volumes claimed by the cooperatives were sold to their members, the end-user presumption of injury is applicable to these claims. Each of the cooperatives has certified that it will pass through any refund to its members. Furthermore, we have subtracted from these gallonage claims the volumes that the cooperative sold to non-members. Accordingly, we will grant refunds to these cooperatives based on the volumes set forth in the Appendix.

APPENDIX
CASE NO. APPLICANT CONTACT STREET ADDRESS CITY/STATE VOLUME REFUND
RF272-98907 VALLEY FARMERS CO-OP, INC. C/O JOHN M. AARON JR. P.O. BOX 2116 NATCHITOCHES, LA 71457 20,451,047 $32,722
RF272-98913 BIRTCHERD DAIRY, INC. EXCHANGE INVESTMENT CORP. C/O HELEN A. OLIVER P.O. BOX 278 CHARLESTON, SC 29402 883,219 $1,413
RF272-98920 ASSOC. GROCERS OF ARIZONA C/O BRIAN SAGE OR PETROLEUM FUNDS, INC. P.O. BOX 1380 PARIS, TN 382429986 3,067,515 $4,908
RF272-98928 FARMERS COOPERATIVE ASSN. C/O MARY VIDAURRI BOX 5 ERICK, OK 73645 2,252,393 $3,604
RF272-98929 COOS GRANGE SUPPLY CO. C/O KEITH JOHNSON 1085 S. 2ND ST. COOS BAY, OR 97420 5,230,471 $8,369
RF272-98930 BAY LAKES COOPERATIVE C/O KEVIN LATHROP P.O. BOX 9 OCONTO FALLS, WI 54154 22,029,041 $35,246
RF272-98932 GROUSE CREEK COOPERATIVE C/O CAROL KIMBER P.O. BOX 13 GROUSE CREEK, UT 84313 2,035,376 $3,257
RF272-98933 WEYERHAEUSER EQUITY COOP. ASSN C/O SHERON CZEKALSKI BOX 148 WEYERHAEUSER, WI 54895 2,051,965 $3,283
RF272-98936 EDGAR COOPERATIVE C/O BILL BRUENING P.O. BOX 215 MARATHON, WI 54448 3,922,212 $6,276
RF272-98984 DRUMMOND CO-OPERATIVE ELEVATOR C/O MICHELLE TAYLOR C/O BLUBAUGH & CAMPBELL CPA'S, INC. 300 W. CHEROKEE, #105 ENID, OK 73701 555,563 $889
RF272-98985 FARMERS COOPERATIVE ASSN. OR CLEE JAY HEDGES RT. 5, BOX 144-B ENID, OK 73701 1,531,309 $2,450
TOTALS: 11       64,010,111 $102,417
             
             
CASE NO. APPLICANT FIRM CONTACT VOLUME REFUND  
RF272-98946 RUSK CNTY FARMERS UNION COOP OR ENERGY REFUNDS, INC. C/O BONITA GUNDERSON 14,418,130 $23,069  
RF272-98972 GRANDIN CO-OP OIL CO. OR ENERGY REFUNDS, INC. C/O PAUL SETNES 6,104,763 $9,768  
RF272-98974 LYON COUNTY CO-OP OIL CO. OR ENERGY REFUNDS, INC. C/O DAVE DRISCOLL 9,806,008 $15,690  
RF272-98995 FARMERS CO-OP CO. OR ENERGY REFUNDS, INC. C/O RON HARBIN 8,832,056 $14,131  
RF272-98996 BIG HORN CO-OP MARKETING ASSN. OR ENERGY REFUNDS, INC. C/O LOUIS PISTULKA 29,015,608 $46,425  
RF272-98997 DUBOIS COUNTY CO-OP OR ENERGY REFUNDS, INC. C/O GLEN CURRIE 15,448,119 $24,717  
RF272-98998 CAIRO CO-OP EQUITY EXCHANGE OR ENERGY REFUNDS, INC. C/O DALE PARSONS 9,951,305 $15,922  
RF272-98999 FARMERS ELEVATOR OR ENERGY REFUNDS, INC. C/O BEV RYAN 3,435,674 $5,497  
TOTALS: 8     97,011,663 $155,219  
             


Last Updated on 7/10/98
By OHA