Case No. RF272-82452
July 10, 2001
DECISION AND ORDER
OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Applications for Refund
Names of Petitioners:Unity School Dist., et al.
Dates of Filings: October 9, 1990, et al.
Case Numbers: RF272-82452, et al.
This Decision and Order considers and ultimately grants seven Applications for Refund, releasing a total of $15,725 in the Subpart V crude oil refund proceeding. The names of the seven applicants are set forth in the Appendix to this Decision and Order. Each applicant purchased refined petroleum products during the period August 19, 1973 through January 27, 1981 and each 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). Each applicant relies on the presumption of injury for end-users as the basis for its refund claim. Under this presumption, OHA will presume applicants were injured if they were end-users of petroleum products and were not covered by the DOE or its predecessors price controls. City of Columbus, Georgia, 16 DOE ¶ 85,550 (1987).
We have reviewed the information submitted by all seven applicants and determined that each was an end-user of eligible petroleum products.(1) Each of the applicants listed in the Appendix derived its purchase volume claim by consulting actual records or by using reasonable estimation techniques 1/. (2) After considering each Application carefully, we have concluded that refunds are warranted for the purchase volumes and in the amounts set forth in the Appendix attached to the Decision. 2/(3) The total volume for which refunds are approved in this Decision is 9,828,199 gallons and the sum of the refunds granted is $15,725. 3/
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 or their representatives. Refund checks totaling $15,725 shall be sent to the applicants or their representatives at the addresses set forth in the Appendix.
(3) 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
(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 the refund applications is incorrect.
(5) This is a final Order of the Department of Energy.
George B. Breznay
Director
Office of Hearings and Appeals
Date: July 10, 2001
(1)Four of the applications under consideration were filed by Petroleum Funds, Inc., a private filing service located in Paris, Tennessee.
(2)The asphalt volume estimated in the application filed on behalf of Webster Parish Police Jury, Case No. RF272- 84722, was adjusted to eliminate the asphaltic content of hot mix, because the purchaser of hot mix is not the end user of the asphalt and thus not eligible to receive the refund for that product.
(3)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.
Appendix
Unity School Dist. , et al.
Case Nos. RF272-82452, et al.
Case No. Applicant/Contact Volume Refund
RF272-82452Unity School Dist. 858,535 $1,374
c/o Terry Schmidt
P.O. Box 307
Balsam Lake, WI 54810
RF272-82507Cincinnatus Central School/Brad Topman1,374,103$2,199
c/o Bobbi Brown
Petroleum Funds, Inc.
P.O. Box 1380
Paris, TN 38242-9986
RF272-82621Galt Joint Union Elementary/Jeff Jennings 436,906 $699
c/o Bobbi Brown
Petroleum Funds, Inc.
P.O. Box 1380
Paris, TN 38242-9986
RF272-82886Gering Public Schools 2,023,919 $3,238
c/o Carol Jacobs
1800 8th Street
Gering, NE 69341
RF272-82944 City of Grenada, MS/Nelson Byrd 588,960 $942
c/o Bobbi Brown
Petroleum Funds, Inc.
P.O. Box 1380
Paris, TN 38242-9986
RF27284361 Township of Cranford, NJ/Thomas Grady 1,828,576$2,926
c/o Bobbi Brown
Petroleum Funds, Inc.
P.O. Box 1380
Paris, TN 38242-9986
RF272-84722Webster Parish Police Jury 2,717,200 $4,347
c/o P. Ellzey Simmons
Trailblazer, Inc.
302 Reynold Rd.
Ruston, LA 71270
TOTALS: 7 Applicants 9,828,199 $15,725