Case RB272-00128

January 8, 1998

DECISION AND ORDER

OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Supplemental Order

Name of Case: Crude Oil Supplemental Refund Distribution

Date of Filing: November 14, 1997

Case Number: RB272-00128

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 the 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 August 19, 1973 through January 27, 1981, multiplied by a per gallon refund 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 smaller 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) Further, applicants who previously received a refund will receive a supplemental refund based on an additional $0.0008 per gallon. 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 applicants or certifications from representatives.

The Appendix to this Decision and Order contains the names and addresses of a group of recipients receiving these supplemental refund checks. The Appendix also indicates the original case numbers of these applicants and 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 18 recipients is $22,058.

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 4, 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 imposed 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: January 8, 1998

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


Appendix
APPENDIX   RB272-00128      
CASE NO. FIRM   ADDRESS   REFUND
RF272-00354 MUNICIPALITY OF ANCHORAGE C/O LORA C. PETTY 1200 E. 1ST AVE. ANCHORAGE, AK 995011685 $8,682
RF272-00808 VINA DE SANTA YNEZ C/O LEE BETTENCOURT 365 REFUGIO RD. SANTA YNEZ, CA 93460 $41
RF272-07711 CONAIR CORP. C/O MICHAEL BALDINO 150 MILFORD RD. EAST WINDSOR, NJ 08520 $634
RF272-09057 CHURCHILL & THIBAUT C/O CHARLES C. HARTMAN 7244 HWY. 308 S. DONALDSONVILLE, LA 70346 $665
RF272-09454 PLOCHMAN, INC. C/O KURT HOFFMEYER 1 TOWER LANE, #340 OAKBROOK TERRACE, IL 60181 $388
RF272-10427 GEORGE R. GJESVOLD 5705 W. 125 S. GREENCASTLE, IN 461359804 $378
RF272-11488 CAREY SALT DIV. OF PROCESSED C/O MICHAEL ZINKE 8300 COLLEGE BLVD. OVERLAND PARK, KS 66210 $1,461
RF272-15431 CLAIRE P. SMITH P.O. BOX 398; 15 MI-W. HWY. 2 CUT BANK, MT 59427 $940
RF272-18988 COLUMBIA CNTY ENGINEER OFFICE C/O KAREN J. SCHROEDER P.O. BOX 5 DAYTON, WA 99328 $441
RF272-19800 KARL FORELL 130 W. GRAND RIVER BRIGHTON, MI 48116 $538
RF272-20877 TOWN OF COVENTRY C/O JOHN A. ELSESSER 1712 MAIN ST.; P.O. BOX 189 COVENTRY, CT 06238 $1,508
RF272-24869 JAYE JOHNSON 3368 DUCK RD. RONAN, MT 59864 $185
RF272-25240 HARLEY F. DINGER P.O. BOX 46 HECLA, SD 574460046 $106
RF272-25408 GOOD SAMARITAN HOSPITAL C/O MERREL V. JONES 2222 PHILADELPHIA DR DAYTON, OH 45406 $1,260
RF272-26110 BIONDI'S FLORIST & GREENHOUSE C/O PHILIP BIONDI 601 UNION AVE. MIDDLESEX, NJ 08846 $181
RF272-26970 RALPH K. HARMAN 480 MCKENZIE DR. CARRINGTON, ND 58421 $319
RF272-27944 GEARY COUNTY ANNEX BUILDING C/O JOHN SAJO P.O. BOX 927 JUNCTION CITY, KS 66441 $1,297
RF272-29566 RIVERTON INVESTMENT CORP. C/O B.D. JOLLY 158 FRONT ROYAL PIKE, #305 FRONT ROYAL, VA 22602 $3,034
Totals: 18 RB272-00128     $22,058


Last Updated on 1/8/98
By OHA