Case No. RF272-76531

December 16, 1997

DECISION AND ORDER

OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Application for Refunds

Names of Petitioners: Southwest Motor Freight, et al.

Dates of Filing: October 10, 1989, et al.

Case Numbers: RF272-76531, 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.

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, the refund checks will be sent to the applicant or the applicant’s representative. The total volume for which refunds are approved in Appendix A in this Decision is 131,312,468 gallons and the sum of the refunds granted is $210,100, and the total volume for which refunds are approved in Appendix B in this Decision is 141,505,094 gallons and the sum of the refunds granted is $226,408.

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] or Petroleum Funds, Inc.” and sent to:

Petroleum Funds, Inc.

P.O. Box 1380

Paris, TN 38242-9986

For those applicants listed in Appendix B, the checks should be made payable to the applicant and sent to the address indicated 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 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

(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. Any of these determinations may be revoked or modified at any time upon a finding that the basis underlying any 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: December 16, 1997

(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.


Appendix
CASE NO. APPLICANT FIRM CONTACT VOLUME REFUND  
RF272-76531 SOUTHWEST MOTOR FREIGHT OR PETROLEUM FUNDS, INC. C/O BILL GARLAND 36,656,653 $58,651  
RF272-76992 OVERSEAS NATIONAL AIRWAYS OR PETROLEUM FUNDS, INC. C/O STEEDMAN HINCKLEY 92,142,862 $147,429  
RF272-96409 SUTTON COUNTY, TX OR PETROLEUM FUNDS, INC. C/O CARLA GARNER 226,090 $362  
RF272-96412 TOWN OF EVANS OR PETROLEUM FUNDS, INC. C/O JANET WHITTET 191,401 $306  
RF272-96415 DELPHOS CITY SCHOOL DIST. OR PETROLEUM FUNDS, INC. C/O BRUCE SOMMERS 194,653 $311  
RF272-96422 LEXINGTON SCHOOL DIST. OR PETROLEUM FUNDS, INC. C/O STEVE MANN 298,441 $478  
RF272-96432 SOUTH WHIDBEY SCHOOL DIST. OR PETROLEUM FUNDS, INC. C/O REX MILLER 311,535 $498  
RF272-96435 TROY SCHOOL DIST. OR PETROLEUM FUNDS, INC. C/O LUCILLE CADET 103,223 $165  
RF272-96437 CITY OF SAUK VILLAGE OR PETROLEUM FUNDS, INC. C/O RICHARD DIETERICH 240,126 $384  
RF272-96439 TRINIDAD IND. SCHOOL DIST. OR PETROLEUM FUNDS, INC. C/O JOHNNY SINGLETON 32,669 $52  
RF272-96440 ISSAQUENA COUNTY, MS OR PETROLEUM FUNDS, INC. C/O ROBBIE DUNCAN 193,440 $310  
RF272-96454 CITY OF MIDFIELD OR PETROLEUM FUNDS, INC. C/O JAMES L. RHODES 211,445 $338  
RF272-96458 CITY OF COTTAGE GROVE OR PETROLEUM FUNDS, INC. C/O JANICE RIESSBECK 252,134 $403  
RF272-96459 HASKELL IND. SCHOOL DIST. OR PETROLEUM FUNDS, INC. C/O BOB PHEIL 110,484 $177  
RF272-96461 ST. PAUL SCHOOL DIST. OR PETROLEUM FUNDS, INC. C/O BILL SCHAFER 147,312 $236  
Totals: 15     131,312,468 $210,100  
             
             
CASE NO. APPLICANT CONTACT STREET ADDRESS CITY/STATE VOLUME REFUND
RF272-93241 AVIANCA AIRLINES CONDON & FORSYTH C/O THOMAS WHALEN 1100 15TH ST., N.W. WASHINGTON, DC 20005 141,089,889 $225,744
RF272-96403 STEELE DAWSON 26 SCHOOL DIST. C/O LEON ABLEIDINGER P.O. BOX 380 STEELE, ND 584820380 160,000 $256
RF272-96433 PHOENIX ELEM. SCHOOL DIST. #1 C/O GREG JOHNSON 1817 N. 7TH ST. PHOENIX, AZ 850062152 246,307 $394
RF272-96445 TOWNSHIP OF CALUMET HWY. COMM. C/O RAYMOND M. MARTINO 2353 YORK ST. BLUE ISLAND, IL 60406 8,898 $14
Totals: 4       141,505,094 $226,408
             


Last Updated on 12/17/97
By OHA