Case No. RK272-02443
July 13, 1999
DECISION AND ORDER
OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Supplemental Order
Names of Cases: Donna Kathryn Morris-Roberson
Richard Rayburn Morris
Dates of Cases: August 15 , 1995
May 13, 1999
Case Numbers: RK272-2443
RK272-4939
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 DOEs 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.
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 from August 19, 1973 through January 27, 1981, multiplied by a per gallon 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 lower volumetric factor 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 $0.00016 per gallon.(1) 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.
In the present case, the previous refund was granted to Morris Trucking, Case No. RF272-65850. We were informed that the company, which had been solely owned by D.J. Morris, was dissolved, and both Mr. Morris and his wife have since died, leaving as equal heirs their children, Donna Kathryn Morris Roberson and Richard Rayburn Morris. Accordingly, we set up two new case files (designated RK272-2443 and RK272-4939)(2) and have determined that Donna Kathryn Morris Roberson and Richard Rayburn Morris are the proper recipients of the supplemental refund, 50% to each. The total amount of the two additional refunds being approved in this Order is $5,482.
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 in the amount of $2,741 to:
Donna Kathryn Morris Roberson
P.O. Box 385
Justin, TX 76427
(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 a supplemental refund in the amount of $2,741 to:
Richard Rayburn Morris
P.O. Box 596
Justin, TX 76427
(3) The funds shall be disbursed from the escrow fund denominated Crude Tracking-Claimants IV, Account No. 999DOE010Z, maintained at the Department of Treasury.
(4) 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
(5) Any conditions imposed that applied to an applicants receipt of the initial crude oil refund shall also apply to that applicants receipt of this supplemental refund.
(6) This is a final Order of the Department of Energy.
George B. Breznay
Director
Office of Hearings and Appeals
Date:July 13, 1999
(1)We are now paying first-time crude oil refund recipients at the volumetric rate of $0.0016 per gallon.
(2)The new case numbers, RK272-2156, replaces the case number (designated RF272-58658) which had formerly been assigned to this application. For all future purposes, the application will be known by the new case number.
(3)The new case numbers, RK272-2156, replaces the case number (designated RF272-58658) which had formerly been assigned to this application. For all future purposes, the application will be known by the new case number.