[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 181 (Tuesday, September 17, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48945-48946]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-23734]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Office of Hearings and Appeals
Issuance of Decisions and Orders; Week of December 18 Through
December 22, 1995
During the week of December 18 through December 22, 1995, the
decisions and orders summarized below were issued with respect to
appeals, applications, petitions, or other requests filed with the
Office of Hearings and Appeals of the Department of Energy. The
following summary also contains a list of submissions that were
dismissed by the Office of Hearings and Appeals.
Copies of the full text of these decisions and orders are available
in the Public Reference Room of the Office of Hearings and Appeals,
Room 1E-234, Forrestal Building, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW,
Washington, D.C. 20585-0107, Monday through Friday, between the hours
of 1:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m., except federal holidays. They are also
available in Energy Management: Federal Energy Guidelines, a
commercially published loose leaf reporter system. Some decisions and
orders are available on the Office of Hearings and Appeals World Wide
Web site at http://www.oha.doe.gov.
Dated: September 4, 1996.
George B. Breznay,
Office of Hearings and Appeals.
Appeal
Keith E. Loomis, 12/21/95, VFA-0102
The DOE's Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA) issued a
determination denying a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Appeal filed
by Keith E. Loomis (Loomis). Loomis appealed the Office of Naval
Reactors' (ONR) withholding of information under Exemption 6 and
contended that the ONR search for responsive documents was not
adequate. OHA found that Exemption 6 was properly applied and that
ONR's search for responsive documents was adequate.
Personnel Security Hearing
Albuquerque Operations Office, 12/18/95, VSO-0054
An Office of Hearings and Appeals Hearing Officer issued an Opinion
regarding the eligibility of an individual to maintain access
authorization under the provisions of 10 C.F.R. Part 710. After
considering the individual's testimony and the record, the Hearing
Officer found that the individual, who has had five DWI arrests, has an
illness or mental condition (substance dependence) that in the opinion
of a board-certified psychiatrist causes, or may cause a significant
defect in his judgment or reliability and that he is a user of alcohol
to excess. Since the individual had only been abstinent for four months
as of the time of the hearing and had not made a sufficient commitment
to alcoholism counseling, the Hearing Officer also found that he was
not rehabilitated or reformed. In addition, the Hearing Officer found
that by failing to report three of his arrests to the DOE in a timely
manner, the individual had engaged in conduct which tends to show that
he was not honest, reliable, or trustworthy. Accordingly, the Hearing
Officer recommended that the individual's access authorization not be
restored.
Implementation of Special Refund Procedures
Vessels Gas Processing Co., 12/21/95, VEF-0007
The DOE issued a Decision and Order implementing special refund
procedures to distribute $1,564,223 (plus accrued interest) which
Vessels Gas Processing Company (Vessels) remitted to the DOE pursuant
to a Consent Order. The Decision sets forth refund application
procedures for customers who claim that they were injured as a result
of purchases of natural gas liquids and natural gas liquid products
from Vessels during the period from September 1, 1973 though December
31, 1977. If any funds remain after meritorious claims are paid, the
Decision provides that they will be used for indirect restitution
through the States in accordance with the Petroleum Overcharge
Distribution and Restitution Act of 1986.
Refund Applications
Atlantic Richfield Company/Associated Transport, Inc, 12/21/95, RF304-
12217
LK, Inc., filed an application in the ARCO special refund
proceeding with respect to purchases of ARCO products made by
Associated Transport, Inc. LK, Inc., claimed to have acquired the right
to the refund from Associated Transport while that firm was in
bankruptcy. The assignment in question transferred claims in the
``Stripper Well'' litigation. Since the ARCO proceeding is unrelated to
the Stripper Well Litigation, the DOE found that the assignment did not
transfer Associated Transport's right to an ARCO refund. Accordingly,
the application filed by LK, Inc., was denied.
Columbia LNG, 12/21/95, RC272-00326
The DOE issued a Decision and Order in the crude oil refund
proceeding concerning an Application for Refund filed by Columbia LNG.
Columbia was granted a refund based on the purchase of Natural Gas
Liquids, some of which have now been shown to be either imported from
foreign sources or were acquired as a result of a first sale into U.S.
Commerce. These purchases are not eligible for refunds in this
proceeding. Accordingly, the DOE rescinded that portion of Columbia's
refund which was based on those ineligible gallons.
Mobil Oil Corp./Frontier Petroleum Company, 12/19/95, RR225-45
Frontier Petroleum Company filed a motion for modification seeking
the reissuance of a refund check that had been issued to it from the
Mobil Oil Corp. Special Refund Proceeding. According to Frontier, the
check was issued to it in 1989, but was never cashed. The DOE denied
Frontier's motion, finding that it was unable to trace the check and
thereby lacked a reasonable basis to conclude that Frontier had not
cashed the check.
Tajon, Inc., 12/21/95, RC272-325
The DOE issued a Decision and Order concerning an Application for
Refund submitted in the Subpart V crude oil refund proceeding by Tajon,
Inc. The DOE previously granted a crude oil refund to Tajon. Tajon had
filed a Surface Transporters Escrow Settlement Claim Form and Waiver in
the Stripper Well proceeding. This Claim Form and
[[Page 48946]]
Waiver was dismissed because Tajon had repeatedly failed to provide
information which DOE required in order to process the claim. The DOE
has determined that a Waiver is binding in situations where the
Stripper Well application was dismissed for lack of information and the
applicant was otherwise eligible for a Stripper Well refund.
Accordingly, the refund granted to Tajon, Inc. is rescinded.
The 341 Tract Unit of the Citronelle Field, The 341 Tract Unit of the
Citronelle Field/Litigating Refiners, 12/18/95, VFX-0006, RF345-50
The Office of the Hearings and Appeals directed that the DOE
Controller take steps to disburse funds into nine escrow accounts
pursuant to a court-approved settlement of litigation involving a $144
million escrow fund. That fund originated when exception relief was
approved for The 341 Tract Unit of the Citronelle Field.
Refund Applications
The Office of Hearings and Appeals issued the following Decisions
and Orders concerning refund applications, which are not summarized.
Copies of the full texts of the Decisions and Orders are available in
the Public Reference Room of the Office of Hearings and Appeals.
Atlantic Richfield Company/ RR304-0065 12/21/95
Bassman, Mitchell & Alfano.
Atlantic Richfield Company/Del RF304-13302 12/18/95
Real Arco Service et al.
Atlantic Richfield Company/ RR304-00070 12/19/95
General Equities, Inc..
Catherine Barber............... RJ272-00003 12/21/95
Crude Oil Supplemental Refund RB272-00027 12/18/95
Distribution.
Farmers Coop Oil Co............ RF272-97922 12/19/95
Park Region Coop............... RF272-97925
Morrow County Grain Growers.... RF272-97930
Jacobson Transport, Inc. et al. RF272-74695 12/19/95
Lester Chambers et al.......... RK272-00459 12/21/95
Limoneira Co. et al............ RK272-00024 12/18/95
Lyndon Town School District et RF272-96200 12/19/95
al.
MacFarlane Co.--USA, L.L.C. et RK272-02496 12/18/95
al.
Mary Jo Pihlstrom et al........ RK272-02662 12/21/95
Pat Marple et al............... RK272-00507 12/21/95
Salomon Valley Coop et al...... RF272-00172 12/18/95
Texaco Inc./Engler's Texaco.... RF321-20736 12/18/95
Wilbert Frye Residuary Trust et RK272-02808 12/21/95
al.
Dismissals
The following submissions were dismissed:
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Name Case No.
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Marol Realty, Inc............................ RK272-00244
Montclair Arco............................... RF304-15389
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[FR Doc. 96-23734 Filed 9-16-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P
