[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 79 (Tuesday, April 25, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20264-20266]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-10161]



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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Notice of Issuance of Decisions and Orders During the Week of 
January 30 Through February 3, 1995

    During the week of January 30 through February 3, 1995 the 
decisions and orders summarized below were issued with respect to 
appeals and for other relief 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.

Appeal

Lloyd Makey, 2/1/95, VFA-0019

    Lloyd Makey filed an Appeal from a determination issued to him by 
the Assistant Inspector General for Investigations. In that 
determination, the Assistant Inspector General released several 
documents responsive to Mr. Makey's request under the Freedom of 
Information Act. In his Appeal, Mr. Makey contended that the DOE search 
was inadequate. In considering the Appeal, the DOE confirmed that the 
Assistant Inspector General followed procedures which were reasonably 
calculated to uncover responsive documents. Accordingly, the DOE denied 
the Appeal.

Requests for Exception

Coker Oil, Inc., 2/2/95, LEE-0161

    [[Page 20265]] Coker Oil, Inc., filed an Application for Exception 
from the requirement that it file Form EIA-782B, the ``Reseller/
Retailer's Monthly Petroleum Product Sales Report.'' The DOE found that 
the firm was not affected by the reporting requirement in a manner 
different from other similar firms, and consequently was not 
experiencing a special hardship, inequity, or unfair distribution of 
burdens. Accordingly, the firm's Application for Exception was denied.

John E. Retzner Oil Co., Inc., 1/30/95, LEE-0147

    John E. Retzner Oil Company, Inc. (Retzner) filed an Application 
for Exception from the Energy Information Administration requirement 
that it file Form EIA-782B, the ``Resellers'/Retailers' Monthly 
Petroleum Product Sales Report.'' The DOE issued a Proposed Decision 
and Order on November 4, 1994, that would deny Retzner's application. 
Retzner filed a Statement of Objections to that Proposed Decision and 
Order. In the course of reviewing Retzner's objections, the DOE 
discovered that Retzner's selection in the current sample group of 
firms required to file Form EIA-782 was the result of a record-keeping 
error, by which Retzner had been listed twice on the list of firms 
eligible to participate in the survey. Accordingly, the DOE issued a 
final Decision and Order granting Retzner's Application for Exception.

Keith E. Downard, 1/30/95, LEE-0128

    Keith E. Downard filed an Application for Exception from filing 
Form EIA-782B, ``Resellers'/Detailers' Monthly Petroleum Product Sales 
Report''. In considering the request, the DOE found that the firm was 
not suffering any serious hardship, gross inequity, or unequal 
distribution of burdens. Accordingly, exception relief was denied.

Personnel Security Hearing

Albuquerque Operations Office, 1/31/95, VSO-0002

    A Hearing Officer from the Office of Hearings and Appeals issued an 
Opinion regarding the eligibility of an individual for access 
authorization under the provisions of 10 C.F.R. Part 710. After 
carefully considering the record of the proceeding in view of the 
standards set forth in 10 C.F.R. part 710, the Hearing Officer found 
that the individual: (i) Had omitted significant information from a 
Questionnaire for Sensitive Positions and from a personnel security 
interview; (ii) had been diagnosed by a board-certified psychiatrist as 
having two mental disorders which could cause a significant defect in 
the individual's judgment or reliability; (iii) was a user of alcohol 
habitually to excess; (iv) had possessed and used illegal substances, 
i.e., marijuana and cocaine; and (v) had exhibited conduct that shows 
that he is not honest, reliable, or trustworthy. The Hearing Officer 
rejected the individual's arguments that he had been improperly 
diagnosed under Diagnostic and Statistical Manual III-R criteria and 
that the psychiatrist who evaluated him was biased. The Hearing Officer 
further found no evidence of significant rehabilitation or reformation 
regarding the individual. Accordingly, the Hearing Officer recommended 
that the individual's access authorization should not be granted.

Implementation of Special Refund Procedures

King Petroleum, Inc. et al., Billy Bridewell, William J. Cobb, et al., 
2/1/95, LEF-0125, LEF-0126

    The DOE issued a final Decision and Order setting forth refund 
procedures for the distribution of $337,022.86, plus accrued interest, 
obtained from King Petroleum, Inc., et al. (King), and Billy Bridewell 
and William J. Cobb, et al. (Bridewell), in settlement of proceedings 
relating to violations of the mandatory petroleum price and allocation 
regulations. The DOE determined that the funds would be distributed in 
accordance with the DOE's Modified Statement of Restitutionary Policy 
in Crude Oil Cases (the MSRP). Under the MSRP, crude oil overcharge 
monies are divided among the states (40%), the federal government 
(40%), and injured purchasers of refined products (20%).

Supplemental Order

David Ramirez, 1/30/95, VWX-0001

    A Hearing Officer of the Office of Hearings and Appeals issued a 
final order awarding $38,695.25 for attorney fees and disbursements in 
a ``whistleblower'' case under the DOE's Contractor Employee Protection 
Program, 10 C.F.R. part 708. In prior Decisions, the Hearing Officer 
found that Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) violated the part 708 
regulations by directing that David Ramirez, a subcontractor employee, 
be laid off in reprisal for his making protected safety disclosures, 
and awarded Mr. Ramirez back pay and reimbursement for all costs and 
expenses reasonably incurred by him in bringing his complaint, 
including the legal services rendered in the review phase of the 
proceeding. The present Decision approves the attorney's fees request 
except for the period of time in which the attorney engaged in clerical 
tasks. For that period, the Decision approves payment at the rate of 
$10 per hour, and not at the approved rate for legal services, $175 per 
hour.

Refund Applications

Burnup & Sims, Inc., 2/1/95, RA272-65

    The DOE granted an Application for a Supplemental Refund from crude 
oil overcharge funds to Burnup & Sims, Inc., based upon documentation 
demonstrating that the purchase volume approved for it in a December 
19, 1994 Decision was incorrect.

LPS Laboratories, Inc., 1/30/95, RF272-97045

    LPS Laboratories, Inc., applied for a refund in the Subpart V crude 
oil refund proceeding for purchases of mineral spirits and propane used 
in its chemical manufacturing business. Because of the volume of 
mineral spirits in certain products, we determined that LPS was a 
reseller. LPS did not make a detailed showing of injury, and therefore 
the portion of LPS's Application for mineral spirits was ineligible for 
a refund. Furthermore, LPS did not show that its purchases of propane, 
which it used in a rust inhibitor, were separate and distinct from its 
reseller operations. Therefore, LPS was not eligible to use the end-
user presumption of injury, and the entire refund was denied.

Tesoro Petroleum Corporation/Fletcher Oil Company, 2/2/95, RF326-2851

    Fletcher Oil Company filed an Application for Refund in the Tesoro 
Petroleum Corporation special refund proceeding. Fletcher sought an 
above-volumetric refund based upon a claim that it suffered a 
disproportionate injury with respect to its purchases of No. 2 fuel 
oil. Fletcher alleged that Tesoro had violated the normal business 
practices rule by requiring that it take delivery of the fuel oil in 
Alaska and pay the freight from Alaska to Seattle. Fletcher, however, 
failed to show that its combined purchase price and freight charge was 
higher than the lawful price that Tesoro could have charged for the 
fuel oil if it had been delivered to Seattle. Furthermore, the record 
indicated that Fletcher's delivered cost of fuel oil from Tesoro was 
lower than the average cost from other suppliers in Fletcher's 
marketing area. Fletcher, therefore, failed to demonstrate that its 
Tesoro purchases placed it at a competitive disadvantage. The DOE found 
that Fletcher should be granted a volumetric refund. However, since 
evidence submitted by Fletcher [[Page 20266]] indicated that the firm's 
banks of increased fuel oil costs were negative until September 1974, 
Fletcher's purchases between November 1973 and September 1974 were 
excluded from the calculation of its volumetric refund.

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.

Bulkmatic Transport Company...............................................  RF272-94066                 01/31/95
Clay Central Community School et al.......................................  RF272-82481                 02/03/95
Farmers Co-Op et al.......................................................  RF272-85657                 02/03/95
Green Bay Food Co. et al..................................................  RF272-93697                 01/31/95
Gulf Oil Corporation/George C. Miller Brick Co., Inc......................  RF300-21660                 01/31/95
Rutherford East...........................................................  RF300-21672                         
Rutherford................................................................  RF300-21673                         
Gulf Oil Corporation/Jumping Brook Gulf et al.............................  RF300-21511                 02/01/95
Gulf Oil Corporation/North Jackson Aviation, Inc..........................  RF300-18401                 02/03/95
Hampshire County Board of Education et al.................................  RF272-86905                 02/03/95
Revere Copper & Brass Inc. et al..........................................  RF272-90844                 02/01/95
Texaco Inc./Higgins Texaco................................................  RF321-21055                 02/03/95
Texaco Inc./Jamul Texaco et al............................................  RF321-20454                 01/31/95
Texaco Inc./Johnson & Hurlock Texaco et al................................  RF321-18299                 02/03/95
Texaco Inc./Riverview Super Service.......................................  RF321-13116                 02/02/95
Texaco Inc./Rubidoux Texaco et al.........................................  RF321-20399                 02/01/95
                                                                                                                

Dismissals

    The following submissions were dismissed:

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                       Name                               Case No.      
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Aircomfort, Inc...................................  RF272-94643         
Brooks Products, Inc..............................  RF272-93525         
City of Corry.....................................  RF272-85888         
City of Covina....................................  RF272-85997         
City of Dinuba....................................  RF272-85954         
City of Hamlin....................................  RF272-85998         
City of Mason City................................  RF272-85825         
City of Poquoson..................................  RF272-96998         
Dakota County.....................................  RF272-85086         
Ewing's Texaco....................................  RF321-20545         
Lamar County......................................  RF272-85920         
Mongtomery County.................................  RF272-85996         
Pace's Texaco.....................................  RF321-20586         
Simmons Pole & Piling.............................  RF300-18835         
Township of Glen Ridge............................  RF272-85949         
Township of W. Manchester.........................  RF272-85943         
Village of Cornwall-on-Hudson.....................  RF272-85889         
Village of Great Neck Plaza.......................  RF272-85990         
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    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, S.W., 
Washington, D.C. 20585, 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.

    Dated: April 18, 1995.
George B. Breznay,
Director, Office of Hearings and Appeals.
[FR Doc. 95-10161 Filed 4-24-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P