Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 103 / Tuesday, May 28, 1996 / Notices 26515

satisfied the DOE’s claim against Dane. There

is a total of $870,000, plus interest, available

from Dane for restitution.

II. The Proposed Decisions

On October 26, 1993, May 20, 1994, and

June 6, 1994, we issued Proposed Decisions

and Orders (PDOs) that tentatively concluded

that ERA’s Petitions to implement Subpart V

proceedings with respect to the funds

collected from these five firms should be

approved. Gil-Mc Oil Corp., 58 FR 57595

(October 26, 1993) (also included LeClair and

SRG); Petroleum Carrier Co., 59 FR 26493

(May 20, 1994); Dane Energy Co., 59 FR

29287 (June 6, 1994). In each of the PDOs,

we tentatively determined that the funds

obtained from these firms should be

distributed in accordance with the DOE’s

Modified Statement of Restitutionary Policy

in Crude Oil Cases, 51 FR 27899 (August 4,

1986) (the MSRP). The MSRP was issued as

a result of a court-approved Settlement

Agreement. In re: The Department of Energy

Stripper Well Exemption Litigation, 653 F.

Supp. 108 (D. Kan. 1986) (the Stripper Well

Settlement Agreement). The MSRP

establishes that 40 percent of the crude oil

funds will be remitted to the federal

government, another 40 percent to the states,

and up to 20 percent may be initially

reserved for payment of claims to injured

parties.

The MSRP also specifies that any monies

remaining after all valid claims by injured

purchasers are paid be disbursed to the

federal government and the states in equal

amounts.

The OHA has utilized the MSRP in all

Subpart V proceedings involving alleged

crude oil violations. See Order Implementing

the MSRP, 51 FR 29689 (August 20, 1986).

This Order provided a period of 30 days for

filing of comments or objections to our

proposed use of the MSRP as the groundwork

for evaluating claims in crude oil refund

proceedings. Following this period, the OHA

issued a Notice evaluating the numerous

comments which it had received pursuant to

the Order Implementing the MSRP. This

notice was published at 52 FR 11737 (April

10, 1987).

The April 10, 1987 Notice contained

guidance to assist potential claimants

wishing to file refund applications for crude

oil monies under the Subpart V regulations.

Generally, all claimants would be required to

(1) document their purchase volumes of

petroleum products during the August 19,

1973 through January 27, 1981 crude oil

price control period, and (2) show that they

were injured by the alleged crude oil

overcharges. We also specified that end-users

of petroleum products whose businesses

were unrelated to the petroleum industry

will be presumed to have been injured by the

alleged crude oil overcharges. End-users,

therefore, need only submit documentation

of their purchase volumes. See City of

Columbus, Georgia, 16 DOE ¶ 85,550 (1987).

Additionally, we stated that we would

calculate crude oil refunds on a per gallon (or

volumetric) basis. We obtained this figure by

dividing the crude oil refund pool by the

total consumption of petroleum products in

the United States during the crude oil price

control period. OHA is currently paying

crude oil refund claims at the rate of $0.0016

per gallon. We will decide whether sufficient

crude oil overcharge funds are available for

additional refunds 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.

III. The Refund Procedure

No comments were received on the PDOs,

and we adopt the tentative determination to

distribute these funds in accordance with the

MSRP. These standard crude oil procedures

will be used to distribute the funds remitted

by Gil-Mc, LeClair, SRG, Petroleum Carrier

and Dane. Accordingly, we shall initially

reserve 20 percent of these funds,

$228,110.56, plus accrued interest, for direct

refunds to claimants in order to ensure

sufficient funds will be available for injured

parties. As we have stated in prior decisions,

a crude oil refund applicant need only

submit one application for its share of all

available crude oil overcharge funds. See,

e.g., A. Tarricone, Inc., 15 DOE ¶ 85,495

(1987). June 30, 1995, was the final deadline

for filing Applications for Refund from the

crude oil funds. See 60 FR 19914 (April 21,

1995). A party that submitted a timely claim

in the crude oil refund proceeding need not

file another claim in order to share in the

funds at issue in this Decision.

Under the terms of the MSRP, the

remaining 80 percent of the funds collected

from these five firms shall be disbursed in

equal shares to the states and the federal

government for indirect restitution. Refunds

to the states will be in proportion to the

consumption of petroleum products in each

state during the period of price controls. The

share or ratio of the funds which each state

will receive is contained in Exhibit H of the

Stripper Well Settlement Agreement, 6 Fed.

Energy Guidelines ¶ 90,509 at 90,687. When

disbursed, these funds will be subject to the

same limitations and reporting requirements

as all other crude oil monies received by the

states under the Stripper Well Settlement

Agreement.

It Is Therefore Ordered That: 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 all steps necessary to transfer $10,273,

plus all accrued interest, from the Gil-Mc

subaccount (Account No. 670C00339T),

$70,386, plus all accrued interest from the

LeClair subaccount (Account No.

600C20071T), $171,041, plus all accrued

interest from the SRG subaccount (Account

No. 400C00200T), $18,853, plus all accrued

interest from the Petroleum Carrier

subaccount (Account No. 6A0X00253Z) and

$870,000, plus all accrued interest, from the

Dane subaccount (Account No.

6A0X00320Z), for a total of $1,140,553, plus

all accrued interest, pursuant to Paragraphs

(2), (3), and (4) of this Decision.

(2) The Director of Special Accounts and

Payroll shall transfer $456,221 (plus interest)

of the funds obtained pursuant to Paragraph

(1) above into the subaccount denominated

‘‘Crude Tracking—States,’’ Number

999DOE003W.

(3) The Director of Special Accounts and

Payroll shall transfer $456,221 (plus interest)

of the funds obtained pursuant to Paragraph

(1) above into the subaccount denominated

‘‘Crude Tracking—Federal,’’ Number

999DOE002W.

(4) The Director of Special Accounts and

Payroll shall transfer $228,111 (plus interest)

of the funds obtained pursuant to Paragraph

(1) above into the subaccount denominated

‘‘Crude Tracking—Claimants 4,’’ Number

999DOE010Z.

(5) This is a final Order of the Department

of Energy.

Dated: May 16, 1996.

George B. Breznay,

Director, Office of Hearings and Appeals.

[FR Doc. 96–13245 Filed 5–24–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6450–01–P

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

AGENCY

[FRL–5510–1]

San Gabriel Valley Superfund Sites,

Areas 1–4; Proposed Notice of

Administrative Settlement

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice; Request for public

comment.

SUMMARY: In accordance with the

Comprehensive Environmental

Response, Compensation and Liability

Act of 1980, as amended by the

Superfund Amendments and

Reauthorization Act of 1986

(‘‘CERCLA’’), 42 U.S.C. 9600 et seq.,

notice is hereby given that a proposed

prospective purchaser agreement

associated with the San Gabriel Valley

Superfund Sites, Areas 1–4 was

executed by the United States

Environmental Protection Agency

(‘‘EPA’’) on May 13, 1996. The proposed

prospective purchaser agreement would

resolve certain potential claims of the

United States under sections 106 and

107 of CERCLA, 42 U.S.C. 9606 and

9607, and section 7003 of the Solid

Waste Disposal Act, as amended, 42

U.S.C. 6973, against the Monsanto

Company (the ‘‘Purchaser’’). The

proposed settlement would require the

purchaser to pay EPA a one-time

payment of $150,000.

For thirty (30) calendar days

following the date of publication of this

notice, EPA will receive written

comments relating to the proposed

settlement. If requested prior to the

expiration of this public comment

period, EPA will provide an opportunity

for a public meeting in the effected area.

EPA’s response to any comments

received will be available for public
26516 Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 103 / Tuesday, May 28, 1996 / Notices

inspection at the U.S. Environmental

Protection Agency, 75 Hawthorne

Street, San Francisco, CA 94105.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on

or before June 27, 1996.

AVAILABILITY: The proposed prospective

purchaser agreement and additional

background documentation relating to

the settlement are available for public

inspection at the U.S. Environmental

Protection Agency, 75 Hawthorne

Street, San Francisco, CA 94105. A copy

of the proposed settlement may be

obtained from Mark Klaiman, Assistant

Regional Counsel (RC–3–1), Office of

Regional Counsel, U.S. EPA Region IX,

75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA

94105. Comments should reference

‘‘Monsanto Company, San Gabriel

Valley Superfund Sites, Areas 1–4’’ and

‘‘Docket No. 96–09’’ and should be

addressed to Mark Klaiman at the above

address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Mark Klaiman, Assistant Regional

Counsel (RC–3–1), Office of Regional

Counsel, U.S. EPA Region IX, 75

Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA

94105; E-mail: KLAIMAN.

MARK@EPAMAIL.EPA.GOV; phone:

(415) 744–1473.

Keith Takata,

Acting Director, Hazardous Waste

Management Division, U.S. EPA, Region IX.

[FR Doc. 96–13191 Filed 5–24–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–M

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS

COMMISSION

FCC Amends Charter of Network

Reliability and Interoperability Council

April 18, 1996.

The Federal Communications

Commission has renewed and amended

the charter of its advisory committee,

the ‘‘Network Reliability Council’’ and

renamed it the ‘‘Network Reliability and

Interoperability Council’’ (the

‘‘Council’’). Under its amended charter,

the Council will develop

recommendations to the Commission as

to how it might best accomplish

responsibilities placed on it by Section

256 of the Telecommunications Act of

1996.

These include developing procedures

to oversee coordinated network

planning by providers of

telecommunications service and

participating in the development, by

standards-setting organizations, of

public telecommunications network

interconnectivity standards. The

purposes of Section 256 are, first, to

promote nondiscriminatory accessibility

by the broadest number of users and

vendors of telecommunications

products and services to public

telecommunications networks through

(a) coordinated network planning and

design and (b) interconnectivity of

public networks and devices to those

networks, and, second, to ensure the

ability of users and information

providers to seamlessly and

transparently transmit and receive

information between and across

telecommunications networks.

The Council will also continue to

provide recommendations to the

Commission and to the industry that

will help assure optimal reliability of

the public telecommunications

networks.

Building on the accomplishments of

the committee to date and in view of the

wider purposes of the committee under

the amended charter, the Commission

has selected members of the Council on

the basis of their technical knowledge,

the impact of their activities on network

reliability and the impact of network

availability on the constituencies the

members represent. Any new members

will be chosen so that the largest

possible diversity of interests, given the

function to be performed, will be

represented.

The continuation of the Council is

necessary and in the public interest to

prepare recommendations of the FCC as

to how it might best accomplish

responsibilities placed on it by Section

256 of the Telecommunications Act of

1996. Continuation is also necessary to

prepare recommendations to the

industry and to the FCC for avoiding,

and minimizing the impact of, future

network outages. Continuation of the

Council is also necessary so that the

telecommunications industry and the

Commission can effectively monitor and

encourage the implementation of the

Council’s prior recommendations by the

industry, and assess the effectiveness of

the implemented recommendations on

network access during outages and help

assure maximum availability of crucial

telecommunications services.

For additional information, contact

Robert Kimball 202/418–2339.

Federal Communciations Commission.

William F. Caton,

Acting Secretary.

[FR Doc. 96–13248 Filed 5–24–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6712–01–M

FEDERAL EMERGENCY

MANAGEMENT AGENCY

[FEMA–1112–DR]

Illinois; Amendment to Notice of a

Major Disaster Declaration

AGENCY: Federal Emergency

Management Agency (FEMA).

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: This notice amends the notice

of a major disaster for the State of

Illinois, (FEMA–1112–DR), dated May 6,

1996, and related determinations.

EFFECTIVE DATE: May 20, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Pauline C. Campbell, Response and

Recovery Directorate, Federal

Emergency Management Agency,

Washington, DC 20472, (202) 646–3606.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The notice

of a major disaster for the State of

Illinois, is hereby amended to include

the following areas among those areas

determined to have been adversely

affected by the catastrophe declared a

major disaster by the President in his

declaration of May 6, 1996:

Adams, Brown, Hamilton, Hancock, Menard,

Schuyler and Vermilion Counties for

Public Assistance and Hazard Mitigation.

Cass, Douglas, Jackson, Sangamon, White and

Williamson Counties for Individual

Assistance, Public Assistance and Hazard

Mitigation.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance No.

83.516, Disaster Assistance)

Dennis H. Kwiatkowski,

Deputy Associate Director, Response and

Recovery Directorate.

[FR Doc. 96–13280 Filed 5–24–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6718–02–P

[FEMA–1112–DR]

Illinois; Amendment to Notice of a

Major Disaster Declaration

AGENCY: Federal Emergency

Management Agency (FEMA).

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: This notice amends the notice

of a major disaster for the State of

Illinois (FEMA–1112–DR), dated May 6,

1996, and related determinations.

EFFECTIVE DATE: May 20, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Pauline C. Campbell, Response and

Recovery Directorate, Federal

Emergency Management Agency,

Washington, DC 20472, (202) 646–3606.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice is

hereby given that the incident period for

this disaster is closed effective May 17,

1996.