Task: sc_petitioner

What follows is an opinion from the Supreme Court of the United States. Your task is to identify the petitioner of the case. The petitioner is the party who petitioned the Supreme Court to review the case. This party is variously known as the petitioner or the appellant. Characterize the petitioner as the Court's opinion identifies them.

Identify the petitioner by the label given to the party in the opinion or judgment of the Court except where the Reports title a party as the "United States" or as a named state. Textual identification of parties is typically provided prior to Part I of the Court's opinion. The official syllabus, the summary that appears on the title page of the case, may be consulted as well. In describing the parties, the Court employs terminology that places them in the context of the specific lawsuit in which they are involved. For example, "employer" rather than "business" in a suit by an employee; as a "minority," "female," or "minority female" employee rather than "employee" in a suit alleging discrimination by an employer.

Also note that the Court's characterization of the parties applies whether the petitioner is actually single entity or whether many other persons or legal entities have associated themselves with the lawsuit. That is, the presence of the phrase, et al., following the name of a party does not preclude the Court from characterizing that party as though it were a single entity. Thus, identify a single petitioner, regardless of how many legal entities were actually involved. If a state (or one of its subdivisions) is a party, note only that a state is a party, not the state's name.

Justice Brennan
delivered the opinion of the Court.
These cases involve natural gas covered by overlapping provisions of the Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978 — one setting a price ceiling, the other declaring prices deregulated. Petitioners contend that under § 101(b)(5) of the Act such gas should be classified as deregulated gas. The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit held that under § 101(b)(5) such gas falls under whichever classification affords producers the highest price under their contracts and current market conditions. The Court of Appeals also held invalid a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) ruling that certain “new tight formation gas” under §107 (c)(5) of the Act is automatically “new” gas qualified for deregulated treatment under § 102(c) or § 103 of the Act. We reverse on both issues.
I
From 1938 to 1978, the Federal Government regulated only the interstate natural gas market. By the 1970’s, however, shortages in the interstate market developed because gas producers could get higher prices in unregulated intrastate markets. Two conflicting legislative solutions were developed: the Senate passed a bill deregulating interstate gas, S. 2104, 95th Cong., 1st Sess. (1977); the House passed a bill extending federal regulation to intrastate gas, H. R. 8444, 95th Cong., 1st Sess. (1977). The Conference Committee struck a compromise. H. R. Conf. Rep. No. 95-1752 (1978). The result was the Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978 (Act), Pub. L. 95-621, 92 Stat. 3351, 15 U. S. C. §3301 et seq.
The Act defines various categories of gas spanning both interstate and intrastate gas, and creates a two-part system of phased deregulation. First, the Act establishes price ceilings for wellhead first sales of gas that vary with the applicable category of gas and that gradually increase over time. §§101-110, 15 U. S. C. §§3311-3320. Second, the Act establishes a three-stage elimination of price ceilings for certain categories: the price ceilings for certain “high-cost” gas were eliminated in 1979, for certain “old” intrastate gas and “new” gas in 1985, and for certain other “new” gas in 1987. See §121, 15 U. S. C. §3331.
Many of these categories overlap. Recognizing the overlap, Congress provided in § 101(b)(5) of the Act, 15 U. S. C. § 3311(b):
“If any natural gas qualifies under more than one provision of this title providing for any maximum lawful price or for any exemption from such a price with respect to any first sale of such natural gas, the provision which could result in the highest price shall be applicable.”
In anticipation of the 1985 deregulation, FERC promulgated a regulation interpreting §§ 121 and 101(b)(5) to mean that any gas that was qualified for both deregulated and regulated treatment would be treated as deregulated. 18 CFR §270.208 (1987).
This preference for deregulatory treatment adversely affected many gas producers who had entered into certain types of long-term contracts. Typically, these contracts had one clause setting the price if the gas were regulated and another clause setting the price if it were deregulated. The contract price for regulated gas was typically close to the price ceiling; the contract price for deregulated gas was typically based on market prices or left open to renegotiation. Because by 1984 the market price of natural gas had plunged below the regulated price ceilings, these producers stood to reap higher contractual prices if their gas was regulated than if it were deregulated.
Dissatisfied with FERC’s regulation, numerous producers petitioned for review to the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. The Court of Appeals rejected FERC’s interpretation of §§ 121 and 101(b)(5), adopting the producers’ position that § 101(b)(5) unambiguously requires the applicable category to be that which, at any particular moment, gamers the producer the highest contract price for its gas. 813 F. 2d 1059 (1987). In explaining this holding, the Court of Appeals also rejected FERC’s ruling that certain “new tight formation gas” subject to regulation under § 107(c)(5), 15 U. S. C. § 3317(c)(5), is automatically qualified for deregulation as new gas under § 102(c) or §103, 15 U. S. C. §§3312, 3313. See 813 F. 2d, at 1069-1070. We granted certiorari. 484 U. S. 962 (1987).
II
“The plain meaning of the statute decides the issue presented.” Bethesda Hospital Assn. v. Bowen, 485 U. S. 399, 403 (1988). The Act states that “the provision which could result in the highest price shall be applicable.” § 101(b)(5) (emphasis added). It does not state that the applicable provision is that which will (depending on actual contracts and daily market prices) result in the highest price for each producer. We think these words call for a simple comparison between the highest price permitted by one provision and the highest price permitted by another: the higher the price ceiling, the higher the price that “could result” under the provision. The provision with the highest price ceiling thus applies uniformly to all producers selling gas that falls within both provisions. When one of the provisions sets no price ceiling at all — i. e., it deregulates — that provision governs.
The Court of Appeals rejected this straightforward interpretation on the ground that, although the price of deregulated gas “could” in theory rise without limit, “the price of regulated gas ‘could’ be higher than the price of deregulated gas.” 813 F. 2d, at 1068. The court reasoned that “[s]uch an understanding of ‘could’ — one that considers only the theoretical possibilities — renders § 101(b)(5) meaningless.” Ibid. Rather, the court concluded: “‘Could’ makes sense in § 101(b)(5) only in the context of how gas sales actually occur.” Ibid. Under this reading of § 101(b)(5), the statute requires a determination of which provision would actually result in a higher price under current market prices for that gas and the contractual arrangement each producer had for the sale of that gas. Ibid. The provision that actually results in the highest price at any particular moment establishes the applicable category for that producer’s gas.
We disagree with the Court of Appeals’ conclusion that reading the word “could” in § 101(b)(5) with its ordinary conditional meaning makes so little sense that the word “could” must be converted to the word “will.” The conditional meaning of “could” makes perfect sense if the statute does not mean to refer to particular contracts but rather to the generic situation of parties in a precontract state: the provision that allows the parties to contract to the highest conceivable price applies. Congress must have had in mind the fact that prior to entering into a contract the parties could always contract to a higher price — i. e., a higher price could result— without a price ceiling than with one. After all, no party has any reason to contract to a higher price simply because a price ceiling has been imposed; the price ceiling can only impose a direct legal restraint if the market price would be above the price ceiling. Cf. § 101(b)(9), 15 U. S. C. § 3311(b)(9) (declaring contract prices enforceable if they do not exceed an applicable price ceiling or if a deregulatory provision applies). The Court of Appeals’ difficulty with the statutory language is caused by its focus on the postcontract situation, where many of the contracts contain clauses that have the perverse effect of increasing the price when a price ceiling is imposed. We doubt seriously that Congress enacted § 101(b)(5) with such contracts in mind or that it would have wished to make sure that the Act interacted with such contracts to mandate the maximum price possible. Certainly nothing in the legislative history suggests Congress had such a system in mind.
Indeed, the Court of Appeals’ reading is contrary to the whole thrust of the Act, for it has the effect of turning a statutory scheme of price ceilings and deregulation into a system of price supports for producers. There is no evidence that Congress had any intent to create such a producer-assistance program. The Act was a compromise: those supporting deregulation were opposed only by those who thought deregulation would allow producers to charge excessive prices. Not one participant in the legislative process suggested that producers should receive higher prices than deregulation would afford them. The operating assumption of Congress was that deregulation was the most favorable regime for gas producers under consideration. See, e. g., 124 Cong. Rec. 28633 (1978) (statement of Sen. Jackson) (describing deregulation as “the maximum economic incentive”).
We are moreover reluctant to read § 101(b)(5) as making the applicable provision for a particular type of gas vary not only from producer to producer and from contract to contract, but from day to day as the actual market price of that gas changes. The statute is phrased in a general way that implies that all gas fitting the same overlapping provisions will be treated the same, and one would normally expect that a regulatory regime would apply uniformly rather than varying in such a chaotic fashion. The statute calls for a comparison of statutory provisions, not contractual ones, and nothing in the statute or legislative history suggests that Congress wanted the classification of gas to turn on contractual terms. Indeed, if the logic of the Court of Appeals’ position were pursued, then, even for gas that fell into two regulated categories, § 101(b)(5) would require a comparison of each producer’s contract prices for each category rather than a comparison of the ceiling prices for each category. We see no reason for inferring that Congress intended such a regulatory regime or the disuniformity and administrative difficulties it would entail.
1 — 1 I — I
We also disagree with the Court of Appeals’ decision to overturn FERC’s ruling that certain gas qualified as “new tight formation” gas under § 107(c)(5), 15 U. S. C. § 3317(c) (5), is automatically also qualified as deregulated “new” gas under § 102(c) or § 103, 15 U. S. C. §§ 3312(c), 3313. Section 107(c)(5) gives FERC authority to make eligible for special high-cost gas pricing natural gas “produced under such . . . conditions as [FERC] determines to present extraordinary risks or costs.” Pursuant to § 107(c)(5), FERC has defined “new tight formation gas” as gas
“(i) Which is new natural gas, (as defined in section 102(c)), certain OCS gas qualifying for the new natural gas ceiling price, (as defined in section 102(d)), or gas produced through a new onshore production well (as defined in section 103(c); and
“(ii) Which is produced from a designated tight formation through a well the surface drilling of which began on or after July 16, 1979.” 18 CFR § 271.703(b)(2) (1987).
In the proceeding below, which did not address certain Outer Continental Shelf gas under § 102(d), 15 U. S. C. §3312(d), FERC has simply ruled that, because “[i]n order to qualify as new tight-formation gas under section 107(c)(5), a producer must file the same information, in addition to other information, that would be filed to qualify as a section 102 or 103 determination , a determination that gas qualifies as new tight-formation gas is implicitly a determination that the gas meets the qualifications for either section 102(c) or 103 . . . , regardless of whether that was explicit at the time that the determination was made.” 49 Fed. Reg. 46874, 46880 (1984).
We see nothing objectionable about this ruling, which merely recognizes that, as defined, the types of “new tight formation gas” that were under consideration by FERC are a subset of deregulated “new” gas under § 102(c) or § 103. The Court of Appeals’ objections to the ruling were based on its conclusion that allowing one qualification to result automatically in a second qualification would interfere with what it inferred was Congress’ intent to give producers the right to select the categories they desired. 813 F. 2d, at 1069. The court had two bases for inferring this intent. One was its reading of § 101(b)(5), which we reject above. The other was its reading of certain portions of the legislative history, which state that governmental agencies have no affirmative obligation to identify the applicable classification and that it is up to producers to apply for the designations they want. 813 F. 2d, at 1070 (quoting 124 Cong. Rec. 29109, 38363-38364 (1978)). But the fact that Congress declined to impose affirmative investigative duties on agencies hardly means that it did not want FERC to adopt rules for classifying gas based on the evidence presented by producers at determination hearings.
The producer respondents also argue that FERC’s rule intrudes on the jurisdiction other state and federal agencies have to make category determinations under §503, 15 U. S. C. §3413. FERC, however, has made no category determinations. It has merely promulgated a definitional rule applicable in determination proceedings. This FERC has ample authority to do. Not only does § 107(c)(5) give FERC broad authority to define the gas eligible for § 107(c) (5) treatment, but § 503 gives FERC authority to review the category determinations of other agencies and to prescribe the manner and substantiation with which such category determinations must be presented for its review. And under §501, 15 U. S. C. §3411, FERC has general authority to define terms under the Act and to prescribe “such rules and orders as it may find necessary or appropriate to carry out its functions.”
For the foregoing reasons, the judgment of the Court of Appeals is
Reversed.
Justice White took no part in the consideration or decision of these cases.

Question: Who is the petitioner of the case?
年. attorney general of the United States, or his office
数. specified state board or department of education
日. city, town, township, village, or borough government or governmental unit
的. state commission, board, committee, or authority
月. county government or county governmental unit, except school district
用. court or judicial district
成. state department or agency
名. governmental employee or job applicant
时. female governmental employee or job applicant
件. minority governmental employee or job applicant
一. minority female governmental employee or job applicant
请. not listed among agencies in the first Administrative Action variable
中. retired or former governmental employee
据. U.S. House of Representatives
码. interstate compact
不. judge
新. state legislature, house, or committee
文. local governmental unit other than a county, city, town, township, village, or borough
下. governmental official, or an official of an agency established under an interstate compact
分. state or U.S. supreme court
入. local school district or board of education
人. U.S. Senate
功. U.S. senator
上. foreign nation or instrumentality
户. state or local governmental taxpayer, or executor of the estate of
为. state college or university
间. United States
号. State
取. person accused, indicted, or suspected of crime
回. advertising business or agency
在. agent, fiduciary, trustee, or executor
页. airplane manufacturer, or manufacturer of parts of airplanes
字. airline
有. distributor, importer, or exporter of alcoholic beverages
个. alien, person subject to a denaturalization proceeding, or one whose citizenship is revoked
作. American Medical Association
示. National Railroad Passenger Corp.
出. amusement establishment, or recreational facility
是. arrested person, or pretrial detainee
失. attorney, or person acting as such;includes bar applicant or law student, or law firm or bar association
表. author, copyright holder
除. bank, savings and loan, credit union, investment company
加. bankrupt person or business, or business in reorganization
败. establishment serving liquor by the glass, or package liquor store
生. water transportation, stevedore
信. bookstore, newsstand, printer, bindery, purveyor or distributor of books or magazines
类. brewery, distillery
置. broker, stock exchange, investment or securities firm
理. construction industry
本. bus or motorized passenger transportation vehicle
息. business, corporation
行. buyer, purchaser
定. cable TV
改. car dealer
市. person convicted of crime
期. tangible property, other than real estate, including contraband
以. chemical company
修. child, children, including adopted or illegitimate
元. religious organization, institution, or person
方. private club or facility
录. coal company or coal mine operator
区. computer business or manufacturer, hardware or software
单. consumer, consumer organization
位. creditor, including institution appearing as such; e.g., a finance company
型. person allegedly criminally insane or mentally incompetent to stand trial
法. defendant
县. debtor
存. real estate developer
品. disabled person or disability benefit claimant
前. distributor
称. person subject to selective service, including conscientious objector
注. drug manufacturer
值. druggist, pharmacist, pharmacy
输. employee, or job applicant, including beneficiaries of
建. employer-employee trust agreement, employee health and welfare fund, or multi-employer pension plan
能. electric equipment manufacturer
大. electric or hydroelectric power utility, power cooperative, or gas and electric company
例. eleemosynary institution or person
度. environmental organization
始. employer. If employer's relations with employees are governed by the nature of the employer's business (e.g., railroad, boat), rather than labor law generally, the more specific designation is used in place of Employer.
到. farmer, farm worker, or farm organization
面. father
载. female employee or job applicant
点. female
密. movie, play, pictorial representation, theatrical production, actor, or exhibitor or distributor of
动. fisherman or fishing company
果. food, meat packing, or processing company, stockyard
图. foreign (non-American) nongovernmental entity
提. franchiser
发. franchisee
式. lesbian, gay, bisexual, transexual person or organization
国. person who guarantees another's obligations
登. handicapped individual, or organization of devoted to
错. health organization or person, nursing home, medical clinic or laboratory, chiropractor
者. heir, or beneficiary, or person so claiming to be
认. hospital, medical center
误. husband, or ex-husband
接. involuntarily committed mental patient
关. Indian, including Indian tribe or nation
重. insurance company, or surety
第. inventor, patent assigner, trademark owner or holder
地. investor
如. injured person or legal entity, nonphysically and non-employment related
设. juvenile
目. government contractor
开. holder of a license or permit, or applicant therefor
事. magazine
可. male
要. medical or Medicaid claimant
代. medical supply or manufacturing co.
小. racial or ethnic minority employee or job applicant
选. minority female employee or job applicant
标. manufacturer
明. management, executive officer, or director, of business entity
编. military personnel, or dependent of, including reservist
求. mining company or miner, excluding coal, oil, or pipeline company
列. mother
网. auto manufacturer
万. newspaper, newsletter, journal of opinion, news service
最. radio and television network, except cable tv
器. nonprofit organization or business
所. nonresident
内. nuclear power plant or facility
体. owner, landlord, or claimant to ownership, fee interest, or possession of land as well as chattels
通. shareholders to whom a tender offer is made
务. tender offer
此. oil company, or natural gas producer
商. elderly person, or organization dedicated to the elderly
序. out of state noncriminal defendant
化. political action committee
消. parent or parents
否. parking lot or service
保. patient of a health professional
使. telephone, telecommunications, or telegraph company
次. physician, MD or DO, dentist, or medical society
机. public interest organization
对. physically injured person, including wrongful death, who is not an employee
量. pipe line company
查. package, luggage, container
部. political candidate, activist, committee, party, party member, organization, or elected official
性. indigent, needy, welfare recipient
和. indigent defendant
更. private person
后. prisoner, inmate of penal institution
证. professional organization, business, or person
题. probationer, or parolee
确. protester, demonstrator, picketer or pamphleteer (non-employment related), or non-indigent loiterer
格. public utility
了. publisher, publishing company
于. radio station
金. racial or ethnic minority
公. person or organization protesting racial or ethnic segregation or discrimination
午. racial or ethnic minority student or applicant for admission to an educational institution
円. realtor
片. journalist, columnist, member of the news media
空. resident
态. restaurant, food vendor
管. retarded person, or mental incompetent
主. retired or former employee
天. railroad
自. private school, college, or university
我. seller or vendor
全. shipper, including importer and exporter
今. shopping center, mall
来. spouse, or former spouse
正. stockholder, shareholder, or bondholder
说. retail business or outlet
意. student, or applicant for admission to an educational institution
送. taxpayer or executor of taxpayer's estate, federal only
容. tenant or lessee
已. theater, studio
结. forest products, lumber, or logging company
会. person traveling or wishing to travel abroad, or overseas travel agent
段. trucking company, or motor carrier
计. television station
源. union member
色. unemployed person or unemployment compensation applicant or claimant
時. union, labor organization, or official of
交. veteran
系. voter, prospective voter, elector, or a nonelective official seeking reapportionment or redistricting of legislative districts (POL)
过. wholesale trade
电. wife, or ex-wife
询. witness, or person under subpoena
符. network
未. slave
程. slave-owner
常. bank of the united states
条. timber company
当. u.s. job applicants or employees
情. Army and Air Force Exchange Service
口. Atomic Energy Commission
合. Secretary or administrative unit or personnel of the U.S. Air Force
车. Department or Secretary of Agriculture
实. Alien Property Custodian
组. Secretary or administrative unit or personnel of the U.S. Army
版. Board of Immigration Appeals
周. Bureau of Indian Affairs
址. Bonneville Power Administration
记. Benefits Review Board
二. Civil Aeronautics Board
同. Bureau of the Census
业. Central Intelligence Agency
权. Commodity Futures Trading Commission
其. Department or Secretary of Commerce
进. Comptroller of Currency
试. Consumer Product Safety Commission
验. Civil Rights Commission
料. Civil Service Commission, U.S.
传. Customs Service or Commissioner of Customs
述. Defense Base Closure and REalignment Commission
集. Drug Enforcement Agency
多. Department or Secretary of Defense (and Department or Secretary of War)
无. Department or Secretary of Energy
员. Department or Secretary of the Interior
报. Department of Justice or Attorney General
他. Department or Secretary of State
無. Department or Secretary of Transportation
服. Department or Secretary of Education
线. U.S. Employees' Compensation Commission, or Commissioner
这. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
制. Environmental Protection Agency or Administrator
将. Federal Aviation Agency or Administration
处. Federal Bureau of Investigation or Director
高. Federal Bureau of Prisons
子. Farm Credit Administration
道. Federal Communications Commission (including a predecessor, Federal Radio Commission)
章. Federal Credit Union Administration
手. Food and Drug Administration
库. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
三. Federal Energy Administration
从. Federal Election Commission
支. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
家. Federal Housing Administration
长. Federal Home Loan Bank Board
付. Federal Labor Relations Authority
秒. Federal Maritime Board
路. Federal Maritime Commission
完. Farmers Home Administration
象. Federal Parole Board
则. Federal Power Commission
现. Federal Railroad Administration
京. Federal Reserve Board of Governors
转. Federal Reserve System
辑. Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation
限. Federal Trade Commission
力. Federal Works Administration, or Administrator
学. General Accounting Office
外. Comptroller General
调. General Services Administration
项. Department or Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare
北. Department or Secretary of Health and Human Services
工. Department or Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
笑. Interstate Commerce Commission
监. Indian Claims Commission
任. Immigration and Naturalization Service, or Director of, or District Director of, or Immigration and Naturalization Enforcement
相. Internal Revenue Service, Collector, Commissioner, or District Director of
微. Information Security Oversight Office
册. Department or Secretary of Labor
联. Loyalty Review Board
平. Legal Services Corporation
增. Merit Systems Protection Board
听. Multistate Tax Commission
解. National Aeronautics and Space Administration
等. Secretary or administrative unit of the U.S. Navy
得. National Credit Union Administration
收. National Endowment for the Arts
安. National Enforcement Commission
价. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
藏. National Labor Relations Board, or regional office or officer
命. National Mediation Board
应. National Railroad Adjustment Board
看. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
索. National Security Agency
资. Office of Economic Opportunity
产. Office of Management and Budget
串. Office of Price Administration, or Price Administrator
布. Office of Personnel Management
原. Occupational Safety and Health Administration
知. Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission
级. Office of Workers' Compensation Programs
水. Patent Office, or Commissioner of, or Board of Appeals of
击. Pay Board (established under the Economic Stabilization Act of 1970)
好. Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation
物. U.S. Public Health Service
放. Postal Rate Commission
亿. Provider Reimbursement Review Board
经. Renegotiation Board
模. Railroad Adjustment Board
之. Railroad Retirement Board
台. Subversive Activities Control Board
州. Small Business Administration
配. Securities and Exchange Commission
画. Social Security Administration or Commissioner
统. Selective Service System
共. Department or Secretary of the Treasury
连. Tennessee Valley Authority
海. United States Forest Service
节. United States Parole Commission
退. Postal Service and Post Office, or Postmaster General, or Postmaster
間. United States Sentencing Commission
比. Veterans' Administration
问. War Production Board
至. Wage Stabilization Board
备. General Land Office of Commissioners
你. Transportation Security Administration
黑. Surface Transportation Board
或. U.S. Shipping Board Emergency Fleet Corp.
与. Reconstruction Finance Corp.
影. Department or Secretary of Homeland Security
话. Unidentifiable
视. International Entity
Answer:

Answer: 支