Decisions and orders,

[Federal Register: December 31, 1998 (Volume 63, Number 251)]

[Notices]

[Page 72307-72308]

From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

[DOCID:fr31de98-98]

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Office of Hearings and Appeals

Notice of Issuance of Decisions and Orders; Week of August 31 through September 4, 1998

During the week of August 31 through September 4, 1998, the decisions and orders summarized below were issued with respect to appeals, applications, petitions, or other requests filedwith 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, 950 L'Enfant Plaza, SW, Washington, DC, Monday through Friday, 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: December 22, 1998. George B. Breznay, Director, Office of Hearings and Appeals.

Department of Energy

Office of Hearings and Appeals

Washington, D.C. 20585-0107

Decision List No. 101, Week of August 31 through September 4, 1998

Appeals

Heart of America Northwest, 9/2/98, VFA-0435

Heart of America Northwest filedan Appeal from July 1, 1998 and July 7, 1998 determinations of the Director of the Office of External Affairs (Director) of the Department of Energy's (DOE) Richland Operations Office requesting copies of documents regarding various types of waste at the Hanford Site. In considering the Appeal, the DOE determined that the Director should not have withheld the name of a commercially available chemical product, but that the Director properly withheld other responsive information pursuant to Exemption 4. Accordingly, the DOE partially granted the Heart of America Northwest Appeal.

Scripps Institute of Oceanography, 9/2/98, VFA-0434

The Department of Energy (DOE) issued a Decision and Order (D&O) denying a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Appeal that was filedby Scripps Institute of Oceanography. In its Appeal, Scripps requested that we review a determination issued by the Federal Energy Technology Center that certain documents relating to the relationship between a DOE contractor and one of its subcontractors were exempt in their entirety from mandatory disclosure pursuant to Exemptions 4 and 7(A). In the Decision, the OHA found that the documents were voluntarily submitted for purposes of Exemption 4 and were thus confidential under the Critical Mass decision because they were customarily treated as confidential by the contractor. The documents were therefore properly withheld under Exemption 4. However, the OHA found that Exemption 7(A) was inapplicable because the documents were not compiled for law enforcement purposes, as that term is used in the Exemption.

William Payne, 9/3/98, VFA-0436

William Payne (Payne) filedan Appeal from a determination of the Department of Energy's (DOE) Albuquerque Operations Office requesting copies of documents related to contracts between a private company and Sandia National Laboratories, Los Alamos National Laboratories or DOE. DOE stated that the type of procurement files requested are not ``agency records'' and thus not subject to release under the FOIA. In considering the Appeal, the Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA) determined that the records requested were the property of the contractor and were not covered by the FOIA. Accordingly, the DOE denied Payne's Appeal.

Personnel Security

Personnel Security Hearing, 8/31/98, VSO-0203

An Office of Hearings and Appeals Hearing Officer recommended that the Personnel Security Division of the Department of Energy/Albuquerque Operations Office restore an

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individual's access authorization. After carefully examining the record of the proceeding, the Hearing Officer determined that the individual had demonstrated that he is sufficiently rehabilitated and reformed from his past alcohol dependence problem.

Refund Application

Oasis Petroleum Corporation/Kash N' Karry Food Stores, Inc., 9/2/98, RF348-1

The DOE issued a Decision and Order granting an Application for Refund filedby Kash n' Karry Food Stores, Inc., in the Oasis special refund proceeding. The DOE found that the Applicant made a reasonable demonstration that its predecesor, Lucky Stores, Inc., was injured by Oasis' violation of federal petroleum allocation regulations. The total refund amount granted to the applicant in this Decision is $537,869 (comprised of $394,724 in principal and $143,145 in interest).

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.

Ainsworth Van Lines, Inc. et al........................ RF272-85019

8/31/98 Atchison Casting Corp.................................. RK272-01565

9/2/98 Barton Brands, Ltd..................................... RK272-04299

9/2/98 Nordis A. Lindholm..................................... RK272-04828

9/2/98 Wal-Mac, Inc........................................... RK272-03957

9/2/98

Dismissals

The following submissions were dismissed.

Name

Case No.

Hydro Conduit Corp........................... RK272-04379 Ineel Research Bureau........................ VFA-0352 Kathy Cagle.................................. VFA-0437 L.G. Shartzer................................ RK272-01551 Personnel Security Hearing................... VSO-0225 Sarah L. Wicklund............................ RK272-04200 Wrenn Lumber Corp............................ RK272-01552 Vapor Corp................................... RK272-04776

[FR Doc. 98-34680Filed12-30-98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6450-01-P