Notice of Issuance of Decisions and Orders During the Week of April 28 Through May 2, 1997

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Office of Hearings and Appeals

Notice of Issuance of Decisions and Orders During the Week of

April 28 Through May 2, 1997

During the week of April 28 through May 2, 1997, 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: May 21, 1997.

George B. Breznay,

Director, Office of Hearings and Appeals.

Decision List No. 31

Personnel Security Hearings

Personnel Security Hearing, 4/30/97, VSO-0121

An Office of Hearings and Appeals Hearing Officer issued an opinion

regarding the eligibility of an individual employed by a contractor at

a DOE facility to maintain an access authorization under the provisions

of 10 C.F.R. Part 710. The individual's access authorization had been

suspended because the individual had used crack cocaine extensively

over a seven year period, drank alcohol to the point of abuse, and

falsified information on a Questionnaire for Sensitive Positions. The

Hearing Officer found that the individual failed to present any

evidence to mitigate the concerns raised by the DOE with respect to the

individual's drug use, alcohol abuse, and falsification. The Hearing

Officer also opined that the individual had not presented any

mitigating evidence to demonstrate he had not engaged in conduct that

tends to show he is not honest, reliable, or trustworthy. Accordingly,

the Hearing Officer recommended that the individual's access

authorization not be restored.

Personnel Security Hearing, 5/1/97, VSO-0126

An OHA Hearing Officer issued an Opinion regarding the eligibility

of an individual to maintain his access authorization under the

provisions of 10 C.F.R. Part 710. After considering the testimony

presented at the hearing and the record, the Hearing Officer found that

the individual used an illegal drug, cocaine, deliberately provided

false information to DOE Security Officials, and violated his DOE Drug

Certification. These findings were based on the individual's positive

drug test. Accordingly, the Hearing Officer recommended that the

individual's access authorization not be restored.

Personnel Security Hearing, 5/2/97, VSO-0122

A Hearing Officer issued an Opinion regarding the eligibility of an

individual to maintain an access authorization under the provisions of

10 C.F.R. Part 710. The respondent was alleged to be unreliable based

upon his frequent misuse over a period of three years of his office

computer to view adult material on the internet. A psychiatrist

testified that the individual felt compelled to view adult material in

part because of marital stresses. Since the respondent lost his job

three years ago as a result of this activity, he and his wife have

resolved the most serious of their marital problems. Consequently, the

motivating force behind his conduct has been removed. In addition, he

has been open with his coworkers about what he did and its consequences

and has admonished them to avoid misusing office equipment. Under these

circumstances, the Hearing Officer found that the respondent should be

granted an access authorization.

Supplemental Order

Benton County, Washington, Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste

Management, 4/30/97, VPX-0011

The Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA) issued a Supplemental

Order adopting the Joint Stipulation filed on April 30, 1997 by Benton

County, Washington and the Department of Energy, through its Office of

Civilian Radioactive Waste Management. The Stipulation embodies the

parties' agreement to settle any and all disputes

[[Page 29343]]

concerning DOE's liability to Benton County for ``payments-equal-to-

taxes'' (PETT) under the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, as amended

(NWPA). The Supplemental Order and the incorporated Stipulation shall

have the same force and effect as if the Order had been entered without

a Stipulation and after a hearing in this matter. Since this matter has

been settled by the Stipulation, the appeal previously filed by Benton

County on November 4, 1993, OHA Case No. LPA-0001, was dismissed with

prejudice.

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.

AIR SIAM NO. 1........................................... RG272-609 5/1/97

AIR SIAM NO. 2........................................... RG272-610

APEX OIL CO/CLARK OIL CO/ET AL/NGL SUPPLY, INC........... RF342-305 4/30/97

MRS. CARL SCHROEDER JR. ET AL............................ RK272-01402 4/28/97

SOUTHWEST RESEARCH INSTITUTE ET AL....................... RF272-98706 5/1/97

TIMBOCS SERVICE STATION.................................. RK272-3350 4/30/97

YANGMING MARINE TRANSPORT................................ RG272-413 5/1/97

Dismissals

The following submissions were dismissed:

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Name Case No.

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CATOOSA COUNTY............................... RF272-98779

HIGHTOWERS APTS./PEABODY CORP................ RK272-03825

MAIERS MOTOR FREIGHT......................... RK272-04121

MATERIALS TRANSPORT SERVICE.................. RK272-03659

PERSONNEL SECURITY HEARING................... VSO-0144

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[FR Doc. 97-14166 Filed 5-29-97; 8:45 am]

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