31-005 Code Vt. R. 31-000-005-X
Preamble
Adequate supplies of fuel are essential to the health, welfare and safety of the people of Vermont; any severe disruption in fuel supplied for use within the state would cause grave hardship and pose a threat to the health and economic wellbeing [well-being] of the people of the state; such interruptions should be responded to by reliance to the greatest extent practicable on the free market system; and that temporary and concurrent state authority for a fuel setaside program should be in place as the federal government terminates, suspends or fails to implement all or part of the federal program.
In response to the needs enumerated above, the 1981 adjourned session of the Vermont General Assembly passed Public Act 162 which was signed into law by Governor Richard A. Snelling on April 15, 1982.
The Vermont Emergency Petroleum Set-Aside Act requires the VSEO to establish and maintain a standby petroleum set-aside program for use during an energy emergency; specifying the maximum set-aside percentage level for each type of fuel; specifying the activities for which set-aside fuel can be made available; authorizing the VSEO to collect certain information from prime suppliers during an energy emergency; requiring suppliers to provide set-aside product to applicants as authorized by the VSEO; providing for procedures for appealing actions of the VSEO related to the set-aside program during an energy emergency; authorizing the VSEO to require prime suppliers to release set-aside product into an area which has been designated by the Governor as suffering from an intrastate supply imbalance; requiring any state set-aside program to be consistent with a federal set-aside program if one is in effect; providing for certain penalties; providing that these regulations terminate on July 1, 1984; and relating generally to the establishment of a standby emergency petroleum set-aside.
Definitions as used in these regulations:
"Assignment" means a written authorization by the VSEO ordering that a specified purchaser be supplied state set-aside product by a specified prime supplier.
"Agricultural Production" means activities for the commercial production of food, including farming, dairying, and fishing, and related support services.
"Base Period" The base period will cover the most recent 12 month period prior to the month in which the set-aside is activated, e.g., if the state set-aside were activated in May of 1982 the base period would be for the period May 1981 through April 1982.
"Consumer" means any individual, trustee, agency, partnership, association, corporation, company, municipality, political subdivision or other legal entity which purchases liquid fossil fuels for ultimate consumption within Vermont.
"Cross Branding/Commingling" means petroleum products with one brand label/logo delivered into tanks at locations displaying another brand label/logo by prime suppliers and wholesale purchaser resellers who are ordered to do so by the Director of the VSEO.
"Director" means the director of the Vermont State Energy Office.
"Distributor" means any individual, trustee, agency, partnership, association, corporation, company, municipality, political subdivision or other legal entity which purchases or markets liquid fossil fuels from a prime supplier or any other source and resells those fuels to consumers within Vermont.
"Emergency Care Facilities" means public or private buildings used to lodge and care for individuals whose place of lodging are rendered uninhabitable due to an energy supply disruption.
"Emergency Services" means but is not limited to law enforcement, fire fighting, emergency road services, emergency medical services.
" End-User" means any firm which is an ultimate consumer of an allocated product other than a Wholesale Purchaser-Consumer.
"Energy Production" means but is not limited to the processing, production, and distribution of energy resources including solar energy, fuel produced from any organic material (including wood, wastes, petroleum, coal, and natural gas), geothermal, nuclear energy and electrical energy.
"Hardship" means a situation involving or potentially involving substantial discomfort or danger and or economic dislocation caused by a shortage of a petroleum product.
"Health Care Facility" means usage by public or private social services agencies which operate programs for the provision of essential health and welfare service.
"Liquid Fossil Fuel" means heating oils, light and heavy diesel oil, motor gasoline, propane, butane, residual fuel oils, kerosene and aviation fuels.
"Passenger Transportation Services" means publicly and privately owned air, marine and surface operations for transporting the general public; bus transportation of pupils to and from schools; vanpooling; and including facilities necessary to support such operations.
"Petroleum Products" means butane, propane (LPG), Gasoline (leaded, unleaded, premium and aviation), Kerosene (No. 1K, No. 2K, range oil and store oil), No. 2 Heating Oil (home heating oil), Diesel Fuel (No. 1D and No. 2D), Jet fuel (kerosene base), No. 4 Fuel Oil (including 4D) and Residual Fuel Oil (No. 5 and No. 5 fuel oil), as defined by ASTM.
"Petroleum Set-aside" means the amount of liquid fossil fuel which is made available from the total supply of a prime supplier for utilization by the State Energy Office pursuant to this chapter to resolve hardships and emergencies due to energy shortages.
"Prime Supplier" means any individual, trustee, agency, partnership, association, corporation, company, municipality, political subdivision or other legal entity which makes the first sale of any liquid fossil fuel into the state distribution system for consumption within the state.
"Public Utility" an enterprise engaged in the production, transmission or distribution of electricity or pipeline gas, (natural or propane) which is regulated by Vermont law.
"Purchaser" means a wholesale purchaser, and end user or both.
"Residential Use" means direct use in residential dwellings or churches or other place of worship for space heating, refrigeration, cooking, water heating and other residential uses.
"Shortfall" means the difference between supply and demand for a covered product.
"State Set-aside" means with respect to a particular state set-aside product, a particular time period, and a particular prime supplier, the state set-aside percentage level for that product applied to that prime supplier's total supply available for that time period which will be sold into the state distribution system for consumption within the state. (See also, Petroleum Set-aside.)
"Supplier" (See prime supplier).
"Supply Obligation" means a prime supplier's obligation to supply all wholesale purchaser-resellers and all wholesale purchaser consumers which purchased or obtained petroleum products from that supplier during the base period as defined above.
"Telecommunication Services" means the emergency or essential installation, repair, operation, and maintenance of voice, telegraph, video, and similar communication services to the public.
"VSEO" means the Vermont State Energy Office.
"Wholesale Purchaser-Consumer" means any firm that is an ultimate consumer which, as part of its normal business practices, purchases or obtains an allocated product from a prime supplier or wholesale purchaser-reseller and receives delivery of the product into a storage tank substantially under the control of that firm at a fixed location.
"Wholesale Purchaser-Reseller" means any firm which purchases, receives through transfer or otherwise obtains (as by consignment) an allocated product and resells or otherwise transfers it to other purchasers without substantially changing its form.
Purpose: The following procedures establish how to apply for an assignment under the state set-aside system.
Who May Apply
A prime supplier, a wholesale purchaser-reseller or a wholesale purchaser-consumer may apply for an assignment from the state set-aside system to meet a hardship or emergency requirement, or a wholesale purchaser-reseller may apply for an assignment to enable him to supply wholesale purchaser-consumers and end users. A prime supplier shall continue all supply obligation's during the period a petroleum set-aside is in effect.
What to File
Where to File
Applications for all types of assignments from the state set-aside shall be made to the Vermont State Energy Office, State Office Building, Montpelier, Vermont 05602. Area Code 802-828-2393.
Contents
With respect to verbal applications, the VSEO will establish internal procedures for the recording and verification of any information provided by an applicant. At a minimum, the information received by the VSEO is that required on form VSEO 1. Such information shall include, but not be limited to:
VSEO Evaluation
Decision and Order
Even if an order is appealed a prime supplier shall honor assignments on presentation, and shall not delay delivery while appealing such order to the VSEO.
The Director may direct that a wholesale purchaser-seller be supplied from the state set-aside in order that the wholesale purchaser-reseller can supply specified individual consumers who would not otherwise be eligible for an assignment. If the state set-aside volumes are not sufficient to satisfy all requests for assignments the VSEO may determine priorities for making assignments among the activities for which the request is made.
The Director shall require each prime supplier to designate a Primary representative and an alternate representative with full authority to act on behalf of the prime supplier with respect to state set-aside applications and assignments. The VSEO shall to the maximum extent feasible consult with a prime supplier's representative prior to issuing any authorizing document affecting the amount of state set-aside product to be provided by the prime supplier.
The state set-aside volumes for a particular month cannot be accumulated or deferred. The State set-aside shall be made available from stocks of prime suppliers, whether directly or through their normal distribution system prior to the end of the month for which the product is made available to the state set-aside.
Timeliness (Processing applications)
31-005 Code Vt. R. 31-000-005-X
AMENDED: December 2017 [Renumbered from 30 000 040]
STATUTORY AUTHORITY:
Statutory authority not provided.