Need To Revise Eligibility Criterion for One Natural Gas Price Category and Eliminate Backlog in Refund Control Work
RCED-83-3
Published: Aug 18, 1983. Publicly Released: Aug 18, 1983.
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Highlights
GAO conducted a follow-up review to assess the accuracy of natural gas well determinations for Natural Gas Policy Act incentive-priced categories to determine whether: (1) prices received by producers and ultimately paid by consumers are in agreement with the prices prescribed by the act; and (2) procedures are sufficient for making accurate pricing determinations.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Federal Energy Regulatory Commission | FERC should revise the Natural Gas Policy Act regulations to prohibit continued stripper status for wells with subsequent oil production exceeding its sliding-scale criterion. |
Closed – Not Implemented
FERC continues to disagree with this recommendation. GAO believes that it is still valid, but the benefits obtained and dim prospects of obtaining a change do not warrant further GAO work.
|
| Federal Energy Regulatory Commission | FERC should take timely and aggressive action to identify the actual size and type of backlog work and the procedural or staffing problems causing the backlog in the refund control program, and use this information to eliminate the backlog of refund reports and cases and keep case-load processing current through the end of Natural Gas Policy Act price controls. |
Closed – Implemented
According to cognizant FERC officials, recent initiatives, including procedural improvements, have resulted in a significant drop in the refund backlog from 10,000 on September 30, 1986, to about 6,000 on September 30, 1987. This drop was even greater thatn expected and FERC now estimates that the backlog will be completely under control by September 30, 1988.
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Gas resourcesIndependent regulatory commissionsNatural gasNatural gas pricesOil drillingOverpaymentsPrice regulationCrude oilStatistical dataConsumers