The home heating oil industry has a long and proud history, and Fuel Oil News has been there supporting it since 1935. It is an industry that has faced many challenges during that time. In its 77th year, Fuel Oil News is doing more than just holding
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DA T E L INE must tighten its oversight of this vital pro- gram with great haste, because every dollar wasted is a dollar that will not be available to families who need assistance during these tough economic and budgetary times, and neither Pennsylvania govern- ment nor its citizens can continue to bear this type of wasteful spending." Other deficiencies noted by Wagner's special performance audit were: DPW failed to monitor data exchange information used to monitor recipient eligibility; DPW does not require county assistance offices to have written standard operating procedures for processing LIHEAP applications; and DPW failed to assess the adequacy of application processing, written procedures and con- trols at crisis contractors who authorized LIHEAP benefits. Wagner made 10 recommendations to address the deficiencies identified within LIHEAP that were noted in his special perfor- mance audit, including that DPW should: Terminate the use of the sole source contract as soon as permitted by the terms of the contract and shift the law firm's monitoring duties to DPW employees; contracts should be com- petitively bid and defined in detail; and the contract process should not be circumvented through a law firm to a subcontractor; Ensure that appropriate edit checks are developed immediately to detect irreg- ularities or potential fraud and abuse on applications submitted with similar addresses, names, and SSNs; Conduct additional monitoring proce- dures to look for fraudulent, suspicious, and questionable transactions includ- ing performing data analysis as well as comparing LIHEAP information to exchange data for applicants who are incarcerated, deceased, receiving high wages, etc.; Maintain detailed documentation to support justification of sole source pro- curement, payment of expenditures, and to substantiate services rendered; and • • • • • Strengthen the monitoring process by improving each monitor's documenta- tion, developing written procedures to follow-up on issues noted within the on-site monitoring process, and require that monitors' documentation of on-site monitoring be reviewed and approved by a supervisor. For the 2010-11 heating season, DPW provided LIHEAP grants to low-income households that met eligibility limits of 160 percent of federal poverty income guidelines, meaning a family of four earn- ing up to $35,280 can receive benefits. LIHEAP consists of cash benefits to help pay for home heating fuel; crisis payments to resolve emergencies; and energy con- servation and weatherization measures to address long-range solutions. Wagner's special performance audit report can be obtained at www.auditorgen.state.pa.us. MARATHON SPLIT FINAL Marathon Oil Corporation completed the spin-off of Marathon Petroleum Corp. on July 1, making Marathon Oil an indepen- dent upstream company. Marathon Oil has a strong and geographically diverse portfolio of assets leveraged to crude oil production. The company will continue to be based in Houston. "This is an exciting day and a major milestone in the nearly 125-year history of Marathon Oil Corporation," said Clarence P. Cazalot Jr., Marathon Oil's chairman, president and CEO. "As an independent upstream company, we have the capacity to perform at a higher level by focusing on strategic priorities while providing greater transparency for investors. Operationally, we're poised to capitalize on a broad base of opportunities by exhibiting the speed, agility and flexibility of an independent and retaining our proven ability to accom- plish large and technologically challenging projects. What isn't going to change is our focus on long-held core values of health and safety, environmental stewardship, honesty and integrity, corporate citizen- CALENDAR OF EVENTS OCTOBER The Granite Group's CONN State Expo Thursday, October 6 Marriott, 3-8 pm Mystic, CT Mike Mullaney at 603.545.3302 IOMA 2011 Tabletop Show October 12th DoubleTree Hotel Westborough Contact: Peter Romano, 508.548.7627 Romano@IOMANE.com JANUARY 2012 AHR EXPO Monday, January 23 – Wednesday, January 25 McCormick Place Convention Center Chicago, Illinois www.ahrexpo.com ship and a high performance team culture. Together, these attributes create the foun- dation for a strong, competitive company with a goal of continuing to deliver long- term value growth for our shareholders." With this change and effective July 1, Cazalot becomes chairman of the board of Marathon Oil Corp. in addition to his responsibilities as president and CEO. Additionally, David E. Roberts Jr. takes on the newly established role of executive vice president and chief operating officer. Janet F. Clark will continue in her role as executive vice president and chief financial officer. Also effective July 1, Marathon Oil has adopted a new corporate logo—an abstracted tri-color wave—that symbol- izes the momentum resulting from its exploration and production activity as well as the drive and innovation of the company's employees. Downstream, Marathon Petroleum Corp. headquartered in Findlay, Ohio, operates as the fifth largest crude oil refiner in the U.S. and the largest in the Midwest. Marathon brand gasoline is sold through 5,100 independently owned locations across 18 states. FUEL OIL NEWS (ISSN 0016-2396), Canada Publication Mail Agreement #1588621, is published monthly by Bev-Al Communications, Inc. 1030 W. Higgins Road, Suite 230, Park Ridge, Il 60068. Circulated free of charge to qualified individuals in the oil heating industry in the United States. Additional and/or personal copies are available on a paid subscription basis only. 1-year subscription rates: $28.00 USA. $40.00 Canada and Mexico via service postage. $90.00 other foreign countries via air-mail postage. Single copies: $8.00 U.S. via first-class postage. $12.00 other Canada/Mexico/Foreign via airmail postage. Payable in US currency. Periodicals postage paid at Park Ridge, IL and additional mailing offices. Copyright 2011 by Bev-Al Communications, Inc. Reproduction of any portion or portions of this publication is specifically prohibited without written consent. Postmaster: Send address changes to FUEL OIL NEWS, PO Box 4290, Port Jervis, NJ 12771. 4 SEPTEMBER 2011 | FUEL OIL NEWS | www.fueloilnews.com