83 FR 17210 - 60-Day Notice of Intent To Seek Extension of Approval and Merger of Collections: Statutory Authority To Preserve Rail Service

SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 75 (April 18, 2018)

As part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork burdens, and as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Surface Transportation Board (STB or Board) gives notice that it is requesting from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) an extension of approval for the information collections. The Board is also seeking approval to merge into this collection (OMB Control Number: 2140-0022) the collection of information about notifications of Trails Act agreement and substitute sponsorship (OMB Control Number: 2140-0017).

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 75 (Wednesday, April 18, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17210-17211]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2018-08095]


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SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD


60-Day Notice of Intent To Seek Extension of Approval and Merger 
of Collections: Statutory Authority To Preserve Rail Service

AGENCY: Surface Transportation Board.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: As part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork burdens, 
and as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Surface 
Transportation Board (STB or Board) gives notice that it is requesting 
from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) an extension of approval 
for the information collections. The Board is also seeking approval to 
merge into this collection (OMB Control Number: 2140-0022) the 
collection of information about notifications of Trails Act agreement 
and substitute sponsorship (OMB Control Number: 2140-0017).

DATES: Comments on this information collection should be submitted by 
June 18, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Direct all comments to Chris Oehrle, PRA Officer, Surface 
Transportation Board, 395 E Street SW, Washington, DC 20423-0001, or to 
[email protected]. When submitting comments, please refer to ``Paperwork 
Reduction Act Comments, Statutory Authority to Preserve Rail Service.''

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information regarding this 
collection, contact Michael Higgins, Deputy Director, Office of Public 
Assistance, Governmental Affairs, and Compliance at (202) 245-0284 or 
at [email protected]. [Assistance for the hearing impaired is 
available through the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-
800-877-8339.]

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Board currently collects information 
from those seeking statutory authority to preserve rail carrier service 
under OMB Control Number 2140-0022. The authority under OMB Control 
Number 2140-0022 includes the collection of information under the 
Trails Act and its regulations, such as the notifications of Trails Act 
agreement and substitute sponsorship, which is also addressed under OMB 
Control Number 2140-0017. This request proposes to combine collections 
under Control Numbers 2140-0017 and 2140-0022, with 2140-0022 being the 
survivor. The Board will request to discontinue Control Number 2140-
0017 upon OMB approval of the merger.
    Comments are requested concerning: (1) The accuracy of the Board's 
burden estimates; (2) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity 
of the information collected; (3) ways to minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on the respondents, including the use of 
automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology, when appropriate; and (4) whether the collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the Board, including whether the collection has practical utility. 
Submitted comments will be summarized and included in the Board's 
request for OMB approval.

Description of Collection 1

    Title: Statutory Authority to Preserve Rail Service.
    OMB Control Number: 2140-0022.
    STB Form Number: None.
    Type of Review: Extension without change.
    Respondents: Affected shippers, communities, or other interested 
persons seeking to preserve rail service over rail lines that are 
proposed or identified for abandonment, and railroads that are required 
to provide information to the offeror or applicant.
    Number of Respondents: 40.
    Frequency: On occasion.

                    Table--Number of Yearly Responses
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                              Number  of
                       Type of filing                           filings
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Offer of Financial Assistance...............................           1
OFA--Railroad Reply to Request for Information..............           1
OFA--Request To Set Terms and Conditions....................           1
Request for Public Use Condition............................           1
Feeder Line Application.....................................           5
Trail-Use Request...........................................          23
Trail-Use Request Extension.................................          84
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Total Burden Hours (annually including all respondents): 826 Hours 
(sum total of estimated hours per response x number of responses for 
each type of filing).

                   Table--Estimated Hours per Response
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                              Number of
                       Type of filing                         hours per
                                                               response
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Offer of Financial Assistance..............................           32
OFA--Railroad Reply to Request for Information.............           10
OFA--Request To Set Terms and Conditions...................            4
Request for Public Use Condition...........................            2
Feeder Line Application....................................           70
Trail-Use Request..........................................            4
Trail-Use Request Extension................................            4
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Total ``Non-hour Burden'' Cost: None identified. Filings may be 
submitted electronically to the Board.
    Needs and Uses: Under the ICC Termination Act of 1995, Public Law 
104-88, 109 Stat. 803 (1995), amended by the Surface Transportation 
Board Reauthorization Act of 2015, Public Law 114-110 (2015), and under 
Section 8(d) of the Trails Act, persons seeking to preserve rail 
service over a rail line that is in the process of being abandoned may 
file pleadings before the Board to

[[Page 17211]]

acquire or subsidize a rail line for continued service, or to impose a 
trail use/railbanking or public use condition.
    First, under 49 U.S.C. 10904, the filing of an ``Offer of Financial 
Assistance'' (OFA) starts a process of negotiations to define the 
financial assistance needed to purchase or subsidize the rail line 
sought for abandonment. Once the OFA is filed, the offeror may request 
additional information from the railroad, which the railroad must 
provide. If the parties cannot agree to the sale or subsidy, either 
party also may file a request for the Board to set the terms and 
conditions of the financial assistance. Or, under section 10905, a 
public use request allows the Board to impose a 180-day public use 
condition on the abandonment of a rail line, permitting the parties to 
negotiate a public use for the rail line. Alternatively, under section 
10907, a feeder line application provides the basis for authorizing an 
involuntary sale of a rail line.
    Finally, under the Trails Act and its regulations (49 CFR 1152.29), 
a trail-use request, if agreed upon by the abandoning carrier, requires 
the Board to condition the abandonment by issuing a Notice of Interim 
Trail Use (NITU) or Certificate of Interim Trail Use (CITU). The CITU/
NITU permits parties, for 180 days, to negotiate for an interim trail 
use/railbanking agreement for the rail line. If parties reach an 
agreement, the CITU/NITU automatically authorizes interim trail use/
railbanking, and the parties must notify the Board that they have 
reached an agreement. The interim trails use/railbanking preserves the 
rail corridor for possible future use as an active rail line again. If 
no agreement is reached, then upon expiration of the negotiation 
period, the CITU/NITU authorizes the railroad to exercise its option to 
fully abandon the line without further action by the Board.
    The collection by the Board of these offers, requests, and 
applications, and the railroad's replies (when required), enables the 
Board to meet its statutory duty to regulate the referenced rail 
transactions.

Description of Collection 2

    Title: Notifications of Trails Act Agreement and Substitute 
Sponsorship.
    OMB Control Number: 2140-0017.
    STB Form Number: None.
    Type of Review: Merger.
    Respondents: Rail carriers; parties to an interim trail use 
agreement; substitute trail sponsors; and state and local governments.
    Number of Respondents: 40.
    Estimated Time per Response: One hour.
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Total Burden Hours (annually including all respondents): 40 hours.
    Total ``Non-hour Burden'' Cost: None identified. Submissions may be 
submitted electronically to the Board.
    Needs and Uses: As described in ``Description of Collection 1'' 
above, the STB will issue a CITU or NITU to a prospective trail sponsor 
who seeks a trails use/railbanking agreement with the rail carrier of 
the rail line that is being abandoned. The CITU/NITU permits parties, 
for 180 days, to negotiate for a trails use/railbanking agreement. If 
parties reach an agreement, then, under 49 CFR 1152.29, they must 
jointly notify the Board of that fact and must identify the exact 
location of the right-of-way subject to the agreement, including a map 
and milepost marker information. The rules also require parties to file 
a petition to modify or vacate the CITU/NITU if the trail use/
railbanking agreement applies to less of the right-of-way than what is 
covered by the CITU/NITU. Finally, the rules require that a substitute 
trail sponsor must acknowledge that interim trail use is subject to 
restoration and reactivation at any time. The collection by the Board 
of this information enables the agency to ensure that the documentation 
for activities under the Trails Act remains current.
    The Board makes this submission because, under the PRA, a federal 
agency that conducts or sponsors a collection of information must 
display a currently valid OMB control number. The Board also notes that 
it will be seeking approval to merge the two related collections, as 
described above. A collection of information, which is defined in 44 
U.S.C. 3502(3) and 5 CFR 1320.3(c), includes agency requirements that 
persons submit reports, keep records, or provide information to the 
agency, third parties, or the public. Under 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A), 
federal agencies are required to provide, prior to an agency's 
submitting a collection to OMB for approval, a 60-day notice and 
comment period through publication in the Federal Register concerning 
each proposed collection of information, including each proposed 
extension of an existing collection of information.

    Dated: April 13, 2018.
Jeffrey Herzig,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2018-08095 Filed 4-17-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4915-01-P