Minnesota Northern Railroad, Inc. (MNN), filed a verified notice of exemption under 49 CFR 1152 subpart F— Exempt Abandonments to abandon approximately 11.14 miles of rail line located in Norman and Polk Counties, Minn., extending from milepost 40.20 at approximately the north end of the Marsh River Bridge south of Shelly, Minn., to milepost 51.34 at approximately the north side of Golf Course Lane, north of Climax, Minn. (the Line). The Line traverses U.S. Postal Service Zip Codes 56523, 56568, and 56581. ( printed page 45314)

MNN has certified that: (1) no local freight traffic has moved over the Line during the past two years; (2) any overhead traffic can be rerouted over other lines; (3) no formal complaint filed by a user of rail service on the Line (or by a state or local government on behalf of such user) regarding cessation of service over the Line is pending with either the Surface Transportation Board (Board) or any U.S. District Court or has been decided in favor of a complainant within the two-year period prior to the filing of the notice; and (4) the requirements at 49 CFR 1105.7(b) and 1105.8(c) (notice of environmental and historic reports), 49 CFR 1105.12 (newspaper publication), and 49 CFR 1152.50(d)(1) (notice to government agencies) have been met.

As a condition to this exemption, any employee adversely affected by the abandonment shall be protected under Oregon Short Line Railroad—Abandonment Portion Goshen Branch Between Firth & Ammon, in Bingham & Bonneville Counties, Idaho, 360 I.C.C. 91 (1979). To address whether this condition adequately protects affected employees, a petition for partial revocation under 49 U.S.C. 10502(d) must be filed.

Provided no formal expression of intent to file an offer of financial assistance (OFA) has been received,^[1] this exemption will be effective on August 19, 2026, unless stayed pending reconsideration. Petitions to stay that do not involve environmental issues,^[2] formal expressions of intent to file an OFA under 49 CFR 1152.27(c)(2), and interim trail use/railbanking requests under 49 CFR 1152.29 must be filed by July 30, 2026.^[3] Petitions to reopen and requests for public use conditions under 49 CFR 1152.28 must be filed by August 10, 2026.

All pleadings, referring to Docket No. AB 497 (Sub No. 8X), must be filed with the Surface Transportation Board either via e-filing on the Board's website or in writing addressed to 395 E Street SW, Washington, DC 20423-0001. In addition, a copy of each pleading must be served on MNN's representative, Robert A. Wimbish, Fletcher & Sippel LLC, 29 N Wacker Drive, Suite 800, Chicago, IL 60606-3208.

If the verified notice contains false or misleading information, the exemption is void ab initio.

MNN has filed a combined environmental and historic report that addresses the potential effects, if any, of the abandonment on the environment and historic resources. OEA will issue a Draft Environmental Assessment (Draft EA) by July 24, 2026. The Draft EA will be available to interested persons on the Board's website, by writing to OEA, or by calling OEA at (202) 245-0294. If you require an accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act, please call (202) 245-0245. Comments on environmental or historic preservation matters must be filed within 15 days after the Draft EA becomes available to the public.

Environmental, historic preservation, public use, or trail use/railbanking conditions will be imposed, where appropriate, in a subsequent decision.

Pursuant to the provisions of 49 CFR 1152.29(e)(2), MNN shall file a notice of consummation with the Board to signify that it has exercised the authority granted and fully abandoned the Line. If consummation has not been effected by MNN's filing of a notice of consummation by July 20, 2027, and there are no legal or regulatory barriers to consummation, the authority to abandon will automatically expire.

Board decisions and notices are available at www.stb.gov.