[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 747 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 747

To amend title 49, United States Code, to promote rail competition, and 
                          for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 25, 1999

Mrs. Hutchison introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
   referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend title 49, United States Code, to promote rail competition, and 
                          for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Surface Transportation Board 
Reauthorization and Improvement Act of 1999''.

SEC. 2. PROMOTION OF COMPETITION WITHIN THE RAIL INDUSTRY.

    Section 10101 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by--
            (1) redesignating paragraphs (1) through (7) as paragraphs 
        (2) through (8);
            (2) inserting before paragraph (2), as redesignated, the 
        following:
            ``(1) to encourage and promote effective competition within 
        the rail industry;'';
            (3) striking ``revenues,'' in paragraph (4), as 
        redesignated, and inserting ``revenues to ensure appropriate 
        rail infrastructure,'';
            (4) redesignating paragraphs (8) through (15) as paragraphs 
        (10) through (17); and
            (5) inserting before paragraph (10), as redesignated, the 
        following:
            ``(9) to discourage artificial barriers to interchange and 
        car supply which can impede competition between shortline, 
        regional, and Class I carriers and block effective rail service 
        to shippers;''.

SEC. 3. EXTENSION OF TIME LIMIT ON EMERGENCY SERVICE ORDERS.

    Section 11123 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by--
            (1) striking ``30'' in subsection (a) and inserting ``60'';
            (2) striking ``30'' in subsection (c)(1) and inserting 
        ``60''; and
            (3) adding at the end of subsection (c) the following:
            ``(4) The Board may provide up to 2 extensions, totalling 
        not more than 180 days, of the 240-day period under paragraph 
        (1).''

SEC. 4. PROCEDURAL RELIEF FOR SMALL RATE CASES.

    (a) Discovery Limited.--Section 10701(d) of title 49, United States 
Code, is amended by--
            (1) inserting ``(A)'' in paragraph (3) before ``The 
        Board''; and
            (2) adding at the end thereof the following:
                    ``(B) Unless the Board finds that there is a 
                compelling need to permit discovery in a particular 
                proceeding, discovery shall not be permitted in a 
                proceeding handled under the guidelines established 
                under subparagraph (A).''.
    (b) Administrative Relief.--Not later than 180 days after the date 
of enactment of this Act, the Surface Transportation Board shall--
            (1) review the rules and procedures applicable to rate 
        complaints and other complaints filed with the Board by small 
        shippers;
            (2) identify any such rules or procedures that are unduly 
        burdensome to small shippers; and
            (3) take such action, including rulemaking, as is 
        appropriate to reduce or eliminate the aspects of the rules and 
        procedures that the Board determines under paragraph (2) to be 
        unduly burdensome to small shippers.
    (c) Legislative Relief.--The Board shall notify the Committee on 
Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee 
on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives if 
the Board determines that additional changes in the rules and 
procedures described in subsection (b) are appropriate and require 
commensurate changes in statutory law. In making that notification, the 
Board shall make recommendations concerning those changes.

SEC. 5. CODIFICATION OF MARKET DOMINANCE RELIEF.

    Section 10707(d)(1)(A) of title 49, United States Code, is amended 
by adding at the end thereof the following: ``In making a determination 
under this section, the Board may not consider evidence of product or 
geographic competition.''.

SEC. 6. RAIL REVENUE ADEQUACY DETERMINATIONS.

    (a) Section 10101(3) of title 49, United States Code, is amended by 
striking ``revenues, as determined by the Board;'' and inserting 
``revenues;''.
    (b) Section 10701(d)(2) of title 49, United States Code, is amended 
by striking ``revenues, as established by the Board under section 
10704(a)(2) of this title.'' and inserting ``revenues.''.
    (c) Section 10701(d) of title 49, United States Code, is amended by 
adding at the end thereof the following:
            ``(4) To facilitate the process by which the Board gives 
        due consideration to the policy that rail carriers shall earn 
        adequate revenues, the Board shall convene a 3-member panel of 
        outside experts to make recommendations as to an appropriate 
        methodology by which the adequacy of a carrier's revenues 
        should be considered. The panel shall issue a report containing 
        its recommendations within 270 days after the date of enactment 
        of the Surface Transportation Board Amendments of 1999.''.

SEC. 7. BOTTLENECK RATES.

    (a) Through Routes.--Section 10703 of title 49, United States Code, 
is amended--
            (1) inserting ``(a) In General.--'' before ``Rail 
        carriers''; and
            (2) adding at the end thereof the following:
    ``(b) Connecting Carriers.--When a shipper and rail carrier enter 
into a contract under section 10709 for transportation that would 
require a through route with a connecting carrier and there is no 
reasonable alternative route that could be constructed without 
participation of that connecting carrier, the connecting carrier shall, 
upon request, establish a through route and a rate that can be used in 
conjunction with transportation provided pursuant to the contract, 
unless the connecting carrier shows that--
            ``(1) the interchange requested is not operationally 
        feasible; or
            ``(2) the through route would significantly impair the 
        connecting carrier's ability to serve its other traffic. The 
        connecting carrier shall establish a rate and through route 
        within 21 days unless the Board has made a determination that 
        the connecting carrier is likely to prevail in its claim under 
        paragraph (1) or (2).''.
    (b) Board's Authority To Prescribe Division of Joint Rates.--
Section 10705(b) of title 49, United States Code, is amended by 
striking ``The Board shall'' and inserting ``Except as provided in 
section 10703(b), the Board shall''.
    (c) Complaints.--Section 11701 of title 49, United States Code, is 
amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection (d); and
            (2) by inserting after subsection (b) the following:
    ``(c) Where transportation over a portion of a through route is 
governed by a contract under section 10709, a rate complaint must be 
limited to the rates that apply to the portion of the through route not 
governed by such a contract.''.

SEC. 8. SIMPLIFIED DISPUTE RESOLUTION.

    Within 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Surface Transportation Board shall promulgate regulations adopting a 
simplified dispute resolution mechanism with the following features:
            (1) In general.--The simplified dispute resolution 
        mechanism will utilize expedited arbitration with a minimum of 
        discovery and may be used to decide disputes between parties 
        involving any matter subject to the jurisdiction of the Board, 
        other than rate reasonableness cases that would be decided 
        under constrained market pricing principles.
            (2) Applicable standards.--Arbitrators will apply existing 
        legal standards.
            (3) Mandatory if requested.--Use of the simplified dispute 
        resolution mechanism is required whenever at least one party to 
        the dispute requests.
            (4) 90-day turnaround.--Arbitrators will issue their 
        decisions within 90 days after being appointed.
            (5) Payment of costs.--Each party will pay its own costs, 
        and the costs of the arbitration and other administrative costs 
        of arbitration will be shared equally between and among the 
        parties.
            (6) Decisions private; not precedential.--Except as 
        otherwise provided by the Board, decisions will remain private 
        and will not constitute binding precedent.
            (7) Decisions binding and enforceable.--Except as otherwise 
        provided in paragraph (8), decisions will be binding and 
        enforceable by the Board.
            (8) Right to appeal.--Any party will have an unqualified 
        right to appeal any decision to the Board, in which case the 
        Board will decide the matter de novo. In making its decision, 
        the Board may consider the decision of the arbitrator and any 
        evidence and other material developed during the arbitration.
            (9) Mutual modification.--Any procedure or regulation 
        adopted by the Board with respect to the simplified dispute 
        resolution may be modified or eliminated by mutual agreement of 
        all parties to the dispute.

SEC. 9. PROMOTION OF COMPETITIVE RAIL SERVICE OPTIONS.

    Section 11324 of title 49, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) by striking ``and'' in paragraph (4) of subsection (b);
            (2) by striking ``system.'' in paragraph (5) of subsection 
        (b) and inserting ``system; and'';
            (3) by adding at the end of subsection (b) the following:
            ``(6) means and methods to encourage and expand competition 
        between and among rail carriers in the affected region or the 
        national rail system.''; and
            (4) by inserting after the second sentence in subsection 
        (c) the following: ``The Board may impose conditions to 
        encourage and expand competition between and among rail 
        carriers in the affected region or the national rail system, if 
        such conditions do not cause substantial harm to the benefits 
        of the transaction to the affected carriers or the public.''.

SEC. 10. CLARIFICATION OF STB AUTHORITY TO GRANT TEMPORARY ACCESS 
              RELIEF.

    (a) Section 10705 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by 
adding at the end thereof the following:
    ``(d) The Board may grant temporary relief under this section when 
the Board finds it necessary and appropriate to do so to remedy 
inadequate service. The authority provided in this section is in 
addition to the authority of the Board to provide temporary relief 
under sections 11102 and 11123 of this title.''.
    (b) Section 11102 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by 
adding at the end thereof the following:
    ``(e) The Board may grant temporary relief under subsections (a) 
and (c) when the Board finds it necessary and appropriate to do so to 
remedy inadequate service. The authority provided in this section is in 
addition to the authority of the Board to provide temporary relief 
under sections 10705 and 11123 of this title.''.
    (c) Section 11123 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by 
adding at the end thereof the following:
    ``(e) The authority provided in this section is in addition to the 
authority of the Board to provide temporary relief under sections 10705 
and 11102 of this title.''.

SEC. 11. HOUSEHOLD GOODS COLLECTIVE ACTIVITIES.

    Section 13703(d) of title 49, United States Code,

is amended by inserting ``(other than an agreement affecting only the 
transportation of household goods, as defined on December 31, 1995)'' 
after ``agreement'' in the first sentence.

SEC. 12. AUTHORIZATION LEVELS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to the Surface 
Transportation Board $16,000,000 for fiscal year 1999, $17,000,000 for 
fiscal year 2000, $17,555,000 for fiscal year 2001, and $18,129,000 for 
fiscal year 2002.

SEC. 13. CHAIRMAN DESIGNATED WITH SENATE CONFIRMATION.

    Section 701(c)(1) of title 49, United States Code, is amended by 
striking ``President'' and inserting ``President, by and with the 
advice and consent of the Senate,''.
                                 <all>