[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 60 (Wednesday, March 27, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13567-13568]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-7422]



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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
[STB Finance Docket No. 32870] 1,2


David L. Durbano--Continuance in Control Exemption--Cimarron 
Valley Railroad, L.C.

    David L. Durbano (Applicant), a noncarrier, has filed a verified 
notice under 49 CFR 1180.2(d)(2) to continue in control of Cimarron 
Valley Railroad, L.C. (CVR), upon CVR's becoming a Class III rail 
carrier. Consummation was expected to occur on or shortly after 
February 23, 1996.

    \1\ The ICC Termination Act of 1995, Pub. L. No. 104-88, 109 
Stat. 803, which was enacted on December 29, 1995, and took effect 
on January 1, 1996, abolished the Interstate Commerce Commission 
(ICC) and transferred certain functions to the Surface 
Transportation Board (Board). This notice relates to functions that 
are subject to Board jurisdiction pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 11323.
    \2\ A notice in this proceeding was previously served by the 
Board and published in the Federal Register on March 4, 1996. A 
corrected notice is being issued because the earlier notice imposed 
labor protective conditions that the Board may no longer impose 
under the Act for transactions such as this one that are the subject 
of notices of exemption filed after the January 1, 1996 effective 
date of the Act.
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    CVR, a noncarrier, has concurrently filed a verified notice of 
exemption under 49 CFR 1150.31 in Cimarron Valley Railroad, L.C.--
Exemption to Acquire and Operate--Cimarron Valley and Manter Branches 
of The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Company, STB Finance 
Docket No. 32869, in which CVR seeks to acquire and operate 151.04 
miles of the Cimarron Valley Branch rail line and 103.83 miles of the 
Manter Branch rail line both of which are owned by The Atchison, Topeka 
and Santa Fe Railroad Company. CVR's acquisition of the rail lines was 
expected to have been

[[Page 13568]]

consummated on or shortly after February 23, 1996.
    Applicant controls four other Class III rail carriers: Wyoming and 
Colorado Railroad Company, Inc. (WYCO); Oregon Eastern Railroad 
Company, Inc. (OER); Arizona Central Railroad, Inc. (AZCR); and 
Southwestern Railroad Company, Inc. (SWR).
    The transaction is exempt from the prior approval requirements of 
49 U.S.C. 11323 [formerly section 11343] because Applicant states that: 
(1) CVR, WYCO, OER, AZCR, and SWR will not connect with each other; (2) 
the continuance in control is not part of a series of anticipated 
transactions that would connect the railroads with each other; and (3) 
the transaction does not involve a Class I carrier.
    Under 49 U.S.C. 10502(g), the Board may not use its exemption 
authority to relieve a rail carrier of its statutory obligation to 
protect the interests of its employees. Section 11326(c), however, does 
not provide for labor protection for transactions under sections 11324 
and 11325 that involve only Class III rail carriers. Because this 
transaction involves Class III rail carriers only, the Board, under the 
statute, may not impose labor protective conditions for this 
transaction.
    If the verified notice contains false or misleading information, 
the exemption is void ab initio. Petitions to reopen the proceeding to 
revoke the exemption under 49 U.S.C. 10502(d) [formerly section 
10505(d)] may be filed at any time. The filing of a petition to reopen 
will not automatically stay the transaction. An original and 10 copies 
of all pleadings, referring to STB Finance Docket No. 32870, must be 
filed with the Office of the Secretary, Surface Transportation Board, 
Case Control Branch, 1201 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 
20423. In addition, a copy of each pleading must be served on Walter T. 
Merrill, Durbano & Associates, 3340 Harrison Boulevard, Suite 200, 
Ogden, UT 84403.

    Decided: February 27, 1996.

    By the Board, David M. Konschnik, Director, Office of 
Proceedings.
Vernon A. Williams,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 96-7422 Filed 3-26-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-00-P