[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 94 (Monday, May 17, 1999)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 26723-26725]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-12334]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board

49 CFR Part 1244

[STB Ex Parte No. 385 (Sub-No. 4)]


Modification of the Carload Waybill Sample and Public Use File 
Regulations

AGENCY: Surface Transportation Board.

ACTION: Advance notice of proposed rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: The Surface Transportation Board (Board) solicits comments on 
modifications to the existing regulations at 49 CFR Part 1244 to 
require identification of contract movements in the annual Carload 
Waybill Sample (Waybill Sample), to establish procedures to ensure the 
confidentiality of contract revenue information in the Waybill Sample, 
and to limit the period during which the Waybill Sample will remain 
confidential.

DATES: Comments are due on July 1, 1999.


[[Page 26724]]


ADDRESSES: Send comments (an original and 10 copies) referring to STB 
Ex Parte No. 385 (Sub-No. 4) to: Surface Transportation Board, Office 
of the Secretary, Case Control Branch, 1925 K Street, NW, Washington, 
D.C. 20423-0001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: H. Jeff Warren, (202) 565-1533 or 
James A. Nash, (202) 525-1542. [Assistance for the hearing impaired is 
available through TDD services (202) 565-1695.]

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Railroads that annually terminate 4,500 or 
more carloads (or 5 percent of the carloads in any state) are required 
to report data, including revenues, on individual movements contained 
in a sampling of their traffic. This Waybill Sample is used for a 
variety of purposes by the Board, parties appearing before the agency 
and the public in general. Because of the widespread use of 
confidential transportation contracts in the railroad industry, 
1 the Waybill Sample reporting requirements must be tailored 
to ensure that the Board receives accurate data on contract movements 
for all carriers and, at the same time, that confidential information 
regarding those contracts is protected from public disclosure. In 
addition, the National Archives and Records Administration (Archives) 
recently indicated that it is interested in maintaining historic 
Waybill Sample records for future studies. To do so, the 
confidentiality of these records must expire at some time to allow for 
future public release.
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    \1\ The Association of American Railroads recently advised the 
General Accounting Office that 70% of rail traffic moves under 
contract.
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Proposed Procedures

    To enhance the usefulness of the Waybill Sample, both for ourselves 
and for other parties, and to facilitate the ability of the Archives to 
maintain historical records, we are considering several changes to our 
rules and procedures. First, all railroads would be required to 
identify (flag) those shipments in the Waybill Sample that are governed 
by transportation contracts. Second, railroads would be required to 
report the actual revenues for each such contract shipment, although an 
average revenue value would be substituted for the actual revenues to 
maintain the confidentiality of the contract rate information. These 
two changes would fulfill our need for more complete contract data, 
protect sensitive commercial contract rate information, and allow 
others to conduct accurate, broad-based economic studies. Third, the 
confidentiality of such Waybill Sample records would be limited to 20 
years.

1. Identification of Contract Shipments

    The majority of railroads already identify contract movements in 
the Waybill Sample and simply ``mask'' the contract revenue information 
using varying procedures to conceal the actual revenues earned on 
contract traffic. However, because some carriers do not flag contract 
movements, we are unable to develop complete information on contract 
traffic. The Board needs more accurate data to carry out statutorily 
mandated functions, to provide reports to Congress, and to perform 
internal studies of the rail industry. Thus, we need to revise our 
regulations to ensure that all carriers flag contract movements.
    There will be no impact on those carriers already flagging contract 
movements from the new proposed requirement, and these procedures may 
help safeguard commercially sensitive contract rate information for 
those carriers that do not now flag contract shipments and whose actual 
contract revenues may appear in the Waybill Sample. While we may be 
unaware that a particular movement is a contract shipment, competitors 
of the shipper or railroad might know that it is a contract movement. 
In such circumstances, disclosure of the actual unflagged contract rate 
may be at risk when Waybill Sample data is released to parties for use 
in individual proceedings before the Board. Thus, while some carriers 
may have to begin flagging contract shipments, the confidentiality of 
the contract rate should be better protected under our proposal to mask 
contract revenue information in a uniform manner.

2. Use of Average Revenue Figures

    The masking procedures currently used by some carriers make it 
impossible for outside parties to conduct accurate revenue based 
studies from the Waybill Sample data regardless of the level of 
aggregation. To provide a more useful method of masking all revenue 
information in the Waybill Sample, we suggest aggregating actual 
contract and non-contract revenue data, after which we would calculate 
an average revenue per ton-mile by Standard Transportation Commodity 
Code (STCC) class within broad geographic areas, such as the nine 
census regions. We would then use this average value to develop a 
revenue figure for each waybill by multiplying the average revenue per 
ton-mile by each movement's shipment tons and miles. The reported 
actual revenue in each Waybill Sample record would then be replaced by 
the average revenue number. Sensitive commercial contract information 
would be protected because we would not identify contract shipment and 
because actual revenue data would not be released. Nevertheless, the 
public could conduct accurate, broad-based economic studies because the 
average revenues would be accurate when aggregated to the appropriate 
level.
    Parties are asked to comment on our suggested masking methodology 
or to suggest other procedures that could be applied by us or the 
railroads to meet the same objectives. Comments should address the 
appropriate level of geographic aggregation and the appropriate level 
of STCC aggregation (two digit, four digit, etc.) to be used.

3. Waybill Confidentiality Time Limit

    Finally, we believe that it should be possible to limit 
confidential treatment of contract revenue information contained in the 
Waybill Sample to a 20-year period. The Archives is interested in 
maintaining the Waybill Sample records for future studies, much as the 
U.S. Census is maintained. However, in order for historic Waybill 
Sample records to be useful, a time period must be specified after 
which confidential data can be made public. It could be as little as 
ten years, or as much as one hundred years. (Census data is now made 
public after seventy years.) Because most rail contracts do not exceed 
a 20-year term, a 20-year confidentiality period may be adequate to 
protect commercially sensitive shipper and railroad data.

Scope of This Proceeding

    While we encourage all parties to comment on the areas we have 
discussed above, we are not soliciting comments in this proceeding on 
any other aspects of the collection, design, or release of the Waybill 
Sample or its associated Public Use Waybill file. Moreover, because no 
analysis of the Waybill Sample should be needed to comment on this 
Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, we do not plan to release 
Waybill Sample data in connection with this proceeding.
    This action will not significantly affect either the quality of the 
human environment or energy conservation.
    Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 605(b), we conclude preliminarily that our 
action will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial 
number of small entities within the meaning of the Regulatory 
Flexibility Act.

    Decided: May 10, 1999


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    By the Board, Chairman Morgan, Vice Chairman Clyburn, and 
Commissioner Burkes.
Vernon A. Williams,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 99-12334 Filed 5-14-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-00-P