[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 228 (Wednesday, November 26, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66500-66501]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-29496]


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NATIONAL MEDIATION BOARD


Administration of National Railroad Adjustment Board Functions 
and Activities

AGENCY: National Mediation Board.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The National Mediation Board (NMB) extends an invitation to 
interested parties to attend an open meeting with the Board and its 
staff on Friday, December 19, 2003. The Board meeting will be held from 
1 p.m. until 5 p.m. The meeting will be held in the Margaret A. 
Browning Hearing Room (Room 11000), National Labor Relations Board, 
1099 14th St. NW, Washington, DC 20570. During the public meeting, the 
NMB invites interested persons to share their views on the issues 
raised in the Board's Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) 
concerning the administration of National Railroad Adjustment Board 
(NRAB) functions and activities (68 FR 46983, Aug. 7, 2003).

DATES: The meeting will be held on December 19, 2003, from 1 p.m. to 5 
p.m. Due to time and seating considerations, individuals desiring to

[[Page 66501]]

attend the meeting, or to make a presentation before the Board, must 
notify the NMB staff, in writing, no later than 4 pm on Thursday, 
December 11, 2003.

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will be held in the Margaret A. Browning 
Hearing Room, (Room 11000), National Labor Relations Board, 1099 14th 
St. NW, Washington, DC 20570. Requests to attend the meetings must be 
in writing, and must be addressed to Mr. Roland Watkins, Director of 
Arbitration/NRAB Administrator, National Mediation Board, 1301 K 
Street, NW, Suite 250--East, Washington, DC 20005. Attn: NMB Docket No. 
2003-01. Written requests may be sent electronically to the following 
e-mail address: [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Roland Watkins, Director of 
Arbitration/NRAB Administrator, National Mediation Board (telephone 
202-692-5057).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The National Mediation Board will hold an 
open public meeting on Friday, December 19, 2003 from 1 p.m. until 5 
p.m. The purpose of the public meeting will be to solicit the views of 
interested persons concerning the various topics and questions posed by 
the NMB in its ANPRM concerning the administration of National Railroad 
Adjustment Board (NRAB) functions and activities (68 FR 46983, Aug. 7, 
2003).
    Individuals desiring to attend the meeting must notify the NMB 
staff, in writing, at the above listed physical or e-mail address, by 
the deadline noted. If an individual desires to make a presentation to 
the Board at the meeting, he or she is required to submit a brief 
outline of the presentation when making the request. In addition, a 
full written statement must be submitted one week prior to the meeting 
(the deadline for this submission is Thursday, December 11, 2003 at 4 
p.m.). In lieu of making an oral presentation, individuals may submit a 
written statement for the record.
    To attend the meeting, all potential attendees must include in 
their request: (1) their full name and (2) organizational affiliation 
(if any). Attendees are also reminded to bring photo identification 
card with them to the public meeting in oreder to gain admittence to 
the building. Due to time and potential space limitations in the 
meeting room, the NMB will notify individuals of their attendance and/
or speaking status (i.e., preliminary time for their presentation) 
prior to the meeting. Time allocations for oral presentations will 
depend upon the number of individuals who desire to make presentations 
to the Board. Individuals should be prepared to summarize their written 
statements at the meeting.
    Agenda: The NMB, in particular, solicits presentations on the 
following questions that were posed in the ANPRM:
    Question One: If the NMB promulgates procedures for the 
administrative processing of NRAB cases in which the parties request 
that the Government compensate the neutral (``referee''), what should 
be the criteria or guidelines for these procedures?
    It has been suggested to the NMB, that a desirable goal is to have 
minor disputes resolved within one year of the filing of a Notice of 
Intent to File a Submission. At present, it is not uncommon for cases 
to remain unresolved for two years.
    Question Two: If a stated goal of any new procedures to be adopted 
by the NMB is to have the cases decided by an arbitrator within one 
year from the date of the filing of the Notice of Intent, what steps do 
you recommend comprise this procedure? Do you believe that a one year 
goal is reasonable? If not, why not?
    Question Three: If the parties do not agree to follow the 
procedures adopted by the NMB, should there be any adverse 
consequences? Should the parties have options with respects to these 
procedures? What would you recommend be the steps that comprise an 
efficient case resolution procedure?
    Question Four: What should happen to those cases that are still 
pending after one year in which the parties have not placed the cases 
before a Public Law Board, pursuant to 45 U.S.C. 153, Second? If the 
cases are placed before a Public Law Board, should a time limit be 
imposed for the resolution of those cases?
    At present, the NRAB has approximately 2,000 cases pending before 
it. Many of these cases arise out of the filing of multiple grievances 
by different parties for the same underlying set of facts.
    Question Five: In order to ensure the most efficient use of limited 
Government resources, should the NMB, in agreeing to pay for the 
appointment of an arbitrator (``referee'') require the consolidation of 
similar cases dealing with similar issues? If, in your view, case 
consolidation is a viable option for improving the resolution of cases, 
what should be the standards adopted for consolidation? What should the 
NMB do if the parties refuse to consolidate cases, when in the NMB's 
view, it would be appropriate to do otherwise?
    Question Six: As the goal of this initiative is to improve the 
processing of disputes before the NRAB, are there any other 
recommendations or suggestions that you would make to the NMB with 
regard to its statutory responsibilities for the administration of the 
NRAB?

Roland Watkins,
National Railroad Adjustment Board Administrator.
[FR Doc. 03-29496 Filed 11-25-03; 8:45 am]
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