[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 238 (Monday, December 12, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 77312-77314]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-31757]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board


Information Collection Activities

AGENCY: Surface Transportation Board, DOT.

ACTION: Notice and Request for Comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 
3501-3519 (PRA), the Surface Transportation Board (STB or Board) gives 
notice of its intent to seek from the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) approval of the information collections required from those 
seeking licensing authority under 49 U.S.C. 10901-03 and consolidation 
authority under 11323-26. Under these Title 49 provisions, rail 
carriers and non-carriers are required to file an application with the 
Board, or seek an exemption (through petition or notice) from the full 
application process under Sec.  10502, before they may construct, 
acquire, or operate a line of railroad; abandon or discontinue 
operations over a line of railroad; or consolidate their interests 
through a merger or common-control arrangement. The relevant 
information collections are described in more detail below.
    Comments are requested concerning: (1) The accuracy of the Board's 
burden estimates; (2) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity 
of the information collected; (3) ways to minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on the respondents, including the use of 
automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology, when appropriate; and (4) whether the collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the Board, including whether the collection has practical utility. 
Submitted comments will be summarized and included in the Board's 
request for OMB approval.

Description of Collections

    Title: Statutory Licensing and Consolidation Authority.
    OMB Control Number: 2140-00XX.
    STB Form Number: None.
    Type of Review: Existing collections in use without an OMB control 
number.
    Respondents: Rail carriers and non-carriers seeking statutory 
licensing or

[[Page 77313]]

consolidation authority or an exemption from filing an application for 
such authority.
    Number of Respondents: 106.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ In Fiscal Year (FY) 2011, there were 177 filings under 49 
U.S.C. 10901-03 and 11323-26. See Table--Number of Responses in FY 
2011. However, approximately 40% of the filings were additional 
filings submitted by railroads that had already submitted filings 
during the time period. Therefore, the number of respondents is 
approximately 40% less than the number of filings.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Frequency: On occasion.

                  Table--Number of Responses in FY 2011
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                             Number of
                                                           filings under
                     Type of filing                          49 U.S.C.
                                                           10901-03 and
                                                             11323-26
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Applications............................................               3
Petitions *.............................................              18
Notices *...............................................             156
------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Petitions for exemption and notices of exemption under Sec.   10502
  are permitted in lieu of an application.

    Total Burden Hours (annually including all respondents): 4,100 
hours (sum total of estimated hours per response X number of responses 
for each type of filing).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \2\ Because most respondents seek authority under the expedited 
exemption process, rather than the more burdensome application 
process, the sample size for applications filed under Sec. Sec.  
10901-03 and 11323-26 is small. For example, under these provisions, 
only 3 applications were filed with the Board during the FY 2011, 
and those applications were not representative of the larger 
applications filed with the Board in the past. Two of the 
applications were adverse abandonment applications, which are 
inherently limited in size, and the other one was a relatively small 
application submitted under Sec. Sec.  11323-26. For this reason, it 
is the agency's view that available survey data understates the 
substantial time and cost of the application process.

                   Table--Estimated Hours per Response
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                             Number of
                                                             hours per
                                                          response under
                     Type of filing                          49 U.S.C.
                                                           10901-03 and
                                                             11323-26
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Applications \2\........................................              31
Petitions *.............................................              58
Notices *...............................................              19
------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Petition for exemptions and notices of exemption under Sec.   10502
  are permitted in lieu of an application.

    Total ``Non-hour Burden'' Cost (such as filing fees): $669,950 (Sum 
of estimated ``non-hour burden'' cost per response x Number of 
Responses for each statutory section and type of filing).\3\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ Because filing fees may vary within a particular statutory 
section, an average filing fee was used (except for applications 
under Sec. Sec.  11323-26, where only minor transactions were filed 
in FY 2011).

                             Table--Estimated ``Non-Hour Burden'' Cost per Response
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
             Type of cost                  Sec.         Sec.         Sec.            Sec.  Sec.   11323-26
------------------------------------------10901--------10902--------10903---------------------------------------
Applications Filing Fees.............          N/A          N/A      $22,100  Major--$1,488,500.
                                                                              Significant--$297,700.
                                                                              Minor--$7,500.
Petitions* Filing Fees...............      $74,500          N/A        6,300  $6,600-$9,300.
Notices* Filing Fees.................        1,800       $1,800        3,600  $1,100-$2,400.
Other Costs (i.e., copying and                 450          450          450  $450.
 mailing).
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Petition for exemptions and notices of exemption under Sec.   10502 are permitted in lieu of an application.

    Needs and Uses: Under the Interstate Commerce Act, Public Law 104-
88, 109 Stat. 803 (1995), persons seeking to construct, acquire or 
operate a line of railroad and railroads seeking to abandon or to 
discontinue operations over a line of railroad or, in the case of two 
or more railroads, to consolidate their interests through merger or a 
common-control arrangement are required to file an application for 
prior approval and authority with the Board. See 49 U.S.C. 0901-03 and 
11323-26. Under 49 U.S.C. 10502, persons may seek an exemption from 
many of the application requirements of Sec. Sec.  10901-03 and 11323-
26 by filing with the Board a petition for exemption or notice of 
exemption in lieu of an application. The collection by the Board of 
these applications, petitions, and notices enables the Board to meet 
its statutory duty to regulate the referenced rail transactions. See 
Table--Statutory and Regulatory Provisions below.
    Retention Period: Information in these collections is maintained by 
Board for 10 years, after which it is transferred to the National 
Archives as permanent records.

DATES: Comments on this information collection should be submitted by 
February 13, 2011.

ADDRESSES: Direct all comments to Marilyn Levitt, Surface 
Transportation Board, 395 E Street SW., Washington, DC 20423-0001, or 
to [email protected]. When submitting comments, please refer to 
``Statutory Licensing and Consolidation Authority.''

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joe Dettmar at (202) 245-0395 or at 
[email protected]. Assistance for the hearing impaired is available 
through the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-(800) 877-
8339. Relevant STB regulations are referenced below and may be viewed 
on the STB's Web site under E-Library > Reference: STB Rules, <http://www.stb.dot.gov/stb/elibrary/ref_stbrules.html.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under Sec. Sec.  10901-03 and 11323-26, an 
application is required to seek authority under these sections, unless 
an applicant receives an exemption under 49 U.S.C. 10502. Respondents 
seeking such authority from the Board must submit certain information 
required under the Board's related regulations. The table below shows 
the statutory and regulatory provisions under which the Board requires 
the information collections that are the subject of this notice.

[[Page 77314]]



               Table--Statutory and Regulatory Provisions
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                       Statutory
      Certificate required             provision          Regulations
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Construct, Acquire, or Operate    49 U.S.C. 10901...  49 CFR part 1150.
 Railroad Lines.
Short Line purchases by Class II  49 U.S.C. 10902...  49 CFR 1150.41-45.
 and Class III Rail Carriers.
Abandonments and Discontinuances  49 U.S.C. 10903...  49 CFR part 1152.
Railroad Acquisitions, Trackage   49 U.S.C. 11323-26  49 CFR part 1180.
 Rights, and Leases.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Under the PRA, a Federal agency conducting or sponsoring a 
collection of information must display a currently valid OMB control 
number. A collection of information, which is defined in 44 U.S.C. 
3502(3) and 5 CFR 1320.3(c), includes agency requirements that persons 
submit reports, keep records, or provide information to the agency, 
third parties, or the public. Under Sec.  3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, 
Federal agencies are required to provide, prior to an agency's 
submitting a collection to OMB for approval, a 60-day notice and 
comment period through publication in the Federal Register concerning 
each proposed collection of information, including each proposed 
extension of an existing collection of information.

    Dated: December 7, 2011.
Jeffrey Herzig,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2011-31757 Filed 12-9-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-01-P