[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 108 (Friday, June 5, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Page 32203]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-13794]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board

[Docket No. FD 35933]


Watco Holdings, Inc.--Continuance in Control Exemption--Lubbock 
and Western Railway, L.L.C.

    Watco Holdings, Inc. (Watco), a noncarrier, has filed a verified 
notice of exemption pursuant to 49 CFR 1180.2(d)(2) to continue in 
control of Lubbock and Western Railway, L.L.C. (LWR), upon LWR's 
becoming a Class III rail carrier. Watco owns, indirectly, 100 percent 
of the issued and outstanding stock of LWR, a limited liability 
company.
    This transaction is related to a concurrently filed verified notice 
of exemption in Lubbock & Western Railway--Acquisition & Operation 
Exemption--West Texas & Lubbock Railway, Docket No. FD 35932, wherein 
LWR seeks Board approval (1) to acquire and operate approximately 9.5 
miles of rail line and to lease approximately 134.75 miles of rail line 
from West Texas and Lubbock Railway Company, Inc., and West Texas and 
Lubbock Railroad Company, Inc. (WTLR), between specified points in 
Texas; and (2) to acquire by assignment approximately 5 miles of 
trackage rights that WTLR currently has over BNSF Railway Company's 
line between Canyon Jct., and Broadview, Tex.
    The transaction may be consummated on or after June 20, 2015, the 
effective date of the exemption (30 days after the notice of exemption 
was filed).
    Watco is a Kansas corporation that currently controls, indirectly, 
30 Class III rail carriers and one Class II rail carrier, collectively 
operating in 22 states. For a complete list of these rail carriers, and 
the states in which they operate, see Watco's notice of exemption filed 
on May 21, 2015. The notice is available on the Board's Web site at 
``www.stb.dot.gov.''
    Watco represents that: (1) The rail lines to be operated by LWR do 
not connect with any of the rail lines operated by the carriers in the 
Watco corporate family; (2) the continuance in control is not a part of 
a series of anticipated transactions that would result in such a 
connection; and (3) the transaction does not involve a Class I carrier. 
Therefore, the transaction is exempt from the prior approval 
requirements of 49 U.S.C. 11323. See 49 CFR 1180.2(d)(2).
    Watco states that the purpose of the transaction is to reduce 
overhead expenses, coordinate billing, maintenance, mechanical, and 
personnel policies and practices of its rail carrier subsidiaries, and 
thereby improve the overall efficiency of rail service provided by the 
railroads in the Watco corporate family.
    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. Because the transaction 
involves the control of one Class II and one or more Class III rail 
carriers, the transaction is subject to the labor protection 
requirements of 49 U.S.C. 11326(b) and Wisconsin Central Ltd.--
Acquisition Exemption--Lines of Union Pacific Railroad, 2 S.T.B. 218 
(1997).
    If the verified notice contains false or misleading information, 
the exemption is void ab initio. Petitions to revoke the exemption 
under 49 U.S.C. 10502(d) may be filed at any time. The filing of a 
petition to revoke will not automatically stay the effectiveness of the 
exemption. Petitions for stay must be filed by June 12, 2015 (at least 
seven days before the exemption becomes effective).
    An original and 10 copies of all pleadings, referring to Docket No. 
FD 35933, must be filed with the Surface Transportation Board, 395 E 
Street SW., Washington, DC 20423-0001. In addition, a copy of each 
pleading must be served on Karl Morell, 655 Fifteenth Street NW., Suite 
225, Washington, DC 20005.
    Board decisions and notices are available on our Web site at 
www.stb.dot.gov.

    Decided: June 2, 2015.

    By the Board, Rachel D. Campbell, Director, Office of 
Proceedings.
Brendetta S. Jones,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2015-13794 Filed 6-4-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4915-01-P