[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 128 (Monday, July 6, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38508-38509]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-16447]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board


Information Collection Activities: Statutory Licensing and 
Consolidation Authority

AGENCY: Surface Transportation Board, DOT.

ACTION: 60-day notice and request for comments.

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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) an extension of approval for the information collections required 
from those seeking licensing authority under 49 U.S.C. 10901-03 and 
consolidation authority under Sec. Sec.  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: The accuracy of the Board's 
burden estimates; ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of 
the information collected; 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 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: 2140-0023.
    STB Form Number: None.
    Type of Review: Extension without change.
    Respondents: Rail carriers and non-carriers seeking statutory 
licensing or consolidation authority or an exemption from filing an 
application for such authority.
    Number of Respondents: 64.\1\
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    \1\ 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 (64) is 
approximately 40% less than the number of filings (106).
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    Frequency: On occasion.

                  Table--Number of Responses in FY 2011
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                                                       Number of filings
                                                        under 49 U.S.C.
                    Type of filing                        10901-03 and
                                                            11323-26
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Applications.........................................                  2
Petitions *..........................................                 18
Notices *............................................                103
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* Under Sec.   10502, petitions for exemption and notices of exemption
  are permitted in lieu of an application.

    Total Burden Hours (annually including all respondents): 4,049 
hours (sum total of estimated hours per response x number of responses 
for each type of filing).

[[Page 38509]]



                   Table--Estimated Hours per Response
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                        Number of hours
                                                          per response
                    Type of filing                      under 49 U.S.C.
                                                          10901-03 and
                                                            11323-26
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Applications.........................................                524
Petitions *..........................................                 58
Notices *............................................                19
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* Under Sec.   10502, petition for exemptions and notices of exemption
  are permitted in lieu of an application.

    Total ``Non-hour Burden'' Cost (such as filing fees): None 
identified. Filings are submitted electronically to the Board.
    Needs and Uses: Under the Interstate Commerce Act, as amended by 
the ICC Termination Act of 1995, 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. 10901-03 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 
September 4, 2015.

ADDRESSES: Direct all comments to Chris Oehrle, 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 
regarding this collection, contact [email protected] or Chris Oehrle at 
(202) 245-0271. [Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) for the 
hearing impaired: (800) 877-8339.] Filings made in responses to this 
collection are available on the Board's Web site at www.stb.dot.gov.

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.

                                  Table--Statutory and Regulatory Provisions *
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         Certificate required                   Statutory  provision                     Regulations
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Construct, Acquire, or Operate          49 U.S.C. 10901....................  49 CFR Part 1150.
 Railroad Lines.
Short Line purchases by Class II and    49 U.S.C. 10902....................  49 CFR 1150.41-45.
 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.
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* STB regulations may be viewed on the STB Web site under E-Library > Reference: STB Rules (http://www.stb.dot.gov/stb/elibrary/ref_stbrules.html).

    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: June 29, 2015.
Jeffrey Herzig,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2015-16447 Filed 7-2-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4915-01-P