[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 173 (Tuesday, September 8, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53915-53917]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-22521]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board


Information Collection Activities: Statutory Licensing and 
Consolidation Authority

AGENCY: Surface Transportation Board, DOT.

ACTION: 30-day notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: As part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork burdens, 
and as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3501-
3519 (PRA), the Surface Transportation Board (Board) gives notice that 
it is requesting from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
approval of an extension of the information collection--Statutory 
Licensing and Consolidation Authority--further described below. The 
Board previously published a notice about this collection in the 
Federal Register. 80 FR 38,508 (July 6, 2015). That notice allowed for 
a 60-day public review and comment period. One comment was received and 
is addressed in the agency's submission to OMB as part of this approval 
process.
    Under 49 U.S.C. 10901-03 and Sec. Sec.  11323-26, 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.

[[Page 53916]]

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: 74.\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 (74) is 
approximately 40% less than the number of filings (123).
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    Frequency: On occasion.

                  Table--Number of Responses in FY 2011
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                       Number of filings
                                                        under 49 U.S.C.
                    Type of filing                        10901-03 and
                                                            11323-26
------------------------------------------------------------------------
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).

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

    Total Annual ``Non-hour Burden'' Cost: Approximately $1,537.50 (sum 
total of the cost per response x number of responses for each type of 
filing). Filings are submitted electronically to the Board; so there is 
no cost for filing with the Board. However, respondents are sometimes 
required, as part of this collection, to send letters to certain 
governmental agencies notifying them of the proposed action being 
sought before the Board. (Copies of these letters are part of an 
environmental and historic report that is sometimes required as part of 
this collection.) Because some of these agencies may require hard copy 
letters, there may be some limited mailing costs, which we have 
estimated at approximately $12.50 per response.
    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 
the Board for ten years, after which it is transferred to the National 
Archives as permanent records.

DATES: Comments on this information collection should be submitted by 
October 8, 2015.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be identified as ``Paperwork 
Reduction Act Comments, Surface Transportation Board, Statutory 
Licensing and Consolidation Authority.'' These comments should be 
directed to the Office of Management and Budget, Office of Information 
and Regulatory Affairs, Attention: Chandana L. Achanta, Surface 
Transportation Board Desk Officer, by email at 
[email protected]; by fax at (202) 395-6974; or by mail to 
Room 10235, 725 17th Street NW., Washington, DC 20503.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information regarding the 
Statutory Licensing and Consolidation Authority, contact Chris Oehrle, 
Surface Transportation Board, via mail at 395 E Street SW., Washington, 
DC 20423-0001, telephone at (202) 245-0271, or email at 
[email protected]. [Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) for the 
hearing impaired: (800) 877-8339.]

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under Sec. Sec.  10901-03 and 11323-26, an 
application must be filed to seek authority under these sections, but 
an applicant may file a petition or notice pursuant to an exemption 
under 49 U.S.C. 10502. Respondents seeking authority from the Board 
under these provisions 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
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Construct, Acquire, or Operate        49 U.S.C. 10901                       49 CFR pt. 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 pt. 1152.
Railroad Acquisitions, Trackage       49 U.S.C. 11323-26                    49 CFR pt. 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 or requests 
that persons submit reports, keep records, or provide information to 
the agency, third parties, or the public. Section 3507(b) of the PRA 
requires, concurrent with an agency's submitting a collection to OMB 
for approval, a 30-day notice and comment period through publication in 
the Federal Register concerning each proposed collection of 
information, including each proposed

[[Page 53917]]

extension of an existing collection of information.

    Dated: September 2, 2015.
Jeffrey Herzig,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2015-22521 Filed 9-4-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4915-01-P