[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 82 (Thursday, April 28, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 25483-25484]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-09950]


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SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD

[Docket No. FD 36021]


Finger Lakes Railway Corp.--Sublease and Operation Exemption--
Cayuga County Industrial Development Agency, Onondaga County Industrial 
Development Agency, Ontario County Industrial Development Agency, 
Schuyler County Industrial Development Agency, and Yates County 
Industrial Development Agency

    Finger Lakes Railway Corp. (FGLK), a Class III rail carrier, has 
filed a verified notice of exemption under 49 CFR 1150.41 to sublease 
from Cayuga County Industrial Development Agency, Onondaga County 
Industrial Development Agency, Ontario County Industrial Development 
Agency, Schuyler County Industrial Development Agency, and Yates County 
Industrial Development Agency (collectively, Agencies), and operate, 
approximately 86.45 miles of rail lines located in New York, as 
follows: (1) Watkins Glen Industrial Track, located between milepost 
41.35 at or near Penn Yan and milepost 16.55 at or near Watkins Glen, 
in Schuyler and Yates Counties, a distance of 24.8 miles; (2) 
Canandaigua Secondary, located between milepost 76.00 at or near 
Canandaigua and milepost 51.30 at or near Geneva, in Ontario County, a 
distance of 24.70 miles; (3) Auburn Secondary, located between milepost 
37.56 at the Seneca/Cayuga County line and milepost 3.61 at or near 
Solvay Yard, in Cayuga County, a distance of 33.95 miles; (4) Geneva 
Running Track, located between milepost 344.40 at or near Geneva and 
milepost 342.8 at the Ontario/Seneca County line, in Ontario County, a 
distance of 1.6 miles; (5) Lehigh & Northern Industrial Track, located 
between milepost 349.20 and milepost 348.70 at or near Auburn, in 
Cayuga County, a distance of 0.90 miles; and (6) Auburn & Ithaca 
Industrial Track, located between milepost 349.20 and milepost 348.70 
at or near Auburn, in Cayuga County, a distance of 0.50 miles. The 
Agencies and FGLK state that the Agencies currently own the rail lines 
but FGLK is responsible for all railroad operations over the rail 
lines.
    According to FGLK, the sublease of the rail lines is part of a 
series of proposed transactions that will allow FGLK to continue to pay 
a negotiated ``payment in lieu of taxes'' (PILOT) while maintaining the 
benefit of being exempt from local and state taxes. FGLK states that it 
originally acquired the rail lines in 1995 and transferred title to the 
Agencies and then leased back the rail lines for purposes of the PILOT 
arrangement. FGLK states that to extend and restructure the PILOT 
arrangement, the Agencies will first transfer title to the rail lines 
to FGLK. Then the Agencies will lease the rail lines from FGLK.\1\ 
Lastly, FGLK will sublease the

[[Page 25484]]

rail lines back from the Agencies to continue operations over them, 
including all common carrier service and maintenance of the tracks--the 
transaction at issue in this docket.
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    \1\ FGLK and the Agencies jointly filed one notice for these two 
related transactions in Dockets No. FD 36011 and FD 36012. Notices 
of the exemptions were served and published in the Federal Register 
on March 31, 2016 (81 FR 18,681-83). The Agencies also filed a 
motion to dismiss the notice of exemption in Docket No. FD 36011 on 
the grounds that the transaction does not require authorization from 
the Board. That motion will be addressed in a separate decision.
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    FGLK certifies that proposed transaction does not include an 
interchange commitment.
    FGLK states that this transaction will not result in the creation 
of a Class II or Class I rail carrier, but that its projected revenues 
as a result of this transaction would exceed $5 million. Accordingly, 
under 49 CFR 1150.42(e), FGLK is required, at least 60 days before this 
exemption is to become effective, to send notice of the transaction to 
the national offices of the labor unions with employees on the affected 
lines, post a copy of the notice at the workplace of the employees on 
the affected lines, and certify to the Board that it has done so. FGLK, 
however, has filed a petition for waiver of this 60-day advance labor 
notice requirement, asserting that there will be no changes for 
employees working on the rail lines because FGLK already operates the 
rail lines and will continue to be the sole common carrier operator of 
the rail lines. FGLK's waiver request will be addressed in a separate 
decision.
    FGLK states that the parties intend to consummate the transaction 
no sooner than May 12, 2016, the effective date of the exemption (30 
days after the verified notice was filed), and only after the Board has 
ruled on the motion to dismiss in Docket No. FD 36011. The Board will 
establish in the decision on the waiver request the earliest date this 
transaction can be consummated.
    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 to stay must be filed no later than May 5, 2016 
(at least seven days before the exemption becomes effective).
    An original and ten copies of all pleadings, referring to Docket 
No. FD 36021, 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 Eric M. Hocky, Clark Hill PLC, 2005 Market 
Street, Suite 1000, Philadelphia, PA 19103.
    According to FGLK, this action is categorically excluded from 
environmental review under 49 CFR 1105.6(c).
    Board decisions and notices are available on our Web site at 
``WWW.STB.DOT.GOV.''


    Decided: April 25, 2016.

    By the Board, Rachel D. Campbell, Director, Office of 
Proceedings.
Brendetta S. Jones,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2016-09950 Filed 4-27-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4915-01-P