[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 216 (Friday, November 12, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Page 62862]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-24699]


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

SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD

[Docket No. FD 36553]


3i RR Holdings GP LLC, 3i Holdings Partnership L.P., 3i RR 
Intermediate Holdings LLC, 3i RR LLC, Regional Rail Holdings, LLC, and 
Regional Rail, LLC--Continuance in Control Exemption--Port Manatee 
Railroad LLC

    3i RR Holdings GP LLC, 3i Holdings Partnership L.P., 3i RR 
Intermediate Holdings LLC, and Regional Rail Holdings, LLC, 
(collectively 3i RR) and Regional Rail, LLC (Regional Rail), all 
noncarriers, have filed a verified notice of exemption under 49 CFR 
1180.2(d)(2) to continue in control of Port Manatee Railroad, LLC 
(PMR), a noncarrier controlled by Regional Rail, upon PMR's becoming a 
Class III rail carrier.\1\ According to the verified notice, the 
proposed transaction will allow Regional Rail to acquire direct 
control, and 3i RR to acquire indirect control, of PMR.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ On November 3, 2021, 3i RR and Regional Rail filed a motion 
for protective order under 49 CFR 1104.14(b), which will be 
addressed in a separate decision.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    This transaction is related to a verified notice of exemption filed 
concurrently in Port Manatee Railroad--Operation Exemption--Manatee 
County Port Authority, Docket No. FD 36552, in which PMR seeks to 
operate approximately seven miles of rail line within the Port of 
Manatee, in Manatee County, Fla.
    According to the verified notice, 3i RR Holdings GP LLC controls 3i 
Holdings Partnership L.P., which in turn controls 3i RR Intermediate 
Holdings LLC, which in turn controls 3i RR LLC, which in turn controls 
Regional Rail Holdings, LLC, which controls Regional Rail. The verified 
notice states that Regional Rail is a non-carrier holding company that 
directly controls the following seven Class III railroads: (1) East 
Penn Railroad, LLC, which operates in Delaware and Pennsylvania; (2) 
Middletown & New Jersey Railroad, LLC, which operates in New York; (3) 
Tyburn Railroad LLC, which operates in Pennsylvania; (4) the Florida 
Central Railroad Company, Inc., which operates in Florida; (5) Florida 
Midland Railroad Company, Inc., which operates in Florida; (6) Florida 
Northern Railroad Company, Inc., which operates in Florida; and (7) 
Carolina Coastal Railway, Inc., which operates in North Carolina and 
South Carolina (collectively, the Subsidiary Railroads).\2\ 3i RR and 
Regional Rail certify that the proposed transaction will not create a 
provision or agreement that may limit future interchange with a third-
party connecting carrier.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \2\ See Reg'l Rail Holdings, LLC--Acquis. of Control Exemption--
Reg'l Rail, LLC, FD 35945 (STB served Aug. 7, 2015); 3i RR Holdings 
GP LLC--Control Exemption--Reg'l Rail Holdings, LLC, FD 36289 (STB 
served Apr. 19, 2019); 3i RR Holdings GP LLC--Control Exemption--
Fla. Cent. R.R., FD 36365 (STB served Nov. 22, 2019); 3i RR Holdings 
GP LLC--Control Exemption--Carolina Coastal Ry., FD 36383 (STB 
served Feb. 14, 2020).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    3i RR and Regional Rail represent that: (1) The rail line to be 
operated by PMR does not connect with the Subsidiary Railroads; (2) the 
acquisition of control of PMR is not intended to connect with any 
railroads in the corporate family of 3i RR or Regional Rail; and (3) 
the transaction does not involve a Class I rail carrier. The proposed 
transaction is therefore exempt from the prior approval requirements of 
49 U.S.C. 11323 pursuant to 49 CFR 1180.2(d)(2).
    This transaction may be consummated on or after November 28, 2021, 
the effective date of the exemption (30 days after the verified notice 
was filed).
    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. However, 49 U.S.C. 11326(c) 
does not provide for labor protection for transactions under 49 U.S.C. 
11324 and 11325 that involve only Class III rail carriers. Because this 
transaction involves Class III rail carriers only, the Board, under the 
statute, may not impose labor protective conditions for this 
transaction.
    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 no later than November 19, 
2021 (at least seven days before the exemption becomes effective).
    All pleadings, referring to Docket No. FD 36553, should be filed 
with the Surface Transportation Board via e-filing on the Board's 
website. In addition, one copy of each pleading must be served on 3i RR 
and Regional Rail's representative, Louis E. Gitomer, Law Offices of 
Louis E. Gitomer, LLC, 600 Baltimore Avenue, Suite 301, Towson, MD 
21204.
    According to 3i RR and Regional Rail, this action is categorically 
excluded from environmental review under 49 CFR 1105.6(c) and from 
historic reporting requirements under 49 CFR 1105.8(b).
    Board decisions and notices are available at www.stb.gov.

    Decided: November 5, 2021.

    By the Board, Scott M. Zimmerman, Acting Director, Office of 
Proceedings.
Raina White,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2021-24699 Filed 11-10-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-01-P