[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 118 (Tuesday, June 18, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51585-51586]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-13381]


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SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD

[Docket No. AB 1330X; Docket No. AB 1040 (Sub-No. 1X)]


The State of Oklahoma by and Through the Oklahoma Department of 
Transportation--Abandonment Exemption--in Payne County, Okla.; 
Stillwater Central Railroad, L.L.C.--Discontinuance Exemption--in Payne 
County, Okla.

    The State of Oklahoma by and through the Oklahoma Department of 
Transportation (ODOT) and Stillwater Central Railroad, L.L.C. (SLWC), 
(collectively, Applicants) have jointly filed a verified notice of 
exemption under 49 CFR part 1152 subpart F--Exempt Abandonments and 
Discontinuances of Service for ODOT to abandon, and for SLWC to 
discontinue service over, an approximately 3.2-mile stub-ended rail 
line extending between milepost 30.74 and milepost 27.54 in Stillwater, 
Payne County, Okla. (the Line). The Line traverses U.S. Postal Service 
Zip Code 74074 and has one station.
    Applicants have certified that: (1) no local traffic has moved over 
the Line since 2018; (2) because the Line is not a ``through line,'' 
there is no overhead traffic that would need to be rerouted; (3) no 
formal complaint filed by a user of rail service on the Line (or by a 
state or local government entity acting on behalf of such user) 
regarding cessation of service over the Line either is pending with the 
Surface Transportation Board (Board) or with any U.S. District Court or 
has been decided in favor of complainant within the two-year period; 
and (4) the requirements at 49 CFR 1105.7 and 1105.8 (notice of 
environmental and historic reports), 49 CFR 1105.12 (newspaper 
publication), and 49 CFR 1152.50(d)(1) (notice to governmental 
agencies) have been met.
    As a condition to this exemption, any employee adversely affected 
by the abandonment or discontinuance of service shall be protected 
under Oregon Short Line Railroad--Abandonment Portion Goshen Branch 
Between Firth & Ammon, in Bingham & Bonneville Counties, Idaho, 360 
I.C.C. 91 (1979). To address whether this condition adequately protects 
affected employees, a petition for partial revocation under 49 U.S.C. 
10502(d) must be filed.
    Provided no formal expression of intent to file an offer of 
financial assistance (OFA) has been received,\1\ these exemptions will 
be effective on July 18, 2024, unless stayed pending reconsideration. 
Petitions to stay that do not involve environmental issues,\2\ formal 
expressions of intent to file an OFA under 49 CFR 1152.27(c)(2), and 
interim trail use/railbanking requests under 49 CFR 1152.29 must be 
filed by June 28, 2024.\3\ Petitions to reopen or requests for public 
use conditions under 49 CFR 1152.28 must be filed by July 8, 2024.
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    \1\ Persons interested in submitting an OFA must first file a 
formal expression of intent to file an offer, indicating the type of 
financial assistance they wish to provide (i.e., subsidy or 
purchase) and demonstrating that they are preliminarily financially 
responsible. See 49 CFR 1152.27(c)(2)(i).
    \2\ The Board will grant a stay if an informed decision on 
environmental issues (whether raised by a party or by the Board's 
Office of Environmental Analysis (OEA) in its independent 
investigation) cannot be made before the effective date of the 
exemptions. See Exemption of Out-of-Serv. Rail Lines, 5 I.C.C.2d 377 
(1989). Any request to stay should be filed as soon as possible so 
that the Board may take appropriate action before the effective date 
of the exemptions.
    \3\ Filing fees for OFAs and trail use requests can be found at 
49 CFR 1002.2(f)(25) and (27), respectively.
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    All pleadings, referring to Docket Nos. AB 1330X and AB 1040 (Sub-
No. 1X), must be filed with the Surface Transportation Board either via 
e-filing on the Board's website or in writing addressed to 395 E 
Street, SW, Washington, DC 20423-0001. In addition, a copy of each 
pleading must be served on ODOT's representative, Eric M. Hocky, Clark 
Hill, PLC, Two Commerce Square, 2001 Market Street, Suite 2620, 
Philadelphia, PA 19103; and SLWC's representative, Robert A. Wimbish, 
Fletcher & Sippel LLC, 29 North Wacker Drive, Suite 800, Chicago, IL 
60606.
    If the verified notice contains false or misleading information, 
the exemptions are void ab initio.
    ODOT has filed a combined environmental and historic report that 
addresses the potential effects, if any, of the abandonment on the 
environment and historic resources. OEA will issue a Draft 
Environmental Assessment (Draft EA) by June 24, 2024. The Draft EA will 
be available to interested persons on the Board's website, by writing 
to OEA, or by calling OEA at (202) 245-0294. If you require an 
accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act, please call 
(202) 245-0245. Comments on environmental and historic preservation 
matters must be filed within 15 days

[[Page 51586]]

after the Draft EA becomes available to the public.
    Environmental, historic preservation, public use, or interim trail 
use/rail banking conditions will be imposed, where appropriate, in a 
subsequent decision.
    Pursuant to the provisions of 49 CFR 1152.29(e)(2), ODOT shall file 
a notice of consummation with the Board to signify that it has 
exercised the authority granted and fully abandoned the Line. If 
consummation has not been effected by ODOT's filing of a notice of 
consummation by June 18, 2025, and there are no legal or regulatory 
barriers to consummation, the authority to abandon will automatically 
expire.
    Board decisions and notices are available at www.stb.gov.

    Decided: June 12, 2024.

    By the Board, Valerie O. Quinn, Acting Director, Office of 
Proceedings.
Tammy Lowery,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2024-13381 Filed 6-17-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-01-P