Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 214 / Friday, November 5, 2004 / Notices 64629

Washington, DC 20590–0001. 

Communications received within 45 

days of the date of this notice will be 

considered by the FRA before final 

action is taken. Comments received after 

that date will be considered as far as 

practicable. All written communications 

concerning these proceedings are 

available for examination during regular 

business hours (9 a.m.–5 p.m.) at the 

above facility. All documents in the 

public docket are also available for 

inspection and copying on the Internet 

at the docket facility’s Web site at

http://dms.dot.gov.

FRA wishes to inform all potential 

commenters that anyone is able to 

search the electronic form of all 

comments received into any of our 

dockets by the name of the individual 

submitting the comment (or signing the 

comment, if submitted on behalf of an 

association, business, labor union, etc.). 

You may review DOT’s complete 

Privacy Act Statement in the Federal 

Register published on April 11, 2000 

(Volume 65, Number 70; Pages 19477–

78) or you may visit http://dms.dot.gov.

FRA expects to be able to determine 

these matters without an oral hearing. 

However, if a specific request for an oral 

hearing is accompanied by a showing 

that the party is unable to adequately 

present his or her position by written 

statements, an application may be set 

for public hearing.

Issued in Washington, DC on November 1, 

2004. 

Grady C. Cothen, Jr., 

Acting Associate Administrator for Safety.

[FR Doc. 04–24772 Filed 11–4–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–06–P

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration 

Notice of Application for Approval of 

Discontinuance or Modification of a 

Railroad Signal System or Relief From 

Requirements 

Pursuant to Title 49 Code of Federal 

Regulations (CFR) part 235 and 49 

U.S.C. 20502(a), the following railroad 

has petitioned the Federal Railroad 

Administration (FRA) seeking approval 

for the discontinuance or modification 

of the signal system or relief from the 

requirements of 49 CFR part 236 as 

detailed below. 

Docket Number FRA–2004–19395

Applicant: Union Pacific Railroad, 

Mr. Steven C. Beckwith, Director 

Service Performance, 1400 Douglas Stop 

1050, Omaha, Nebraska 68179–1050. 

The Union Pacific Railroad Company 

(UP) seeks relief from the requirements 

of the Rules, Standards and Instructions, 

49 CFR, part 236, Section 236.110 and 

Section 236.586 as it pertains to the 

physical record keeping requirements 

for cab signal equipment on locomotives 

equipped with Harmon Cab Signal 

Systems. 

Applicant’s justification for relief: The 

UP received a waiver through Docket 

Number FRA–2001–11014, which 

allows the use of electronic signatures 

and electronic storage of daily 

locomotive inspection records. The UP 

states that there are two parts to their 

electronic daily inspections, and both 

call for the inspection of the cab signal 

receiver bars on locomotives equipped 

with Harmon Cab Signal Systems. The 

UP contends that the inspections are 

being performed, and approval of this 

waiver will fall in line with our current 

electronic daily inspection procedures. 

In addition this will provide further 

compliance with the various electronic 

signature and paperwork reduction laws 

enacted by the U.S. Congress. 

Any interested party desiring to 

protest the granting of an application 

shall set forth specifically the grounds 

upon which the protest is made, and 

include a concise statement of the 

interest of the party in the proceeding. 

Additionally, one copy of the protest 

shall be furnished to the applicant at the 

address listed above. 

All communications concerning this 

proceeding should be identified by the 

docket number and must be submitted 

to the Docket Clerk, DOT Central Docket 

Management Facility, Room PI–401, 400 

7th Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590–

0001. Communications received within 

45 days of the date of this notice will 

be considered by the FRA before final 

action is taken. Comments received after 

that date will be considered as far as 

practicable. All written communications 

concerning these proceedings are 

available for examination during regular 

business hours (9 a.m.–5 p.m.) at the 

above facility. All documents in the 

public docket are also available for 

inspection and copying on the internet 

at the docket facility’s Web site at

http://dms.dot.gov.

FRA wishes to inform all potential 

commenters that anyone is able to 

search the electronic form of all 

comments received into any of our 

dockets by the name of the individual 

submitting the comment (or signing the 

comment, if submitted on behalf of an 

association, business, labor union, etc.). 

You may review DOT’s complete 

Privacy Act Statement in the Federal 

Register published on April 11, 2000 

(Volume 65, Number 70; Pages 19477–

78) or you may visit http://dms.dot.gov.

FRA expects to be able to determine 

these matters without an oral hearing. 

However, if a specific request for an oral 

hearing is accompanied by a showing 

that the party is unable to adequately 

present his or her position by written 

statements, an application may be set 

for public hearing.

Issued in Washington, DC on November 1, 

2004. 

Grady C. Cothen, Jr., 

Acting Associate Administrator for Safety.

[FR Doc. 04–24773 Filed 11–4–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–06–P

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board 

[Docket No. 38302S] 

United States Department of Energy 

and United States Department of 

Defense v. Baltimore & Ohio Railroad 

Company, et al.

[Docket No. 38376S]

United States Department of Energy 

and United States Department of 

Defense v. Aberdeen & Rockfish 

Railroad Company, et al.

AGENCY: Surface Transportation Board.

ACTION: Notice of proposed settlement 

agreement; issuance of procedural 

schedule. 

SUMMARY: On September 15, 2004, the 

United States Department of Energy and 

the United States Department of Defense 

(the Government) joined by Union 

Pacific Railroad Company (UP) filed a 

motion requesting approval of an 

Agreement that would settle these rate 

reasonableness disputes as between the 

moving parties. The Surface 

Transportation Board (Board) is 

adopting a procedural schedule for 

filing comments and replies in support 

of, or opposition to, the proposed 

Settlement Agreement.

DATES: The effective date of this 

decision is November 5, 2004. Any 

parties of record or interested persons, 

including the United States Department 

of Justice and the United States 

Department of Transportation, may file 

with the Board written comments 

concerning the proposed Settlement 

Agreement by December 6, 2004. 

Replies by the parties to the proposed 

Settlement Agreement must be filed by 

December 20, 2004.

ADDRESSES: Any filing submitted in this 

proceeding must refer to Docket Nos. 

38302S and 38376S and must be 

submitted either via the Board’s e-filing 

format or in the traditional paper 

64630 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 214 / Friday, November 5, 2004 / Notices 

format. Any person using e-filing should 

comply with the instructions found on 

the Board’s http://www.stb.dot.gov Web 

site, at the ‘‘E–FILING’’ link. Any person 

submitting a filing in the traditional 

paper format should send an original 

and 10 paper copies of the filing (and 

also an IBM-compatible floppy disk 

with any textual submission in any 

version of either Microsoft Word or 

WordPerfect) to: Surface Transportation 

Board, 1925 K Street, NW., Washington, 

DC 20423–0001. In addition, one copy 

of each filing in these proceedings must 

be sent to each of the following (any 

such copy may be sent by e-mail, but 

only if service by e-mail is acceptable to 

the recipient): (1) Stephen C. Skubel, 

Room 6H087 9GC–32) U.S. Department 

of Energy, 1000 Independence Ave., 

SW., Washington, DC 20585; (2) 

Michael Glennon, Naval Sea Systems 

Command, 1333 Isaac Hull Ave, SE., 

Mail Stop 1150, Washington, DC 20376–

1150; (3) Michael L. Rosenthal, 

Covington & Burling, 1201 Pennsylvania 

Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20004; and 

(4) Louise A. Rinn, Union Pacific 

Railroad Company, 1400 Douglas St., 

STOP 1580, Omaha, NE 68179. 

Public Inspection: The motion, which 

includes the Settlement Agreement, is 

available for inspection in the Docket 

File Reading Room (Room 755) at the 

offices of the Surface Transportation 

Board, 1925 K Street, NW., in 

Washington, DC or on the Board’s Web 

site at http://www.stb.dot.gov. Copies of 

the motion may be obtained from 

movants’ representatives (Mr. Skubel or 

Mr. Glennon for the Government and 

Mr. Rosenthal or Ms. Rinn for UP) at the 

addresses listed above. The other filings 

in this proceeding will be available on 

the Board’s Web site under ‘‘E–

LIBRARY/Filings.’’

Service of Decisions, Orders, and 

Notices: The Board will serve copies of 

its decisions, orders, and notices only 

on those persons designated on the 

official service list as a party of record, 

a member of the United States Congress, 

or a Governor. All other interested 

persons may secure copies of such 

decisions, orders, and notices via the 

Board’s Web site under ‘‘E–LIBRARY/

Decisions & Notices’’ or by arrangement 

with the Board’s copy contractor, ASAP 

Document Solutions (mailing address: 

ASAP Document Solutions, Suite 103, 

9332 Annapolis Rd., Lanham, MD 

20706; e-mail address: 

asapdc@verizon.net; telephone number: 

202–306–4004). ASAP Document 

Solutions will handle the collection of 

charges and the mailing and/or faxing of 

decisions, orders, and notices to persons 

who request this service.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Joseph H. Dettmar, (202) 565–1609. 

(Assistance for the hearing impaired is 

available through the Federal 

Information Relay Service (FIRS) at: 1–

800–877–8339.)

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Government and UP jointly request the 

Board’s approval of an Agreement to 

settle these rate reasonableness 

complaints. The complaints, filed in 

March 1981 against 21 major railroads 

under former section 229 of the Staggers 

Rail Act of 1980, seek reparations and 

a rate prescription relating to the 

nationwide movement of radioactive 

naval spent fuel, other high level 

radioactive wastes, and the empty 

containers (casks) used for their 

movement. The railroad defendants 

moved to dismiss the complaints in 

1996, following the passage of the ICC 

Termination Act of 1995, and the 

proceedings have been held in abeyance 

for much of the time since then to 

permit settlement negotiations. 

The Agreement applies broadly to the 

nationwide movement over UP of 

irradiated spent fuel, parts and 

constituents; empty casks; radioactive 

wastes; and buffer and escort cars. It is 

intended to serve as a model for 

settlements the Government will seek to 

negotiate with the remaining railroad 

defendants. The Government chose to 

negotiate with UP first because of the 

potential antitrust problems of 

negotiating with the railroad defendants 

as a group and in recognition of UP’s 

central role as the destination carrier for 

most movements of these commodities. 

The Agreement, which movants 

describe as flexible, comprehensive, 

long-term, and system wide: 

(1) Establishes that the movement of 

these commodities constitute common 

carrier service; adopts guidelines for 

their safe handling and for security; and 

obligates UP to provide on an as needed 

basis ‘‘extra services’’ as further, or 

ancillary to, common carrier services; 

(2) Adopts, and asks the Board to 

prescribe, a rate methodology to apply 

to all future movements of these 

commodities. The methodology adopts 

maximum revenue-to-variable cost 

markups (not to exceed to 1.80, 2.50, or 

3.51 times the shipment cost, depending 

on commodity type) of UP’s most 

current system average variable unit 

costs computed under the Board’s 

Uniform Rail Costing System. Movants 

state that the proposed rate 

methodology is built on, and broadens, 

the rate prescription adopted in 

Trainload Rates on Radioactive 

Materials, East R., 364 I.C.C. 981 (1981), 

and that the combination of the 

proposed and existing prescription 

should result in a national rate 

structure; 

(3) Adopts, and asks the Board to 

prescribe rate methodologies to 

compensate UP both for ‘‘extra services’’

and dedicated train service when 

requested by the Government and 

procedures to calculate equitable 

compensation for emergency related 

costs that UP may incur; 

(4) Adopts a procedure to update rates 

annually to reflect changes in UP’s 

system average unit costs; 

(5) Requests that UP be dismissed as 

a defendant in these proceedings, that 

UP’s liability (and that of its 

predecessors and subsidiaries) for 

reparations with respect to past and 

future shipments be extinguished, that 

the liability of connecting carriers for 

reparations be preserved as to their 

portion of the charges assessed on 

through routes that include(d) UP, and 

that UP not be required to participate in 

rate proceedings initiated by the 

Government against remaining railroad 

defendants; and 

(6) Adopts alternative dispute 

resolution procedures with final 

recourse to the Board and mechanisms 

to renegotiate portions of the Agreement 

if specific circumstances change or if 

changed circumstances make further 

adherence to the terms of the Agreement 

‘‘grossly inequitable’’ to either party.

The Government separately requests 

that in challenging through rates that 

involve UP, it be permitted to establish 

the liability of non-settling carriers for 

reparations by showing the 

unreasonableness of their divisions or 

proportional rates rather than the 

unreasonableness of the entire through 

rate to reduce the administrative 

burdens and the increased costs that 

would otherwise be incurred. 

Additionally, the Government requests 

that the Board retain jurisdiction over 

these proceedings and continue holding 

them in abeyance pending settlement 

negotiations with remaining railroad 

defendants. 

In support of the motion, the 

Government and UP claim that the 

Agreement will result in great savings to 

the parties and the Board because it will 

resolve cases that are pending for more 

than 20 years, prevent future litigation, 

and facilitate settlements between the 

Government and remaining railroad 

defendants. Specifically, movants claim 

that the Agreement will satisfy all of the 

Government’s current and future needs 

for flexible and reliable common carrier 

service at rates that are substantially 

reduced from current levels and below 

what would likely have resulted from 

litigation and at the same time will 

Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 214 / Friday, November 5, 2004 / Notices 64631

1The Board will grant a stay if an informed 

decision on environmental issues (whether raised 

by a party or by the Board’s Section of 

Environmental Analysis (SEA) in its independent 

investigation) cannot be made before the 

exemption’s effective date. See Exemption of Outof-Service Rail Lines, 5 I.C.C.2d 377 (1989). Any 

request for a stay should be filed as soon as possible 

so that the Board may take appropriate action before 

the exemption’s effective date.

2Effective October 31, 2004, the filing fee for an 

OFA increases to $1,200. See Regulations Governing 

Fees for Services Performed in Connection with 

Licensing and Related Services—2004 Update, STB 

Ex Parte No. 542 (Sub-No. 11) (STB served Oct. 1, 

2004).

release UP from past and future liability 

for reparations while guaranteeing it 

compensation that is acceptable in view 

of the unique characteristics of these 

commodities and the other benefits of 

the Agreement. 

Movants point out that the Agreement 

is based on numerous compromises 

which balance the needs of the parties 

and resolve difficult and complex issues 

that would otherwise take years to 

litigate (e.g., common carrier obligation, 

market dominance, reasonableness 

standards, and such costing elements as 

liability exposure, costs for extra and 

dedicated train services, and safety 

precautions). They claim that the 

Agreement will bring certainty over a 

broad range of crucial operational and 

rate issues while providing flexibility 

(e.g., updating mechanisms, 

renegotiation provisions, and dispute 

resolution) over the long term to 

minimize the potential for future 

disputes and accommodate changing 

needs and technologies. 

In the movants’ view, the Agreement: 

(1) Is in the public interest because it 

shifts the transportation focus from 

controversy and confrontation to 

cooperation benefitting national goals 

for the safe handling and storage of 

these commodities; (2) is consistent 

with the national rail transportation 

policy which encourages reliance on 

competition and the demand for service 

to establish reasonable rates and seeks 

to minimize Federal regulatory 

authority, promote an efficient rail 

transportation system, and foster sound 

economic conditions in transportation; 

and (3) affirms the Board’s policy 

favoring the private settlement of 

disputes. 

This action will not significantly 

affect either the quality of the human 

environment or the conservation of 

energy resources. 

It is ordered:

1.The parties to this proceeding and 

interested persons must comply with 

the procedural schedule and 

requirements outlined above. 

2. This decision is effective on 

November 5, 2004.

Decided: November 1, 2004.

By the Board, David M. Konschnik, 

Director, Office of Proceedings. 

Vernon A. Williams, 

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 04–24736 Filed 11–4–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4915–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board 

[STB Docket No. AB–6 (Sub–No. 424X)] 

The Burlington Northern and Santa Fe 

Railway Company—Abandonment 

Exemption—in Dawson and McCone 

Counties, MT 

The Burlington Northern and Santa Fe 

Railway Company (BNSF) has filed a 

notice of exemption under 49 CFR 1152 

Subpart F—Exempt Abandonments to 

abandon a 43.41-mile line of railroad 

extending between milepost 7.00 near 

Glendive and milepost 50.41 in Circle, 

in Dawson and McCone Counties, MT. 

The line traverses United States Postal 

Service Zip Codes 59330, 59339, 59315, 

and 59215.

BNSF has certified that: (1) No local 

traffic has moved over the line for at 

least 2 years; (2) there is no overhead 

traffic 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 or with 

any U.S. District Court or has been 

decided in favor of complainant within 

the 2-year period; and (4) the 

requirements at 49 CFR 1105.7 

(environmental reports), 49 CFR 1105.8 

(historic reports), 49 CFR 1105.11 

(transmittal letter), 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 shall be protected under 

Oregon Short Line R. Co.—

Abandonment—Goshen, 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, this 

exemption will be effective on 

December 7, 2004, unless stayed 

pending reconsideration. Petitions to 

stay that do not involve environmental 

issues,1 formal expressions of intent to 

file an OFA under 49 CFR 

1152.27(c)(2),2 and trail use/rail banking 

requests under 49 CFR 1152.29 must be 

filed by November 15, 2004. Petitions to 

reopen or requests for public use 

conditions under 49 CFR 1152.28 must 

be filed by November 26, 2004, with: 

Surface Transportation Board, 1925 K 

Street, NW., Washington, DC 20423–

0001.

A copy of any petition filed with the 

Board should be sent to BNSF’s 

representative: Michael Smith, Freeborn 

& Peters, 311 S. Wacker Drive, Suite 

3000, Chicago, IL 60606–6677. 

If the verified notice contains false or 

misleading information, the exemption 

is void ab initio.

BNSF has filed an environmental 

report which addresses the effects, if 

any, of the abandonment on the 

environment and historic resources. 

SEA will issue an environmental 

assessment (EA) by November 12, 2004. 

Interested persons may obtain a copy of 

the EA by writing to SEA (Room 500, 

Surface Transportation Board, 

Washington, DC 20423–0001) or by 

calling SEA, at (202) 565–1539. 

[Assistance for the hearing impaired is 

available through the Federal 

Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–

800–877–8339.] Comments on 

environmental and historic preservation 

matters must be filed within 15 days 

after the EA becomes available to the 

public. 

Environmental, historic preservation, 

public use, or 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), BNSF 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 

BNSF’s filing of a notice of 

consummation by November 5, 2005, 

and there are no legal or regulatory 

barriers to consummation, the authority 

to abandon will automatically expire. 

Board decisions and notices are 

available on our Web site at http://

www.stb.dot.gov.

Decided: October 27, 2004.

By the Board, David M. Konschnik, 

Director, Office of Proceedings. 

Vernon A. Williams, 

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 04–24503 Filed 11–4–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4915–01–P