5896 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 20 / Monday, February 2, 2009 / Notices 

manufacturer contemplates making any 

changes the effects of which might be 

characterized as de minimis, it should 

consult the agency before preparing and 

submitting a petition to modify. 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 33106; delegation of 

authority at 49 CFR 1.50. 

Issued on: January 27, 2009. 

Stephen R. Kratzke, 

Associate Administrator for Rulemaking. 

[FR Doc. E9–2107 Filed 1–30–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–59–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Surface Transportation Board 

[STB Ex Parte No. 664 (Sub-No. 1)] 

Use of a Multi-Stage Discontinued 

Cash Flow Model in Determining the 

Railroad Industry’s Cost of Capital 

AGENCY: Surface Transportation Board, 

DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of Final Decision. 

SUMMARY: By a decision served on 

January 28, 2009, the Board modified its 

methodology for determining the cost of 

capital for the railroad industry by 

adopting the average of the estimates 

produced by its Capital Asset Pricing 

Model (CAPM) with the Morningstar/ 

Ibbotson multi-stage Discontinued Cash 

Flow (DCF) model to estimate the 

railroad industry’s cost of equity. 

DATES: This action is effective on 

January 28, 2009. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Timothy J. Strafford, (202) 245–0356. 

[Assistance for the hearing impaired is 

available through the Federal 

Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 

1–800–877–8339.] 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Board 

has been thoroughly reviewing its 

regulatory processes for determining the 

railroad industry’s cost of capital. The 

overall cost of capital is determined 

through the use of two figures: The cost 

of debt and the cost of equity. The cost 

of debt is readily available and 

observable; however, the cost of equity 

is not and must be estimated using a 

finance model. The Board determined in 

a decision served on January 28, 2009, 

the combination of finance models that 

it found best depicts the cost of equity, 

and thereby the cost of capital. In that 

decision, the Board revised its 

methodology for determining the cost of 

capital for the railroad industry by 

adopting the average of CAPM and the 

Morningstar/Ibbotson multi-stage DCF 

model. 

Additional information is contained 

in the Board’s decision. A copy of the 

Board’s decision is available for 

inspection or copying at the Board’s 

Public Docket Room, Room 131, 395 

E Street, SW., Washington, DC 20423– 

0001, and is posted on the Board’s Web 

site, http://www.stb.dot.gov. 

Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 605(b), we 

conclude that our action in this 

proceeding will not have a significant 

economic impact on a substantial 

number of small entities. This action 

will not significantly affect either the 

quality of the human environment or 

the conservation of energy resources. 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 10101(14); 49 U.S.C. 

10704(a)(2)–(3). 

Decided: January 23, 2009. 

By the Board, Chairman Nottingham, Vice 

Chairman Mulvey, and Commissioner 

Buttrey. 

Jeffrey Herzig, 

Clearance Clerk. 

[FR Doc. E9–2185 Filed 1–30–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4915–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY 

Internal Revenue Service 

Open Meeting of the Area 4 Taxpayer 

Advocacy Panel (Including the States 

of Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, 

Ohio, Tennessee, and Wisconsin) 

AGENCY: Internal Revenue Service (IRS), 

Treasury. 

ACTION: Notice of meeting. 

SUMMARY: An open meeting of the Area 

4 Taxpayer Advocacy Panel will be 

conducted. The Taxpayer Advocacy 

Panel is soliciting public comment, 

ideas, and suggestions on improving 

customer service at the Internal Revenue 

Service. 

DATES: The meeting will be held 

Tuesday, March 17, 2009. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Ellen Smiley at 1–888–912–1227, or 

(414) 231–2360. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice is 

hereby given pursuant to Section 

10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory 

Committee Act, 5 U.S.C. App. (1988) 

that a meeting of the Area 4 Taxpayer 

Advocacy Panel will be held Tuesday, 

March 17, 2009, at 1 p.m. Central Time. 

For more information, please contact 

Ellen Smiley. Ms. Smiley may be 

reached at 1–888–912–1227, or (414) 

231–2360, or you can submit written 

comments to the panel by faxing the 

comments to (414) 231–2363, or by mail 

to Taxpayer Advocacy Panel, Stop 

1006MIL, 211 West Wisconsin Avenue, 

Milwaukee, WI 53203–2221, or you can 

post comments to the Web site at 

http://www.improveirs.org. 

The agenda will include the 

following: Various IRS issues. 

Dated: January 27, 2009. 

Shawn F. Collins, 

Acting Director, Taxpayer Advocacy Panel. 

[FR Doc. E9–2101 Filed 1–30–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4830–01–P 

U.S.-CHINA ECONOMIC AND 

SECURITY REVIEW COMMISSION 

Notice of Open Public Hearing 

AGENCY: U.S.-China Economic and 

Security Review Commission. 

ACTION: Notice of open public hearing— 

March 4, 2009, Washington, DC. 

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given of the 

following hearing of the U.S.-China 

Economic and Security Review 

Commission. 

Name: Carolyn Bartholomew, 

Chairman of the U.S.-China Economic 

and Security Review Commission. 

The Commission is mandated by 

Congress to investigate, assess, and 

report to Congress annually on ‘‘the 

national security implications of the 

economic relationship between the 

United States and the People’s Republic 

of China.’’ 

Pursuant to this mandate, the 

Commission will hold a public hearing 

in Washington, DC on March 4, 2009 to 

address ‘‘China’s Military and Security 

Activities Abroad.’’ 

Background 

This event is the second in a series of 

public hearings the Commission will 

hold during its 2009 report cycle to 

collect input from leading academic, 

industry, and government experts on 

national security implications of the 

U.S. bilateral trade and economic 

relationship with China. The March 4 

hearing will examine the People’s 

Liberation Army’s domestic and foreign 

activities and orientation, China’s 

expanding military and security 

influence, China’s military operations 

abroad, and China’s conventional arm 

sales. 

The March 4 hearing will be Cochaired by Commission Chairman 

Carolyn Bartholomew and Vice 

Chairman Larry M. Wortzel. 

Information on hearings, as well as 

transcripts of past Commission hearings, 

can be obtained from the USCC Web site 

http://www.uscc.gov. 

Copies of the hearing agenda will be 

made available on the Commission’s 

Web site http://www.uscc.gov as soon as 

available. Any interested party may file 


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