I 

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2924

To amend title 49, United States Code, to enhance competition among and 

between rail carriers in order to ensure efficient rail service and reasonable rail rates, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 25, 2003

Mr. BAKER (for himself, Mr. JOHN, Mr. VITTER, and Mr. POMEROY) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

A BILL

To amend title 49, United States Code, to enhance competition among and between rail carriers in order to ensure 

efficient rail service and reasonable rail rates, and for 

other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; AMENDMENT OF TITLE 49, 

4 UNITED STATES CODE. 

5 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

6 ‘‘Railroad Competition Act of 2003’’. 

7 (b) AMENDMENT OF TITLE 49, UNITED STATES

8 CODE.—Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever 
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1 in this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms 

2 of an amendment to, or a repeal of, a section or other 

3 provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to 

4 a section or other provision of title 49, United States 

5 Code. 

6 SEC. 2. CLARIFICATION OF RAIL TRANSPORTATION POL7 ICY. 

8 Section 10101 is amended—

9 (1) by inserting ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—’’ before 

10 ‘‘In regulating’’; and 

11 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(b) PRIMARY OBJECTIVES.—The primary objectives 

13 of the rail transportation policy of the United States are 

14 as follows: 

15 ‘‘(1) To promote effective competition among 

16 rail carriers at origins and destinations. 

17 ‘‘(2) To maintain reasonable rates in the ab18 sence of effective competition. 

19 ‘‘(3) To maintain consistent and efficient rail 

20 transportation service for shippers, including the 

21 timely provision of rail cars requested by shippers. 

22 ‘‘(4) To ensure that smaller carload and inter23 modal shippers are not precluded from accessing rail 

24 systems due to volume requirements.’’. 
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1 SEC. 3. ARBITRATION OF CERTAIN RAIL RATE, SERVICE, 

2 AND OTHER DISPUTES. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—

4 (1) AUTHORITY.—Chapter 117 is amended by 

5 adding the following section after section 11707: 

6 ‘‘§ 11708. Arbitration of certain rail rate, service, and 

7 other disputes 

8 ‘‘(a) ELECTION OF ARBITRATION.—A dispute de9 scribed in subsection (b) shall be submitted for resolution 

10 by arbitration upon the election of any party to the dispute 

11 that is not a rail carrier. 

12 ‘‘(b) COVERED DISPUTES.—(1) Except as provided 

13 in paragraph (2), subsection (a) applies to any dispute be14 tween a party described in subsection (a) and a rail carrier 

15 that—

16 ‘‘(A) arises under section 10701(c), 10701(d), 

17 10702, 10704(a)(1), 10707, 10741, 10745, 10746, 

18 11101(a), 11102, 11121, 11122, or 11706 of this 

19 title; and 

20 ‘‘(B) involves—

21 ‘‘(i) the payment of money; 

22 ‘‘(ii) a rate or charge imposed by the rail 

23 carrier; or 

24 ‘‘(iii) transportation or other service by the 

25 rail carrier. 
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1 ‘‘(2) Subsection (a) does not apply to a dispute if the 

2 resolution of the dispute would necessarily involve the pro3 mulgation of regulations generally applicable to all rail 

4 carriers. 

5 ‘‘(c) ARBITRATION PROCEDURES.—The Secretary of 

6 Transportation shall prescribe in regulations the proce7 dures for the resolution of disputes submitted for arbitra8 tion under subsection (a). The regulations shall include 

9 the following: 

10 ‘‘(1) Procedures, including time limits, for the 

11 selection of an arbitrator or panel of arbitrators for 

12 a dispute from among arbitrators listed on the ros13 ter of arbitrators established and maintained by the 

14 Secretary under subsection (d)(1). 

15 ‘‘(2) Policies, requirements, and procedures for 

16 the compensation of each arbitrator for a dispute to 

17 be paid by the parties to the dispute. 

18 ‘‘(3) Procedures for expedited arbitration of a 

19 dispute, including procedures for discovery author20 ized in the exercise of discretion by the arbitrator or 

21 panel of arbitrators. 

22 ‘‘(d) SELECTION OF ARBITRATORS.—(1) The Sec23 retary of Transportation shall establish, maintain, and re24 vise as necessary a roster of arbitrators who—
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1 ‘‘(A) are experienced in transportation or eco2 nomic issues within the jurisdiction of the Board or 

3 issues similar to those issues; 

4 ‘‘(B) satisfy requirements for neutrality and 

5 other qualification requirements prescribed by the 

6 Secretary; 

7 ‘‘(C) consent to serve as arbitrators under this 

8 section; and 

9 ‘‘(D) are not officers or employees of the 

10 United States. 

11 ‘‘(2) For a dispute involving an amount not in excess 

12 of $1,000,000, the regulations under subsection (c) shall 

13 provide for arbitration by a single arbitrator who—

14 ‘‘(A) is selected by the parties to the dispute; 

15 or 

16 ‘‘(B) if the parties cannot agree, is selected by 

17 the Secretary from among the arbitrators listed on 

18 the roster of arbitrators under paragraph (1). 

19 ‘‘(3)(A) For a dispute involving an amount in excess 

20 of $1,000,000, the regulations under subsection (c) shall 

21 provide for arbitration by a panel of three arbitrators se22 lected as follows: 

23 ‘‘(i) One arbitrator selected by the party elect24 ing the arbitration. 
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1 ‘‘(ii) One arbitrator selected by the rail carrier 

2 or all of the rail carriers who are parties to the dis3 pute, as the case may be. 

4 ‘‘(iii) One arbitrator selected by the two arbitra5 tors selected under clauses (i) and (ii). 

6 ‘‘(B) If a selection of an arbitrator is not made under 

7 clause (ii) or (iii) of subparagraph (A) within the time lim8 its prescribed in the regulations, then the Secretary shall 

9 select the arbitrator from among the arbitrators listed on 

10 the roster of arbitrators under paragraph (1). 

11 ‘‘(e) DISPUTES OVER RATES OR CHARGES.—(1) The 

12 requirements of this subsection apply to a dispute sub13 mitted under this section concerning a rate or charge im14 posed by a rail carrier. 

15 ‘‘(2)(A) Subject to subparagraph (B), the decision of 

16 an arbitrator or panel of arbitrators in a dispute on an 

17 issue described in paragraph (1) shall be the final offer 

18 of one of the parties to the dispute. 

19 ‘‘(B) A decision under subparagraph (A) may not 

20 provide for a rate for transportation by a rail carrier that 

21 would result in a revenue-variable cost percentage for such 

22 transportation that is less than 180 percent, as deter23 mined under standards applied in the administration of 

24 section 10707(d). 
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1 ‘‘(3) If the party electing arbitration of a dispute de2 scribed in paragraph (1) seeks compensation for damages 

3 incurred by the party as a result of a specific rate or 

4 charge imposed by a rail carrier for the transportation of 

5 items for the party and the party alleges an amount of 

6 damages that does not exceed $500,000 for any year as 

7 a result of the imposition of the specific rate or charge, 

8 the arbitrator, in making a decision on the dispute, shall 

9 consider the rates or charges, respectively, that are im10 posed by rail carriers for the transportation of similar 

11 items under similar circumstances in rail transportation 

12 markets where there is effective competition, as deter13 mined under standards applied by the Board in the admin14 istration of section 10707(a). 

15 ‘‘(f) TIME FOR ISSUANCE OF ARBITRATION DECI16 SION.—Notwithstanding any other provision of this sub17 title limiting the time for the taking of an action under 

18 this subtitle, the arbitrator or panel of arbitrators for a 

19 dispute submitted for resolution under this section shall 

20 issue a final decision on the dispute within the maximum 

21 period after the date on which the arbitrator or panel is 

22 selected to resolve the dispute under this section, as fol23 lows: 

24 ‘‘(1) In the case of a dispute involving 

25 $1,000,000 or less, 120 days. 
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1 ‘‘(2) In the case of a dispute involving more 

2 than $1,000,000, 180 days. 

3 ‘‘(g) AUTHORIZED RELIEF.—A decision of an arbi4 trator or panel of arbitrators under this section shall grant 

5 relief in either or both of the following forms: 

6 ‘‘(1) Monetary damages, to the extent author7 ized to be provided by the Board in such a dispute 

8 under this subtitle. 

9 ‘‘(2) An order that requires specific perform10 ance under any applicable law, including any law 

11 limiting rates to reasonable rates, for any period not 

12 in excess of two years beginning on the date of the 

13 decision. 

14 ‘‘(h) JUDICIAL CONFIRMATION AND REVIEW.—The 

15 following provisions of title 9 shall apply to an arbitration 

16 decision issued in a dispute under this section: 

17 ‘‘(1) Section 9 (relating to confirmation of an 

18 award in an arbitration decision), which shall be ap19 plied as if the parties had entered into an agreement 

20 under title 9 to submit the dispute to the arbitration 

21 and had provided in that agreement for a judgment 

22 of an unspecified court to be entered on the award 

23 made pursuant to the arbitration. 

24 ‘‘(2) Section 10 (relating to judicial vacation of 

25 an award in an arbitration decision).’’. 
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1 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec2 tions at the beginning of such chapter is amended 

3 by inserting after the item relating to section 11707 

4 the following:

‘‘11708. Arbitration of certain rail rate, service, and other disputes.’’.

5 (b) TIME FOR IMPLEMENTING CERTAIN REQUIRE6 MENTS.—Not later than 180 days after the date of the 

7 enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation 

8 shall promulgate regulations, prescribe a roster of arbitra9 tors, and complete any other action that is necessary for 

10 the implementation of section 11708 of title 49, United 

11 States Code (as added by subsection (a)). 

12 SEC. 4. ELIMINATION OF BARRIERS TO COMPETITION BE13 TWEEN CLASS I CARRIERS AND CLASS II AND 

14 CLASS III RAIL CARRIERS. 

15 (a) RESTRICTION ON APPROVAL OR EXEMPTION OF

16 RAIL CARRIERS’ ACTIVITIES BY SURFACE TRANSPOR17 TATION BOARD.—Section 10901 is amended by adding at 

18 the end the following new subsection: 

19 ‘‘(e)(1) The Board may not issue under this section 

20 a certificate authorizing an activity described in subsection 

21 (a), or exempt from the applicability of this section under 

22 section 10502 such an activity, that involves a transfer 

23 of interest in a line of railroad, from a Class I rail carrier 

24 to a Class II or III rail carrier, if the activity directly or 

25 indirectly would result in—
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1 ‘‘(A) a restriction of the ability of the Class II 

2 or Class III rail carrier to interchange traffic with 

3 other carriers; or 

4 ‘‘(B) a restriction of competition between or 

5 among rail carriers in the region affected by the ac6 tivity in a manner or to an extent that would violate 

7 antitrust laws of the United States (notwithstanding 

8 any exemption from the applicability of antitrust 

9 laws that is provided under section 10706 of this 

10 title or any other provision of law). 

11 ‘‘(2) Any party to an activity referred to in paragraph 

12 (1) that has been carried out, or any rail shipper affected 

13 by such an activity, may request the Board to review the 

14 activity to determine whether the activity has resulted in 

15 a restriction described in that paragraph. If, upon review 

16 of the activity, the Board determines that the activity re17 sulted in such a restriction and the restriction has been 

18 in effect for at least 10 years, the Board shall declare the 

19 restriction to be unlawful and terminate the restriction un20 less the Board finds that the termination of the restriction 

21 would materially impair the ability of an affected rail car22 rier to provide service to the public or would otherwise 

23 be inconsistent with the public interest. 

24 ‘‘(3) In this subsection: 
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1 ‘‘(A) The term ‘antitrust laws’ has the meaning 

2 given that term in subsection (a) of the first section 

3 of the Clayton Act (15 U.S.C. 12(a)), except that 

4 such term also means section 5 of the Federal Trade 

5 Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45) to the extent that 

6 such section 5 applies to unfair methods of competi7 tion. 

8 ‘‘(B) The terms ‘Class I rail carrier’, ‘Class II 

9 rail carrier’, and ‘Class III rail carrier’ mean, re10 spectively, a rail carrier classified under regulations 

11 of the Board as a Class I rail carrier, Class II rail 

12 carrier, and Class III rail carrier.’’. 

13 (b) APPLICABILITY TO PREVIOUSLY APPROVED OR

14 EXEMPTED ACTIVITIES.—Paragraph (2) of section 

15 10901(e) of title 49, United States Code (as added by sub16 section (a)), shall apply with respect to any activity re17 ferred to in that paragraph for which the Surface Trans18 portation Board issued a certificate authorizing the activ19 ity under section 10901 of such title, or exempted the ac20 tivity from the necessity for such a certificate under sec21 tion 10502 of such title, before, on, or after the date of 

22 the enactment of this Act. 

23 SEC. 5. COMPETITIVE RAIL SERVICE IN TERMINAL AREAS. 

24 (a) USE OF TERMINAL AREAS.—Section 11102(a) is 

25 amended—
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1 (1) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after ‘‘(a)’’; 

2 (2) by striking ‘‘may’’ in the first sentence and 

3 inserting ‘‘shall’’; 

4 (3) by inserting after the first sentence the fol5 lowing: ‘‘In making any finding for the purposes of 

6 the preceding sentence, the Board may not require 

7 that there be evidence of anticompetitive conduct by 

8 a rail carrier from which access is sought.’’; 

9 (4) by striking ‘‘The rail carriers’’ at the begin10 ning of the sentence following the sentence inserted 

11 by paragraph (3) and inserting the following: 

12 ‘‘(2) The rail carriers’’; and 

13 (5) by striking ‘‘may establish conditions’’ in 

14 the penultimate sentence and inserting ‘‘shall estab15 lish conditions’’. 

16 (b) RECIPROCAL SWITCHING.—Section 11102(c) is 

17 amended—

18 (1) in paragraph (1)—

19 (A) by striking ‘‘may require’’ in the first 

20 sentence and inserting ‘‘shall require’’; and 

21 (B) by striking ‘‘may establish’’ in the sec22 ond sentence and inserting ‘‘shall establish’’; 

23 and 

24 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

25 paragraph: 
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1 ‘‘(3) In making any finding for the purposes of the 

2 first sentence of paragraph (1), the Board may not require 

3 that there be evidence of anticompetitive conduct by a rail 

4 carrier from which access is sought.’’. 

5 SEC. 6. REQUIREMENT FOR RATE QUOTES. 

6 Section 11101(a) is amended—

7 (1) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after ‘‘(a)’’; and 

8 (2) by striking ‘‘A rail carrier’’ at the beginning 

9 of the second sentence and inserting the following: 

10 ‘‘(2) Upon the request of a shipper, a rail carrier 

11 shall establish a rate for transportation and provide serv12 ice requested by the shipper between any two points on 

13 the system of that carrier where traffic originates, termi14 nates, or may reasonably be interchanged. A carrier shall 

15 establish a rate and provide service upon such request 

16 without regard to—

17 ‘‘(A) the location of the movement on the rail 

18 system, including terminal areas; 

19 ‘‘(B) whether the rate established is for only 

20 part of a movement between a point of origin and 

21 a destination; 

22 ‘‘(C) whether the shipper has made arrange23 ments for transportation for any other part of that 

24 movement; or 
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1 ‘‘(D) whether the shipper has a contract with 

2 any rail carrier for part or all of its transportation 

3 needs over the route of movement, in which case the 

4 rate established by the carrier shall not apply to 

5 transportation covered by the contract. 

6 ‘‘(3) A rail carrier’’. 

7 SEC. 7. REVIEW OF RATES FOR REASONABLENESS. 

8 Section 10701(d) is amended by striking paragraph 

9 (3) and inserting the following: 

10 ‘‘(3) Upon a challenge made by a shipper to the rea11 sonableness of any rate established by a rail carrier in ac12 cordance with subsection (c) or section 11101(a), the 

13 Board shall determine the reasonableness of the rate with14 out regard to whether—

15 ‘‘(A) the rate is for only part of a movement be16 tween a point of origin and a destination; 

17 ‘‘(B) the shipper has made arrangements for 

18 transportation for any other part of that movement; 

19 or 

20 ‘‘(C) the shipper currently has a contract with 

21 a rail carrier for any part of the rail traffic involved, 

22 except that any rate prescribed by the Board shall 

23 not apply to transportation covered by such a con24 tract.’’. 
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1 SEC. 8. FILING FEES. 

2 Section 721 is amended by adding at the end the fol3 lowing new subsection: 

4 ‘‘(f) LIMITATION ON FEES.—The Board may not 

5 charge a fee for the filing of a complaint, protest, or other 

6 request for relief in an amount greater than fees charged 

7 by district courts of the United States for a comparable 

8 filing.’’. 

9 SEC. 9. PERIODIC STUDY OF COMPETITION AMONG RAIL 

10 CARRIERS. 

11 (a) REQUIREMENT FOR STUDY.—

12 (1) TRIENNIAL STUDY.—Chapter 101 is 

13 amended by adding at the end the following new sec14 tion: 

15 ‘‘§ 10103. Periodic study of rail carrier competition 

16 and processes of the Board 

17 ‘‘(a) REQUIREMENT FOR STUDY.—Every three years, 

18 the Secretary of Transportation shall conduct a com19 prehensive study of rail carrier competition and the proc20 esses of the Board. The study shall include an assessment 

21 of the following: 

22 ‘‘(1) The availability of effective competitive op23 tions among and between rail carriers. 

24 ‘‘(2) The effectiveness of the processes of the 

25 Board, including the process used for determining 

26 the reasonableness of rates of rail carriers. 
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1 ‘‘(3) The availability to rail users of effective 

2 regulatory dispute resolution options. 

3 ‘‘(b) STUDY TO INCLUDE ASSESSMENT OF RAIL-TO4 RAIL COMPETITION.—In carrying out the study, the Sec5 retary shall assess the overall level of rail-to-rail competi6 tion in the rail carrier industry in the United States. In 

7 making the assessment, the Secretary shall consider the 

8 views of users of the services of rail carriers. 

9 ‘‘(c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than Novem10 ber 15 of each year in which a study is conducted under 

11 subsection (a), the Secretary shall submit a report on the 

12 results of the study to Congress. The report shall include 

13 the following: 

14 ‘‘(1) The Secretary’s assessment of the overall 

15 level of rail-to-rail competition in the rail carrier in16 dustry in the United States. 

17 ‘‘(2) The markets that have limited rail-to-rail 

18 competition. 

19 ‘‘(3) Any recommendations for enhancing rail20 to-rail competition, particularly in markets identified 

21 as having limited rail-to-rail competition. 

22 ‘‘(4) An assessment of the Board’s performance 

23 of its purpose to promote and enhance competition 

24 among and between railroads by—
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1 ‘‘(A) addressing complaints regarding 

2 rates, charges, and service; and 

3 ‘‘(B) promulgating regulations of general 

4 applicability or taking other actions. 

5 ‘‘(5) Any recommendations for modification of 

6 any of the decisions of the Board (or decisions of the 

7 former Interstate Commerce Commission continuing 

8 in effect) or for modification of the general authority 

9 or jurisdiction of the Board. 

10 ‘‘(6) Any other findings, analyses, assessments, 

11 and recommendations that result from the study.’’. 

12 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec13 tions at the beginning of such chapter is amended 

14 by adding at the end the following:

‘‘10103. Periodic study of rail carrier competition and processes of the Board.’’.

15 (b) TIME FOR FIRST STUDY.—The first study under 

16 section 10103 of title 49, United States Code (as added 

17 by subsection (a)), shall be carried out not later than two 

18 years after the date of the enactment of this Act . 

19 SEC. 10. AREAS OF INADEQUATE RAIL COMPETITION. 

20 (a) DESIGNATION AND REMEDIES.—

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 105 is amended by 

22 adding at the end the following new section: 

23 ‘‘§ 10503. Areas of inadequate rail competition 

24 ‘‘(a) DESIGNATION.—The Board shall designate any 

25 State or part of a State as an area of inadequate rail com-
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1 petition after finding either of the grounds set forth in 

2 subsection (b). An area of inadequate rail competition may 

3 be limited to be composed of the facilities of a group of 

4 shippers or receivers of one or more specific commodities 

5 within a geographic area. 

6 ‘‘(b) GROUNDS FOR DESIGNATION.—The grounds for 

7 designating a State or part of a State as an area of inad8 equate rail competition are as follows: 

9 ‘‘(1) The State or part of a State encompasses 

10 a significant number of rail shipping origins and 

11 destinations that are served exclusively by only one 

12 Class I railroad. 

13 ‘‘(2) A significant number of the persons that 

14 ship by rail or receive rail shipments in the State or 

15 part of a State—

16 ‘‘(A) usually find it necessary to pay rates 

17 for the rail shipments that exceed the rates nec18 essary to yield recovery by the rail carrier of 

19 180 percent of revenue-variable costs, as deter20 mined under standards applied in the adminis21 tration of section 10707(d); or 

22 ‘‘(B) have experienced competitive dis23 advantage in the marketplace or other economic 

24 adversity because of high cost or poor quality of 
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1 rail service in the State or part of a State, as 

2 the case may be. 

3 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZED PETITIONERS.—The following per4 sons are authorized to petition the Board for a designation 

5 of a State or part of a State as an area of inadequate 

6 rail competition: 

7 ‘‘(1) The Governor from the State. 

8 ‘‘(2) A Member of Congress from the State. 

9 ‘‘(3) As provided in section 10504, the Rail 

10 Customer Advocate of the Department of Agri11 culture and any State official referred to in sub12 section (a)(2) of such section. 

13 ‘‘(d) ACTIONS.—Upon designating a State or a part 

14 of a State as an area of inadequate rail competition, the 

15 Board shall attempt to resolve, within 60 days after the 

16 date of the designation, the conditions described in sub17 section (b) that justify the designation. In addition to pro18 viding other remedies authorized by law, the Board may, 

19 when requested in a petition, order any of the following 

20 actions: 

21 ‘‘(1) Provision of reciprocal switching and ac22 cess to tracks of another rail carrier beyond the lim23 its specified in section 11102(a) of this title. 

24 ‘‘(2) Haulage transportation of railroad cars by 

25 a rail carrier to or from facilities that such carrier 
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1 alone physically serves on behalf of another rail car2 rier, for a fee prescribed by the Board. 

3 ‘‘(3) Regarding rates on any rail segments 

4 within or connected to the area of inadequate rail 

5 competition on which rail service is susceptible to 

6 delay or interruption due to traffic congestion—

7 ‘‘(A) expedited review of the reasonable8 ness of the rates under section 10701(d)(3); or 

9 ‘‘(B) expedited final offer arbitration of 

10 the reasonableness of the rates under section 

11 11708(e). 

12 ‘‘(4) Expedited review, under section 

13 10701(d)(3), of the reasonableness of—

14 ‘‘(A) increases in rates or other charges; 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(B) new transportation service tariffs. 

17 ‘‘(5) Expedited review of whether a rate violates 

18 the prohibition against discriminatory rates con19 tained in section 10741, without regard to sub20 section (b)(2) of such section. 

21 ‘‘(e) LIMITATIONS AND CONDITIONS APPLICABLE TO

22 SPECIFIC REMEDIES.—(1) In the case of a petition for 

23 an order for reciprocal switching or access to tracks of 

24 another rail carrier under subsection (d)(1), the Board 

25 may not require that there be evidence of anticompetitive 
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1 conduct by a rail carrier as a prerequisite for ordering 

2 such action. 

3 ‘‘(2) In the case of a petition for expedited review 

4 of rates or final offer arbitration of rates under subsection 

5 (d)(3)—

6 ‘‘(A) the Board or arbitrator or panel of arbi7 trators, as the case may be, shall accord, with re8 spect to rail transportation of a specific commodity, 

9 significant persuasive weight to evidence com10 paring—

11 ‘‘(i) rates charged for rail transportation of 

12 various quantities of that commodity within the 

13 area of inadequate rail competition; and 

14 ‘‘(ii) rates charged for rail transportation 

15 of similar quantities of that commodity or any 

16 similar commodity or commodities in areas 

17 where there is competition among rail carriers 

18 for shipments of such commodity or commod19 ities; and 

20 ‘‘(B) the Board or arbitrator or panel of arbi21 trators, as the case may be, shall not apply the 

22 stand-alone cost test that the Board applies in deter23 mining the reasonableness of rates reviewed in cases 

24 not involving rail service in an area of inadequate 

25 rail competition. 
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1 ‘‘(3) In the case of a petition for expedited review, 

2 under subsection (d)(4), of an increase of a rate or other 

3 charge or the imposition of a new service tariff by a rail 

4 carrier—

5 ‘‘(A) the rail carrier shall have the burden of 

6 proving the reasonableness of the increase or tariff 

7 charge; and 

8 ‘‘(B) the Board shall consider any evidence 

9 comparing—

10 ‘‘(i) the increased rate or other charge, or 

11 the tariff charge, as the case may be; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) corresponding rates, other charges, or 

13 new service tariff charges, respectively, imposed 

14 for rail transportation in areas where there is 

15 a significant level of competition among the rail 

16 carriers.’’. 

17 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec18 tions at the beginning of such chapter is amended 

19 by adding at the end the following new item:

‘‘10503. Areas of inadequate rail competition.’’.

20 (b) STUDY AND REPORT ON AREAS OF INADEQUATE

21 RAIL COMPETITION.—

22 (1) STUDY REQUIRED.—The Rail Customer Ad23 vocate of the Department of Agriculture shall carry 

24 out a study of the process provided under section 

25 10503 of title 49, United States Code (as added by 
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1 subsection (a)), for challenging and remedying con2 ditions described in subsection (b) of such section in 

3 States and parts of States designated under such 

4 section as areas of inadequate rail competition inso5 far as such conditions adversely affect rail shippers 

6 of agricultural or forestry commodities and products. 

7 (2) FINDINGS ON EFFECTIVENESS OF PROC8 ESS.—The Rail Customer Advocate shall make find9 ings, on the basis of the study under paragraph (1), 

10 regarding the effectiveness of the process for rem11 edying the conditions studied, particularly in the 

12 case of customers that ship agricultural or forestry 

13 commodities and products by rail in annual volumes 

14 of 1,500 rail cars or less. 

15 (3) REPORT.—Not later than three years after 

16 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Rail Cus17 tomer Advocate shall submit to Congress a report on 

18 the results of the study under paragraph (1), includ19 ing the findings required under paragraph (2). 

20 SEC. 11. RAIL CUSTOMER ADVOCATE IN THE DEPARTMENT 

21 OF AGRICULTURE. 

22 (a) PARTICIPATION OF RAIL CUSTOMER ADVOCATE

23 IN STB PROCEEDINGS.—

24 (1) AUTHORITY AND RESPONSIBILITIES.—

25 Chapter 105, as amended by section 10(a), is fur-
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1 ther amended by adding at the end the following 

2 new section: 

3 ‘‘§ 10504. Participation of Rail Customer Advocate in 

4 Board proceedings 

5 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY.—The following persons are author6 ized to petition the Board for an exercise of authority of 

7 the Board regarding rail transportation of any agricul8 tural or forestry commodity or product, and to participate 

9 in any proceeding of the Board regarding rail transpor10 tation of such a commodity or product: 

11 ‘‘(1) The Rail Customer Advocate of the De12 partment of Agriculture. 

13 ‘‘(2) Any official of the government of a State 

14 whose functions are the same as or similar to the 

15 functions of the Rail Customer Advocate of the De16 partment of Agriculture. 

17 ‘‘(b) CONSIDERATION OF PRESENTATIONS BY ADVO18 CATE.—(1) The Board shall accord significant persuasive 

19 weight to any material evidence, proposal, or view that is 

20 presented by an official referred to in subsection (a) with 

21 respect to rail transportation of an agricultural or forestry 

22 commodity or product. 

23 ‘‘(2) In disposing of any matter before the Board in 

24 which an official referred to in subsection (a) has partici25 pated under the authority of such subsection, the Board 
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1 shall present in writing a detailed explanation of any dis2 agreement of the Board with matters presented to the 

3 Board by that official.’’. 

4 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec5 tions at the beginning of such chapter, as amended 

6 by section 10(a)(2), is further amended by adding at 

7 the end the following new item:

‘‘10504. Participation of Rail Customer Advocate in Board proceedings.’’.

8 (b) ESTABLISHMENT AND DUTIES.—

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle I of title II of the 

10 Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 

11 1994 (7 U.S.C. 7005) is amended by adding at the 

12 end the following new section: 

13 ‘‘SEC. 286. RAIL CUSTOMER ADVOCATE. 

14 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE.—There is estab15 lished within the Department an Office of Rail Customer 

16 Advocacy. 

17 ‘‘(b) RAIL CUSTOMER ADVOCATE.—

18 ‘‘(1) APPOINTMENT.—The Secretary shall ap19 point the Rail Customer Advocate. 

20 ‘‘(2) HEAD OF OFFICE.—The Rail Customer 

21 Advocate is the head of the Office of Rail Customer 

22 Advocacy. 

23 ‘‘(c) FUNCTIONS.—The Rail Customer Advocate has 

24 the following functions: 
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1 ‘‘(1) PARTICIPATION IN STB PROCEEDINGS.—

2 To participate as a party in proceedings of the Sur3 face Transportation Board on petitions for action by 

4 the Board regarding the regulation of rail transpor5 tation of agricultural or forestry commodities or 

6 products, and to initiate any such action. 

7 ‘‘(2) COMPILATION OF INFORMATION.—To col8 lect, compile, and maintain information regarding 

9 the cost and efficiency of rail transportation of agri10 cultural commodities and products and forestry com11 modities and products. 

12 ‘‘(3) STUDIES.—To perform studies regarding 

13 rail transportation of agricultural commodities and 

14 products and forestry commodities and products. 

15 ‘‘(d) ACCESS TO STB INFORMATION.—To carry out 

16 the functions under subsection (c), the Rail Customer Ad17 vocate shall have access to information, including data18 bases, of the Surface Transportation Board.’’. 

19 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 

20 296(b) of the Department of Agriculture Reorga21 nization Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 7014(b)) is amend22 ed—

23 (A) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘or’’ at 

24 the end; 
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1 (B) in paragraph (5), by striking the pe2 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

3 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(6) the establishment of the Office of Rail 

5 Consumer Advocacy of the Department under sec6 tion 286.’’.

Æ