II 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 158 

To reauthorize the Surface Transportation Board, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JANUARY 25 (legislative day, JANUARY 5), 2011 

Mr. ROCKEFELLER (for himself and Mrs. HUTCHISON) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

A BILL 

To reauthorize the Surface Transportation Board, 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. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Surface Transpor5 tation Board Reauthorization Act of 2011’’. 

6 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

7 The table of contents for this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title. 

Sec. 2. Table of contents. 

Sec. 3. Amendment of title 49, United States Code. 

TITLE I—ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS 

Sec. 101. Authorization of appropriations. 


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Sec. 102. Board members. 

Sec. 103. Establishment of Board as independent agency. 

Sec. 104. Filing fees for certain cases. 

Sec. 105. Repeal of expired and obsolete provisions. 

Sec. 106. Department of Transportation Inspector General authority. 

Sec. 107. Railroad-Shipper Transportation Advisory Council. 

TITLE II—AUTHORITY IMPROVEMENTS 

Sec. 201. Rail transportation policy update. 

Sec. 202. Office of Public Assistance, Governmental Affairs, and Compliance. 

Sec. 203. Investigative authority. 

Sec. 204. Compilation of complaints. 

Sec. 205. Exempt traffic. 

Sec. 206. Railroad service metrics and performance data. 

Sec. 207. Uniform railroad costing system. 

Sec. 208. Replacement cost study. 

Sec. 209. Rail practices study. 

Sec. 210. Rail car interchange study. 

Sec. 211. Offers of financial assistance. 

Sec. 212. Adverse abandonments. 

Sec. 213. Emergency service orders. 

Sec. 214. Rate agreements. 

Sec. 215. Miscellaneous provisions. 

TITLE III—REGULATORY REFORM 

Sec. 301. Paper barriers. 

Sec. 302. Bottleneck and terminal switching rates. 

Sec. 303. Terminal access. 

Sec. 304. Service. 

Sec. 305. Arbitration of certain rail rate, practice, and common carrier service 

expectation disputes. 

Sec. 306. Maximum relief in certain rate cases. 

Sec. 307. Advance rate challenge. 

Sec. 308. Rate review timelines. 

Sec. 309. Revenue adequacy study. 

Sec. 310. Public usage of abandoned rail properties. 

Sec. 311. Transactions. 

Sec. 312. Considerations in consolidations, mergers, and acquisitions. 

Sec. 313. Railroad development. 

Sec. 314. Regulatory reform review. 

TITLE IV—TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS 

Sec. 401. Technical corrections to Public Law 110–432. 

TITLE V—MISCELLANEOUS 

Sec. 501. Effective dates. 

1 SEC. 3. AMENDMENT OF TITLE 49, UNITED STATES CODE. 

2 Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in 

3 this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms 


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

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

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

4 Code. 

5 TITLE I—ADMINISTRATIVE 

6 PROVISIONS 

7 SEC. 101. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

8 Section 705 is amended by striking paragraphs (1) 

9 through (3) and inserting the following: 

10 ‘‘(1) $40,370,000 for fiscal year 2011; 

11 ‘‘(2) $47,518,000 for fiscal year 2012; 

12 ‘‘(3) $40,834,000 for fiscal year 2013; 

13 ‘‘(4) $44,315,000 for fiscal year 2014; and 

14 ‘‘(5) $47,971,000 for fiscal year 2015.’’. 

15 SEC. 102. BOARD MEMBERS. 

16 (a) MEMBERSHIP.—Section 701(b) is amended— 

17 (1) by striking ‘‘3 members,’’ in paragraph (1) 

18 and inserting ‘‘5 members,’’; 

19 (2) by striking ‘‘2 members’’ in paragraph (1) 

20 and inserting ‘‘3 members’’; and 

21 (3) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the 

22 following: 

23 ‘‘(2) At any given time, at least 3 members of the 

24 Board shall be individuals with professional standing and 

25 demonstrated knowledge in the fields of transportation, 


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1 transportation regulation, or economic regulation, and at 

2 least 2 members shall be individuals with professional or 

3 business experience (including agriculture or other rail 

4 customers) in the private sector.’’. 

5 (b) REPEAL OF HOLDOVER LIMITATION.—Section 

6 701(b) is amended by striking ‘‘qualified, but for a period 

7 not to exceed one year.’’ in paragraph (3) and inserting 

8 ‘‘qualified.’’. 

9 (c) REPEAL OF OBSOLETE PROVISION.—Section 

10 701(b) is amended— 

11 (1) by striking paragraph (4) and redesignating 

12 paragraphs (5), (6), and (7) as paragraphs (4), (5), 

13 and (6), respectively; and 

14 (2) by striking ‘‘In the case of an individual 

15 who becomes a member of the Board pursuant to 

16 paragraph (4), or an individual’’ in paragraph (4), 

17 as redesignated, and inserting ‘‘An individual’’. 

18 SEC. 103. ESTABLISHMENT OF BOARD AS INDEPENDENT 

19 AGENCY. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 701(a) is amended to 

21 read as follows: 

22 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF BOARD.—The Surface 

23 Transportation Board is an independent establishment of 

24 the United States Government.’’. 

25 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 


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1 (1) ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS.—Section 703 

2 is amended— 

3 (A) by striking subsections (a), (c), (f), 

4 and (g); 

5 (B) by redesignating subsections (b), (d), 

6 and (e) as subsections (a), (b), and (c), respec7 tively; and 

8 (C) by adding at the end thereof the following: 

9 ‘‘(d) SUBMISSIONS AND TRANSMITTALS.—Whenever 

10 the Board submits or transmits any budget estimate, 

11 budget request, supplemental budget estimate, or other 

12 budget information, legislative recommendation, prepared 

13 testimony for congressional hearings, or comment on legis14 lation to the President or to the Office of Management 

15 and Budget, it shall concurrently transmit a copy thereof 

16 to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

17 Transportation and the House of Representatives Com18 mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure. No officer 

19 or agency of the United States shall have any authority 

20 to require the Board to submit its budget requests or esti21 mates, legislative recommendations, prepared testimony 

22 for congressional hearings, or comments on legislation to 

23 any officer or agency of the United States for approval, 

24 comments, or review, prior to the submission of such rec25 ommendations, testimony, or comments to the Congress.’’. 


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1 (2) ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT.— 

2 (A) Subchapter II of chapter 7 is amended 

3 by striking section 725. 

4 (B) The table of contents for chapter 7 is 

5 amended by striking the item relating to section 

6 725. 

7 SEC. 104. FILING FEES FOR CERTAIN CASES. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter II of chapter 7, as 

9 amended by section 103(b)(2)(A) of this Act, is amended 

10 by inserting after section 724 the following: 

11 ‘‘§ 725. Filing fees 

12 ‘‘The Board may not require a party to pay a filing 

13 fee to bring a formal complaint before the Board that is 

14 greater than the fee provided by section 1914 of title 28 

15 for bringing a civil action in a district court of the United 

16 States.’’. 

17 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con18 tents for chapter 7 is amended by inserting after the item 

19 relating to section 724 the following: 

‘‘725. Filing fees’’. 

20 SEC. 105. REPEAL OF EXPIRED AND OBSOLETE PROVI21 SIONS. 

22 (a) CONTRACT LIMITATION.—Section 10709 is 

23 amended by striking subsection (h). 

24 (b) AGENT IN D.C.— 

25 (1) Section 723 is amended— 


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1 (A) by striking ‘‘in the District of Colum2 bia,’’ in subsection (a); and 

3 (B) by striking ‘‘in the District of Colum4 bia’’ in subsection (c). 

5 (2) Section 724(a) is amended by striking ‘‘in 

6 the District of Columbia’’ each place it appears. 

7 SEC. 106. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION INSPECTOR 

8 GENERAL AUTHORITY. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter II of chapter 7 is 

10 amended— 

11 (1) by redesignating section 727 as section 728; 

12 and 

13 (2) by inserting after section 726 the following: 

14 ‘‘§ 727. Authority of the Inspector General 

15 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Inspector General of the 

16 Department of Transportation, in accordance with the 

17 mission of the Inspector General to prevent and detect 

18 fraud and abuse, shall have authority to review only the 

19 financial management, property management, and busi20 ness operations of the Surface Transportation Board, in21 cluding internal accounting and administrative control 

22 systems, to determine compliance with applicable Federal 

23 laws, rules, and regulations. 

24 ‘‘(b) DUTIES.—In carrying out this section, the In25 spector General shall— 


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1 ‘‘(1) keep the Chairman of the Board and the 

2 Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

3 Transportation and the House of Representatives 

4 Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

5 fully and currently informed about problems relating 

6 to administration of the internal accounting and ad7 ministrative control systems of the Board; 

8 ‘‘(2) issue findings and recommendations for 

9 actions to address such problems; and 

10 ‘‘(3) report periodically to the Senate Com11 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

12 and the House of Representatives Committee on 

13 Transportation and Infrastructure on any progress 

14 made in implementing actions to address such prob15 lems. 

16 ‘‘(c) ACCESS TO INFORMATION.—In carrying out this 

17 section, the Inspector General may exercise authorities 

18 granted to the Inspector General under subsections (a) 

19 and (b) of section 6 of the Inspector General Act of 1978 

20 (5 U.S.C. App.). 

21 ‘‘(d) AUTHORIZATIONS OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

22 ‘‘(1) FUNDING.—There are authorized to be ap23 propriated to the Secretary of Transportation for 

24 use by the Inspector General of the Department of 

25 Transportation such sums as may be necessary to 


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1 cover expenses associated with activities pursuant to 

2 the authority exercised under this section. 

3 ‘‘(2) REIMBURSABLE AGREEMENT.—In the ab4 sence of an appropriation under this subsection for 

5 an expense referred to in paragraph (1), the Inspec6 tor General and the Board shall have a reimbursable 

7 agreement to cover such expense.’’. 

8 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con9 tents for chapter 7 is amended by striking the item relat10 ing to section 701 and inserting the following: 

‘‘727. Authority of the Inspector General 

‘‘728. Definitions’’. 

11 SEC. 107. RAILROAD-SHIPPER TRANSPORTATION ADVISORY 

12 COUNCIL. 

13 Section 726 is amended— 

14 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon in 

15 subsection (a)(2)(A); 

16 (2) by striking ‘‘railroads.’’ in subsection 

17 (a)(2)(B) and inserting ‘‘railroads; and’’; 

18 (3) by adding at the end of subsection (a)(2) 

19 the following: 

20 ‘‘(C) the ninth voting member shall be a 

21 member-at-large, and may be a representative 

22 of rail labor, a State or local transportation 

23 agency, an academic institution, or other rel24 evant entity selected by the Chairman.’’; 


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1 (4) by striking the second sentence of sub2 section (a)(4); and 

3 (5) by striking the first sentence of subsection 

4 (f)(4) and inserting ‘‘The Council shall prepare an 

5 annual report concerning its activities and the re6 sults of Council efforts to resolve railroad and ship7 per issues and shall include in the report at least 

8 one recommendation to the Board stemming from 

9 the Council’s activities and any proposal regarding 

10 regulations or legislation it considers appropriate.’’. 

11 TITLE II—AUTHORITY 

12 IMPROVEMENTS 

13 SEC. 201. RAIL TRANSPORTATION POLICY UPDATE. 

14 Section 10101 is amended to read as follows: 

15 ‘‘§ 10101. Rail transportation policy 

16 ‘‘In regulating the railroad industry, it is the policy 

17 of the United States Government to balance the following 

18 objectives: 

19 ‘‘(1) To promote a safe and efficient rail trans20 portation system. 

21 ‘‘(2) To allow, to the maximum extent possible, 

22 competition and the demand for services to establish 

23 reasonable rates for transportation by rail. 

24 ‘‘(3) To protect rail shippers and to maintain 

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1 tive competition and where rail rates provide reve2 nues that exceed the amount necessary to maintain 

3 and expand the rail system and to attract capital. 

4 ‘‘(4) To foster the continuation and expansion 

5 of a sound rail transportation system while also pre6 serving effective competition among rail carriers and 

7 with other modes to meet the needs of the public 

8 and National defense. 

9 ‘‘(5) To ensure that rail carriers can earn ade10 quate revenues to provide and sustain consistent, ef11 ficient, and reliable transportation services and to 

12 maintain and expand rail infrastructure, equipment, 

13 and technology. 

14 ‘‘(6) To prohibit predatory pricing and prac15 tices, avoid undue concentrations of market power, 

16 and to prohibit unlawful discrimination. 

17 ‘‘(7) To provide fair and expeditious regulatory 

18 decisions and ensure that the regulatory process is 

19 accessible and cost-effective for all affected parties. 

20 ‘‘(8) To advance the environmental and energy 

21 efficiency advantages of rail transportation and en22 courage energy conservation and environmentally-re23 sponsible practices among rail carriers. 

24 ‘‘(9) To foster intercity and commuter rail pas25 senger service. 


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1 ‘‘(10) To encourage fair wages and safe and 

2 suitable working conditions in the railroad indus3 try.’’. 

4 SEC. 202. OFFICE OF PUBLIC ASSISTANCE, GOVERNMENTAL 

5 AFFAIRS, AND COMPLIANCE. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter II of chapter 7, as 

7 amended by section 106 of this Act, is further amended— 

8 (1) redesignating section 728 (as redesignated 

9 by section 106 of this Act) as section 729; and 

10 (2) by inserting after section 727 the following: 

11 ‘‘§ 728. Office of Public Assistance, Governmental Af12 fairs, and Compliance 

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall maintain an Of14 fice of Public Assistance, Governmental Affairs, and Com15 pliance with authority over public assistance and outreach, 

16 governmental affairs, and compliance. The Office shall— 

17 ‘‘(1) mediate disputes between affected parties; 

18 ‘‘(2) monitor rail carrier operations subject to 

19 the Board’s jurisdiction to ensure that such oper20 ations are in compliance with each rail carrier’s stat21 utory and regulatory responsibilities; 

22 ‘‘(3) act as the Board’s point of contact with 

23 government, public and private parties; 

24 ‘‘(4) facilitate communication among stake25 holders subject to the Board’s jurisdiction; and 


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1 ‘‘(5) carry out other duties and powers pre2 scribed by the Board. 

3 ‘‘(b) CUSTOMER ADVOCATE.—The Board shall ap4 point a rail customer advocate who shall report directly 

5 to the Board. The rail customer advocate— 

6 ‘‘(1) shall review or investigate rail customer in7 quiries and complaints; 

8 ‘‘(2) shall serve as a technical advisor to a rail 

9 customer in any appropriate proceeding of the 

10 Board; 

11 ‘‘(3) shall advise the Board in certain matters, 

12 as appropriate; 

13 ‘‘(4) shall review information regarding the cost 

14 and efficiency of rail transportation; 

15 ‘‘(5) shall carry out other duties and powers 

16 prescribed by the Board; and 

17 ‘‘(6) may participate as a party in a proceeding 

18 of the Board, as appropriate. 

19 ‘‘(c) OMBUDSMAN.—The Board may designate an 

20 employee of the Board to serve as an ombudsman of the 

21 Board in regional or local matters of Board interest, in22 cluding matters related to railroad service, mergers and 

23 acquisitions, or any other matter designated by the 

24 Board.’’. 


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1 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con2 tents for chapter 7, as amended by section 106 of this 

3 Act, is amended by striking the item relating to section 

4 728 and inserting the following: 

‘‘728. Office of Public Assistance, Governmental Affairs, and Compliance 

‘‘729. Definitions’’. 

5 SEC. 203. INVESTIGATIVE AUTHORITY. 

6 (a) AUTHORITY TO INITIATE INVESTIGATION.—Sec7 tion 11701(a) is amended by striking ‘‘only on complaint.’’ 

8 and inserting ‘‘on the Board’s own initiative or on com9 plaint.’’. 

10 (b) RATE PROCEEDINGS.—Section 10704(b) is 

11 amended by striking the first sentence and inserting ‘‘The 

12 Board may begin a proceeding under subsection (a)(1) on 

13 its own initiative or upon complaint, except that a pro14 ceeding to determine the reasonableness of the level of a 

15 rate charged by a carrier may only be initiated upon com16 plaint.’’. 

17 SEC. 204. COMPILATION OF COMPLAINTS. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 704 is amended— 

19 (1) by striking the section heading and insert20 ing the following: 

21 ‘‘§704. Reports ’’; 

22 (2) by inserting ‘‘(a) ANNUAL REPORT.—’’ be23 fore ‘‘The Board’’; and 

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


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1 ‘‘(b) COMPLAINTS.— 

2 ‘‘(1) The Board shall establish and maintain a 

3 database of complaints received by the Board. 

4 ‘‘(2) The Board shall post a quarterly report of 

5 formal and informal service complaints received by 

6 the Board during the previous quarter that shall in7 clude— 

8 ‘‘(A) a list of the type of each complaint; 

9 ‘‘(B) the geographic region of the com10 plaint; and 

11 ‘‘(C) the resolution of the complaint, if ap12 propriate. 

13 ‘‘(3) The quarterly report may identify a com14 plainant that submitted an informal complaint only 

15 upon the written consent of the complainant. 

16 ‘‘(4) The report shall be posted on the Board’s 

17 public website.’’. 

18 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con19 tents for chapter 7 is amended by striking the item relat20 ing to section 704 and inserting the following: 

‘‘704. Reports’’. 

21 SEC. 205. EXEMPT TRAFFIC. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 10502 is amended— 

23 (1) by striking ‘‘the Board, to the maximum ex24 tent consistent with this part, shall’’ in subsection 

25 (a) and inserting ‘‘the Board shall’’; and 


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1 (2) by striking ‘‘title.’’ in subsection (d) and in2 serting ‘‘title or to protect shippers from the abuse 

3 of market power.’’. 

4 (b) CURRENT CLASS EXEMPTIONS.—Within 2 years 

5 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Surface Trans6 portation Board shall conclude a study of class exemptions 

7 in effect on the date of enactment of this Act to determine 

8 whether any exemptions should be revoked pursuant to 

9 section 10502(d) of title 49, United States Code. In con10 ducting the study, the Board shall provide public notice 

11 and opportunity for comment and conduct 1 or more pub12 lic hearings. Upon completion of the study, the Board 

13 shall— 

14 (1) revise any such exemptions as necessary on 

15 the basis of the Board’s findings and conclusions 

16 from the study; and 

17 (2) establish a process for the periodic review, 

18 and revision as necessary, of class exemptions. 

19 SEC. 206. RAILROAD SERVICE METRICS AND PERFORM20 ANCE DATA. 

21 (a) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.—Within 2 years 

22 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Surface Trans23 portation Board shall require Class I railroad carriers and 

24 other railroad carriers, as appropriate, to regularly report 

25 railroad service metrics and other performance data as 


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1 prescribed by the Board. The metrics and data may in2 clude transportation cycle times and transit times and 

3 variations in such times, average train speed, and terminal 

4 dwell time by type of traffic and by geographic area and 

5 other metrics, as determined by the Board. 

6 (b) CONFIDENTIALITY.—The Board shall ensure that 

7 metrics and other performance data submitted pursuant 

8 to this section and deemed confidential by the Board are 

9 appropriately protected. 

10 SEC. 207. UNIFORM RAILROAD COSTING SYSTEM. 

11 (a) STUDY.—Within 180 days after the date of enact12 ment of this Act, the Surface Transportation Board shall 

13 initiate a proceeding to examine the Uniform Railroad 

14 Costing System. The examination shall consider matters 

15 deemed appropriate by the Board. 

16 (b) UPDATE.—Within 3 years after the date of enact17 ment of this Act, the Board shall update, revise, or replace 

18 the System and any related reporting of financial and op19 erating information by rail carriers as deemed appropriate 

20 by the Board based on the examination required by sub21 section (a). 

22 (c) INTERIM REPORT.—Within 18 months after the 

23 date of enactment of this Act, the Board shall submit an 

24 interim report on its progress on the proceeding to the 

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1 tation and the House of Representatives Committee on 

2 Transportation and Infrastructure. 

3 (d) MOVEMENT-SPECIFIC ADJUSTMENTS.—Until the 

4 Board updates, revises, or replaces the system pursuant 

5 to subsection (b), or thereafter at the discretion of the 

6 Board, parties may make reasonable movement-specific 

7 adjustments to the variable costs calculated by the System 

8 in full stand-alone cost rate challenges. 

9 (e) MATERIAL CHANGE ADJUSTMENTS.—If the Sys10 tem is materially changed pursuant to subsection (b), the 

11 Board shall develop a one-time adjustment factor to be 

12 used to adjust the variable costs in rate prescriptions de13 termined under the changed procedures to equal those 

14 that would have been obtained under the prior procedures, 

15 and will apply this adjustment factor, upon request, in 

16 rate prescriptions that are in effect as of the date of enact17 ment of this Act. 

18 SEC. 208. REPLACEMENT COST STUDY. 

19 (a) STUDY.—Within 180 days after the date of enact20 ment of this Act, the Surface Transportation Board shall 

21 initiate a study to review the use of a replacement cost 

22 approach to value the assets of rail facilities. The review 

23 shall include matters deemed appropriate by the Board, 

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1 placement cost approach in Board proceedings where re2 placement costs may be relevant. In conducting the study, 

3 the Board shall provide public notice and opportunity for 

4 comment and conduct 1 or more public hearings. The 

5 Board shall complete the study within 2 years after its 

6 initiation. 

7 (b) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Within 180 days after 

8 completion of the study, the Board shall provide a report 

9 to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

10 Transportation and the House of Representatives Com11 mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure on its find12 ings. 

13 SEC. 209. RAIL PRACTICES STUDY. 

14 (a) STUDY.—Within 180 days after the date of enact15 ment of this Act, the Surface Transportation Board shall 

16 initiate a study of rail practices, including switching, sur17 charges, penalties, demurrage, and accessorial charges. In 

18 conducting the study, the Board shall provide public notice 

19 and opportunity for comment and conduct 1 or more pub20 lic hearings. 

21 (b) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Within 180 days after 

22 completion of the study, the Board shall provide a report 

23 to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

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1 mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure on its find2 ings. 

3 SEC. 210. RAIL CAR INTERCHANGE STUDY. 

4 (a) STUDY.—Within 180 days after the date of enact5 ment of this Act, the Surface Transportation Board shall 

6 initiate a study of rail interchange rules, including car 

7 service, interchange, and other operating rules adopted 

8 and administered by the Association of American Rail9 roads and the effect of those rules on the national rail 

10 system. In conducting the study, the Board shall provide 

11 public notice and opportunity for comment and conduct 

12 one or more public hearings. 

13 (b) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Within 180 days after 

14 completion of the study, the Board shall provide a report 

15 to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

16 Transportation and the House of Representatives Com17 mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure on its find18 ings. 

19 SEC. 211. OFFERS OF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE. 

20 Section 10904 is amended— 

21 (1) by striking so much of subsection (d) as 

22 precedes paragraph (2) and inserting the following: 

23 ‘‘(d)(1) Unless the Board, within 15 days after the 

24 expiration of the 4-month period described in subsection 

25 (c), finds that one or more financially responsible persons 


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1 (including a governmental authority) have offered finan2 cial assistance and established a reasonable likelihood of 

3 freight rail service, public transportation, or intercity rail 

4 passenger transportation over that part of the railroad line 

5 to be abandoned or over which all rail transportation is 

6 to be discontinued, abandonment or discontinuance may 

7 be carried out in accordance with section 10903.’’; and 

8 (2) by striking ‘‘30 days’’ in subsection 

9 (f)(1)(A) and inserting ‘‘60 days’’. 

10 SEC. 212. ADVERSE ABANDONMENTS. 

11 Section 10903 is amended— 

12 (1) by striking so much of subsection (a) as 

13 precedes paragraph (2) and inserting the following: 

14 ‘‘(a)(1) An application relating to the abandonment 

15 of or discontinuance of operation of all rail transportation 

16 over any part of a railroad line shall be filed with the 

17 Board. An abandonment or discontinuance may be carried 

18 out only as authorized under this chapter.’’; 

19 (2) by striking ‘‘When a rail carrier providing 

20 transportation subject to the jurisdiction of the 

21 Board under this part files an application, the appli22 cation’’ in subsection (a)(2) and inserting ‘‘An appli23 cation filed under this section’’; 

24 (3) by striking ‘‘rail carrier’s’’ in subsection 

25 (a)(2)(A); 


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1 (4) by striking ‘‘(C)(i)’’ in subsection (a)(2)(C) 

2 and inserting ‘‘(C) if filed by a rail carrier, (i)’’; and 

3 (5) by striking ‘‘The rail carrier shall—’’ in 

4 subsection (a)(3) and inserting ‘‘The applicant 

5 shall—’’. 

6 SEC. 213. EMERGENCY SERVICE ORDERS. 

7 Section 11123(c)(1) is amended by striking the sec8 ond sentence and inserting ‘‘Action by the Board under 

9 subsection (a) of this section may be extended in 90-day 

10 increments until the Board finds that the emergency has 

11 ended.’’. 

12 SEC. 214. RATE AGREEMENTS. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 10706 is amended to read 

14 as follows: 

15 ‘‘§ 10706. Rate agreements 

16 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In any proceeding in which it is 

17 alleged that a carrier was a party to an agreement, con18 spiracy, or combination in violation of the Sherman Act 

19 (15 U.S.C. 1 et seq.), the Clayton Act (15 U.S.C. 12 et 

20 seq.), sections 73 and 74 of the Wilson Tariff Act (15 

21 U.S.C. 8 and 9), or the Act of June 19, 1936 (15 U.S.C. 

22 13, 13a, 13b, 21a) or of any similar State law, proof of 

23 an agreement, conspiracy, or combination may not be in24 ferred from evidence that two or more rail carriers acted 

25 together with respect to an interline rate or related matter 


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1 and that a party to such action took similar action with 

2 respect to a rate or related matter on another route or 

3 traffic. 

4 ‘‘(b) INADMISSIBLE EVIDENCE.—In any proceeding 

5 in which such a violation is alleged, evidence of a discus6 sion or agreement between or among such rail carrier and 

7 one or more other rail carriers, or of any rate or other 

8 action resulting from such discussion or agreement, shall 

9 not be admissible if the discussion or agreement concerned 

10 an interline movement of the rail carrier, and the discus11 sion or agreement would not, considered by itself, violate 

12 the laws referred to in subsection (a). 

13 ‘‘(c) DETERMINATION BY COURT.—In any such pro14 ceeding before a jury, the court shall determine whether 

15 the requirements of subsection (b) are satisfied before al16 lowing the introduction of any such evidence.’’. 

17 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con18 tents for chapter 107 is amended by striking the item re19 lating to section 10706 and inserting the following: 

‘‘10706. Rate agreements’’. 

20 SEC. 215. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS. 

21 (a) SIMPLIFIED PROCEDURE.—Section 10701(d)(3) 

22 is amended to read as follows: 

23 ‘‘(3) The Board shall maintain a simplified and expe24 dited method for determining the reasonableness of chalVerDate Mar 15 2010 22:05 Feb 01, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S158.IS S158

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1 lenged rates in those cases in which a full stand-alone cost 

2 presentation is too costly, given the value of the case.’’. 

3 (b) EXPEDITIOUS HANDLING.—Section 10704(d) is 

4 amended by striking the first sentence and inserting ‘‘The 

5 Board shall maintain procedures to ensure expeditious 

6 handling of challenges to the reasonableness of railroad 

7 rates.’’. 

8 TITLE III—REGULATORY 

9 REFORM 

10 SEC. 301. PAPER BARRIERS. 

11 (a) INTERCHANGE COMMITMENT DEFINED.—Section 

12 10102 is amended— 

13 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (4) through 

14 (10) as paragraphs (5) through (11), respectively; 

15 and 

16 (2) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol17 lowing: 

18 ‘‘(4) ‘interchange commitment’ means a con19 tractual agreement between two or more rail carriers 

20 subject to the jurisdiction of the Board reached as 

21 part of a sale or lease of a rail line for which the 

22 approval of the Board is required under chapter 109 

23 or 113 of this part, which limits the incentive or the 

24 ability of the purchaser or tenant rail carrier to 


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1 interchange traffic with a rail carrier other than the 

2 seller or lessor rail carrier;’’. 

3 (b) AUTHORIZING AN ACQUISITION OR OPERATION

4 TRANSACTION.— 

5 (1) Section 10901(c) is amended by adding at 

6 the end thereof ‘‘The Board may not issue a certifi7 cate authorizing an acquisition or operation trans8 action under subsection (a)(4) that includes inter9 change commitments or other mechanisms restrict10 ing the purchaser’s or tenant’s ability to interchange 

11 with any other carrier unless such commitments or 

12 mechanisms are reasonable and in the public inter13 est.’’. 

14 (2) Section 10902(c) is amended by adding at 

15 the end thereof ‘‘The Board may not issue a certifi16 cate authorizing an acquisition or operation trans17 action under this section that includes interchange 

18 commitments or other mechanisms restricting the 

19 purchaser’s or tenant’s ability to interchange with 

20 any other carrier unless such commitments or mech21 anisms are reasonable and in the public interest.’’. 

22 (3) Section 11323 is amended by adding at the 

23 end thereof the following: 

24 ‘‘(d) The Board may not authorize an acquisition or 

25 operation transaction under this section that includes 


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1 interchange commitments or other mechanisms restricting 

2 the purchaser’s or tenant’s ability to interchange with any 

3 other carrier unless such commitments or mechanisms are 

4 reasonable and in the public interest.’’. 

5 (c) RIGHTS AND REMEDIES FOR INTERCHANGE COM6 MITMENTS.—Chapter 117 is amended by adding at end 

7 thereof the following: 

8 ‘‘§ 11708. Interchange commitments: rights and rem9 edies 

10 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall maintain a 

11 process to allow affected persons to challenge existing 

12 interchange commitments as contrary to other provisions 

13 of this part. The Attorney General and the Secretary of 

14 Transportation may participate in such proceedings. 

15 ‘‘(b) ACCESS TO INTERCHANGE COMMITMENTS.— 

16 After the filing of a complaint or petition, the Board shall 

17 provide affected persons access, upon request, to existing 

18 and proposed interchange commitments, subject to condi19 tions protecting the confidentiality of those agreements. 

20 ‘‘(c) REDRESS AUTHORITY.—The Board shall take 

21 appropriate action to address any conflict between an 

22 interchange commitment and the provisions of this part. 

23 ‘‘(d) PURCHASE AUTHORITY.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para25 graph (5), if the Board finds that— 


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1 ‘‘(A) an interchange commitment is found 

2 to be in violation of this part, and 

3 ‘‘(B) the purchaser or tenant rail carrier 

4 and the seller or lessor rail carrier cannot bring 

5 the interchange commitment into compliance 

6 with this part within a reasonable period of 

7 time, 

8 the Board may require, upon application by the pur9 chaser or tenant rail carrier, the elimination of the 

10 interchange commitment at a price paid by the pur11 chaser or tenant rail carrier not less than the terms 

12 established under paragraph (2). 

13 ‘‘(2) TERMS.—In the case of an interchange 

14 commitment subject to elimination under paragraph 

15 (1), the Board shall determine the fair market value 

16 of an interchange commitment by considering— 

17 ‘‘(A) any credits, payments, expenses, or 

18 other income paid and due from the inter19 change commitment to the seller or lessor rail 

20 carrier; 

21 ‘‘(B) reasonable financial hardships of the 

22 purchaser or tenant rail carrier due to unrea23 sonable terms, if any, of the interchange agree24 ment; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) other relevant factors as determined 

2 by the Board. 

3 ‘‘(3) EMPLOYEE PROTECTION.—The Board 

4 shall require protections consistent with the require5 ments of section 11326(a) for rail labor employees 

6 who are affected by an action under this subsection. 

7 ‘‘(4) PURCHASER PRECONDITIONS.—Any pur8 chaser or tenant rail carrier that buys out an inter9 change commitment under this subsection may de10 termine preconditions, such as payment of a subsidy, 

11 which must be met by shippers in order to obtain 

12 service over such lines, but such rail carrier must 

13 notify the shippers on the line of its intention to im14 pose such preconditions. 

15 ‘‘(5) EXCEPTION.—If the Board requires the 

16 elimination of an interchange commitment under 

17 paragraph (1), and the purchaser or tenant rail car18 rier or the seller or lessor rail carrier demonstrates 

19 that the sale or lease agreement containing the 

20 interchange commitment contains a provision gov21 erning the manner in which the agreement may be 

22 terminated, the Board shall permit the agreement to 

23 be terminated in accordance with that provision. 

24 ‘‘(6) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 


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1 ‘‘(A) PURCHASER OR TENANT RAIL CAR2 RIER.—The term ‘purchaser or tenant rail car3 rier’ means a Class II or Class III rail carrier 

4 that purchases or leases a rail line that is sub5 ject to terms of an interchange commitment. 

6 ‘‘(B) SELLER OR LESSOR RAIL CARRIER.— 

7 The term ‘seller or lessor rail carrier’ means a 

8 Class I rail carrier that leased or sold a rail line 

9 subject to terms of an interchange commitment. 

10 ‘‘(e) DEADLINE FOR COMPLETION OF PRO11 CEEDING.—The Board shall complete any proceeding 

12 under this section within 180 days after the close of the 

13 administrative record.’’. 

14 (d) RAILROAD REHABILITATION AND IMPROVEMENT

15 FINANCING.— 

16 (1) Section 502(b)(1) of the Railroad Revital17 ization and Regulatory Reform Act of 1976 (45 

18 U.S.C. 822(b)(1)) is amended— 

19 (A) by striking ‘‘or’’ after the semicolon in 

20 subparagraph (B); 

21 (B) by striking ‘‘facilities.’’ in subpara22 graph (C) and inserting ‘‘facilities; or’’; and 

23 (C) by inserting after subparagraph (C) 

24 the following: 


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1 ‘‘(D) provide financial assistance to pur2 chase or lease a rail line subject to terms estab3 lished by the Surface Transportation Board 

4 under section 11708(d) of title 49, United 

5 States Code.’’. 

6 (2) Section 502 of that Act (45 U.S.C. 822) is 

7 amended— 

8 (A) by adding at the end of subsection (e) 

9 the following: 

10 ‘‘(3) INTEREST RATE REDUCTION.—Subject to 

11 the availability of funds authorized by subsection 

12 (k), the Secretary may reduce the interest to be paid 

13 on direct loans provided to a Class II or Class III 

14 rail carrier for the purpose of subsection 

15 (b)(1)(D).’’; 

16 (B) in subsection (f)(1)— 

17 (i) by inserting ‘‘or private insurance, 

18 including bond insurance,’’ after ‘‘in part 

19 credit risk’’; and 

20 (ii) by inserting ‘‘or insurance, includ21 ing bond insurance,’’ after ‘‘authority and 

22 credit risk’’; 

23 (C) by striking ‘‘amounts.’’ in subsection 

24 (f)(3) and inserting ‘‘amounts or, at the discre25 tion of the Secretary, in a series of payments 


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1 over the term of the loan. If insurance, includ2 ing bond insurance, is used, the policy premium 

3 shall be paid before the loan is disbursed.’’; and 

4 (D) by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(k) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

6 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary for pur7 poses of carrying out subsection (e)(3) such funds as may 

8 be necessary for fiscal years 2011 through 2015.’’. 

9 (e) INTERCHANGE COMMITMENT RELIEF GRANTS.— 

10 Chapter 201 is amended by adding at end thereof the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘§ 20168. Interchange commitment relief grants 

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Upon application, the Secretary 

14 of Transportation, in consultation with the Surface Trans15 portation Board, may make grants available to assist any 

16 Class III rail carrier providing transportation subject to 

17 the jurisdiction of the Surface Transportation Board with 

18 the credit risk premium of a direct loan or loan guarantee 

19 made for the purposes of section 502(b)(1)(D) of the Rail20 road Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act of 1976 

21 (45 U.S.C. 822(b)(1)(D)). 

22 ‘‘(b) LIMITATIONS.—The Secretary of Transpor23 tation— 

24 ‘‘(1) shall award grants only to applicants with 

25 financial need; and 


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1 ‘‘(2) may approve a grant under this section 

2 only as part of an application for a Railroad Reha3 bilitation and Improvement Financing loan or loan 

4 guarantee. 

5 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

6 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of 

7 Transportation for grants under this section $7,500,000 

8 for fiscal years 2011 through 2015.’’. 

9 (f) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

10 (1) The table of contents for chapter 117 is 

11 amended by inserting after the item relating to sec12 tion 11707 the following: 

‘‘11708. Interchange commitments: rights and remedies’’. 

13 (2) The table of contents for chapter 201 is 

14 amended by inserting after the item relating to sec15 tion 20167 the following: 

‘‘20168. Interchange commitment relief grants’’. 

16 SEC. 302. BOTTLENECK AND TERMINAL SWITCHING RATES. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter I of chapter 107 is 

18 amended by adding at the end thereof the following: 

19 ‘‘§ 10710. Bottleneck and terminal switching rates 

20 ‘‘(a) A Class I rail carrier, or other rail carrier as 

21 deemed appropriate by the Board, that provides a rate for 

22 transportation between an origin and destination either as 

23 a single line movement or as part of an interline movement 

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1 ant to section 10707 shall, upon the reasonable request 

2 of a rail customer, establish a bottleneck rate for the pur3 pose of providing transportation over a bottleneck segment 

4 located between such an origin and destination pursuant 

5 to this section. If the rail carrier contends that the trans6 portation is not subject to market dominance under that 

7 section, the rail carrier shall seek an expedited determina8 tion of that issue from the Board. 

9 ‘‘(b) Such a carrier shall establish such a rate and 

10 provide service upon such request without regard to 

11 whether the shipper has made arrangements for transpor12 tation for any other part of that movement. 

13 ‘‘(c)(1) If the Board determines, under section 10707 

14 of this title, that such a rail carrier has market dominance 

15 between the origin and destination, the bottleneck rate es16 tablished for transportation pursuant to this section must 

17 be reasonable. 

18 ‘‘(2)(A) Not later than one year after the date of en19 actment of the Surface Transportation Board Reauthor20 ization Act of 2011, the Board shall establish and main21 tain standards for determining whether a bottleneck rate 

22 established by a rail carrier is reasonable for purposes of 

23 this section and establish a simplified and expedited meth24 od for determining the reasonableness of challenged bottle25 neck rates. In developing those standards the Board shall 


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1 consider rail carriers’ need to earn adequate revenues to 

2 provide and sustain consistent, efficient, and reliable 

3 transportation services and to maintain the national rail 

4 system. 

5 ‘‘(B) In developing the standards, the Board shall in6 clude, as part of a reasonable rate— 

7 ‘‘(i) operating costs, including any additional 

8 labor costs, of providing the requested transpor9 tation service over the bottleneck segment; 

10 ‘‘(ii) maintenance costs associated with pro11 viding the requested transportation service; 

12 ‘‘(iii) additional capital and investment costs re13 quired to perform the requested transportation serv14 ice over the bottleneck segment; 

15 ‘‘(iv) a reasonable return on embedded capital 

16 used for the requested transportation service over 

17 the bottleneck segment sufficient to meet the rail 

18 carrier’s cost of capital or, if such cost is not avail19 able, the rail industry cost of capital; 

20 ‘‘(v) a reasonable contribution, to the extent ap21 propriate, to that carrier’s network infrastructure 

22 costs of the non-bottleneck segment of the route of23 fered by the incumbent rail carrier that is sufficient, 

24 along with other traffic on the segment, to maintain 

25 the non-bottleneck segment; and 


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1 ‘‘(vi) any other contributing factors appropriate 

2 to meet the consideration in subparagraph (A). 

3 ‘‘(d) In any proceeding in which a rail customer chal4 lenges a bottleneck rate established under this section as 

5 unreasonable, the burden of proof that the rate is reason6 able shall be on the rail carrier. 

7 ‘‘(e) In this section: 

8 ‘‘(1) The term ‘bottleneck rate’ means a rate 

9 for transportation over a bottleneck segment. 

10 ‘‘(2) The term ‘bottleneck segment’ means the 

11 rail facilities, including rail facilities located entirely 

12 in terminal areas, between an origin on the carrier’s 

13 system and an interchange or between a destination 

14 on the carrier’s system and an interchange. 

15 ‘‘(3) The term ‘interchange’ means an inter16 change on such a rail carrier’s system that exists on 

17 the date of the shipper’s request for a rate covered 

18 by this section that— 

19 ‘‘(A) is practicable and would not signifi20 cantly adversely affect such rail carrier’s net21 work efficiency; and 

22 ‘‘(B) would not significantly impair service 

23 to other customers of such rail carrier.’’. 

24 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 


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1 (1) The table of contents for chapter 107 is 

2 amended by inserting after the item relating to sec3 tion 10709 the following: 

‘‘10710. Bottleneck and terminal switching rates’’. 

4 (2) Section 10705(a)(2)(A) is amended by in5 serting ‘‘10710,’’ after ‘‘under section’’. 

6 SEC. 303. TERMINAL ACCESS. 

7 Section 11102 is amended to read as follows: 

8 ‘‘§ 11102. Use of terminal facilities 

9 ‘‘(a) For a Class I rail carrier, or other rail carrier 

10 as deemed appropriate by the Board, providing transpor11 tation over which the rail carrier has market dominance 

12 pursuant to section 10707 in a terminal area, the Board 

13 may require the rail carrier to make its terminal facilities, 

14 including mainline tracks for a reasonable distance outside 

15 of that terminal, available for use by another rail carrier 

16 for such transporation. 

17 ‘‘(b) The Board may only require that a rail carrier 

18 take such action under subsection (a) if the Board finds 

19 that such action— 

20 ‘‘(1) would be practicable and would not signifi21 cantly adversely affect the operations of the terminal 

22 or facility owned by such rail carrier or rail carriers 

23 otherwise entitled to use the terminal or facilities; 


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1 ‘‘(2) would not significantly adversely affect the 

2 network efficiency of such rail carrier or rail carriers 

3 otherwise entitled to use the terminal or facilities; 

4 ‘‘(3) would not significantly impair service to 

5 other customers of such rail carrier or other rail car6 riers entitled to use the terminal or facilities; 

7 ‘‘(4) is necessary to promote the efficient oper8 ation of the railroad system and improve rail service; 

9 and 

10 ‘‘(5) is in the public interest. 

11 ‘‘(c) The rail carriers required to make facilities avail12 able or provide service pursuant to subsection (a) are re13 sponsible for establishing reasonable conditions and com14 pensation for the use of the facilities. The compensation 

15 shall be paid or adequately secured before a rail carrier 

16 may begin to use the facilities of another rail carrier. 

17 ‘‘(d)(1) Not later than one year after the date of en18 actment of the Surface Transportation Board Reauthor19 ization Act of 2011, the Board shall establish and main20 tain standards for determining whether compensation is 

21 reasonable for purposes of this section and establish a sim22 plified and expedited method for determining the reason23 ableness of challenged compensation rates. 

24 ‘‘(2) In developing such standards, the Board shall 

25 consider rail carriers’ need to earn adequate revenues to 


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1 provide and sustain consistent, efficient, and reliable 

2 transportation services and to maintain the national rail 

3 system. 

4 ‘‘(e) In developing the standards required by sub5 section (d), the Board shall include, as part of a reason6 able compensation— 

7 ‘‘(1) operating costs, including any additional 

8 labor costs, of providing the requested usage; 

9 ‘‘(2) maintenance costs associated with pro10 viding the requested usage; 

11 ‘‘(3) additional capital and investment costs re12 quired to perform the requested usage; 

13 ‘‘(4) a reasonable return on embedded capital 

14 employed for the requested usage of terminal facili15 ties sufficient to meet the rail carrier’s cost of cap16 ital or, if such cost is not available, the rail industry 

17 cost of capital; 

18 ‘‘(5) a reasonable contribution, to the extent ap19 propriate, to that carrier’s network infrastructure 

20 costs of the route beyond the terminal facilities and 

21 main line tracks made available for the requested 

22 usage, that is sufficient, along with other traffic on 

23 the route and mainline track, to maintain the route 

24 beyond the terminal facilities and mainline tracks 

25 made available for the requested usage; and 


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1 ‘‘(6) any other contributing factors appropriate 

2 to meet the considerations in subsection (d)(2). 

3 ‘‘(g) A rail carrier whose terminal facilities are re4 quired to be used by another rail carrier under this section 

5 is entitled to recover compensation from the other rail car6 rier for damages sustained as the result of compliance 

7 with the requirement in a civil action. 

8 ‘‘(h) In any proceeding in which a rail carrier chal9 lenges a compensation rate established under this section 

10 as unreasonable, the burden of proof that the rate is rea11 sonable shall be on the rail carrier whose terminal facilities 

12 are required to be used by the other rail carrier. 

13 ‘‘(i) If the Board requires that a rail carrier take such 

14 an action under subsection (a), the Board shall provide 

15 for the protection of the interests of employees affected 

16 thereby, consistent with the level of protection under sec17 tion 10902 of this title. 

18 ‘‘(j) The Board shall complete any proceeding under 

19 this section within 180 days after the closing of the evi20 dentiary record. The Board may extend the deadline in 

21 incremental 30-day periods if it issues a decision dem22 onstrating why such an extension is necessary.’’. 

23 SEC. 304. SERVICE. 

24 Section 11101 is amended— 


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1 (1) by redesignating subsection (f) as sub2 section (g); and 

3 (2) by inserting after subsection (e) the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(f) The Board shall, by regulation, require rail car6 riers to publish reasonable common carrier service expec7 tation ranges. These may include ranges for normal car 

8 cycle times, transit times, switching frequency, and other 

9 service components as determined by the Board to be ap10 propriate.’’. 

11 SEC. 305. ARBITRATION OF CERTAIN RAIL RATE, PRACTICE, 

12 AND COMMON CARRIER SERVICE EXPECTA13 TION DISPUTES. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 117, as amended by sec15 tion 301, is further amended by adding at the end the 

16 following: 

17 ‘‘§ 11709. Arbitration of certain rail rate, practice, 

18 and common carrier service disputes 

19 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year after en20 actment of the Surface Transportation Board Reauthor21 ization Act of 2011, the Board shall promulgate regula22 tions to establish a binding arbitration process to resolve 

23 rail rate, practice, and common carrier service expectation 

24 complaints subject to the jurisdiction of the Board. 


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1 ‘‘(b) COVERED DISPUTES.—The binding arbitration 

2 process— 

3 ‘‘(1) shall apply to disputes involving rates, 

4 practices, and common carrier service expectations 

5 subject to the jurisdiction of the Board; 

6 ‘‘(2) shall not apply to disputes to obtain the 

7 grant, denial, stay or revocation of any license, au8 thorization or exemption, to prescribe for the future 

9 any conduct, rules, or results of general, industry10 wide applicability, or to enforce labor protective con11 ditions; and 

12 ‘‘(3) shall not apply to disputes solely between 

13 2 or more rail carriers. 

14 ‘‘(c) ARBITRATION PROCEDURES.— 

15 ‘‘(1) The Board— 

16 ‘‘(A) may make the binding arbitration 

17 process available only to the relevant parties— 

18 ‘‘(i) after the filing of a formal com19 plaint; or 

20 ‘‘(ii) upon petition by a party at the 

21 conclusion of any informal dispute resolu22 tion process provided by the Board for a 

23 complaint subject to this section; 

24 ‘‘(B) with respect to rate disputes, may 

25 make the binding arbitration process available 


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1 only to the relevant parties if the rail carrier 

2 has market dominance, as determined under 

3 section 10707 of this title; and 

4 ‘‘(C) shall determine whether to pursue the 

5 binding arbitration process no later than 30 

6 days after the filing of a petition or formal 

7 complaint. 

8 ‘‘(2) Initiation of the binding arbitration proc9 ess shall preclude the Board from separately review10 ing a complaint or dispute related to the same rate, 

11 practice, or common carrier service expectation in a 

12 covered dispute involving the same parties. 

13 ‘‘(3) In resolving disputes involving the reason14 ableness of a rail carrier’s rates, the arbitrator shall 

15 consider the Board’s methodologies for setting max16 imum lawful rates, giving due consideration to the 

17 need for differential pricing to permit a rail carrier 

18 to collect adequate revenues within the meaning of 

19 section 10704(a)(2) of this title. 

20 ‘‘(4) In resolving disputes involving common 

21 carrier service expectations, the arbitrator shall con22 sider service expectations as published pursuant to 

23 section 11101(f). 


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1 ‘‘(d) ARBITRATION DECISIONS.—Any decision 

2 reached in an arbitration process under this section 

3 shall— 

4 ‘‘(1) be consistent with subtitle IV of this title; 

5 ‘‘(2) be in writing and shall contain findings of 

6 fact and conclusions; 

7 ‘‘(3) have no precedential effect in any other or 

8 subsequent arbitration dispute; and 

9 ‘‘(4) be binding upon the parties. 

10 ‘‘(e) TIMELINES.— 

11 ‘‘(1) The arbitrator shall be selected within 14 

12 days after the Board’s decision to initiate arbitra13 tion. 

14 ‘‘(2) The evidentiary process of the arbitration 

15 process shall be completed within 90 days after the 

16 date of initiation of the arbitration process, unless a 

17 party requests an extension and the arbitrator 

18 grants it. 

19 ‘‘(3) The arbitrator shall issue a decision within 

20 30 days after the close of the evidentiary record. 

21 ‘‘(4) The Board may extend any of the 

22 timelines in this subsection upon the agreement of 

23 all parties in the dispute. 

24 ‘‘(f) ARBITRATORS.—Arbitration under this section 

25 shall be conducted by an arbitrator selected from a roster, 


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1 maintained by the Board, of persons with transportation, 

2 economic regulation, professional or business experience, 

3 including agriculture, in the private sector. If the parties 

4 cannot mutually agree on an arbitrator, the parties shall 

5 select an arbitrator from the roster by alternately striking 

6 names from the roster until only 1 name remains. The 

7 parties shall share the costs of the arbitration equally. 

8 ‘‘(g) RELIEF.— 

9 ‘‘(1) LIMITATION.—A decision under this sec10 tion may award the payment of damages or rate pre11 scriptive relief, but the value of the award may not 

12 exceed $250,000 per year and the award may not 

13 cover a total time period of more than 2 years. 

14 ‘‘(2) REVIEW.—The board shall periodically re15 view the amount in paragraph (1) and adjust it as 

16 necessary to reflect inflation. 

17 ‘‘(h) BOARD REVIEW.—If a party appeals an arbitra18 tor’s decision to the Board, the Board may review the deci19 sion under this section to determine if— 

20 ‘‘(1) the decision is consistent with subtitle IV 

21 of this title as applied by the Board; or 

22 ‘‘(2) the award exceeds the limitation in sub23 section (g).’’. 


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1 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con2 tents for chapter 117 is amended by adding at the end 

3 following: 

‘‘11709. Arbitration of certain rail rate, practice, and common carrier service 

disputes’’. 

4 SEC. 306. MAXIMUM RELIEF IN CERTAIN RATE CASES. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall revise the max6 imum amount of rate relief available to railroad shippers 

7 in cases brought pursuant to the methods developed under 

8 section 10701(d)(3) of title 49, United States Code, as 

9 that section existed as of the date of enactment of this 

10 Act, to be as follows— 

11 (1) $1,500,000 in a rate case brought using the 

12 Board’s ‘‘three-benchmark’’ procedure; and 

13 (2) $10,000,000 in a rate case brought using 

14 the Board’s ‘‘simplified stand-alone cost’’ procedure. 

15 (b) PERIODIC REVIEW.—The Board shall periodically 

16 review the amounts established by subsection (a) and re17 vise them as appropriate. 

18 SEC. 307. ADVANCE RATE CHALLENGE. 

19 The Surface Transportation Board may consider the 

20 reasonableness of a rate quoted by a rail carrier up to 

21 1 year before the date on which the rate is to take effect. 

22 SEC. 308. RATE REVIEW TIMELINES. 

23 In stand-alone cost rate challenges, the Surface 

24 Transportation Board shall comply with the following 


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•S 158 IS 

1 timelines unless it extends them, after a request from any 

2 party or in the interest of due process: 

3 (1) For discovery, 150 days after the date on 

4 which the challenge is initiated. 

5 (2) For development of the evidentiary record, 

6 155 days after that date. 

7 (3) For submission of parties’ closing briefs, 60 

8 days after that date. 

9 (4) For a final Board decision, 180 days after 

10 the date on which the parties submit closing briefs. 

11 SEC. 309. REVENUE ADEQUACY STUDY. 

12 Within 180 days after the date of enactment of this 

13 Act, the Surface Transportation Board shall initiate a 

14 study to provide further guidance on how it will apply its 

15 revenue adequacy constraint. In conducting the study the 

16 Board shall provide public notice and opportunity for com17 ment and conduct 1 or more public hearings. 

18 SEC. 310. PUBLIC USAGE OF ABANDONED RAIL PROP19 ERTIES. 

20 Section 10905 is amended— 

21 (1) by striking ‘‘other forms of mass transpor22 tation,’’ and inserting ‘‘public transportation,’’; 

23 (2) by striking ‘‘the properties may be sold,’’ 

24 and inserting ‘‘the Board may require that the prop25 erties be sold,’’; 


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1 (3) by striking ‘‘only under conditions’’ and in2 serting ‘‘pursuant to conditions, including the 

3 amount of compensation,’’; and 

4 (4) by striking ‘‘The conditions may include a 

5 prohibition on any such disposal’’ and inserting ‘‘At 

6 a minimum, the Board shall prohibit any disposal of 

7 such properties’’. 

8 SEC. 311. TRANSACTIONS. 

9 Section 11325 is amended— 

10 (1) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after ‘‘(a)’’ in subsection 

11 (a) and redesignating paragraphs (1) through (3) as 

12 subparagraphs (A) through (C); 

13 (2) by adding at the end of subsection (a) the 

14 following: 

15 ‘‘(2) The Board may extend the time limits specified 

16 in subsections (b), (c), and (d) of this section when more 

17 time is necessary to complete the environmental review 

18 process.’’; and 

19 (3) by striking ‘‘a transaction other than the 

20 merger or control of at least two Class I railroads, 

21 as defined by the Board, which the Board has deter22 mined to be of regional or national transportation 

23 significance,’’ in subsection (c) and inserting ‘‘the 

24 merger or control of one Class I railroad and at 

25 least one Class II railroad, as defined by the Board, 


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1 or if it involves a merger or control transaction, 

2 other than a transaction subject to subsection (b), 

3 which the Board has determined to be of regional or 

4 national transportation significance,’’. 

5 SEC. 312. CONSIDERATIONS IN CONSOLIDATIONS, MERG6 ERS, AND ACQUISITIONS. 

7 Section 11324 is amended— 

8 (1) by striking paragraph (5) of subsection (b) 

9 and inserting the following: 

10 ‘‘(5) the effect of the proposed transaction on 

11 competition among rail carriers in the affected re12 gion or in the national rail system.’’; 

13 (2) by redesignating subsections (e) and (f) as 

14 subsections (f) and (g), respectively; 

15 (3) by striking ‘‘Board,’’ in subsection (d) and 

16 inserting ‘‘Board, subject to subsection (e)’’; and 

17 (4) by inserting after subsection (d) the fol18 lowing: 

19 ‘‘(e) In considering whether to approve, deny, or ap20 prove with conditions a transaction covered under sub21 sections (b) or (d) of this section, the Board may take 

22 into account any potentially significant effects of the 

23 transaction on— 

24 ‘‘(1) public health, safety, and the environment; 

25 and 


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1 ‘‘(2) intercity rail passenger transportation and 

2 commuter rail passenger transportation, as defined 

3 by section 24102 of this title.’’. 

4 SEC. 313. RAILROAD DEVELOPMENT. 

5 Section 10907(h) is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(h) If a purchasing carrier under this section pro7 poses to sell or abandon all or any portion of a purchased 

8 railroad line within 5 years after the date of sale under 

9 this section, such purchasing carrier shall offer the right 

10 of first refusal with respect to such line or portion thereof 

11 to the carrier which sold such line under this section. The 

12 offer shall be made at a price equal to the sum of the 

13 price paid by such purchasing carrier to such selling car14 rier for such line or portion thereof and the fair market 

15 value (less deterioration) of any improvements made, as 

16 adjusted to reflect inflation.’’. 

17 SEC. 314. REGULATORY REFORM REVIEW. 

18 (a) REVIEW.—The Comptroller General of the United 

19 States shall undertake a review of the regulatory changes 

20 made by this Act. The review shall include— 

21 (1) a review of the Surface Transportation 

22 Board’s progress in implementing the provisions of 

23 this Act; 


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1 (2) an assessment of the impact on the rail 

2 transportation system of the regulatory changes 

3 made by this Act; and 

4 (3) a specific analysis of the impact on railroad 

5 operations, rates, competition, service, revenues, 

6 maintenance, and investment resulting from the im7 plementation of sections 11102 and 10710 of title 

8 49, United States Code, as amended and added, re9 spectively, by this Act. 

10 (b) CONSULTATION.—In conducting this review, the 

11 Comptroller General shall solicit input from the railroads, 

12 railroad shippers, railroad non-profit employee labor orga13 nizations, the Federal Railroad Administration, and other 

14 entities, as appropriate. 

15 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than Decem16 ber 31, 2013, the Comptroller General shall transmit a 

17 report to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, 

18 and Transportation and the House of Representatives 

19 Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure con20 taining the results of the review required by this section 

21 and any appropriate recommendations. 


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1 TITLE IV—TECHNICAL 

2 CORRECTIONS 

3 SEC. 401. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS TO PUBLIC LAW 110– 

4 432. 

5 (a) The title of Public Law 110–432 is amended by 

6 striking ‘‘Federal Railroad Safety Administration’’ and in7 serting ‘‘Federal Railroad Administration’’. 

8 (b) The table of contents in section 1(b) of the Rail 

9 Safety Improvement Act of 2008 is amended— 

10 (1) in the item relating to section 201 by strik11 ing ‘‘Pedestrian crossing safety’’ and inserting ‘‘Pe12 destrian safety at or near railroad passenger sta13 tions’’; and 

14 (2) in the item relating to section 403 by strik15 ing ‘‘Track inspection time study’’ and inserting 

16 ‘‘Study and rulemaking on track inspection time; 

17 rulemaking on concrete crossties’’. 

18 (c) Section 2(a)(1) of the Rail Safety Improvement 

19 Act of 2008 is amended by inserting a comma after ‘‘rail20 road tracks at grade’’. 

21 (d) Section 102(a)(6) of the Rail Safety Improvement 

22 Act of 2008 is amended to read as follows: 

23 ‘‘(6) Improving the safety of railroad bridges, 

24 tunnels, and related infrastructure to prevent acci25 dents, incidents, injuries, and fatalities caused by 


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1 catastrophic and other failures of such infrastruc2 ture.’’. 

3 (e) Section 108(f)(1) of the Rail Safety Improvement 

4 Act of 2008 is amended by striking ‘‘requirements for rec5 ordkeeping and reporting for Hours of Service of Railroad 

6 Employees’’ and inserting ‘‘requirements for record keep7 ing and reporting for hours of service of railroad employ8 ees’’. 

9 (f) Section 201 of the Rail Safety Improvement Act 

10 of 2008 is amended— 

11 (1) in the section heading by striking ‘‘PE12 DESTRIAN CROSSING SAFETY.’’ and in13 serting ‘‘PEDESTRIAN SAFETY AT OR 

14 NEAR RAILROAD PASSENGER STA15 TIONS.’’; 

16 (2) by striking ‘‘strategies and methods to pre17 vent pedestrian accidents, incidents, injuries, and fa18 talities at or near passenger stations, including—’’ 

19 and inserting ‘‘strategies and methods to prevent 

20 train-related accidents, incidents, injuries, and fa21 talities that involve a pedestrian at or near a rail22 road passenger station, including—’’; and 

23 (3) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘at railroad 

24 passenger stations’’. 


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1 (g) Section 206(a) of the Rail Safety Improvement 

2 Act of 2008 is amended by striking ‘‘Public Service An3 nouncements’’ and inserting ‘‘public service announce4 ments’’. 

5 (h) Section 403 of the Rail Safety Improvement Act 

6 of 2008 is amended— 

7 (1) in the section heading by striking 

8 ‘‘TRACK INSPECTION TIME STUDY.’’ and 

9 inserting ‘‘STUDY AND RULEMAKING ON 

10 TRACK INSPECTION TIME; RULE11 MAKING ON CONCRETE CROSSTIES.’’; 

12 and 

13 (2) in subsection (d)— 

14 (A) by striking ‘‘CROSS TIES’’ in the sub15 section heading and inserting ‘‘CROSSTIES’’; 

16 (B) by striking ‘‘cross ties’’ and inserting 

17 ‘‘crossties’’; and 

18 (C) in paragraph (2) by striking ‘‘cross 

19 tie’’ and inserting ‘‘crosstie’’. 

20 (i) Section 405 of the Rail Safety Improvement Act 

21 of 2008 is amended— 

22 (1) in subsection (a) by striking ‘‘cell phones,’’ 

23 and inserting ‘‘cellular telephones,’’; and 

24 (2) in subsection (d) by striking ‘‘of Transpor25 tation’’. 


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1 (j) Section 411(a) of the Rail Safety Improvement 

2 Act of 2008 is amended— 

3 (1) by striking ‘‘5101(a)’’ and inserting 

4 ‘‘5105(a)’’; and 

5 (2) by striking ‘‘5101(b)’’ and inserting 

6 ‘‘5105(b)’’. 

7 (k) Section 412 of the Rail Safety Improvement Act 

8 of 2008 is amended by striking ‘‘of Transportation’’. 

9 (l) Section 414 of the Rail Safety Improvement Act 

10 of 2008 is amended— 

11 (1) in paragraph (2) by striking ‘‘parts’’ and 

12 inserting ‘‘sections’’; and 

13 (2) by striking ‘‘part 1520.5’’ and inserting 

14 ‘‘section 1520.5’’. 

15 (m) Section 416 of the Rail Safety Improvement Act 

16 of 2008 is amended— 

17 (1) by striking ‘‘of Transportation’’; 

18 (2) in paragraphs (3) and (4), by striking 

19 ‘‘Federal Railroad Administration’’ and inserting 

20 ‘‘Secretary’’; and 

21 (3) in paragraph (4) by striking ‘‘subsection’’ 

22 and inserting ‘‘section’’. 

23 (n) Section 417(c) of the Rail Safety Improvement 

24 Act of 2008 is amended by striking ‘‘each railroad’’ and 

25 inserting ‘‘each railroad carrier’’. 


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1 (o) Section 503 of the Rail Safety Improvement Act 

2 of 2008 is amended— 

3 (1) in subsection (a) by striking ‘‘rail acci4 dents,’’ and inserting ‘‘rail passenger accidents,’’; 

5 and 

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

7 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the terms ‘pas8 senger’, ‘rail passenger accident’, and ‘rail passenger car9 rier’ have the meaning given those terms by section 1139 

10 of title 49, United States Code. 

11 ‘‘(e) FUNDING.—Out of funds appropriated pursuant 

12 to section 20117(a)(1)(A) of title 49, United States Code, 

13 there shall be made available to the Secretary of Transpor14 tation $500,000 for fiscal year 2009 to carry out this sec15 tion. Amounts made available pursuant to this subsection 

16 shall remain available until expended.’’. 

17 (p) Section 206(a) of the Passenger Rail Investment 

18 and Improvement Act of 2008 is amended by inserting 

19 ‘‘of this division’’ after ‘‘302’’. 

20 (q) Section 211 of the Passenger Rail Investment and 

21 Improvement Act of 2008 is amended— 

22 (1) by inserting ‘‘of this division’’ after 

23 ‘‘101(c)’’ in subsection (d); and 

24 (2) by inserting ‘‘of this division’’ after 

25 ‘‘101(d)’’ in subsection (e). 


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1 (r) Section 1139 is amended— 

2 (1) in subsection (a)(1) by striking ‘‘phone 

3 number’’ and inserting ‘‘telephone number’’; 

4 (2) in subsection (a)(2) by striking ‘‘post trau5 ma’’ and inserting ‘‘post-trauma’’; 

6 (3) in subsections (h)(1)(A) and (h)(2)(A) by 

7 striking ‘‘interstate’’; 

8 (4) in subsections (h)(1)(B) and (h)(2)(B)— 

9 (A) by striking ‘‘interstate or intrastate’’; 

10 and 

11 (B) by striking ‘‘26105’’ and inserting 

12 ‘‘26106(b)(4)’’; 

13 (5) in subsection (j)(1) by striking ‘‘(other than 

14 subsection (g))’’ and inserting ‘‘(other than sub15 sections (g) and (k))’’; and 

16 (6) in paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (j) 

17 by striking ‘‘railroad passenger accident’’ and insert18 ing ‘‘rail passenger accident’’. 

19 (s) Section 10909(b) is amended by striking ‘‘Rail20 road’’ and inserting ‘‘Railroads’’. 

21 (t) Section 20109 is amended— 

22 (1) by striking ‘‘the railroad shall promptly ar23 range’’ in subsection (c)(1) and inserting ‘‘the rail24 road carrier shall promptly arrange’’; 


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1 (2) by inserting ‘‘subsection’’ after ‘‘under’’ in 

2 subsection (d)(2)(A)(i); and 

3 (3) by inserting ‘‘section’’ after ‘‘set forth in’’ 

4 in subsection (d)(2)(A)(iii). 

5 (u) Section 20120(a) is amended— 

6 (1) in paragraph (2)(G), by inserting ‘‘and’’ at 

7 the end; and 

8 (2) in paragraph (5)(B) by striking ‘‘Adminis9 trative Hearing Officer or Administrative Law 

10 Judge’’ and inserting ‘‘administrative hearing officer 

11 or administrative law judge’’. 

12 (v) Section 20151(d)(1) is amended by striking ‘‘to 

13 drive around a grade crossing gate’’ and inserting ‘‘to 

14 drive through, around, or under a grade crossing gate’’. 

15 (w) Section 20152(b) is amended by striking ‘‘rail 

16 carriers’’ and inserting ‘‘railroad carriers’’. 

17 (x) Section 20156 is amended— 

18 (1) in subsection (c) by inserting a comma after 

19 ‘‘In developing its railroad safety risk reduction pro20 gram’’; and 

21 (2) in subsection (g)(1) by striking ‘‘non-profit’’ 

22 and inserting ‘‘nonprofit’’. 

23 (y) Section 20157(a)(1) is amended— 

24 (1) by striking ‘‘Class I railroad carrier’’ and 

25 inserting ‘‘Class I railroad’’; and 


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1 (2) by striking ‘‘parts’’ and inserting ‘‘sec2 tions’’. 

3 (z) Section 20158(b)(3) is amended by striking 

4 ‘‘20156(e)(2)’’ and inserting ‘‘20156(e)’’. 

5 (aa) Section 20159 is amended by inserting ‘‘of 

6 Transportation’’ after ‘‘the Secretary’’. 

7 (bb) Section 20160 is amended— 

8 (1) in subsection (a)(1) by striking ‘‘or with re9 spect to’’ and inserting ‘‘with respect to’’; and 

10 (2) in subsection (b)(1)(A) by striking ‘‘or with 

11 respect to’’ and inserting ‘‘with respect to’’. 

12 (cc) Section 20162(a)(3) is amended by striking 

13 ‘‘railroad compliance with Federal standards’’ and insert14 ing ‘‘railroad carrier compliance with Federal standards’’. 

15 (dd) Section 20164(a) is amended by striking ‘‘Rail16 road Safety Enhancement Act of 2008,’’ and inserting 

17 ‘‘Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008,’’. 

18 (ee) Section 21102(c)(4) is amended by re-desig19 nating subparagraphs (C) and (D) as subparagraphs (B) 

20 and (C), respectively. 

21 (ff) Section 22106(b) is amended by striking ‘‘inter22 est thereof’’ and inserting ‘‘interest thereon’’. 

23 (gg) Section 24105(e) of title 49, United States Code, 

24 is amended by striking ‘‘section 301 of the Passenger Rail 


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1 Investment and Improvement Act of 2008’’ and inserting 

2 ‘‘section 24406’’. 

3 (hh) Section 24302(a)(3) is amended by striking ‘‘5 

4 individuals’’ and inserting ‘‘4 individuals’’. 

5 (ii) Section 24316 is amended by striking subsection 

6 (g). 

7 (jj) The item relating to section 24316 in the table 

8 of contents for chapter 243 is amended by striking ‘‘to 

9 assist families of passengers’’ and inserting ‘‘to address 

10 needs of families of passengers’’. 

11 (kk) Section 24402 is amended— 

12 (1) by striking ‘‘22506’’ in subsection (d) and 

13 inserting ‘‘22706’’; and 

14 (2) by striking subsection (e) and inserting the 

15 following: 

16 ‘‘(e) AMTRAK ELIGIBILITY.—Amtrak may be the re17 cipient of a grant under this section if Amtrak has entered 

18 into a cooperative agreement with 1 or more applicants 

19 to carry out 1 or more projects on a State rail plan’s list 

20 of rail capital projects developed under section 

21 22705(a)(5) of this title. For such a grant, Amtrak may 

22 not use Federal funds authorized under section 101(a) or 

23 (c) of the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement 

24 Act of 2008 to fulfill the non-Federal share requirements 

25 under subsection (g) of this section.’’; 


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1 (4) by striking ‘‘AND EARLY SYSTEMS WORK

2 AGREEMENTS’’ in the heading of subsection (f); 

3 (5) by striking ‘‘A metropolitan planning orga4 nization, State transportation department, or other 

5 project sponsor’’ in subsection (i)(1) and inserting 

6 ‘‘An applicant’’; and 

7 (6) by striking subsection (k) and inserting the 

8 following: 

9 ‘‘(k) SMALL CAPITAL PROJECTS.—The Secretary 

10 shall make not less than 5 percent annually available from 

11 the amounts appropriated under section 24406 beginning 

12 in fiscal year 2009 for grants for capital projects eligible 

13 under this section not exceeding $2,000,000, including 

14 costs eligible under section 209(d) of the Passenger Rail 

15 Investment and Improvement Act of 2008. For grants 

16 awarded under this subsection, the Secretary may waive 

17 requirements of this section, including State rail plan re18 quirements, as appropriate.’’. 

19 (ll) Section 24403(b)(1) is amended by striking 

20 ‘‘oversee the construction of such projects.’’ and inserting 

21 ‘‘for activities to award and oversee the implementation 

22 of such projects.’’. 

23 (mm) Section 24702(a) is amended by striking ‘‘not 

24 included in the national rail passenger transportation sys25 tem’’. 


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1 (nn) Section 24706 is amended— 

2 (1) by striking ‘‘a discontinuance under section 

3 24704 or or’’ in subsection (a)(1); 

4 (2) by striking ‘‘section 24704 or’’ in subsection 

5 (a)(2); and 

6 (3) by striking ‘‘section 24704 or’’ in subsection 

7 (b). 

8 (oo) Section 24709 is amended by striking ‘‘The Sec9 retary of the Treasury and the Attorney General,‘‘ and 

10 inserting ‘‘The Secretary of Homeland Security,’’. 

11 (pp) Section 24905(f)(1) is amended— 

12 (1) in subparagraph (C) by striking ‘‘freight 

13 carriers’’ and inserting ‘‘freight railroad carriers’’; 

14 and 

15 (2) in subparagraph (F) by striking ‘‘rail 

16 labor;’’ and inserting ‘‘representatives of nonprofit 

17 employee labor organizations representing railroad 

18 employees;’’. 

19 (rr) Section 26106(e)(4) is amended by striking 

20 ‘‘22506’’ and inserting ‘‘22706’’. 

21 TITLE V—MISCELLANEOUS 

22 SEC. 501. EFFECTIVE DATES. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

24 (b), this Act shall take effect on the date of enactment. 


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1 (b) SECTION 214.—The amendments made by sec2 tion 214 shall take effect 2 years after the date of enact3 ment of this Act. 

Æ 


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