498 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 3 / Thursday, January 4, 2024 / Notices 

1A copy of the PRAC charter is available on the 

Board’s website at: https://www.stb.gov/resources/ 

stakeholder-committees/prac/. 

2Under the PRAC charter, members may serve an 

additional term with approval from the Chair of the 

Board, without needing to be renominated for that 

additional term. See PRAC Charter art. 12.a.viii. 

Any member of the PRAC who has served for two 

consecutive terms will be required to be 

renominated for membership and appointed by the 

Chair of the Board should they wish to serve for 

additional terms. If reappointed, that individual 

may serve two additional terms before being 

required to be renominated. See id., art. 12.a.ix. 

of the Committee. The PRAC will meet 

at least twice a year, and meetings are 

open to the public, consistent with the 

Government in the Sunshine Act, Public 

Law 94–409 (1976). 

The PRAC was officially formed on 

November 29, 2023, and currently has 

no members. The Board is therefore 

soliciting nominations from the public 

for candidates to fill every PRAC 

vacancy. The members of the PRAC will 

regularly serve a term of three years. 

However, under the PRAC charter,1 half 

of the initial PRAC members will serve 

a term of two years as designated by the 

Chair of the Board at the time of 

appointment. See PRAC Charter art. 

12.a.vii.2 By letter dated December 28, 

2023, the Chair of the Board has 

designated which initial PRAC members 

will serve for three-year and two-year 

terms. A copy of this letter is available 

on the PRAC website. Members of the 

PRAC are appointed to serve in a 

representative capacity. 

The vacancies and initial term lengths 

are as follows: 

• Two representatives from the 

National Railroad Passenger Corporation 

(Amtrak). 

Æ One representative will serve an 

initial three-year term. The other 

representative will serve an initial twoyear term. 

• Two representatives from commuter 

rail operators whose operations use 

facilities owned and/or utilized by (i) 

Amtrak, (ii) other intercity passenger 

rail operators, or (iii) rail freight 

operators (for purposes of ensuring 

geographic diversity within PRAC’s 

membership, these representatives 

cannot be from the same state as any of 

the state representatives described 

below and cannot be from the same state 

as each other). 

Æ One representative will serve an 

initial three-year term. The other 

representative will serve an initial twoyear term. 

• Two representatives from existing 

intercity passenger rail operators other 

than Amtrak, or developers of new 

intercity passenger rail lines other than 

Amtrak. 

Æ One representative will serve an 

initial three-year term. The other 

representative will serve an initial twoyear term. 

• One representative from a state that 

provides funding for intercity passenger 

rail (for purposes of ensuring geographic 

diversity within PRAC’s membership, 

this representative cannot be from the 

same state as any of the representatives 

of the commuter rail operators described 

above, or the representative from a state 

in which the intercity passenger rail 

stations are served only by long-distance 

trains described below). 

Æ This representative will serve an 

initial three-year term. 

• One representative from a state in 

which the intercity passenger rail 

stations are served only by long-distance 

trains, i.e., passenger trains serving the 

entirety of routes of more than 750 miles 

between endpoints (for purposes of 

ensuring geographic diversity within 

PRAC’s membership, this representative 

cannot be from the same state as any of 

the representatives of the commuter rail 

operators described above or the 

representative from the state that 

provides funding for intercity passenger 

rail described above). 

Æ This representative will serve an 

initial two-year term. 

• Two representatives from Class I 

freight railroads. 

Æ One representative will serve an 

initial three-year term. The other 

representative will serve an initial twoyear term. 

• One representative from a Class II 

or Class III freight railroad. 

Æ This representative will serve an 

initial three-year term. 

• One representative from an 

organized rail labor association. 

Æ This representative will serve an 

initial three-year term. 

• Two representatives from rail 

passenger advocacy organizations. 

Æ One representative will serve an 

initial three-year term. The other 

representative will serve a two-year 

term. 

• One representative from a rail 

shipper or customer advocacy 

organization or an individual shipper or 

customer. 

Æ This representative will serve an 

initial two-year term. 

• Three at-large representatives with 

relevant experience (including, but not 

limited to, individuals involved in the 

design or construction of passenger rail 

equipment or infrastructure, in the 

provision of passenger rail analytic or 

consulting services, in transportation 

planning, or in transportation-related 

public policy work). 

Æ One representative will serve an 

initial three-year term. The other two 

representatives will each serve an initial 

two-year term. 

According to revised guidance issued 

by the Office of Management and 

Budget, it is permissible for federally 

registered lobbyists to serve on advisory 

committees, such as the PRAC, as long 

as they do so in a representative 

capacity, rather than an individual 

capacity. See Revised Guidance on 

Appointment of Lobbyists to Fed. 

Advisory Comms., Bds., & Comm’ns, 79 

FR 47,482 (Aug. 13, 2014). No 

honoraria, salaries, travel or per diem 

are available to members of the PRAC; 

however, reimbursement for travel 

expenses may be sought from the Board 

in cases of hardship. 

Nominations for candidates to fill the 

vacancies should be submitted in letter 

form and should include: (1) the name, 

position, and business contact 

information of the candidate to include 

email address and phone number; (2) 

the interest the candidate will represent; 

(3) a summary of the candidate’s 

experience and qualifications for the 

position; (4) a representation that the 

candidate is willing to serve as a 

member of the PRAC; and, (5) a 

statement that the candidate agrees to 

serve in a representative capacity. 

Candidates may nominate themselves. 

The Chair is committed to having a 

committee reflecting diverse 

communities and viewpoints and 

strongly encourages the nomination of 

candidates from diverse backgrounds. 

Nominations for candidates for 

membership on the PRAC should be 

filed with the Board by February 5, 

2024. Please note that submissions will 

be posted publicly on the Board’s 

website under Docket No. EP 774 (SubNo. 1). 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 1321; 49 U.S.C. 

24101. 

Decided: December 29, 2023. 

By the Board, Mai T. Dinh, Director, Office 

of Proceedings. 

Eden Besera, 

Clearance Clerk. 

[FR Doc. 2023–28989 Filed 1–3–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4915–01–P 

SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD 

30-Day Notice of Intent To Seek 

Approval for Information Collections: 

Joint Notice of Intent To Arbitrate and 

Notice of Availability for Arbitrator 

Roster 

AGENCY: Surface Transportation Board. 

ACTION: Notice and request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: As required by the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), the 

Surface Transportation Board (STB or 


khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 3 / Thursday, January 4, 2024 / Notices 499 

Board) gives notice of its intent to seek 

approval from the Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB) for an extension of 

the information collections of the Joint 

Notice of Intent to Arbitrate and Notice 

of Availability for Arbitrator Roster, as 

described separately below. 

DATES: Comments on these information 

collections should be submitted by 

February 5, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: Written comments should 

be identified as ‘‘Paperwork Reduction 

Act Comments, Arbitration Procedures 

under 49 CFR 1108.’’ Written comments 

for this information collection should be 

submitted via www.reginfo.gov/public/ 

do/PRAMain. This information 

collection can be accessed by selecting 

‘‘Currently under Review—Open for 

Public Comments’’ or by using the 

search function. As an alternative, 

written comments may be directed to 

the Office of Management and Budget, 

Office of Information and Regulatory 

Affairs, Attention: Michael J. McManus, 

Surface Transportation Board Desk 

Officer: via email at oira_submission@

omb.eop.gov; by fax at (202) 395–1743; 

or by mail to Room 10235, 725 17th 

Street NW, Washington, DC 20503. 

Please also direct all comments to 

Chris Oehrle, PRA Officer, Surface 

Transportation Board, 395 E Street SW, 

Washington, DC 20423–0001, or to 

PRA@stb.gov. When submitting 

comments, please refer to ‘‘Paperwork 

Reduction Act Comments, Arbitration 

Procedures under 49 CFR 1108.’’ For 

further information regarding this 

collection, contact Michael Higgins, 

Deputy Director, Office of Public 

Assistance, Governmental Affairs, and 

Compliance, at (202) 245–0284 or at 

RCPA@stb.gov. If you require an 

accommodation under the Americans 

with Disabilities Act, please call (202) 

245–0245. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Board 

previously published a notice about this 

collection in the Federal Register (88 FR 

73388 (Oct. 25, 2023)). That notice 

allowed for a 60-day public review and 

comment period. No comments were 

received. 

Comments are requested concerning: 

(1) the accuracy of the Board’s burden 

estimates; (2) ways to enhance the 

quality, utility, and clarity of the 

information collected; (3) ways to 

minimize the burden of the collection of 

information on the respondents, 

including the use of automated 

collection techniques or other forms of 

information technology, when 

appropriate; and (4) whether the 

collection of information is necessary 

for the proper performance of the 

functions of the Board, including 

whether the collection has practical 

utility. Submitted comments will be 

summarized and included in the 

Board’s request for OMB approval. 

Description of Information Collections 

OMB Control Number: 2140–0038. 

Information Collection 1 

Title: Joint Notice of Intent to 

Arbitrate. 

STB Form Number: None. 

Type of Review: Extension without 

change. 

Respondents: Parties seeking to 

submit to arbitration certain matters 

before the Board. 

Number of Respondents: One. 

Estimated Time per Response: One 

hour. 

Frequency: On occasion. 

Total Burden Hours (annually 

including all respondents): One hour. 

Total ‘‘Non-hour Burden’’ Cost: None 

identified. Filings are submitted 

electronically to the Board. 

Needs and Uses: Under 49 CFR 

1108.5, arbitration commences with a 

written complaint that contains a 

statement that the relevant parties are 

participants in the Board’s arbitration 

program, or that the complainant is 

willing to arbitrate the dispute pursuant 

to the Board’s arbitration procedures. 

The respondent’s answer to the written 

complaint must then indicate the 

respondent’s participation in the 

Board’s arbitration program or its 

willingness to arbitrate the dispute at 

hand pursuant to the Board’s arbitration 

procedures. 

As an alternative to filing a written 

complaint, parties may submit a joint 

notice to the Board, indicating the 

consent of both parties to submit an 

issue in dispute to the Board’s 

arbitration program. In the joint notice, 

parties state the issue(s) that they are 

willing to submit to arbitration. The 

notice must contain a statement that 

would indicate that all relevant parties 

are participants in the Board’s 

arbitration program pursuant to 

§ 1108.3(a), or that the relevant parties 

are willing to arbitrate voluntarily a 

matter pursuant to the Board’s 

arbitration procedures, and the relief 

requested. The notice must also indicate 

whether parties have agreed to a threemember arbitration panel or a single 

arbitrator and must indicate whether the 

parties have mutually agreed to a lower 

amount of potential liability in lieu of 

the monetary award cap that would 

otherwise be applicable. The joint 

notice encourages greater use of 

arbitration to resolve disputes at the 

Board. 

Information Collection 2 

Title: Notice of Availability for 

Arbitrator Roster. 

STB Form Number: None. 

Type of Review: Extension without 

change. 

Respondents: Potential arbitrators. 

Number of Respondents: 23. 

Estimated Time per Response: One 

hour. 

Frequency: Annually. 

Total Burden Hours (annually 

including all respondents): 23 hours. 

Total ‘‘Non-hour Burden’’ Cost: None 

identified. Filings are submitted 

electronically to the Board. 

Needs and Uses: Under 49 CFR 

1108.6(b), an arbitration roster is 

compiled by the Chairman, and 

potential interested, qualified persons 

who wish to be placed on the Board’s 

arbitration roster must submit notice of 

their availability to be added to the 

roster. The Chairman may augment the 

roster at any time to include eligible 

arbitrators and remove from the roster 

any arbitrators who are no longer 

available or eligible. Potential arbitrators 

must also update their availability and 

information annually, if they wish to 

remain available for the arbitration 

roster. The arbitration rosters are 

available to the public on the Board’s 

website at https://www.stb.gov/ 

resources/litigation-alternatives/ 

arbitration/#arbitration-procedures. 

Under the PRA, a Federal agency that 

conducts or sponsors a collection of 

information must display a currently 

valid OMB control number. A collection 

of information, which is defined in 44 

U.S.C. 3502(3) and 5 CFR 1320.3(c), 

includes agency requirements that 

persons submit reports, keep records, or 

provide information to the agency, third 

parties, or the public. Section 3507(b) of 

the PRA requires, concurrent with an 

agency’s submitting a collection to OMB 

for approval, a 30-day notice and 

comment period through publication in 

the Federal Register concerning each 

proposed collection of information, 

including each proposed extension of an 

existing collection of information. 

Dated: December 29, 2023. 

Brendetta Jones, 

Clearance Clerk. 

[FR Doc. 2023–28993 Filed 1–3–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4915–01–P 

SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD 

30-Day Notice of Intent To Seek 

Extension of Approval for Information 

Collection: Rail Service Data 

AGENCY: Surface Transportation Board. 


khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES