77072 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 237 / Friday, December 8, 2000 / Notices

Harismus Branch at CP ‘‘Waldo’’ in Jersey City

(approximately MP 0.00) to the south side of Clifton

Road in Weehawken (approximately MP 4.7),

including the River Yard; and (2) from (a) the south

side of Clifton Road in Weehawken (approximately

MP 0.00) to the northwest side of Tonnelle Avenue

(excluding the portion of line, associated track, and

underlying right-of-way necessary to retain access

and continue service to Durkee Foods) in North

Bergen (approximately MP 1.53); (b) the National

Docks Secondary in Jersey City from its connection

with the River Line at CP ‘‘Nave’’ to the east side

of Newark Avenue (approximately 1,350 feet); and

(c) the Weehawken Branch (Chicken Yard) in

Weehawken, from its connection with the River

Line on the east side of Willow Avenue to the end

of the track (approximately 2,450 feet).

4Norfolk Southern Railway Company also

acquired the same rights with respect to the River

Line and filed a similar petition for exemption on

November 14, 2000. See Norfolk Southern Railway

Company—Discontinuance Exemption—in Hudson

County, NJ, STB Docket No. AB–290 (Sub-No.

212X).

5Two shippers, Cognis Chemical Company and

Dykes Lumber Company, are being served.

6The River Line’s real estate and track was

transferred to NJT on or about October 24, 1995,

pursuant to the Freight Relocation and River Line

Acquisition Agreement that Conrail and NJT

entered into on June 8, 1989. Conrail retained a free

and exclusive easement for the operation and

maintenance of rail freight service.

NJT will reconstruct the River Line and dedicate

it to light rail commuter passenger service. The

River Line’s freight operations will be transferred to

Conrail’s Northern Branch, which will be

reconstructed to accommodate through train service

and to remove ‘‘at-grade’’ highway and street

crossings. Conrail will not terminate freight

operations or consummate the abandonment of the

River Line, and CSXT will not exercise the

discontinuance authority, until the Northern

Branch has been reconstructed.

7CSXT has requested that its petition for

exemption be granted with an effective date of

February 12, 2001, to coincide with the anticipated

effectiveness of the two related Conrail

abandonment applications. This request will be

considered by the Board when the petition for

exemption is addressed.

lines traverse U.S. Postal Zip Codes

07302, 07303, 07306, 07407, and 07087.

CSXT acquired the right to operate

over these lines under the North Jersey

Shared Assets Areas Operating

Agreement approved by the Board in

CSX Corp.—Control and Operating

Leases/Agreements—Conrail Inc., STB

Finance Docket No. 33388 (Decision No.

89) (STB served July 23, 1998), clarified

and modified (Decision No. 96) (STB

served Oct. 19, 1998), petitions for

review pending sub nom. Erie Niagara

Rail Steering Committee v. STB, Nos.

98–4285, et al. (2d Cir. filed July 31,

1998).4 Pursuant to that agreement,

CSXT does not conduct freight

operations over the River Line. CSXT

publishes rates and maintains stations

for the River Line’s shippers,5 and

Conrail conducts the actual train

operations in CSXT’s name.

The lines do not contain federally

granted rights-of-way. A large part of the

real estate and track is owned by the

New Jersey Transit Corporation (NJT),

and the remainder is owned by Conrail.6

Any documentation in CSXT’s

possession will be made available

promptly to those requesting it.

The interest of railroad employees

will be protected by the conditions set

forth in Oregon Short Line R. Co.—

Abandonment—Goshen, 360 I.C.C. 91

(1979).

By issuing this notice, the Board is

instituting an exemption proceeding

pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 10502(b). A final

decision will be issued by March 9,

2001.7

Any OFA with respect to the lines

should be filed in the pertinent Conrail

application proceeding under section

308(d) of the 3–R Act and 49 CFR

1152.27. Each OFA must be

accompanied by a $1,000 filing fee. See

49 CFR 1002.2(f)(25).

All filings in response to this notice

must refer to STB Docket No. AB–55

(Sub-No. 584X) and must be sent to: (1)

Surface Transportation Board, Office of

the Secretary, Case Control Unit, 1925 K

Street, NW., Washington, DC 20423–

0001; and (2) Natalie Rosenberg, CSX

Transportation, Inc., 500 Water Street,

Jacksonville, FL 32202. Replies to the

CSXT petition are due on or before

December 28, 2000.

Persons seeking further information

concerning abandonment and

discontinuance procedures may contact

the Board’s Office of Public Services at

(202) 565–1592 or refer to the full

abandonment or discontinuance

regulations at 49 CFR part 1152.

An environmental assessment (or

impact statement) is normally made

available in abandonment or

discontinuance proceedings, but under

49 CFR 1105.6(d), the Board may

modify the environmental requirements

in appropriate circumstances. The

requirements are being modified here.

CSXT has never conducted operations

over the line apart from those Conrail

conducted on CSXT’s behalf. Granting a

carrier authority to discontinue service

it has never provided appears to have no

environmental impact. The requirement

that the carrier submit a report and that

the Board prepare an analysis are

therefore superfluous.

Board decisions and notices are

available on our website at http://

www.stb.dot.gov.

Decided: November 28, 2000.

By the Board, David M. Konschnik,

Director, Office of Proceedings.

Vernon A. Williams,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 00–30944 Filed 12–7–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4915–00–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Bureau of the Public Debt

Proposed Collection: Comment

Request

ACTION: Notice and request for

comments.

SUMMARY: The Department of the

Treasury, as part of its continuing effort

to reduce paperwork and respondent

burden, invites the general public and

other Federal agencies to take this

opportunity to comment on proposed

and/or continuing information

collections, as required by the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995,

Public Law 104–13 (44 U.S.C.

3506(c)(2)(A). Currently the Bureau of

the Public Debt within the Department

of the Treasury is soliciting comments

concerning the Reinvestment

Application.

DATES: Written comments should be

received on or before February 7, 2001,

to be assured of consideration.

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments

to Bureau of the Public Debt, Vicki S.

Thorpe, 200 Third Street, Parkersburg,

WV 26106–1328.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Requests for additional information or

copies of the form and instructions

should be directed to Vicki S. Thorpe,

Bureau of the Public Debt, 200 Third

Street, Parkersburg, WV 26106–1328,

(304) 480–6553.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Title: Reinvestment Application.

OMB Number: 1535–0096.

Form Number: PD F 1993.

Abstract: The information is

requested to support a request that

proceeds of matured Series H savings

bonds be reinvested in Series HH bonds.

Current Actions: None.

Type of Review: Extension.

Affected Public: Individuals.

Estimated Number of Respondents:

20,000.

Estimated Time Per Respondent: 15

minutes.

Estimated Total Annual Burden

Hours: 5,000.

Request for Comments: Comments

submitted in response to this notice will

be summarized and/or included in the

request for OMB approval. All

comments will become a matter of

public record. Comments are invited on:

(a) Whether the collection of

information is necessary for the proper

performance of the functions of the

agency, including whether the

information shall have practical utility;

(b) the accuracy of the agency’s estimate

Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 237 / Friday, December 8, 2000 / Notices 77073

of the burden of the collection of

information; (c) ways to enhance the

quality, utility, and clarity of the

information to be collected; (d) ways to

minimize the burden of the collection of

information on respondents, including

through the use of automated collection

techniques or other forms of information

technology; and (e) estimates of capital

or start-up costs and costs of operation,

maintenance, and purchase of services

to provide information.

Dated: December 4, 2000.

Vicki S. Thorpe,

Manager, Graphics, Printing and Records

Branch.

[FR Doc. 00–31285 Filed 12–7–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4810–39–U

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS

AFFAIRS

Allowance for Private Purchase of an

Outer Burial Receptacle in Lieu of a

Government-Furnished Graveliner for

a Grave in a VA National Cemetery

AGENCY: Department of Veterans Affairs.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: Public Law 104–275 was

enacted on October 9, 1996. It allowed

the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)

to provide a monetary allowance

towards the private purchase of an outer

burial receptacle for use in a VA

national cemetery. Under VA regulation

(38 CFR 1.629), the allowance is equal

to the average cost of Governmentfurnished graveliners minus any

administrative costs to VA. The law

continues to provide a veteran’s

survivors with the option of selecting a

Government-furnished graveliner for

use in a VA national cemetery where

such use is authorized.

The purpose of this Notice is to notify

interested parties of the average cost of

Government-furnished graveliners,

administrative costs that relate to

processing a claim, and the amount of

the allowance payable for qualifying

interments which occurred during or

prior to calendar year 2000, but after

October 9, 1996.

DATES: The allowance rates are effective

the date this notice appears in the

Federal Register.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Deanna L. Wilson, Program Analyst,

Communications Management Services

(402B1), National Cemetery

Administration, Department of Veterans

Affairs, 810 Vermont Avenue, NW.,

Washington, DC 20420. Telephone:

202–273–5154 (this is not a toll-free

number).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under 38

U.S.C. 501(a) and Public Law 104–275,

section 213, VA may provide a

monetary allowance for the private

purchase of an outer burial receptacle

for use in a VA national cemetery where

its use is authorized. The allowance for

qualified interments which occur during

or prior to calendar year 2000, but after

October 9, 1996, is the average cost of

Government-furnished graveliners in

fiscal year 1999, less the administrative

costs incurred by VA in processing and

paying the allowance in lieu of the

Government-furnished graveliner.

The average cost of Governmentfurnished graveliners is determined by

taking VA’s total cost during a fiscal

year for single-depth graveliners which

were procured for placement at the time

of interment and dividing it by the total

number of such graveliners procured by

VA during that fiscal year. The

calculation excludes both graveliners

procured and pre-placed in gravesites as

part of cemetery gravesite development

projects and all double-depth

graveliners. Using this method of

computation, the average cost was

determined to be $147.96 for fiscal year

1999.

The administrative costs incurred by

VA consist of those costs that relate to

processing and paying an allowance in

lieu of the Government-furnished

graveliner. These costs have been

determined to be $10.17 for calendar

year 2000.

The net allowance payable for

qualifying interments occurring during

or before calendar year 2000, therefore,

is $137.79.

Approved: October 13, 2000.

Hershel W. Gober,

Acting Secretary of Veterans Affairs.

[FR Doc. 00–31290 Filed 12–7–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 8320–01–P