Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 46 / Wednesday, March 11, 2009 / Notices 10645 

1According to NSR, the proposed line for 

abandonment has been out of service since the late 

1980s, when the owner, CSX Transportation, Inc., 

rerouted its traffic to NSR’s line between Big Stone 

Gap and Frisco, TN. 

2The Board will grant a stay if an informed 

decision on environmental issues (whether raised 

by a party or by the Board’s Section of 

Environmental Analysis (SEA) in its independent 

investigation) cannot be made before the 

exemption’s effective date. See Exemption of Outof-Service Rail Lines, 5 I.C.C.2d 377 (1989). Any 

request for a stay should be filed as soon as possible 

so that the Board may take appropriate action before 

the exemption’s effective date. 

3Each OFA must be accompanied by the filing 

fee, which currently is set at $1,500. See 49 CFR 

1002.2(f)(25). 

4NSR states that it is not aware of any restriction 

on the title to the right-of-way that would affect the 

transfer of title or the use of property for other than 

rail purposes but will provide full title information 

promptly if it receives a proposal to acquire the 

property for public purposes. 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Office of the Secretary 

Agency Information Collection: 

Activity for OMB Review: Advisory 

Committee Candidate Biographical 

Information Request Form 

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, DOT. 

Docket: DOT–OST–2009–0054. 

ACTION: Notice and request for comment. 

SUMMARY: In compliance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 

Public Law 104–13 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et 

seq.), this notice announces that the 

Information Collection Request, 

abstracted below, is being forwarded to 

the Office of Management and Budget 

for an extension without change of 

currently approved Advisory Committee 

Candidate Biographical Information 

Request Form. A Federal Register 

Notice with a 60-day comment period 

was published on November 18, 2008 

(FR Vol. 73, No. 223, page 68491– 

68491). The agency did not receive any 

comments to its previous notice. 

DATES: Written comments should be 

submitted by April 10, 2009. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lisa 

L. Hough, Committee Management 

Officer, Executive Secretariat, U.S. 

Department of Transportation, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, 

DC 20590 or telephone: (202) 366–4277. 

Comments: Comments should be sent to 

OMB: Attention DOT/OST Desk Officer, 

Office of Information and Regulatory 

Affairs, Office of Management and 

Budget, Docket Library, Room 10102, 

725 17th Street, NW., Washington, DC 

20503, or oira_submission@omb.eop.gov 

and should identify the associated OMB 

Approval Number 2105–0009 and 

Docket DOT–OST–2009–0054. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

OMB Approval No.: 2105–0009. 

Title: Advisory Committee Candidate 

Biographical Information Request Form. 

Form No.: DOT F1120.1. 

Type of Review: Extension. 

Respondents: Individuals who have 

contacted DOT to indicate interest in 

appointment to and advisory committee 

and individuals who have been 

recommended for membership on an 

advisory committee. Only one collection 

is expected per individual. 

Number of Respondents: 100 

Annually. 

Total Annual Burden: 25 hours. 

Needs and Uses: Information is 

gathered from individuals interested in 

appointment to an advisory committee 

and individuals who have been 

recommended for membership on an 

advisory committee to ensure fair and 

balanced membership. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on March 5, 

2009. 

Patricia Lawton, 

Departmental PRA Clearance Officer, Office 

of the Chief Information Officer. 

[FR Doc. E9–5162 Filed 3–10–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–9X–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Surface Transportation Board 

[STB Docket No. AB–290 (Sub-No. 300X)] 

Norfolk Southern Railway Company— 

Abandonment Exemption—in Wise 

County, VA 

Norfolk Southern Railway Company 

(NSR) has filed a verified notice of 

exemption under 49 CFR part 1152 

subpart F—Exempt Abandonments to 

abandon a 1.81-mile line of railroad 

between milepost CV 277.30 (Big Stone 

Gap) and milepost CV 279.11 

(Appalachia), in Wise County, VA.1 The 

line traverses United States Postal 

Service Zip Codes 24216 and 24219. 

NSR has certified that: (1) No local 

traffic has moved over the line for at 

least 2 years; (2) overhead traffic on the 

line, if any, could be rerouted over other 

lines; (3) no formal complaint filed by 

a user of rail service on the line (or by 

a state or local government entity acting 

on behalf of such user) regarding 

cessation of service over the line either 

is pending with the Surface 

Transportation Board (Board) or with 

any U.S. District Court or has been 

decided in favor of complainant within 

the 2-year period; and (4) the 

requirements at 49 CFR 1105.7 

(environmental report), 49 CFR 1105.8 

(historic report), 49 CFR 1105.11 

(transmittal letter), 49 CFR 1105.12 

(newspaper publication), and 49 CFR 

1152.50(d)(1) (notice to governmental 

agencies) have been met. 

As a condition to this exemption, any 

employee adversely affected by the 

abandonment shall be protected under 

Oregon Short Line R. Co.— 

Abandonment—Goshen, 360 I.C.C. 91 

(1979). To address whether this 

condition adequately protects affected 

employees, a petition for partial 

revocation under 49 U.S.C. 10502(d) 

must be filed. 

Provided no formal expression of 

intent to file an offer of financial 

assistance (OFA) has been received, this 

exemption will be effective on April 10, 

2009, unless stayed pending 

reconsideration. Petitions to stay that do 

not involve environmental issues,2

formal expressions of intent to file an 

OFA under 49 CFR 1152.27(c)(2),3 and 

trail use/rail banking requests under 49 

CFR 1152.29 must be filed by March 23, 

2009.4 Petitions to reopen or requests 

for public use conditions under 49 CFR 

1152.28 must be filed by March 31, 

2009, with the Surface Transportation 

Board, 395 E Street, SW., Washington, 

DC 20423–0001. 

A copy of any petition filed with the 

Board should be sent to NSR’s 

representative: James R. Paschall, Senior 

General Attorney, Norfolk Southern 

Corporation, Three Commercial Place, 

Norfolk, VA 23510. 

If the verified notice contains false or 

misleading information, the exemption 

is void ab initio. 

NSR has filed environmental and 

historic reports that address the effects, 

if any, of the abandonment on the 

environment and historic resources. 

SEA will issue an environmental 

assessment (EA) by March 16, 2009. 

Interested persons may obtain a copy of 

the EA by writing to SEA (Room 1100, 

Surface Transportation Board, 

Washington, DC 20423–0001) or by 

calling SEA, at (202) 245–0305. 

[Assistance for the hearing impaired is 

available through the Federal 

Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1– 

800–877–8339.] Comments on 

environmental and historic preservation 

matters must be filed within 15 days 

after the EA becomes available to the 

public. 

Environmental, historic preservation, 

public use, or trail use/rail banking 

conditions will be imposed, where 

appropriate, in a subsequent decision. 

Pursuant to the provisions of 49 CFR 

1152.29(e)(2), NSR shall file a notice of 

consummation with the Board to signify 

that it has exercised the authority 

granted and fully abandoned the line. If 


rwilkins on PROD1PC63 with NOTICES
10646 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 46 / Wednesday, March 11, 2009 / Notices 

1On December 23, 2008, Union Pacific Railroad 

Company (UP) concurrently filed a verified notice 

of exemption under the Board’s class exemption 

procedures at 49 CFR 1180.2(d)(7). The notice 

covered the agreement by BNSF Railway Company 

(BNSF) to extend the expiration date of the local 

trackage rights granted to UP over BNSF’s line of 

railroad between BNSF milepost 579.3 near Mill 

Creek, OK, and BNSF milepost 631.1 near Joe 

Junction, TX, a distance of approximately 51 miles. 

UP submits that the trackage rights are only 

temporary rights, but, because they are ‘‘local’’ 

rather than ‘‘overhead’’ rights, they do not qualify 

for the Board’s class exemption for temporary 

trackage rights under 49 CFR 1180.2(d)(8). See 

Union Pacific Railroad Company—Temporary 

Trackage Rights Exemption—BNSF Railway 

Company, STB Finance Docket No. 34554 (Sub-No. 

10) (STB served Jan. 8, 2009). 

2The trackage rights were originally granted in 

Union Pacific Railroad Company—Temporary 

Trackage Rights Exemption—The Burlington 

Northern and Santa Fe Railway Company, STB 

Finance Docket No. 34554 (STB served Oct. 7, 

2004). Subsequently, the parties filed notices of 

exemption several times based on their agreements 

to extend expiration dates of the same trackage 

rights. See STB Finance Docket No. 34554 (Sub-No. 

2) (decision served February 11, 2005); STB Finance 

Docket No. 34554 (Sub-No. 4) (decision served 

March 3, 2006); STB Finance Docket No. 34554 

(Sub-No. 6) (decision served January 12, 2007); and 

STB Finance Docket No. 34554 (Sub-No. 8) 

(decision served January 4, 2008). Because the 

original and subsequent trackage rights notices were 

filed under the class exemption at 49 CFR 

1180.2(d)(7), under which trackage rights normally 

remain effective indefinitely, in each instance the 

Board granted partial revocation of the class 

exemption to permit the authorized trackage rights 

to expire. See STB Finance Docket No. 34554 (SubNo. 1) (decision served November 24, 2004); STB 

Finance Docket No. 34554 (Sub-No. 3) (decision 

served March 25, 2005); STB Finance Docket No. 

34554 (Sub-No. 5) (decision served March 23, 

2006); STB Finance Docket No. 34554 (Sub-No. 7) 

(decision served March 13, 2007); and STB Finance 

Docket No. 34554 (Sub-No. 9) (decision served 

March 20, 2008). At the time of the extension 

authorized in STB Finance Docket No. 34554 (SubNo. 8), the parties anticipated that the authority to 

allow the rights to expire would be exercised by 

December 31, 2008. However, the parties filed on 

December 23, 2008 in STB Finance Docket No. 

34554 (Sub-No. 10) their most recent notice of 

exemption so that the trackage rights could be 

extended to December 31, 2009, and in STB 

Finance Docket No. 34554 (Sub-No. 11) their latest 

petition to partially revoke the class exemption to 

permit expiration, which we are addressing here. 

consummation has not been effected by 

NSR’s filing of a notice of 

consummation by March 11, 2010, and 

there are no legal or regulatory barriers 

to consummation, the authority to 

abandon will automatically expire. 

Board decisions and notices are 

available on our Web site at http:// 

www.stb.dot.gov. 

Decided: February 27, 2009. 

By the Board, David M. Konschnik, 

Director, Office of Proceedings. 

Jeffrey Herzig, 

Clearance Clerk. 

[FR Doc. E9–4878 Filed 3–10–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4915–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Surface Transportation Board 

[STB Ex Parte No. 558 (Sub-No. 12)] 

Railroad Cost of Capital—2008 

AGENCY: Surface Transportation Board, 

DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of decision instituting a 

proceeding to determine the railroads’ 

2008 cost of capital. 

SUMMARY: The Board is instituting a 

proceeding to determine the railroad 

industry’s cost of capital for 2008. The 

decision solicits comments on: (1) The 

railroads’ 2008 current cost of debt 

capital; (2) the railroads’ 2008 current 

cost of preferred stock equity capital (if 

any); (3) the railroads’ 2008 cost of 

common stock equity capital; and (4) 

the 2008 capital structure mix of the 

railroad industry on a market value 

basis. Comments should focus on the 

various cost of capital components 

listed above using the same 

methodology followed in the Cost 07 

decision, with the exception of applying 

the Ex Parte No. 664 (Sub No. 1) 

decision in calculating the cost-ofequity. 

DATES: Notices of intent to participate 

are due no later than March 20, 2009. 

Statements of the railroads are due by 

April 20, 2009. Statements of other 

interested persons are due by May 20, 

2009. Rebuttal statements by the 

railroads are due by June 19, 2009. 

ADDRESSES: Comments may be 

submitted either via the Board’s e-filing 

format or in the traditional paper 

format. Any person using e-filing should 

submit a document and otherwise 

comply with the instructions at the EFILING link on the Board’s Web site, at 

http://www.stb.dot.gov. Any person 

submitting a filing in the traditional 

paper format should send an original 

and 10 copies to: Surface Transportation 

Board, Attn: STB Ex Parte No. 558 (Sub 

No. 12), 395 E Street, SW., Washington, 

DC 20423–0001. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Pedro Ramirez (202) 245–0333. 

[Assistance for the hearing impaired is 

available through the Federal 

Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1– 

800–877–8339.] 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Board’s decision is posted on the 

Board’s Web site, http:// 

www.stb.dot.gov. In addition, copies of 

the decision may be purchased by 

contacting the office of Public 

Assistance, Governmental Affairs, and 

Compliance at (202)–245–0235. 

Assistance for the hearing impaired is 

available through FIRS at 1–800–877– 

8339. 

We preliminarily conclude that the 

proposed action will not significantly 

affect either the quality of the human 

environment or the conservation of 

energy resources. 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 10704(a). 

Decided: March 5, 2009. 

By the Board, Chairman Nottingham, Vice 

Chairman Mulvey, and Commissioner 

Buttrey. 

Kulunie L. Cannon, 

Clearance Clerk. 

[FR Doc. E9–5138 Filed 3–10–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4915–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Surface Transportation Board 

[STB Finance Docket No. 34554 (Sub-No. 

11)] 

Union Pacific Railroad Company— 

Temporary Trackage Rights 

Exemption—BNSF Railway Company 

AGENCY: Surface Transportation Board, 

DOT. 

ACTION: Partial revocation of exemption. 

SUMMARY: The Board, under 49 U.S.C. 

10502, revokes the class exemption as it 

pertains to the modified trackage rights 

described in STB Finance Docket No. 

34554 (Sub-No. 10) 1 to permit the 

trackage rights to expire on or about 

December 31, 2009, in accordance with 

the agreement of the parties,2 subject to 

the employee protective conditions set 

forth in Oregon Short Line R. Co.— 

Abandonment—Goshen, 360 I.C.C. 91 

(1979). 

DATES: This exemption is effective on 

April 10, 2009. Petitions to stay must be 

filed by March 23, 2009. Petitions to 

reopen must be filed by March 31, 2009. 

ADDRESSES: An original and 10 copies of 

all pleadings referring to STB Finance 

Docket No. 34554 (Sub-No. 11) must be 

filed with the Surface Transportation 

Board, 395 E Street, SW., Washington, 

DC 20423–0001. In addition, a copy of 

all pleadings must be served on 

petitioner’s representative: Gabriel S. 

Meyer, Union Pacific Railroad 

Company, 1400 Douglas Street, STOP 

1580, Omaha, NE 68179. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Julia 

Farr (202) 245–0359. [Assistance for the 

hearing impaired is available through 

the Federal Information Relay Service 

(FIRS) at 1–800–877–8339.] 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Additional information is contained in 

the Board’s decision. 


rwilkins on PROD1PC63 with NOTICES