848 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 5 / Thursday, January 8, 2009 / Notices 

3The 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. 

4Effective July 18, 2008, the filing fee for an OFA 

increased to $1,500. See Regulations Governing 

Fees for Services Performed in Connection with 

Licensing and Related Services—2008 Update, STB 

Ex Parte No. 542 (Sub-No. 15) (STB served June 18, 

2008). 

5BIR states that the property underlying the line’s 

right-of-way may be reversionary, which may affect 

the transfer of the property for other than rail or 

rail-banking purposes. 

Where, as here, BIR is abandoning all 

of its rail lines, the Board does not 

normally impose labor protection under 

49 U.S.C. 10502(g), unless the evidence 

indicates the existence of: (1) A 

corporate affiliate that will continue 

substantially similar rail operations; or 

(2) a corporate parent that will realize 

substantial financial benefits over and 

above relief from the burden of deficit 

operations by its subsidiary railroad. 

See Wellsville, Addison & Galeton R. 

Corp.—Abandonment, 354 I.C.C. 744 

(1978); and Northampton and Bath R. 

Co.—Abandonment, 354 I.C.C. 784 

(1978). Because BRI does not appear to 

have a corporate affiliate or parent that 

will continue similar operations or that 

could benefit from the proposed 

abandonment, employee protective 

conditions will not be imposed. 

Provided no formal expression of 

intent to file an offer of financial 

assistance (OFA) has been received, this 

exemption will be effective on February 

7, 2009, unless stayed pending 

reconsideration. Petitions to stay that do 

not involve environmental issues,3

formal expressions of intent to file an 

OFA under 49 CFR 1152.27(c)(2),4 and 

trail use/rail banking requests under 49 

CFR 1152.29 must be filed by January 

21, 2009. Petitions to reopen or requests 

for public use conditions under 49 CFR 

1152.28 must be filed by January 28, 

2009,5 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 BIR’s 

representative: Karl Morell, Ball Janik 

LLP, 1455 F Street, NW., Suite 225, 

Washington, DC 20005. 

If the verified notice contains false or 

misleading information, the exemption 

is void ab initio. 

BIR 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 January 13, 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), BIR shall file a notice of 

consummation with the Board to signify 

that it has exercised the authority 

granted and fully abandoned the line. If 

consummation has not been effected by 

BIR’s filing of a notice of consummation 

by January 8, 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: January 2, 2009. 

By the Board, David M. Konschnik, 

Director, Office of Proceedings. 

Kulunie L. Cannon, 

Clearance Clerk. 

[FR Doc. E9–107 Filed 1–7–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4915–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Surface Transportation Board 

30-Day Notice and Request for 

Comments 

AGENCY: Surface Transportation Board, 

DOT. 

ACTION: 30-day notice and request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: As part of its continuing effort 

to reduce paperwork burdens, and as 

required by the Paperwork Reduction 

Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq. 

(PRA), the Surface Transportation Board 

(Board) gives notice that it is requesting 

from the Office of Management and 

Budget (OMB) an extension of approval 

without change of the seven existing 

collections described below. 

Comments are requested concerning 

each collection as to (1) whether the 

particular collection of information is 

necessary for the proper performance of 

the functions of the Board, including 

whether the collection has practical 

utility; (2) the accuracy of the Board’s 

burden estimates; (3) ways to enhance 

the quality, utility, and clarity of the 

information collected; and (4) 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. 

DATES: Written comments are due on 

February 9, 2009. 

ADDRESSES: Written comments should 

be identified as ‘‘Paperwork Reduction 

Act Comments, Surface Transportation 

Board,’’ and should refer to the title of 

the specific collection(s) commented 

upon. These comments should be 

directed to the Office of Management 

and Budget, Office of Information and 

Regulatory Affairs, Attention: Chandana 

Achanta, Surface Transportation Board 

Desk Officer, by fax at (202) 395–6974; 

by mail at Room 10235, 725 17th Street, 

NW., Washington, DC 20503; or at 

Chandana_L._Achanta@omb.eop.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

additional information or copies of the 

information collection(s) contact Scott 

Decker at (202) 245–0330 or 

deckers@stb.dot.gov. [Federal 

Information Relay Service (FIRS) for the 

hearing impaired: (800) 877–8339.] 

Subjects: In this notice the Board is 

requesting that comments be sent to 

OMB on the following information 

collections: 

Collection Number 1 

Title: Class I Railroad Annual Report. 

OMB Control Number: 2140–0009. 

Form Number: R1. 

Type of Review: Extension without 

change. 

Respondents: Class I railroads. 

Number of Respondents: Fewer than 

10. 

Estimated Time per Response: As long 

as 800 hours, based on information 

provided by the railroad industry during 

the 1990s. This estimate includes time 

spent reviewing instructions; searching 

existing data sources; gathering and 

maintaining the data needed; 

completing and reviewing the collection 

of information; and converting the data 

from the carrier’s individual accounting 

system to the Board’s Uniform System 

of Accounts (USOA), which ensures that 

the information will be presented in a 

consistent format across all reporting 

railroads, see 49 U.S.C. 11141–43, 

11161–64, 49 CFR 1200–1201. It is 

likely that the estimated time to produce 

this report is overstated, given the 

advances made in computerized data 

collection and processing systems. 

Frequency of Response: Annual. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 5 / Thursday, January 8, 2009 / Notices 849 

Total Annual Hour Burden: Up to 

5,600 hours annually. 

Total Annual ‘‘Non-Hour Burden’’ 

Cost: No ‘‘non-hour cost’’ burdens 

associated with this collection have 

been identified. 

Needs and Uses: Annual reports are 

required to be filed by Class I railroads 

under 49 U.S.C. 11145. The reports 

show operating expenses and operating 

statistics of the carriers. Operating 

expenses include costs for right-of-way 

and structures, equipment, train and 

yard operations, and general and 

administrative expenses. Operating 

statistics include such items as carmiles, revenue-ton-miles, and gross tonmiles. The reports are used by the 

Board, other Federal agencies, and 

industry groups to monitor and assess 

railroad industry growth, financial 

stability, traffic, and operations, and to 

identify industry changes that may 

affect national transportation policy. 

Information from this report is also 

entered into the Board’s Uniform Rail 

Costing System (URCS), which is a cost 

measurement methodology. URCS, 

which was developed by the Board 

pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 11161, is used as 

a tool in rail rate proceedings, in 

accordance with 49 U.S.C. 10707(d), to 

calculate the variable costs associated 

with providing a particular service. The 

Board also uses this information to more 

effectively carry out other of its 

regulatory responsibilities, including: 

Acting on railroad requests for authority 

to engage in Board-regulated financial 

transactions such as mergers, 

acquisitions of control, and 

consolidations, see 49 U.S.C. 11323– 

11324; analyzing the information that 

the Board obtains through the annual 

railroad industry waybill sample, see 49 

CFR 1244; measuring off-branch costs in 

railroad abandonment proceedings, in 

accordance with 49 CFR 1152.32(n); 

developing the ‘‘rail cost adjustment 

factors,’’ in accordance with 49 U.S.C. 

10708; and conducting investigations 

and rulemakings. 

Information from certain schedules 

contained in these reports is compiled 

and published on the Board’s Web site, 

http://www.stb.dot.gov. Information in 

these reports is not available from any 

other source. 

Collection Number 2 

Title: Quarterly Report of Revenues, 

Expenses, and Income—Railroads (Form 

RE&I). 

OMB Control Number: 2140–0013. 

Form Number: None. 

Type of Review: Extension without 

change. 

Respondents: Class I railroads. 

Number of Respondents: Fewer than 

10. 

Estimated Time per Response: 6 

hours. 

Frequency of Response: Quarterly. 

Total Annual Hour Burden: 168 hours 

annually 

Total Annual ‘‘Non Hour Burden’’ 

Cost: No ‘‘non-hour cost’’ burdens 

associated with this collection have 

been identified. 

Needs and Uses: This collection is a 

report of railroad operating revenues, 

operating expenses and income items; it 

is a profit and loss statement, disclosing 

net railway operating income on a 

quarterly and year-to-date basis for the 

current and prior years. See 49 CFR 

1243.1. The Board uses the information 

in this report to ensure competitive, 

efficient, and safe transportation 

through general oversight programs that 

monitor and forecast the financial and 

operating condition of railroads, and 

through regulation of railroad rate and 

service issues and rail restructuring 

proposals, including railroad mergers, 

consolidations, acquisitions of control, 

and abandonments. Information from 

these reports is used by the Board, other 

Federal agencies, and industry groups to 

monitor and assess industry growth and 

operations, detect changes in carrier 

financial stability, and identify trends 

that may affect the national 

transportation system. Some of the 

information from these reports is 

compiled by the Board in our quarterly 

Selected Earnings Data Report, which is 

published on the Board’s Web site, 

http://www.stb.dot.gov. The information 

contained in these reports is not 

available from any other source. 

Collection Number 3 

Title: Quarterly Condensed Balance 

Sheet—Railroads (Form CBS). 

OMB Control Number: 2140–0014. 

Form Number: None. 

Type of Review: Extension without 

change. 

Respondents: Class I railroads. 

Number of Respondents: Fewer than 

10. 

Estimated Time per Response: 6 

hours. 

Frequency of Response: Quarterly. 

Total Annual Hour Burden: 168 hours 

annually. 

Total Annual ‘‘Non-Hour Burden’’ 

Cost: No ‘‘non-hour cost’’ burdens 

associated with this collection have 

been identified. 

Needs and Uses: This collection 

shows the balance (quarterly and 

cumulative) for the current and prior 

year of the carrier’s assets and liabilities, 

gross capital expenditures, and revenue 

tons carried. See 49 CFR 1243.2. The 

Board uses the information in this 

report to ensure competitive, efficient, 

and safe transportation through general 

oversight programs that monitor and 

forecast the financial and operating 

condition of railroads, and through 

specific regulation of railroad rate and 

service issues and rail restructuring 

proposals, including railroad mergers, 

consolidations, acquisitions of control, 

and abandonments. Information from 

these reports is used by the Board, other 

Federal agencies, and industry groups to 

assess industry growth and operations, 

detect changes in carrier financial 

stability, and identify trends that may 

affect the national transportation 

system. Revenue ton-miles, which are 

reported in these reports, are compiled 

and published by the Board in its 

quarterly Selected Earnings Data Report, 

which is published on the Board’s Web 

site, http://www.stb.dot.gov. The 

information contained in these reports 

is not available from any other source. 

Collection Number 4 

OMB Control Number: 2140–0004. 

Title: Report of Railroad Employees, 

Service and Compensation (Wage Forms 

A and B). 

Form Number: None. 

Type of Review: Extension without 

change. 

Respondents: Class I railroads. 

Number of Respondents: Fewer than 

10. 

Estimated Time per Response: As long 

as 30 hours per quarterly report and 40 

hours per annual summation, based on 

information provided by the railroad 

industry during the 1990s. Again, it is 

likely that the time required to collect 

this information is overstated given the 

advances made in computerized data 

collection and processing systems. 

Frequency of Response: Quarterly, 

with an annual summation. 

Total Annual Hour Burden: Up to 

1120 hours annually. 

Total Annual ‘‘Non-Hour Burden’’ 

Cost: No ‘‘non-hour cost’’ burdens 

associated with this collection have 

been identified. 

Needs and Uses: This collection 

shows the number of employees, service 

hours, and compensation, by employee 

group (e.g., executive, professional, 

maintenance-of-way and equipment, 

and transportation), of the reporting 

railroads. See 49 CFR 1245. The 

information is used by the Board to 

forecast labor costs and measure the 

efficiency of the reporting railroads. The 

information is also used by the Board to 

evaluate proposed regulated 

transactions that may impact rail 

employees, including mergers and 

consolidations, acquisitions of control, 


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850 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 5 / Thursday, January 8, 2009 / Notices 

purchases, and abandonments. Other 

Federal agencies and industry groups, 

including the Railroad Retirement 

Board, Bureau of Labor Statistics, and 

Association of American Railroads, use 

the information contained in the reports 

to monitor railroad operations. Certain 

information from these reports is 

compiled and published on the Board’s 

Web site, http://www.stb.dot.gov. The 

information contained in these reports 

is not available from any other source. 

Collection Number 5 

Title: Monthly Report of Number of 

Employees of Class I Railroads (Wage 

Form C). 

OMB Control Number: 2140–0007. 

Form Number: STB Form 350. 

Type of Review: Extension without 

change. 

Respondents: Class I railroads. 

Number of Respondents: Fewer than 

10. 

Estimated Time per Response: 1.25 

hours. 

Frequency of Response: Monthly. 

Total Annual Hour Burden: 105 hours 

annually 

Total Annual ‘‘Non-Hour Burden’’ 

Cost: No ‘‘non-hour cost’’ burdens 

associated with this collection have 

been identified. 

Needs and Uses: This collection 

shows, for each reporting carrier, the 

average number of employees at midmonth in the six job-classification 

groups that encompass all railroad 

employees. See 49 CFR 1246. The 

information is used by the Board to 

forecast labor costs and measure the 

efficiency of the reporting railroads. The 

information is also used by the Board to 

evaluate the impact on rail employees of 

proposed regulated transactions, 

including mergers and consolidations, 

acquisitions of control, purchases, and 

abandonments. Other Federal agencies 

and industry groups, including the 

Railroad Retirement Board, Bureau of 

Labor Statistics, and Association of 

American Railroads, use the information 

contained in these reports to monitor 

railroad operations. Certain information 

from these reports is compiled and 

published on the Board’s Web site, 

http://www.stb.dot.gov. The information 

contained in these reports is not 

available from any other source. 

Collection Number 6 

Title: Annual Report of Cars Loaded 

and Cars Terminated. 

OMB Control Number: 2140–0011. 

Form Number: Form STB–54. 

Type of Review: Extension without 

change. 

Number of Respondents: Fewer than 

10. 

Estimated Time per Response: 4 

hours. 

Frequency of Response: Annual. 

Total Annual Hour Burden: 28 hours 

annually. 

Total Annual ‘‘Non Hour Burden’’ 

Cost: No ‘‘non-hour cost’’ burdens 

associated with this collection have 

been identified. 

Needs and Uses: This collection 

reports the number of cars loaded and 

cars terminated on the reporting 

carrier’s line. See 49 CFR 1247. 

Information in this report is entered into 

the Board’s URCS, the uses of which are 

explained under Collection Number 1. 

There is no other source for the 

information contained in this report. 

Collection Number 7 

OMB Control Number: 2140–0001. 

Title: Quarterly Report of Freight 

Commodity Statistics (Form QCS). 

Form Number: None. 

Type of Review: Extension without 

change. 

Respondents: Class I railroads. 

Number of Respondents: Fewer than 

10. 

Estimated Time per Response: 217 

hours. 

Frequency of Response: Quarterly, 

with an annual summation. 

Total Annual Hour Burden: 6,076 

hours annually. 

Total Annual ‘‘Non-Hour Burden’’ 

Cost: No ‘‘non-hour cost’’ burdens 

associated with this collection have 

been identified. 

Needs and Uses: This collection, 

which is based on information 

contained in carload waybills used by 

railroads in the ordinary course of 

business, reports car loadings and total 

revenues by commodity code for each 

commodity that moved on the railroad 

during the reporting period. See 49 CFR 

1248. Information in this report is 

entered into the Board’s URCS, the uses 

of which are explained under Collection 

Number 1. There is no other source for 

the information contained in this report. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the 

PRA, a Federal agency conducting or 

sponsoring 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. Under the PRA 

and 5 CFR 1320.8, an agency may not 

conduct or sponsor, and a person is not 

required to respond to, a collection of 

information unless the collection 

displays a currently valid OMB control 

number. 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. 

Andrea Pope-Matheson, 

Clearance Clerk. 

[FR Doc. E9–128 Filed 1–7–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4915–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Surface Transportation Board 

[STB Finance Docket No. 35116] 

R.J. Corman Railroad Company/ 

Pennsylvania Lines Inc.—Construction 

and Operation Exemption—in 

Clearfield County, PA 

ACTION: Notice of Intent to Prepare an 

Environmental Impact Statement; 

Notice of Availability of the Draft Scope 

of Study for the Environmental Impact 

Statement; Notice of Scoping Meeting; 

and Request for Comments on Draft 

Scope. 

SUMMARY: On May 20, 2008, R.J. Corman 

Railroad Company/Pennsylvania Lines 

Inc. (RJCP) filed a petition with the 

Surface Transportation Board (Board) 

pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 10502 for 

authority to construct and operate an 

abandoned 10.8-mile rail line between 

Wallaceton Junction and Winburne in 

Clearfield County, Pennsylvania (the 

Western Segment) and to rebuild the 

track on a connecting 9.3-mile line 

between Winburne and Gorton in 

Clearfield and Centre Counties, 

Pennsylvania (the Eastern Segment) that 

is currently being used for interim trail 

use, subject to the possible restoration of 

rail service (rail banking) pursuant to 

the Trails Act, 16 U.S.C. 1247(d). In 

total, the proposed project would 

involve the construction or rebuilding, 

and operation, of approximately 20 

miles of the former Beech Creek 

Railroad to serve a new quarry, landfill, 

and industrial park being developed by 

Resource Recovery, LLC, near Gorton, 

Pennsylvania. 

Because this project has the potential 

to result in significant environmental 

impacts, the Board’s Section of 

Environmental Analysis (SEA) has 

determined that the preparation of an 

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) 

is appropriate pursuant to the National 

Environmental Policy Act of 1969 

(NEPA), as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 

seq.). The purpose of this Notice of 


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