Opinion ID: 20121
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Part B

Text: 33 Having found that federal law does not preempt Act 83, Part B, we must determine whether Part B places an undue burden on interstate commerce. Instead of addressing this specific question, the district court focused on the combined effect of Part A and Part B on interstate commerce, finding that Act 83 would require railroads to stop at state boundaries and make equipment changes. 34 The parties never really addressed this issue until oral arguments, at which time they indicated that meeting Part B's requirements would require railroads to relocate their whistle posts, i.e., the posts that advise the engineers when to sound their whistles. 22 At oral argument, appellees argued that this requirement would create an undue burden on interstate commerce. Appellants argue that Act 83 meets the test laid down by the Supreme Court in Pike v. Bruce Church, Inc., 397 U.S. 137, 25 L. Ed. 2d 174, 90 S. Ct. 844 (1970). 23 Appellants also argue that Act 83's effect on interstate commerce cannot be determined without additional fact-finding by the district court. We agree. 35 Unlike the district court, we are unable to determine on the basis of an empty record whether forcing railroads to comply with Part B alone would create an undue burden on interstate commerce. Because neither the parties nor the district court seem to have given this issue much thought, and because the record is devoid of any evidence that could help us decide this issue, we remand to the district court for a determination of this issue.