Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collections; Comment Request, 28979-28982 [05-9992]

Agencies

• Surface Transportation Board
• DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 96 (Thursday, May 19, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28979-28982]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-9992]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Surface Transportation Board


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collections; 
Comment Request

AGENCY: Surface Transportation Board.

ACTION: 60-day notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Surface Transportation Board (Board), 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), gives 
notice that the Board proposes to request approval of the seven 
existing information collections described below. Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) control numbers were obtained in the past, but have 
expired, for six of the seven information collections that are the 
subject of this notice. For the most part, the collections listed below 
continue current Board reporting requirements without revision. As 
described below, a minor revision has been made to Collection No. 1, 
Class I Railroad Annual Report. Comments are requested regarding any of 
the collections of information described below concerning (1) whether 
the particular collection of information

[[Page 28980]]

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. Submitted 
comments will be summarized and included in the Board's request for OMB 
approval.

DATES: Written comments are due on July 18, 2005.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be identified as ``STB Docket No. CU 
66, First Notice Regarding Seven Information Collections,'' refer to 
the title of the specific collection(s) commented upon, and either be 
sent to: Surface Transportation Board, 1925 K Street, NW., Washington, 
DC 20423-0001, or filed on the Board's Web site at https://
www.stb.dot.gov by clicking on E-FILING, and then ``Other 
Submissions.''.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For additional information or copies 
of the information collection(s) contact Scott Decker, (202) 565-1531. 
[Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) for the hearing impaired: 
(800) 877-8339.]
    Subjects: In this notice the Board is requesting comments 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: Reinstatement, with change, of a previously 
approved collection for which OMB control number has expired.
    Respondents: Class I railroads.
    Number of Respondents: Fewer than 10.
    Revision: Schedule 755 of the Surface Transportation Board's Class 
I Railroad Annual Report (ACAA-R1) is being modified to include 
reporting of TOFC/COFC intermodal load factors. The new item is 
required to support the more accurate calculation of intermodal 
shipment costs. These cost estimates are used by the Surface 
Transportation Board when making determinations of market dominance in 
rail rate proceedings and when evaluating evidence submitted by parties 
in those proceedings. See 49 U.S.C. 10707. The collection of this 
information is authorized by section 11145 of the ICC Termination Act 
of 1995, Public Law 104-88, 109 Stat. 803 (1995), and codified at 49 
U.S.C. 11145.
    Estimated Time Per Response: 800 hours, based on information 
provided by the railroad industry during the 1990's. 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 possible that the 
time required to produce this report is overstated, given the advances 
made in computerized data collection and processing systems.
    Frequency of Response: Annual.
    Total Annual Hour Burden: 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 car-miles, revenue ton-miles, and 
gross ton-miles. 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 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, https://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----- (prior number under the Interstate 
Commerce Commission (ICC): 3120-0027).
    Form Number: None.
    Type of Review: Reinstatement, without change, of a previously 
approved collection for which OMB control number has expired.
    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. Information from these 
reports is compiled by the Board and published on its https://
www.stb.dot.gov. The information contained in these reports is not 
available from any other source.

[[Page 28981]]

Collection Number 3

    Title: Quarterly Condensed Balance Sheet--Railroads (Form CBS).
    OMB Control Number: 2140----- (prior number under ICC: 3120-0063).
    Form Number: None.
    Type of Review: Reinstatement, without change, of a previously 
approved collection for which OMB control number has expired.
    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. 
Information from these reports is compiled by the Board and published 
on its Web site, https://www.stb.dot.gov. The information contained in 
these reports is not available from any other source.

Collection Number 4

    OMB Control Number: 2140----(prior number under ICC: 3120-0074).
    Title: Report of Railroad Employees, Service and Compensation (Wage 
Forms A and B.)
    Form Number: None.
    Type of Review: Reinstatement, without change, of a previously 
approved collection for which OMB control number has expired.
    Respondents: Class I railroads.
    Number of Respondents: Fewer than 10.
    Estimated Time Per Response: 107 hours, based on information 
provided by the railroad industry during the 1990's. It is possible 
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: 2996 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, 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, https://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----- (prior number under ICC: 3120-0133).
    Form Number: STB Form 350.
    Type of Review: Reinstatement, without change, of a previously 
approved collection for which OMB control number has expired.
    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: 101.50 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 mid-month 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, https://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-----.
    Form Number: Form STB-54.
    Type of Review: Existing collection in use without an OMB control 
number.
    Respondents: Class I railroads.
    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. This collection was 
authorized in Modification of Class I Reporting Regulations, STB Ex 
Parte No. 583 (STB served Jan. 5, 2001); 66 Fed. Reg. 1051-01 (2001). 
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: Reinstatement, without change, of a previously 
approved collection for which OMB control number has expired.
    Respondents: Class I railroads.
    Number of Respondents: Fewer than 10.
    Estimated Time Per Response: 217 hours.

[[Page 28982]]

    Frequency of Response: Quarterly, with an annual summation.
    Total Annual Hour Burden: Less than 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 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. 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 section 3506(c)(2)(A) 
of the PRA, Federal agencies are required to provide a 60-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, before 
submitting the collection to OMB for approval.

    Dated: May 13, 2005.
Vernon A. Williams,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 05-9992 Filed 5-18-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-01-P