California High-Speed Rail Authority-Construction Exemption-In Fresno, Kings, Tulare, and Kern Counties, CA, 78507-78508 [2013-30825]
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emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 248 / Thursday, December 26, 2013 / Notices
Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m.
and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday,
except Federal holidays.
Instructions: All submissions must
include the agency name and docket
number for this notice at the beginning
of the comment. To avoid duplication,
please use only one of these four
methods. All comments received will be
posted without change to the Federal
Docket Management System (FDMS),
including any personal information.
Docket: For access to the dockets to
read background documents or
comments received, go to https://
www.regulations.gov or DOT’s Docket
Operations Office (see ADDRESSES).
Privacy Act: Anyone is able to search
the electronic form of any written
communications and comments
received into any of our dockets by the
name of the individual submitting the
document (or signing the document, if
submitted on behalf of an association,
business, labor union, etc.). You may
review DOT’s complete Privacy Act
Statement in the Federal Register
published on April 11, 2000 (65 FR
19477) which may be viewed at https://
www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2000-04-11/
pdf/00-8505.pdf.
Registration: It is requested that
attendees pre-register for this meeting
by emailing TaNika Dyson at
tanika.dyson.ctr@dot.gov. Failure to preregister may delay your access to the
building. Participants attending in
person are encouraged to arrive early to
allow time for security checks necessary
to obtain access to the building.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Lucy DiGhionno or Dr. Kin Wong,
Office of Hazardous Materials Safety,
Research and Development, Department
of Transportation, Washington, DC
20590; (202) 366–4545.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
primary purpose of this meeting is to
present the results of recently
completed actions and to seek
comments relative to potential new
research projects which may be
considered for inclusion in future work.
PHMSA will consider comments
received for proposed list of new
projects identified in the draft agenda.
The meeting agenda and event
information may be obtained from
PHMSA’s Web site at https://
phmhqnwas027vg.ad.dot.gov/about/
calendar.
Topics on the agenda for the Research
and Development Forum include:
• Modeling for Toxic Inhalation Hazard
Zones
• Acute Exposure Guidelines and
Emergency Response Guidebook
Update
VerDate Mar<15>2010
18:06 Dec 24, 2013
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• Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus
• Cargo Tank Rollover Special Study
• Study on Improving Nurse Tank
Safety
• R&D Initiatives on Packaging Testing
• Paperless Hazard Communications
Pilot Program
• Odorization of LP Gas
• Safety Effectiveness of Pressure Relief
Devices
• Explosives Testing
• Improving the Safety of Ammonium
Nitrate Transport
Magdy El-Sibaie,
Associate Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2013–30789 Filed 12–24–13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–60–P
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Surface Transportation Board
[Docket No. FD 35766]
78507
may be filed at any time. The filing of
a petition to revoke will not
automatically stay the effectiveness of
the exemption. Petitions to stay must be
filed no later than January 2, 2014.
An original and 10 copies of all
pleadings, referring to Docket No. FD
35766, must be filed with the Surface
Transportation Board, 395 E Street SW.,
Washington, DC 20423–0001. In
addition, a copy of each pleading must
be served on Kristin M. Collins, Kelly &
Collins, LLC, 96 High Street, Belfast, ME
04915.
Board decisions and notices are
available on our Web site at
‘‘WWW.STB.DOT.GOV.’’
Decided: December 20, 2013.
By the Board,
Rachel D. Campbell,
Director, Office of Proceedings.
Raina S. White,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2013–30824 Filed 12–24–13; 8:45 am]
City of Belfast, Me.—Acquisition
Exemption—Certain Assets of Belfast
and Moosehead Lake Railroad
Company
BILLING CODE 4915–01–P
The City of Belfast, Me. (the City), a
noncarrier municipality, has filed a
verified notice of exemption under 49
CFR 1150.31 to acquire a line of railroad
between Pierce Street in downtown
Belfast, Me., to the Belfast/Waldo town
line at milepost 3.14 (the Line).1
The City states that it acquired the
Line from Unity Property Management
by Release Deed dated July 2, 2010. The
City now seeks Board authorization for
that transaction. The City states that it
has not provided any freight service
over the Line and was not aware at the
time that it needed Board authorization
to acquire the Line.
The City certifies that it derives only
de minimis revenue from the Line and
that the projected annual revenues as a
result of this transaction will not exceed
those that would qualify the City as a
Class III rail carrier.
The exemption will become effective
on January 9, 2014.2
If the verified notice contains false or
misleading information, the exemption
is void ab initio. Petitions to revoke the
exemption under 49 U.S.C. 10502(d)
Surface Transportation Board
1 In a related proceeding currently held in
abeyance, the City is seeking authorization to
abandon a portion of the Line. See City of Belfast,
Me.—Aban. Exemption—in Belfast, Me., Docket No.
AB 1109X.
2 This notice was scheduled to be published in
the Federal Register during the time that the agency
was closed due to a lapse in appropriations.
Publication of this notice was further delayed by
the unique circumstances of this case and the
related abandonment proceeding. As a result, the
effective date of the exemption has been delayed.
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
[Docket No. FD 35724 (Sub-No. 1)]
California High-Speed Rail Authority—
Construction Exemption—In Fresno,
Kings, Tulare, and Kern Counties, CA
By petition filed on September 26,
2013, California High-Speed Rail
Authority (Authority), a state agency
formed in 1996, seeks an exemption
under 49 U.S.C. 10502 from the prior
approval requirements of 49 U.S.C.
10901 for authority to construct an
approximately 114-mile high-speed
passenger rail line between Fresno and
Bakersfield, Cal. (the Line).1
In a decision served December 4,
2013, and published in the Federal
Register on December 9, 2013 (78 Fed.
Reg. 73,921), the Board instituted a
proceeding and extended the deadline
for comments on the transportation
merits of the proposed construction to
December 24, 2013. The Board also
denied the Authority’s request that the
Board conditionally grant the exemption
authority by addressing the
transportation aspects of the proposed
project before the environmental review
process has been completed.
1 By decision served June 13, 2013, in California
High-Speed Rail Authority—Construction
Exemption—in Merced, Madera, & Fresno Counties,
Cal., FD 35724 (the main docket), the Board granted
an exemption for the Authority to construct the first
65-mile segment of the planned California HighSpeed Train System (HST System), between Merced
and Fresno, California. The Line is the second
segment of the proposed HST System.
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26DEN1
78508
Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 248 / Thursday, December 26, 2013 / Notices
emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with NOTICES
On December 9, 2013, Michael
LaSalle filed a letter requesting that the
Board require the Authority to notify all
landowners within and along the
proposed Fresno-to-Bakersfield
alignments, as well as all parties of
record in the main docket (which
pertains to the Merced-to-Fresno
segment) of this proceeding and the
comment deadline. LaSalle also requests
that the Board amend the comment
deadline to a reasonable time following
the Authority’s and the Federal Railroad
Administration’s issuance of the Final
Environmental Impact Report/
Environmental Impact Statement (EIR/
EIS) and after their final decisions
regarding the proposed project,
including alignments and station
locations, have been made. On
December 16, 2013, the Community
Coalition on High Speed Rail filed a
letter joining in LaSalle’s requests.
On December 12, 2013, the Citizens
for California High Speed Rail
Accountability (CCHSRA) filed a letter
requesting that the Board extend the
comment period to January 31, 2014,
because it only recently became aware
of the petition and because the
December 24 deadline coincides with
the holiday season.2 CCHSRA also
requested that the Board consider
providing notice to all impacted
landowners in Fresno, Kings, Tulare,
and Kern Counties.
Notice of the Proceeding. Both LaSalle
and CCHSRA request that all affected
landowners be given direct notice of
this proceeding. Generally, however,
publication in the Federal Register is
legally sufficient notice to interested or
affected parties.3 Moreover, attempting
to identify and provide direct notice to
all landowners who might potentially be
affected would be unworkable.4 Also,
ample notice of the proposed
construction project and opportunity to
participate in the environmental review
for the proposed project have been
provided through the EIR/EIS process.
That process included five public
meetings in 2009 on the potential scope
of the Draft EIR/EIS, three public
hearings in 2011 on the Draft EIR/EIS,
and three public hearings in 2012 on the
Revised Draft EIR/Supplemental Draft
EIS. All the meetings and hearings were
2 In a letter filed on December 17, 2013, William
Descary, a Bakersfield resident, also requests an
extension of the comment period to January 31,
2014, in light of the holiday season.
3 Friends of Sierra R.R. v. ICC, 881 F.2d 663, 667–
68 (9th Cir. 1989) (citing Fed. Crop Ins. Corp. v.
Merrill, 332 U.S. 380 (1947)); accord State of Cal.
ex rel. Lockyer v. FERC, 329 F.3d 700, 707 (9th Cir.
2003).
4 See Nat’l Trails Sys. Act & R.R. Rights of Way,
EP 702, slip op. at 7–8 (STB served Feb. 16, 2011).
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18:06 Dec 24, 2013
Jkt 232001
held in the project area including
Fresno and Bakersfield.
However, given the significant public
interest in this proceeding, the Board
will require the Authority to notify all
parties of record in the main docket by
providing them with a copy of its
petition for exemption in this subdocket, as well as a copy of this
decision, by January 3, 2014, and to
certify contemporaneously to the Board
that it has done so. Those parties, and
any other interested persons who wish
to participate in this sub-docket as a
party of record, will then have until
January 21, 2014, to notify the Board of
their intent to participate in this subdocket as a party of record. Only
persons who participate as a party of
record in this sub-docket by filing a
notice of intent or filing comments (or
both) will be entitled to service of
pleadings and subsequent Board
decisions in this sub-docket.
Extension of the Comment Period. In
recognition of the new notice procedure
set forth above, and taking into
consideration the requests for an
extension of the current comment
deadline, we will extend the deadline
for comments on the transportation to
February 14, 2014. This extension
should provide sufficient time for
interested persons to comment on the
proposed transaction.
Waiver of service requirement for
individual private citizens. The Board is
interested in encouraging public
participation by all interested persons in
this proceeding. As was done in the
main docket,5 to help create a
comprehensive record that embodies the
full spectrum of interests involved and
to facilitate the ability of individual
private citizens to participate in that
process, the service requirements of 49
CFR 1104.12(a), which require every
document filed with the Board to be
served upon all parties to the
proceeding, will be waived for
individual private citizens who file
comments in this proceeding. Thus,
filings made by individual private
citizens will be included in the public
record of this proceeding (and posted on
the Board’s Web site) regardless of
whether the filings comply with the
service requirements of § 1104.12(a). All
other parties of record, including citizen
organizations, are expected to comply
with the Board’s service requirement
regulations and serve all parties of
record listed on the Board’s service list
for this proceeding.
5 See Cal. High-Speed Rail Auth.—Constr.
Exemption—in Merced, Madera, & Fresno Cntys.,
Cal., FD 35724 (STB served May 14, 2013).
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
This action will not significantly
affect either the quality of the human
environment or the conservation of
energy resources.
It is ordered:
1. Replies to the petition for
exemption are due by February 14,
2014.
2. As discussed above in this
decision, the Authority must notify all
parties of record in the main docket of
this proceeding of the proposed
transaction by January 3, 2014, and
certify contemporaneously to the Board
that it has done so.
3. Any person who wishes to
participate in this proceeding as a party
of record must file with the Board a
notice of intent to participate by January
21, 2014.
4. The service requirements under 49
CFR 1104.12(a) are waived for
individual private citizens participating
in this proceeding.
5. This decision will be published in
the Federal Register.
6. This decision is effective on its
service date.
Decided: December 20, 2013.
By the Board, Rachel D. Campbell,
Director, Office of Proceedings.
Jeffrey Herzig,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2013–30825 Filed 12–24–13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Surface Transportation Board
[Docket No. EP 290 (Sub-No. 5) (2014–1)]
Quarterly Rail Cost Adjustment Factor
AGENCY:
Surface Transportation Board,
DOT.
ACTION:
Approval of rail cost adjustment
factor.
The Board has approved the
first quarter 2014 rail cost adjustment
factor (RCAF) and cost index filed by
the Association of American Railroads.
The first quarter 2014 RCAF
(Unadjusted) is 0.980. The first quarter
2014 RCAF (Adjusted) is 0.424. The first
quarter 2014 RCAF–5 is 0.400.
DATES: Effective Date: January 1, 2014.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Pedro Ramirez, (202) 245–0333. Federal
Information Relay Service (FIRS) for the
hearing impaired: (800) 877–8339.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In
Railroad Cost Recovery Procedures, 1
I.C.C. 2d 207 (1984), the Interstate
Commerce Commission (ICC) outlined
the procedures for calculating the allinclusive index of railroad input prices
SUMMARY:
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Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 248 (Thursday, December 26, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 78507-78508]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-30825]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Surface Transportation Board
[Docket No. FD 35724 (Sub-No. 1)]
California High-Speed Rail Authority--Construction Exemption--In
Fresno, Kings, Tulare, and Kern Counties, CA
By petition filed on September 26, 2013, California High-Speed Rail
Authority (Authority), a state agency formed in 1996, seeks an
exemption under 49 U.S.C. 10502 from the prior approval requirements of
49 U.S.C. 10901 for authority to construct an approximately 114-mile
high-speed passenger rail line between Fresno and Bakersfield, Cal.
(the Line).\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ By decision served June 13, 2013, in California High-Speed
Rail Authority--Construction Exemption--in Merced, Madera, & Fresno
Counties, Cal., FD 35724 (the main docket), the Board granted an
exemption for the Authority to construct the first 65-mile segment
of the planned California High-Speed Train System (HST System),
between Merced and Fresno, California. The Line is the second
segment of the proposed HST System.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
In a decision served December 4, 2013, and published in the Federal
Register on December 9, 2013 (78 Fed. Reg. 73,921), the Board
instituted a proceeding and extended the deadline for comments on the
transportation merits of the proposed construction to December 24,
2013. The Board also denied the Authority's request that the Board
conditionally grant the exemption authority by addressing the
transportation aspects of the proposed project before the environmental
review process has been completed.
[[Page 78508]]
On December 9, 2013, Michael LaSalle filed a letter requesting that
the Board require the Authority to notify all landowners within and
along the proposed Fresno-to-Bakersfield alignments, as well as all
parties of record in the main docket (which pertains to the Merced-to-
Fresno segment) of this proceeding and the comment deadline. LaSalle
also requests that the Board amend the comment deadline to a reasonable
time following the Authority's and the Federal Railroad
Administration's issuance of the Final Environmental Impact Report/
Environmental Impact Statement (EIR/EIS) and after their final
decisions regarding the proposed project, including alignments and
station locations, have been made. On December 16, 2013, the Community
Coalition on High Speed Rail filed a letter joining in LaSalle's
requests.
On December 12, 2013, the Citizens for California High Speed Rail
Accountability (CCHSRA) filed a letter requesting that the Board extend
the comment period to January 31, 2014, because it only recently became
aware of the petition and because the December 24 deadline coincides
with the holiday season.\2\ CCHSRA also requested that the Board
consider providing notice to all impacted landowners in Fresno, Kings,
Tulare, and Kern Counties.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ In a letter filed on December 17, 2013, William Descary, a
Bakersfield resident, also requests an extension of the comment
period to January 31, 2014, in light of the holiday season.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notice of the Proceeding. Both LaSalle and CCHSRA request that all
affected landowners be given direct notice of this proceeding.
Generally, however, publication in the Federal Register is legally
sufficient notice to interested or affected parties.\3\ Moreover,
attempting to identify and provide direct notice to all landowners who
might potentially be affected would be unworkable.\4\ Also, ample
notice of the proposed construction project and opportunity to
participate in the environmental review for the proposed project have
been provided through the EIR/EIS process. That process included five
public meetings in 2009 on the potential scope of the Draft EIR/EIS,
three public hearings in 2011 on the Draft EIR/EIS, and three public
hearings in 2012 on the Revised Draft EIR/Supplemental Draft EIS. All
the meetings and hearings were held in the project area including
Fresno and Bakersfield.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ Friends of Sierra R.R. v. ICC, 881 F.2d 663, 667-68 (9th
Cir. 1989) (citing Fed. Crop Ins. Corp. v. Merrill, 332 U.S. 380
(1947)); accord State of Cal. ex rel. Lockyer v. FERC, 329 F.3d 700,
707 (9th Cir. 2003).
\4\ See Nat'l Trails Sys. Act & R.R. Rights of Way, EP 702, slip
op. at 7-8 (STB served Feb. 16, 2011).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
However, given the significant public interest in this proceeding,
the Board will require the Authority to notify all parties of record in
the main docket by providing them with a copy of its petition for
exemption in this sub-docket, as well as a copy of this decision, by
January 3, 2014, and to certify contemporaneously to the Board that it
has done so. Those parties, and any other interested persons who wish
to participate in this sub-docket as a party of record, will then have
until January 21, 2014, to notify the Board of their intent to
participate in this sub-docket as a party of record. Only persons who
participate as a party of record in this sub-docket by filing a notice
of intent or filing comments (or both) will be entitled to service of
pleadings and subsequent Board decisions in this sub-docket.
Extension of the Comment Period. In recognition of the new notice
procedure set forth above, and taking into consideration the requests
for an extension of the current comment deadline, we will extend the
deadline for comments on the transportation to February 14, 2014. This
extension should provide sufficient time for interested persons to
comment on the proposed transaction.
Waiver of service requirement for individual private citizens. The
Board is interested in encouraging public participation by all
interested persons in this proceeding. As was done in the main
docket,\5\ to help create a comprehensive record that embodies the full
spectrum of interests involved and to facilitate the ability of
individual private citizens to participate in that process, the service
requirements of 49 CFR 1104.12(a), which require every document filed
with the Board to be served upon all parties to the proceeding, will be
waived for individual private citizens who file comments in this
proceeding. Thus, filings made by individual private citizens will be
included in the public record of this proceeding (and posted on the
Board's Web site) regardless of whether the filings comply with the
service requirements of Sec. 1104.12(a). All other parties of record,
including citizen organizations, are expected to comply with the
Board's service requirement regulations and serve all parties of record
listed on the Board's service list for this proceeding.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\5\ See Cal. High-Speed Rail Auth.--Constr. Exemption--in
Merced, Madera, & Fresno Cntys., Cal., FD 35724 (STB served May 14,
2013).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
This action will not significantly affect either the quality of the
human environment or the conservation of energy resources.
It is ordered:
1. Replies to the petition for exemption are due by February 14,
2014.
2. As discussed above in this decision, the Authority must notify
all parties of record in the main docket of this proceeding of the
proposed transaction by January 3, 2014, and certify contemporaneously
to the Board that it has done so.
3. Any person who wishes to participate in this proceeding as a
party of record must file with the Board a notice of intent to
participate by January 21, 2014.
4. The service requirements under 49 CFR 1104.12(a) are waived for
individual private citizens participating in this proceeding.
5. This decision will be published in the Federal Register.
6. This decision is effective on its service date.
Decided: December 20, 2013.
By the Board, Rachel D. Campbell, Director, Office of
Proceedings.
Jeffrey Herzig,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2013-30825 Filed 12-24-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-01-P