KCVN, LLC and Colorado Pacific Railroad, LLC-Feeder Line Application-Line of V and S Railway, LLC, Located in Crowley, Pueblo, Otero, and Kiowa Counties, Colorado, 22361-22363 [2016-08785]
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Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 73 / Friday, April 15, 2016 / Notices
DEPARTMENT OF STATE
[Public Notice: 9518]
Culturally Significant Objects Imported
for Exhibition Determinations:
‘‘Slavery and Freedom’’ Exhibition
Notice is hereby given of the
following determinations: Pursuant to
the authority vested in me by the Act of
October 19, 1965 (79 Stat. 985; 22 U.S.C.
2459), E. O. 12047 of March 27, 1978,
the Foreign Affairs Reform and
Restructuring Act of 1998 (112 Stat.
2681, et seq.; 22 U.S.C. 6501 note, et
seq.), Delegation of Authority No. 234 of
October 1, 1999, Delegation of Authority
No. 236–3 of August 28, 2000 (and, as
appropriate, Delegation of Authority No.
257–1 of December 11, 2015), I hereby
determine that the objects to be
included in the exhibition ‘‘Slavery and
Freedom,’’ imported from abroad for
temporary exhibition within the United
States, are of cultural significance. The
objects are imported pursuant to a loan
agreement with the foreign owner or
custodian. I also determine that the
exhibition or display of the exhibit
objects at the Smithsonian National
Museum of African American History
and Culture, Washington, District of
Columbia, from on or about September
24, 2016, until on or about July 1, 2026,
and at possible additional exhibitions or
venues yet to be determined, is in the
national interest. I have ordered that
Public Notice of these Determinations
be published in the Federal Register.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
further information, including a list of
the imported objects, contact the Office
of Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs
in the Office of the Legal Adviser, U.S.
Department of State (telephone: 202–
632–6471; email: section2459@
state.gov). The mailing address is U.S.
Department of State, L/PD, SA–5, Suite
5H03, Washington, DC 20522–0505.
SUMMARY:
Dated: April 11, 2016.
Mark Taplin,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy, Bureau
of Educational and Cultural Affairs,
Department of State.
[FR Doc. 2016–08769 Filed 4–14–16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4710–05–P
asabaliauskas on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
DEPARTMENT OF STATE
[Public Notice: 9517]
Culturally Significant Objects Imported
for Exhibition Determinations:
‘‘Dadaglobe Reconstructed’’ Exhibition
Notice is hereby given of the
following determinations: Pursuant to
the authority vested in me by the Act of
SUMMARY:
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October 19, 1965 (79 Stat. 985; 22 U.S.C.
2459), E.O. 12047 of March 27, 1978, the
Foreign Affairs Reform and
Restructuring Act of 1998 (112 Stat.
2681, et seq.; 22 U.S.C. 6501 note, et
seq.), Delegation of Authority No. 234 of
October 1, 1999, Delegation of Authority
No. 236–3 of August 28, 2000 (and, as
appropriate, Delegation of Authority No.
257–1 of December 11, 2015), I hereby
determine that the objects to be
included in the exhibition ‘‘Dadaglobe
Reconstructed,’’ imported from abroad
for temporary exhibition within the
United States, are of cultural
significance. The objects are imported
pursuant to loan agreements with the
foreign owners or custodians. I also
determine that the exhibition or display
of the exhibit objects at The Museum of
Modern Art, New York, New York, from
on or about June 12, 2016, until on or
about September 18, 2016, and at
possible additional exhibitions or
venues yet to be determined, is in the
national interest. I have ordered that
Public Notice of these Determinations
be published in the Federal Register.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
further information, including a list of
the imported objects, contact the Office
of Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs
in the Office of the Legal Adviser, U.S.
Department of State (telephone: 202–
632–6471; email: section2459@
state.gov). The mailing address is U.S.
Department of State, L/PD, SA–5, Suite
5H03, Washington, DC 20522–0505.
Dated: April 11, 2016.
Mark Taplin,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy, Bureau
of Educational and Cultural Affairs,
Department of State.
[FR Doc. 2016–08771 Filed 4–14–16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4710–05–P
SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD
[Docket No. FD 36005]
KCVN, LLC and Colorado Pacific
Railroad, LLC—Feeder Line
Application—Line of V and S Railway,
LLC, Located in Crowley, Pueblo,
Otero, and Kiowa Counties, Colorado
On March 18, 2016, KCVN, LLC
(KCVN) and its wholly owned
subsidiary, Colorado Pacific Railroad,
LLC (Colorado Pacific) (collectively
applicants) jointly filed an application
under the feeder line provision at 49
U.S.C. 10907 to acquire a 121.9-mile
line of railroad owned by V and S
Railway, LLC (V&S) in southeast
Colorado. The line, known as the
Towner Line, extends between milepost
747.5 near Towner and milepost 869.4
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22361
near NA Junction in Pueblo, Crowley,
Kiowa, and Otero Counties, Colo. As
discussed below, the application is
substantially complete and will be
accepted. However, the applicants
should provide certain supplemental
material described below by April 29,
2016. This decision also establishes a
procedural schedule.
Background
The Towner Line has been the subject
of two other Board proceedings during
the past two years. In Docket No. NOR
42140, KCVN, the Colorado Wheat
Administrative Committee, the Colorado
Association of Wheat Growers, and the
Colorado Wheat Research Foundation
(collectively, the Colorado Interests)
filed a complaint on October 28, 2014,
alleging that V&S violated 49 U.S.C.
11101 and 10903 by removing certain
track and related assets from a segment
of the Towner Line (the Western
Segment) without first seeking
abandonment authority.1 On May 7,
2015, the Board partially granted the
Colorado Interests’ concurrently filed
motion for preliminary injunction, and
barred V&S from removing and
dismantling track and related assets
from the Western Segment pending the
Board’s ruling on the complaint.
Thereafter the parties moved to hold the
complaint case in abeyance pending
V&S’s decision to seek abandonment
authority for the Towner Line. The
Board granted this request in a decision
served on July 17, 2015, and the
complaint case remains in abeyance.
On August 3, 2015, V&S filed a
verified notice of exemption in Docket
No. AB 603 (Sub-No. 4X) to abandon the
Towner Line, as it had agreed to do in
Docket No. NOR 42140. The Board
served and published notice of the
exemption in the Federal Register, and
KCVN and Colorado Pacific sought
information from V&S to allow them to
file an offer of financial assistance under
49 U.S.C. 10904 to purchase the line.
V&S provided the information, but that
information suggested that the Towner
Line passes through a county and zip
code not included in V&S’s verified
notice. The Board therefore directed
V&S to supplement its verified notice if
necessary. Rather than filing a
supplement, V&S attempted to amend
the notice to seek authority to only
discontinue operations over the Towner
Line rather than abandon it. KCVN
opposed that amendment. In a decision
served on January 15, 2016, the Board
1 The Western Segment extends between milepost
808.3 near Haswell, Colo., and milepost 868.5,
which is approximately 0.9 miles short of the
Towner Line’s western terminus at milepost 869.4.
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Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 73 / Friday, April 15, 2016 / Notices
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rejected V&S’s November 30
amendment. The Board found that, if
V&S wished to pursue discontinuance
authority for the Towner Line, it must
either file a petition for exemption
under 49 U.S.C 10502 or a formal
application under 49 U.S.C. 10903. The
Board further stated that V&S could
supplement its original notice of
exemption if it instead decided to
continue seeking abandonment
authority. On January 27, 2016, V&S
gave notice of its desire to withdraw its
notice of exemption seeking
abandonment authority.2
On March 18, 2016, KCVN and
Colorado Pacific initiated this
proceeding by filing a feeder line
application under 49 U.S.C. 10907 to
acquire the Towner Line and 12 miles
of related track and facilities. Under
section 10907(b)(1), the Board is
authorized to require the sale of a rail
line to a financially responsible person
if the public convenience and necessity
require or permit the sale.3 The
applicants claim that the proposed sale
is required under the public
convenience and necessity criterion and
that Colorado Pacific is a financially
responsible person willing to pay not
less than the constitutional minimum
value of the line. The applicants allege
that V&S engaged in a systemic plan to
drive traffic off the Towner Line with
the ultimate aim of abandoning it and
selling the line’s rail assets. The
applicants assert that V&S raised rates to
a prohibitive level around 2011 and
engaged in other behavior forcing traffic
off the line rather than meeting its
common carrier obligation and
maintaining the line. The applicants
argue that the Board has found
previously that this type of behavior can
lead to a forced sale under the feeder
line statute. See Keokuk Junction Ry.—
Feeder Line Acquis.—Line of Toledo
Peoria & W. Ry. Between La Harpe &
Hollis, Ill., 7 S.T.B. 893 (2004).
According to the applicants, Colorado
Pacific seeks to acquire the Towner Line
and its related track and facilities and
lease them to a connecting carrier,
Kansas & Oklahoma Railroad (K&O), to
operate. Although the parties are still in
negotiations, the applicants provide a
supporting verified statement from a
representative of K&O’s owner. The
2 Withdrawal
of the notice of abandonment
exemption will be addressed in a separate decision.
3 The Board also is to require a sale to a
financially responsible person if the line is
currently in category 1 or 2 of the owning railroad’s
system diagram map and the owning railroad has
not filed an application to abandon the line. See 49
U.S.C. 10907(b)(1)(A)(ii); 49 CFR 1151.1. The
applicants argue that the Towner Line also satisfies
this criterion.
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applicants also include verified
statements supporting the application
from a local farmer and representatives
of Bartlett Grain Co., LP, Tallman Grain
Co., Inc., and Thunderbird L&L, Inc.
The applicants state that Colorado
Pacific offers to buy the Towner Line for
its net liquidation value (NLV), which
the applicants estimate to be $2,594,551,
rather than the line’s going concern
value (GCV), which they estimate to be
$0 given that V&S provides no service.
The applicants assert that rehabilitating
the Towner Line would cost an
additional $3,500,000, bringing the total
cost to restore service to $6 million. The
applicants claim that Colorado Pacific
can afford these costs and that it is
financially responsible. Specifically,
they note that KCVN would fund
Colorado Pacific’s acquisition and other
expenses with cash. As support, they
provide a KCVN account statement
showing assets of approximately $6.5
million. The applicants also note that
KCVN owns 58,000 acres of farmland
primarily dedicated to dryland wheat
within 25 miles of the Towner Line,
which collectively are valued at
approximately $50 million (Application
8), and that KCVN has wealthy
principals and would make funds
available to meet additional acquisition,
rehabilitation, maintenance, and
operations costs if necessary
(Application, Exhibit A at 5).
Discussion and Conclusions
Under 49 CFR 1151.2(b), the Board,
through the Director of the Office of
Proceedings, must accept a complete
feeder line application, or reject one that
is incomplete, no later than 30 days
after the application is filed. An
application is complete if it has been
properly served 4 and contains
substantially all the information
required by § 1151.3, except as modified
by advance waiver. 49 CFR 1151.2(b)(1).
Notice of an acceptance must be
published in the Federal Register and
provide a procedural schedule for the
proceeding. Id.
The Board has determined that the
applicants have provide substantially all
the information required by § 1151.3
and therefore accepts the feeder line
application. The applicants should
provide some additional information,
described below, for the Board’s
consideration as the feeder line case
proceeds.5 See Ore. Int’l Port of Coos
4 As originally filed, the application failed to
indicate service on the Board of County
Commissioners of Otero County, Colo., but that
omission was remedied by a certificate of service
filed on March 28, 2016.
5 KCVN and Colorado Pacific request that the
Board accept their application for filing subject to
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Bay—Feeder Line Application—Coos
Bay Line of Cent. Ore. & Pac. R.R., FD
35160 (STB served Aug. 1, 2008)
(accepting the feeder line application,
but encouraging the applicant to
provide supplemental material).
Financial Responsibility
(1151.3(a)(3)). An application must
include information sufficient to
demonstrate that it is a financially
responsible person, able to pay the
higher of the NLV or GCV of the line
and to cover expenses associated with
providing service over the line for at
least the first three years after the line
is acquired. Based on the information in
the application, Colorado Pacific
appears to have access to considerable
funds to pay the expenses of acquiring
and rehabilitating the Towner Line.6
Colorado Pacific states that it does not
anticipate incurring operating costs
because they would be borne by K&O,
the anticipated operator. Nonetheless,
the applicants should provide financial
statements showing a breakdown of
three years of K&O service costs,
including maintenance costs, to fully
demonstrate that Colorado Pacific or
KCVN could cover any revenue shortfall
during the first three years.
Operating Plan (1151.3(a)(7)).
Although the applicants and K&O have
provided basic information about the
common carrier freight operations K&O
would perform, they indicate that the
specifics of an operating plan are still
being developed. The applicants should
provide the Board with more detail,
including an estimate of the average
number of trains anticipated to be
operated over the line per day.
Liability Insurance (1151.3(a)(8)).
Colorado Pacific and K&O anticipate
that the lease and operating agreement
they are negotiating would provide that
K&O secure and maintain at all times an
insurance policy from a reputable
insurance company that provides for
commercial liability coverage in an
amount not less than $25 million. In
addition to the information provided in
the application, the applicants should
also submit to the Board a certificate of
K&O’s existing insurance coverage over
its current system.
Procedural Schedule
The procedural schedule is as follows:
any environmental reporting that might be required
under 49 CFR 1105.7. The Board will grant this
request. The Board’s Office of Environmental
Analysis will determine what, if any,
environmental review is required in this case and
coordinate with the applicants. A historic report is
not required here because the proposal clearly falls
within the exception at 49 CFR 1105.8(b)(1).
6 The applicants state that no financial statements
are available because Colorado Pacific is a new
company.
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Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 73 / Friday, April 15, 2016 / Notices
Any supplement by KCVN and
Colorado Pacific to their application is
due by April 29, 2016.
Competing applications by other
parties seeking to acquire all or any
portion of the Towner Line are due by
May 16, 2016. See 49 CFR 1151.2(c)(1).
Verified statements and comments
addressing both the initial and
competing applications must be filed by
June 14, 2016. See 49 CFR 1151.2(e).
Verified replies by applicants and
other interested parties must be filed by
July 5, 2016. See 49 CFR 1151.2(f).
It is ordered:
1. KCVN’s and Colorado Pacific’s
feeder line application is accepted and
notice will be published in the Federal
Register.
2. The above schedule will govern
this proceeding.
3. This decision is effective on its
service date.
Decided: April 12, 2016.
By the Board, Rachel D. Campbell,
Director, Office of Proceedings.
Kenyatta Clay,
Clearance Clerk.
1. Welcome and Introductions
2. Update on the Bellefonte Nuclear
Plant Site
3. Summary of Public Comments
received
4. Council discussion
The webinar is open to the public,
through registration by phone or email
(call Beth Keel, (865) 632–6113, or email
bakeel@tva.gov). No oral comments
from the public will be accepted during
the webinar session. The public may
provide written comments to the RERC
at any time through links on TVA’s Web
site at www.tva.com/rerc or by mailing
written comments to the Regional
Energy Resource Council, Tennessee
Valley Authority, 400 West Summit Hill
Drive, WT–11 B, Knoxville, Tennessee
37902.
Dated: April 8, 2016.
Joseph J. Hoagland,
Vice President, Stakeholder Relations,
Tennessee Valley Authority.
[FR Doc. 2016–08722 Filed 4–14–16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8120–08–P
[FR Doc. 2016–08785 Filed 4–14–16; 8:45 am]
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
BILLING CODE 4915–01–P
Federal Aviation Administration
[Docket No: FAA–2011–0786]
TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY
Deadline for Notification of Intent To
Use the Airport Improvement Program
(AIP) Primary, Cargo, and Nonprimary
Entitlement Funds Available to Date for
Fiscal Year 2016
Meeting of the Regional Energy
Resource Council
Tennessee Valley Authority
(TVA).
ACTION: Notice of meeting.
AGENCY:
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Federal Aviation
Administration, DOT.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
The TVA Regional Energy
Resource Council (RERC) will hold a
webinar meeting on Monday, May 2,
2016, to discuss TVA’s potential sale of
the Bellefonte Nuclear Site.
DATES: The webinar meeting will be
held on Monday, May 2, 2016 from
10:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. EDT.
ADDRESSES: The meeting will be
conducted by webinar only. To request
accommodation for a disability, please
contact Beth Keel (contact information
below) at least a week in advance of the
webinar.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Beth
Keel, 400 West Summit Hill Drive, WT–
11 B, Knoxville, Tennessee 37902, (865)
632–6113.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The RERC
was established to advise TVA on its
energy resource activities and the
priorities among competing objectives
and values. Notice of this meeting is
given under the Federal Advisory
Committee Act (FACA), 5 U.S.C. App. 2.
The meeting agenda includes the
following:
SUMMARY:
The Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA) announces May
2, 2016, as the deadline for each airport
sponsor to notify the FAA whether or
not it will use its fiscal year 2016
entitlement funds available under
Section 47114 of Title 49, United States
Code, to accomplish Airport
Improvement Program (AIP) eligible
projects that the airport sponsor
previously identified through the
Airports Capital Improvement Plan
(ACIP) process during the preceding
year.
The airport sponsor’s notification
must address all entitlement funds
available to date for fiscal year 2016, as
well as any entitlement funds not
obligated from prior years. After Friday,
July 1, 2016, the FAA will carry-over the
remainder of currently available
entitlement funds, and these funds will
not be available again until at least the
beginning of fiscal year 2017. Currently,
the AIP has 79 percent of the
SUMMARY:
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22363
entitlements available through July 15,
2016. If congressional action is taken on
future extensions which provide for
additional current year and protected
entitlements (the remaining 21 percent),
the FAA will then work with airport
sponsors to adjust accordingly. This
notification requirement does not apply
to non-primary airports covered by the
block-grant program.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr.
Frank J. San Martin, Manager, Airports
Financial Assistance Division, APP–
500, on (202) 267–3831.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Title 49 of
the United States Code, section 47105(f),
provides that the sponsor of each airport
to which funds are apportioned shall
notify the Secretary by such time and in
a form as prescribed by the Secretary, of
the airport sponsor’s intent to apply for
its apportioned funds, also called
entitlement funds. Therefore, the FAA is
hereby notifying such airport sponsors
of the steps required to ensure that the
FAA has sufficient time to carry-over
and convert remaining entitlement
funds, due to processes required under
federal laws. This notice applies only to
those airports that have had entitlement
funds apportioned to them, except those
nonprimary airports located in
designated block-grant States. Airport
sponsors intending to apply for any of
their available entitlement funds,
including those unused from prior
years, shall make their intent known by
12:00 p.m. prevailing local time on
Monday, May 2, 2016, consistent with
prior practice. A written indication
must be provided to the designated
Airports District Office (or Regional
Office in regions without Airports
District Offices) stating their intent to
submit a grant application no later than
close of business Friday, June 17, 2016
and to use their fiscal year 2016
entitlement funds available under Title
49 of the United States Code, section
47114. This notice must address all
entitlement funds available to date for
fiscal year 2016 including those
entitlement funds not obligated from
prior years. By Friday, June 17, 2016,
airport sponsors that have not yet
submitted a final application to the
FAA, must notify the FAA of any issues
meeting the final application deadline
of Friday, July 1, 2016. Absent
notification from the airport sponsor by
the May 2 deadline and/or subsequent
notification by the June 17 deadline of
any issues meeting the application
deadline, the FAA will proceed after
Friday, July 1, 2016 to take action to
carry-over the remainder of available
entitlement funds without further
notice. These funds will not be available
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 73 (Friday, April 15, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22361-22363]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-08785]
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SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD
[Docket No. FD 36005]
KCVN, LLC and Colorado Pacific Railroad, LLC--Feeder Line
Application--Line of V and S Railway, LLC, Located in Crowley, Pueblo,
Otero, and Kiowa Counties, Colorado
On March 18, 2016, KCVN, LLC (KCVN) and its wholly owned
subsidiary, Colorado Pacific Railroad, LLC (Colorado Pacific)
(collectively applicants) jointly filed an application under the feeder
line provision at 49 U.S.C. 10907 to acquire a 121.9-mile line of
railroad owned by V and S Railway, LLC (V&S) in southeast Colorado. The
line, known as the Towner Line, extends between milepost 747.5 near
Towner and milepost 869.4 near NA Junction in Pueblo, Crowley, Kiowa,
and Otero Counties, Colo. As discussed below, the application is
substantially complete and will be accepted. However, the applicants
should provide certain supplemental material described below by April
29, 2016. This decision also establishes a procedural schedule.
Background
The Towner Line has been the subject of two other Board proceedings
during the past two years. In Docket No. NOR 42140, KCVN, the Colorado
Wheat Administrative Committee, the Colorado Association of Wheat
Growers, and the Colorado Wheat Research Foundation (collectively, the
Colorado Interests) filed a complaint on October 28, 2014, alleging
that V&S violated 49 U.S.C. 11101 and 10903 by removing certain track
and related assets from a segment of the Towner Line (the Western
Segment) without first seeking abandonment authority.\1\ On May 7,
2015, the Board partially granted the Colorado Interests' concurrently
filed motion for preliminary injunction, and barred V&S from removing
and dismantling track and related assets from the Western Segment
pending the Board's ruling on the complaint. Thereafter the parties
moved to hold the complaint case in abeyance pending V&S's decision to
seek abandonment authority for the Towner Line. The Board granted this
request in a decision served on July 17, 2015, and the complaint case
remains in abeyance.
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\1\ The Western Segment extends between milepost 808.3 near
Haswell, Colo., and milepost 868.5, which is approximately 0.9 miles
short of the Towner Line's western terminus at milepost 869.4.
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On August 3, 2015, V&S filed a verified notice of exemption in
Docket No. AB 603 (Sub-No. 4X) to abandon the Towner Line, as it had
agreed to do in Docket No. NOR 42140. The Board served and published
notice of the exemption in the Federal Register, and KCVN and Colorado
Pacific sought information from V&S to allow them to file an offer of
financial assistance under 49 U.S.C. 10904 to purchase the line. V&S
provided the information, but that information suggested that the
Towner Line passes through a county and zip code not included in V&S's
verified notice. The Board therefore directed V&S to supplement its
verified notice if necessary. Rather than filing a supplement, V&S
attempted to amend the notice to seek authority to only discontinue
operations over the Towner Line rather than abandon it. KCVN opposed
that amendment. In a decision served on January 15, 2016, the Board
[[Page 22362]]
rejected V&S's November 30 amendment. The Board found that, if V&S
wished to pursue discontinuance authority for the Towner Line, it must
either file a petition for exemption under 49 U.S.C 10502 or a formal
application under 49 U.S.C. 10903. The Board further stated that V&S
could supplement its original notice of exemption if it instead decided
to continue seeking abandonment authority. On January 27, 2016, V&S
gave notice of its desire to withdraw its notice of exemption seeking
abandonment authority.\2\
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\2\ Withdrawal of the notice of abandonment exemption will be
addressed in a separate decision.
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On March 18, 2016, KCVN and Colorado Pacific initiated this
proceeding by filing a feeder line application under 49 U.S.C. 10907 to
acquire the Towner Line and 12 miles of related track and facilities.
Under section 10907(b)(1), the Board is authorized to require the sale
of a rail line to a financially responsible person if the public
convenience and necessity require or permit the sale.\3\ The applicants
claim that the proposed sale is required under the public convenience
and necessity criterion and that Colorado Pacific is a financially
responsible person willing to pay not less than the constitutional
minimum value of the line. The applicants allege that V&S engaged in a
systemic plan to drive traffic off the Towner Line with the ultimate
aim of abandoning it and selling the line's rail assets. The applicants
assert that V&S raised rates to a prohibitive level around 2011 and
engaged in other behavior forcing traffic off the line rather than
meeting its common carrier obligation and maintaining the line. The
applicants argue that the Board has found previously that this type of
behavior can lead to a forced sale under the feeder line statute. See
Keokuk Junction Ry.--Feeder Line Acquis.--Line of Toledo Peoria & W.
Ry. Between La Harpe & Hollis, Ill., 7 S.T.B. 893 (2004).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ The Board also is to require a sale to a financially
responsible person if the line is currently in category 1 or 2 of
the owning railroad's system diagram map and the owning railroad has
not filed an application to abandon the line. See 49 U.S.C.
10907(b)(1)(A)(ii); 49 CFR 1151.1. The applicants argue that the
Towner Line also satisfies this criterion.
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According to the applicants, Colorado Pacific seeks to acquire the
Towner Line and its related track and facilities and lease them to a
connecting carrier, Kansas & Oklahoma Railroad (K&O), to operate.
Although the parties are still in negotiations, the applicants provide
a supporting verified statement from a representative of K&O's owner.
The applicants also include verified statements supporting the
application from a local farmer and representatives of Bartlett Grain
Co., LP, Tallman Grain Co., Inc., and Thunderbird L&L, Inc.
The applicants state that Colorado Pacific offers to buy the Towner
Line for its net liquidation value (NLV), which the applicants estimate
to be $2,594,551, rather than the line's going concern value (GCV),
which they estimate to be $0 given that V&S provides no service. The
applicants assert that rehabilitating the Towner Line would cost an
additional $3,500,000, bringing the total cost to restore service to $6
million. The applicants claim that Colorado Pacific can afford these
costs and that it is financially responsible. Specifically, they note
that KCVN would fund Colorado Pacific's acquisition and other expenses
with cash. As support, they provide a KCVN account statement showing
assets of approximately $6.5 million. The applicants also note that
KCVN owns 58,000 acres of farmland primarily dedicated to dryland wheat
within 25 miles of the Towner Line, which collectively are valued at
approximately $50 million (Application 8), and that KCVN has wealthy
principals and would make funds available to meet additional
acquisition, rehabilitation, maintenance, and operations costs if
necessary (Application, Exhibit A at 5).
Discussion and Conclusions
Under 49 CFR 1151.2(b), the Board, through the Director of the
Office of Proceedings, must accept a complete feeder line application,
or reject one that is incomplete, no later than 30 days after the
application is filed. An application is complete if it has been
properly served \4\ and contains substantially all the information
required by Sec. 1151.3, except as modified by advance waiver. 49 CFR
1151.2(b)(1). Notice of an acceptance must be published in the Federal
Register and provide a procedural schedule for the proceeding. Id.
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\4\ As originally filed, the application failed to indicate
service on the Board of County Commissioners of Otero County, Colo.,
but that omission was remedied by a certificate of service filed on
March 28, 2016.
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The Board has determined that the applicants have provide
substantially all the information required by Sec. 1151.3 and
therefore accepts the feeder line application. The applicants should
provide some additional information, described below, for the Board's
consideration as the feeder line case proceeds.\5\ See Ore. Int'l Port
of Coos Bay--Feeder Line Application--Coos Bay Line of Cent. Ore. &
Pac. R.R., FD 35160 (STB served Aug. 1, 2008) (accepting the feeder
line application, but encouraging the applicant to provide supplemental
material).
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\5\ KCVN and Colorado Pacific request that the Board accept
their application for filing subject to any environmental reporting
that might be required under 49 CFR 1105.7. The Board will grant
this request. The Board's Office of Environmental Analysis will
determine what, if any, environmental review is required in this
case and coordinate with the applicants. A historic report is not
required here because the proposal clearly falls within the
exception at 49 CFR 1105.8(b)(1).
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Financial Responsibility (1151.3(a)(3)). An application must
include information sufficient to demonstrate that it is a financially
responsible person, able to pay the higher of the NLV or GCV of the
line and to cover expenses associated with providing service over the
line for at least the first three years after the line is acquired.
Based on the information in the application, Colorado Pacific appears
to have access to considerable funds to pay the expenses of acquiring
and rehabilitating the Towner Line.\6\ Colorado Pacific states that it
does not anticipate incurring operating costs because they would be
borne by K&O, the anticipated operator. Nonetheless, the applicants
should provide financial statements showing a breakdown of three years
of K&O service costs, including maintenance costs, to fully demonstrate
that Colorado Pacific or KCVN could cover any revenue shortfall during
the first three years.
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\6\ The applicants state that no financial statements are
available because Colorado Pacific is a new company.
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Operating Plan (1151.3(a)(7)). Although the applicants and K&O have
provided basic information about the common carrier freight operations
K&O would perform, they indicate that the specifics of an operating
plan are still being developed. The applicants should provide the Board
with more detail, including an estimate of the average number of trains
anticipated to be operated over the line per day.
Liability Insurance (1151.3(a)(8)). Colorado Pacific and K&O
anticipate that the lease and operating agreement they are negotiating
would provide that K&O secure and maintain at all times an insurance
policy from a reputable insurance company that provides for commercial
liability coverage in an amount not less than $25 million. In addition
to the information provided in the application, the applicants should
also submit to the Board a certificate of K&O's existing insurance
coverage over its current system.
Procedural Schedule
The procedural schedule is as follows:
[[Page 22363]]
Any supplement by KCVN and Colorado Pacific to their application is
due by April 29, 2016.
Competing applications by other parties seeking to acquire all or
any portion of the Towner Line are due by May 16, 2016. See 49 CFR
1151.2(c)(1).
Verified statements and comments addressing both the initial and
competing applications must be filed by June 14, 2016. See 49 CFR
1151.2(e).
Verified replies by applicants and other interested parties must be
filed by July 5, 2016. See 49 CFR 1151.2(f).
It is ordered:
1. KCVN's and Colorado Pacific's feeder line application is
accepted and notice will be published in the Federal Register.
2. The above schedule will govern this proceeding.
3. This decision is effective on its service date.
Decided: April 12, 2016.
By the Board, Rachel D. Campbell, Director, Office of
Proceedings.
Kenyatta Clay,
Clearance Clerk.
[FR Doc. 2016-08785 Filed 4-14-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4915-01-P
