PRIA, Government Policy, Made Personal

Summary

The Board must send Congress a report every year about what it did. The report must say when the Board started any investigations on its own. Every quarter the Board must put two reports on its public website. One shows rail rate review cases from the last quarter and gives a short case summary (docket number and name, commodity or commodities, guideline(s) used), the dates for key steps (start, discovery finish, record finish, closing briefs, final decision), and a brief summary of the final decision. The other report summarizes formal and informal service complaints from the last quarter, giving the date received, the complaint type, the region, and the complaint’s resolution if any. The Board must keep a database of complaints and may only name an informal complainant if that person gives written consent.

Title 49, §1304

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(a)Annual Report.—

The Board shall annually transmit to the Congress a report on its activities, including each instance in which the Board has initiated an investigation on its own initiative under this chapter or subtitle IV.

(b)Rate Case Review Metrics.—

(1)Quarterly reports.—

The Board shall post a quarterly report of rail rate review cases pending or completed by the Board during the previous quarter that includes—

(A)summary information of the case, including the docket number, case name, commodity or commodities involved, and rate review guideline or guidelines used;

(B)the date on which the rate review proceeding began;

(C)the date for the completion of discovery;

(D)the date for the completion of the evidentiary record;

(E)the date for the submission of closing briefs;

(F)the date on which the Board issued the final decision; and

(G)a brief summary of the final decision;

(2)Website posting.—

Each quarterly report shall be posted on the Board’s public website.

(c)Complaints.—

(1)In general.—

The Board shall establish and maintain a database of complaints received by the Board.

(2)Quarterly reports.—

The Board shall post a quarterly report of formal and informal service complaints received by the Board during the previous quarter that includes—

(A)the date on which the complaint was received by the Board;

(B)a list of the type of each complaint;

(C)the geographic region of each complaint; and

(D)the resolution of each complaint, if appropriate.

(3)Written consent.—

The quarterly report may identify a complainant that submitted an informal complaint only upon the written consent of the complainant.

(4)Website posting.—

Each quarterly report shall be posted on the Board’s public website.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

2015—Pub. L. 114–110, § 6, substituted “Reports” for “Annual report” in section catchline, designated existing provisions as subsec. (a) and inserted heading, substituted “on its activities, including each instance in which the Board has initiated an investigation on its own initiative under this chapter or subtitle IV.” for “on its activities.”, and added subsecs. (b) and (c). Pub. L. 114–110, § 3(a)(3), renumbered section 704 of this title as this section.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Quarterly Reports Pub. L. 114–110, § 15(b), Dec. 18, 2015, 129 Stat. 2238, provided that: “Beginning not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act [Dec. 18, 2015], the Surface Transportation Board shall submit quarterly reports to the congressional committees referred to in section 14(b) [Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives] that describes the Surface Transportation Board’s progress toward addressing the issues raised in each unfinished regulatory proceeding, regardless of whether the proceeding is subject to a statutory or regulatory deadline.”

§1304 Reports