SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD

STB Reauthorization Act Reports

The Surface Transportation Board Reauthorization Act of 2015 (P.L. 114-110) established the STB as a wholly independent federal agency.  Prior to the Act, the STB was administratively aligned with the U.S. Department of Transportation, although it had been decisionally independent since its establishment in 1996.  Among the Act’s provisions was a requirement that the Board begin providing quarterly reports on:

• Unfinished Regulatory Proceedings,
• Rate Case Review Metrics,
• Formal and Informal Service Complaints.

In addition to posting these reports, the Board submits them to its Congressional oversight agencies.  Copies of this quarterly correspondence are also provided below.

Download:  The full text of the Surface Transportation Board Reauthorization Act of 2015.

In 2016, the first year after the Act was passed, the Board submitted to its Congressional oversight committees monthly status reports regarding the agency’s implementation of the Act’s requirements.  In 2017, the second year after the Act was passed, the Board switched from monthly to quarterly status reports to its Congressional oversight committees, as many of the Act’s requirements had been completed.  The 2016 monthly and 2017 – Present quarterly reports are displayed below.

Under Section 5 of the Act, a majority of the Board is permitted to hold a meeting that is not open to public observation to discuss official agency business, so long as:

• No formal or informal vote or other official agency action is taken;
• Each individual present at the meeting is a member or an employee of the Board;
• The General Counsel of the Board is present at the meeting;
• A list of the meeting’s participants and a summary of the matters discussed at the meeting is made available to the public.

The Board conducted several “Section 5” meetings to discuss matters regarding implementation of the Act.  The required summaries of these meetings are included in the formal docket after a proceeding has been closed.  However, because there were no formal proceedings at the time these initial Section 5 meetings were conducted, the summaries are provided below.

• Regulations for Formal Investigations, April 5, 2016
• Regulations for Voluntary and Binding Arbitration, March 23, 2016
• Regulations for Railroad Performance Data Collection, February 8, 2016

The Board has also conducted “Section 5” meetings in the following non-docketed matters:

• Rate Reform Task Force Recommendations, May 1 2019
• Rate Reform Task Force Recommendations, May 3, 2019
• Rate Reform Task Force Recommendations, May 7, 2019
• Rate Reform Task Force Recommendations, May 10, 2019
• Board Members Briefing on Process, January 14, 2021
• Board Members Briefing on Service and Data, March 19, 2021
• Board Members Briefing on Uniform Rail Costing System, July 28, 2022
• Board Members Briefing on FY 2025 Budget Process, August 17, 2023
• Board Members Briefing on CAA Authorization Request to the Environmental Protection Agency, March 22, 2024