SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD

Surface Transportation Board Adopts Final Rule to Improve Payment, Filing, and Service Procedures

The Surface Transportation Board announced today that it is adopting a final rule to improve the Board’s payment, filing, and service procedures for its stakeholders.

As part of the ongoing efforts of the agency’s Regulatory Reform Task Force, the Board is reforming and modernizing its payment and filing procedures. In August 2018, the Board issued a notice of proposed rulemaking in Payment, Filing, & Service Procedures, EP 747 (STB served Aug. 24, 2018), to revise and update its regulations relating to methods of payment; filing procedures; electronic service (e-service) of Board decisions; and fees for copying, printing, and related services.

After considering the stakeholder comments received, the Board is adopting a final rule to, among other things:

• Implement an electronic payment option through Pay.gov, a website operated by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, that allows payment of government fees through bank accounts, credit cards, debit cards with a MasterCard or Visa logo, and digital wallet;
• Allow the expanded use of electronic filing (e-filing) for almost all filings;
• Eliminate the requirement to file 10 copies of paper filings in almost all instances;
• Eliminate the requirement that electronic versions of filings that are 20 or more pages be submitted on compact discs or 3.5-inch floppy diskettes, and instead, require that those filings be accompanied by electronic versions;
• Provide for e-service of Board decisions for parties who consent to e-service in a particular proceeding;
• Permit parties to consent to e-service in multiple dockets by filing a single letter; and
• Modify the charges for copying and printing tariffs, reports, and other documents.

The Board anticipates that these changes will significantly increase the use of e-filing, the use of electronic payment systems, and the efficiency of service of Board decisions.  The final rule will be effective on May 10, 2019.

The Board’s final rule in Payment, Filing, & Service Procedures, Docket No. EP 747, may be viewed and downloaded here.

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