Gentlemen,
First let me introduce myself. I am John
Sullivan currently the President of the Cameron Station Community Association,
not to be confused with the Cameron Station Civic Association presided over by
Ingrid Sanden. In my discussion with the Surface Transportation Board I
received the following email discussing the preemption issue.
We briefly discussed
preemption of most state and local laws. See Title 49, 10501(b) below. This
would apply to railroad transloading facilities along the railroad
right-of-way, as well.
Please call if you wish to
discuss further. I am usually in the office from 7:30 AM to 3:30 PM Monday -
Friday.
Tom Brugman
Thomas J. Brugman
Section Chief - Rail
Consumer Assistance
STB/OPAGAC (Office of Public
Assistance, Governmental Affairs, and Compliance)
Phone: xxx-xxx-xxxx
FAX: xxx-xxx-xxxx
Email: xxxxxxxx@xxxx.xxx
395 E Street, SW,
Washington D.C. 20423-0001
(For FEDEX deliveries, use
20024 zip code)
Disclaimer: Opinions
expressed by STB, Rail Customer Assistance employees are theirs alone, and do
not represent opinions of, or by, The Surface Transportation Board, it's
Commissioners, or Directors. Opinions of The Surface Transportation Board may
only be obtained via formal complaint. Positions taken by STB, Rail Customer
Assistance employees may be reversed; and spoken or written comments may be
withdrawn by the Board at it's discretion.
Summary comment from:
SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD DECISION in STB Finance Docket No. 34914;
DESERTXPRESS ENTERPRISES, LLC—PETITION FOR DECLARATORY ORDER; Decided: June
25, 2007.
"The Federal
preemption provision contained in 49 U.S.C. 10501(b), as broadened by the ICC
Termination Act of 1995, Pub. L. No. 104-88, 109 Stat. 803 (1995) (ICCTA),
shields railroad operations that are subject to the Board’s jurisdiction from
the application of most state and local laws.[4] Section 10501(b) expressly
provides that the “jurisdiction of the Board over . . . transportation by rail
carriers” over any track that is part of the interstate rail network “is
exclusive.” Section 10501(b) also expressly provides that the remedies
provided under 49 U.S.C. 10101-11908 are exclusive and preempt the remedies
provided under State law."
TITLE
49--TRANSPORTATION
SUBTITLE
IV--INTERSTATE TRANSPORTATION
PART A--RAIL
CHAPTER 105--JURISDICTION
Sec. 10501. General
jurisdiction
(a)(1) Subject to this
chapter, the Board has jurisdiction over
transportation by rail
carrier that is--
(A) only by railroad;
or
(B) by railroad and
water, when the transportation is under
common control,
management, or arrangement for a continuous carriage
or shipment.
(2) Jurisdiction under
paragraph (1) applies only to transportation
in the United States between
a place in--
(A) a State and a
place in the same or another State as part of
the interstate rail
network;
(B) a State and a
place in a territory or possession of the
United States;
(C) a territory or
possession of the United States and a place
in another such territory
or possession;
(D) a territory or
possession of the United States and another
place in the same
territory or possession;
(E) the United States
and another place in the United States
through a foreign
country; or
(F) the United States
and a place in a foreign country.
(b) The jurisdiction
of the Board over--
(1) transportation
by rail carriers, and the remedies provided
in this part with
respect to rates, classifications, rules
(including car
service, interchange, and other operating rules),
practices, routes,
services, and facilities of such carriers; and
(2) the
construction, acquisition, operation, abandonment, or
discontinuance of
spur, industrial, team, switching, or side tracks,
or facilities, even if
the tracks are located, or intended to be
located, entirely in
one State,
is exclusive. Except as
otherwise provided in this part, the remedies
provided under this part
with respect to regulation of rail
transportation are
exclusive and preempt the remedies provided under
Federal or State law.
I am not sure if it helps our cause but
hopefully it provides the necessary clarification and source of authority.
John
J. Sullivan Jr., P.E., M.ASCE
President
Cameron Station Community Association
Director
Federal Infrastructure Markets
Portland
Cement Association
500
New Jersey Ave NW
7th
Floor
Washington,
DC 20001
(w)
xxx-xxx-xxxx ext 128
(f)
xxx-xxx-xxxx
(c)
xxx-xxx-xxxx
(e)
xxxxxxxx@xxxx.xxx
