HomeMy WebLinkAbout19990426_Decision Memo.docDECISION MEMORANDUM
TO:
FROM:
DATE:
RE: COMMISSIONER HANSEN
COMMISSIONER SMITH
COMMISSIONER KJELLANDER
MYRNA WALTERS
RON LAW
DON HOWELL
STEPHANIE MILLER
TONYA CLARK
DAVID SCOTT
WORKING FILE
BRAD PURDY
April 26, 1999
ABANDONMENT BY UNION PACIFIC RAILROAD COMPANY OF THE BOISE CUT OFF FROM MILE POST 423.6 TO MILE POST 443.0 IN ADA COUNTY, IDAHO
On March 22, 1999, the Union Pacific Railroad Company (UP) filed a Notice with this Commission that it plans to submit formal Application to the Surface Transportation Board (STB) for authority to abandon its Boise cut off from Mile Post 423.6 to Mile Post 443.0, a distance of 19.4 miles near Boise and located in Ada County, Idaho. A map of the proposed track abandonment is attached to this memo.
The authority whether to grant or deny the abandonment, rests solely with the STB. Nonetheless, Idaho Code § 62-424 states that “whenever any railroad proposes to abandon any branch line or main line now in operation within the state of Idaho, the railroad shall file notice of the intended abandonment with the public utilities commission” and that the commission shall schedule a public hearing not less than 90 days after such notice. The statute further finds that if the hearing results in a finding by the Commission that the abandonment of the branch line or main line “would adversely affect the area then being served and that there is reason to believe that the closure would impair the access of Idaho communities to vital goods and services and market access to those communities, and that the line has potential for profitability, then the public utilities commission shall transmit a report of its findings to the [STB] on behalf of the people of the state of Idaho.”
In abandonment proceedings, this Commission has typically issued a Notice of Modified Procedure soliciting comments regarding the proposed abandonment and also conducted a public hearing near the area being served by the rail line in question. Pursuant to Idaho Code § 62-424, the Commission, has until June 20, 1999 (90 days from the date of UP’s notice), in which to conduct a hearing in this case. That day happens to be a Sunday. But as a practical matter, it is possible that the STB will issue a decision prior to that date; although UP has not indicated in its notice whether it intends to pursue the expedited exemption process. Regardless, Staff recommends that the Commission issue a Notice of Modified Procedure and schedule this matter for hearing as soon as possible. Given that the line in question in located in or near Boise, the hearing could be conducted in the Commission’s hearing room.
Commission Decision
Does the Commission wish to issue a Notice of Modified Procedure and schedule this matter for public hearing?
Brad Purdy
vld/M:UprrclosureinBoise_bp
DECISION MEMORANDUM 2