2140-XXXX Supporting Statement - URCS Data Reporting (EP 769) (to ROCIS)

2140-XXXX
July 2022
SUPPORTING STATEMENT
FOR REQUEST OF OMB APPROVAL
UNDER THE PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT AND 5 C.F.R. § 1320
The Surface Transportation Board (STB or Board) requests approval for the information
collections of the Uniform Railroad Costing System (URCS) Data Reporting.
A. Justification:
1. Need for Information in Collection. In a notice of proposed rulemaking, in URCS
Data Reporting, EP 769, the Board proposed a rule to codify a longstanding voluntary, annual
URCS data submission from the Association of American Railroads (AAR) so that the seven
Class I railroads may submit their URCS data directly to the Board. This data is comprised of
the Class I railroads’ tare weight and loss and damage data for use in the Board’s URCS. The
Board uses URCS for a variety of regulatory functions. URCS is used in rate reasonableness
proceedings and, among other things, to develop variable costs for cost models and
determinations, to cost the Board’s Carload Waybill Sample (OMB Control No. 2140-0015), and
to provide interested parties with basic cost information regarding railroad industry operations.
Under the Board’s proposal, Class I carriers would now be able to choose whether to
provide tare weight and loss and damage data through AAR or to file the data on their own. This
information collected is important to the Board’s functions and responsibilities.
2. Use of Data Collected. The Board is authorized, under 49 U.S.C. § 11161, to maintain cost
accounting rules for rail carriers. In 1989, the Board’s predecessor, the Interstate Commerce
Commission, adopted the Uniform Railroad Costing System (URCS) as its general-purpose
costing system. Adoption of the Unif. R.R. Costing Sys. as a Gen. Purpose Costing Sys. for All
Regul. Costing Purposes, 5 I.C.C.2d 894 (1989). As noted, the Board uses URCS for a variety
of important regulatory functions, including rate reasonableness determinations, preparation of
variable costs for cost models and determinations, and the Board’s Carload Waybill Sample.
The submission of Tare weights is used in URCS to calculate gross ton-mile costs, while
loss and damage data are used to calculate the total variable shipment costs of each rail
movement. The Railroad Cost Program User Manual is available on the Board’s website at
www.stb.gov/reports-data/uniform-rail-costing-system/.
The Board’s proposal is consistent with AAR’s practice to provide the average tare
weight by AAR car type code in tons and pounds, as well as the number of cars and summarize
annual loss and damage expenses and the number of tons originated by commodity. Consistent
with this collection, Class I carriers are already required to report, quarterly and annually, the
number of tons originated on their rail lines by commodity through the freight commodity
statistics (FCS) report, as in OMB Control No. 2140-0001 (Quarterly Report of Freight
Commodity Statistics (Form QCS)). 49 C.F.R. § 1248.2. The Board proposes that Class I

carriers may continue to provide tare weight and loss and damage data separated by freight car
types and intermodal equipment, as follows:
A

Equipped box car

B
C
D
E
F
G
H
J
K
L
M

Unequipped box car
Covered hopper car
Locomotive
Equipped gondola
Flat car
Unequipped gondola
Unequipped hopper
Gondola car
Equipped hopper car
Special type car
Maintenance of way, scale, passenger, caboose, and end-of-train
information systems
Conventional intermodal car
Lighter weight, low-profile intermodal car
Refrigerator car
Stack car
Tank car
Container
Vehicular flat car
Trailer

P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
Z

In sum, under the current rulemaking, the Board proposes that Class I carriers may
individually report tare weight and loss and damage data directly to the Board. Under this
option, Class I carriers would provide the tare weight totals by AAR car type code in tons and
pounds and the number of cars, and the Board would calculate the average tare weight. For loss
and damage data, Class I carriers would provide their total annual loss and damage expenses,
number of tons originated, and loss and damage per ton by commodity using the specific
commodity groupings, and the Board would consolidate the data to calculate the loss and
damage per ton for all Class I carriers.
3. Reduction through Improved Technology. The Board expects all respondents, that
choose to file data individually, to file electronically.
4. Identification of Duplication. No other federal agency collects the information in
these collections, and the information in these collections is not available from any other source.
5. Minimizing Burden for Small Business. No small entities will be affected by the
collection of this information. This reporting requirement applies only to Class I railroads,
which have operating revenues in excess of $900,000,000.
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6. Consequences if Collection not Conducted or Conducted Less Frequently. Without
these collections, the Board may be limited to receipt of URCS reporting data.
7. Special Circumstances. No special circumstances apply to this collection.
8. Compliance with 5 C.F.R. § 1320.8. The Board published a notice of proposed
rulemaking in URCS Data Reporting, EP 769 (served April 29, 2022), with a total of 60 days for
comments, including a 45-day initial comment period and an additional 15-day reply comment
period regarding this collection. See 87 Fed. Reg. 27549 (May 9, 2022).
9. Payments or Gifts. The Board does not provide any payment or gifts for this
collection.
10. Assurance of Confidentiality. All information collected through this report is
available to the public.
11. Sensitive Information. This collection contains no information of a sensitive nature.
12. Estimated Burden Hours. 56 hours. As provided in Table – Total Estimated Annual
Burden Hours below, respondents are expected to file with the Board URCS reporting data
annually, which is estimated to take one hour with this existing data, and, due to the specific data
reporting formats, to incur one-time charges of 9 burden hours each (which is annualized over
three years, or 3 hours per year).
Table – Total Estimated Annual Burden Hours

Type of response

Tare weight data
Loss and damage data
Total annual burden hours

Estimated
average
responses per
year
7
7

Estimated
hours per
response

1
1

Estimated
annualized
one-time
start-up
burden
hours
3
3

Estimated
total annual
burden
hours

28
28
56

Frequency: Annually
13. Estimated Total Annual Cost to Respondents. The filings may be made
electronically. No non-hour burdens have been identified.
14. Annualized Cost to the Federal Government. We estimate that the maximum cost to
the Board of reviewing data (4 FTE hours) and posting the data on the Board’s website (1 FTE
hour) would total no more than 5 staff hours at a GS-12 and GS-14 pay grade.
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15. Explanation of Program Changes or Adjustments. This ICR requests a change
because the Board is opening this information collection to the Board’s seven Class I railroads.
16. Plans for tabulation and publication. The information in this collection that is not
confidential will be posted on the Board’s website, located at www.stb.gov.
17. Display of expiration date for OMB approval. The new expiration date for this
collection will be published in the Federal Register when the collection is approved by OMB.
18. Exceptions to Certification Statement. Not applicable.

B. Collections of Information Employing Statistical Methods.
Not applicable.

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