HBA-ATS H.C.R. 156 76(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.C.R. 156
By: Swinford
Transportation
4/23/1999
Introduced


BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

In 1996, Union Pacific Corporation merged Southern Pacific Rail Corporation
into a subsidiary of Union Pacific to create the nation's largest railroad.
A major switching hub in a Houston switching yard was blocked when Union
Pacific tried to integrate its train operations in its southern region with
those recently acquired Southern Pacific properties in the summer of 1997.
Consequently, gridlock ensued as one of the railroad's main lines became
jammed with trains.  Unable to move many railroad cars because of a lack of
trains, locomotives, and railroad crews, the railroad's operations from the
West Coast and the Midwest and East experienced numerous operational
difficulties including slowed traffic, missed schedules, lost or delayed
shipments, safety problems, and other customer service difficulties.   

The State of Texas was among those states hardest hit by the bottleneck.
Texas businesses, especially shippers, that were dependent on Union Pacific
suffered lost sales and increased expenses as these businesses had to find
alternate methods of transporting their goods to customers.  The Railroad
Commission of Texas (commission) estimated that these lost sales and added
freight expenses cost the Texas economy about $1.1 billion. As a result of
what many shippers felt was Union Pacific's failure to provide adequate
service as it was obligated to do so under the Staggers Rail Act of 1980,
the commission appointed the Railroad Advisory Committee (committee) to
study the service issue surrounding the rail crisis. 

The committee's recommendations suggest alternatives that can be provided
to shippers who experience rail service disruptions and outline penalties
for nonservice by rail carriers.  For example, the committee defined
"service" as providing equipment within 20 days of a request and
"reasonable time" for delivery as no more than 200 percent of the normal
transit time experienced for that particular movement.  The committee also
outlined three options for nonservice by rail carriers that would allow
other rail carriers to provide service, invoice rail carriers for the
difference between existing rail freight rates and the rates actually paid
for trucks to move the commodity for which equipment had been ordered, and
allow grain shippers to truck the product to the nearest available terminal
and deduct the freight paid for this service. 

H.C.R. 156 urges the U.S. Congress and the Surface Transportation Board to
review recommendations by the committee appointed by the commission
regarding service by rail carriers. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

ANALYSIS

H.C.R. 156 urges the U.S. Congress and the Surface Transportation Board to
review recommendations by the committee appointed by the commission
regarding service by rail carriers. 

Provides that the secretary of state forward official copies of this
resolution to the president of the United States, to the chairman of the
Surface Transportation Board, to the speaker of the house of
representatives and the president of the senate of the U.S. Congress, and
to all the members of the Texas delegation to the congress with the request
that this resolution be officially entered in the Congressional Record as a
memorial to the U.S. Congress.