[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 49, Volume 4]
[Revised as of October 1, 2002]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 49CFR245.201]

[Page 670-671]
 
                        TITLE 49--TRANSPORTATION
 
       CHAPTER II--FEDERAL RAILROAD ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF 
                             TRANSPORTATION
 
PART 245--RAILROAD USER FEES--Table of Contents
 
                     Subpart C--User Fee Calculation
 
Sec. 245.201  User fee calculation.


    (a) The fee to be paid by each railroad shall be determined as 
follows:
    (1) After March 15th of each year (August 1st for the fiscal year 
ending September 30, 1992), FRA will tabulate the total train miles, 
total employee hours, and total road miles for railroads subject to this 
part for the preceding calendar year. FRA's calculations will be based 
on the information supplied by railroads under Sec. 245.101 hereof, and 
other reports and submissions which railroads are required to make to 
FRA under applicable regulations (i.e. 49 CFR parts 225 and 228). At the 
same time, FRA will calculate the total cost of administering the Safety 
Act for the current fiscal year (other than activities described in 
section 202(a)(2) thereof) which will represent the total amount of user 
fees to be collected.
    (2) Using tabulations of total train miles, total employee hours, 
total road miles, and the total cost of administering the Safety Act, 
FRA will calculate a railroad's user fee assessment as follows:
    (i) The assessment rate per train mile will be calculated by 
multiplying the total costs of administering the Safety Act by 0.55 and 
then dividing this amount (i.e., fifty-five percent of the total amount 
to be collected) by the total number of train miles reported to the FRA 
for the previous calendar year. The result will be the railroad user fee 
assessment rate per train mile for the current fiscal year.
    (ii) The assessment rate per employee hour will be calculated by 
multiplying the total costs of administering the Safety Act by 0.1 and 
then dividing this amount (i.e., 10 percent of the total amount to be 
collected) by the total number of employee hours reported to the FRA for 
the previous calendar year. The result will be the railroad user fee 
rate per employee hour for the fiscal year.
    (iii) The assessment rate per road mile will be calculated in three 
steps. First, FRA will determine a preliminary assessment rate per road 
mile by multiplying the total costs of administering the Safety Act by 
0.35 and dividing this amount (i.e., thirty-five percent of the total 
amount to be collected) by the total road miles reported to FRA for the 
previous calendar year. Second, FRA will adjust this preliminary rate 
per road mile for each light density railroad by multiplying the 
preliminary rate by the appropriate scaling factor identified in 
Sec. 245.5(h). The result will be a reduced assessment rate per road 
mile for light density railroads. Third, FRA will adjust the preliminary 
assessment rate per road mile for all railroads except light density 
railroads by adding to their preliminary rate an incremental amount 
reflecting the reallocation of the relief provided to light density 
railroads

[[Page 671]]

under step 2 using the sliding scale. The incremental amount is 
calculated by subtracting (A) the total amount to be collected from 
light density railroads after application of the sliding scale from (B) 
the total amount that would have been collected from light density 
railroads using the preliminary assessment rate and developed under step 
1 and (C) dividing the resulting amount by the total road miles reported 
to FRA by all railroads except light density railroads. The incremental 
amount is then added to the preliminary assessment rate for all 
railroads except light density railroads to derive the assessment rate 
per road mile for all railroads except light density railroads. The 
results will be a modified assessment rate per road mile for light 
density railroads qualifying under step 2 and a general assessment rate 
applicable to all other railroads. In those cases where the computed fee 
is less than the defined minimum, the net increase attributable to the 
application of the minimum standard is not included in the reallocation 
process under step 3 and is instead added to total collections.
    (b) The user fee to be paid by each covered railroad is the greater 
of $500.00 or the sum of the railroad's train miles times the assessment 
rate per train mile, the railroad's employee hours times the assessment 
rate per employee hour, and the railroad's road miles times the 
applicable assessment rate per road mile.