What is the Surface Transportation Board?
The Surface Transportation Board is an agency that operates within the United States Federal Government; the Board is a bipartisan, decisionally-independent adjudicatory body housed within the United States Department of Transportation. The Surface Transportation Board was founded in 1996 and is responsible for an assortment of the regulatory functions that had been previously administered by the Interstate Commerce Commission when the ICC was dissolved.
The Surface Transportation Board maintains a broad economic regulatory oversight of railroads, including service, the establishment of rates, the construction, abandonment and acquisition of all rail lines.
Furthermore, the Surface Transportation Board is also responsible for finalizing all carrier mergers and coordinating the interchange of traffic among carriers. The Surface Transportation Board also maintains certain oversight of pipeline carriers, intercity bus carriers, moving van companies and those trucking companies who are involved in collective activities.
Surface Transportation Board Quick Facts
The following details outline the administration of the Surface Transportation Board:
The Surface Transportation Board was founded in 1996
The Surface Transportation Board is responsible for the jurisdiction over the Federal Government of the United States
Government Agency of the Executive Branch
Government agencies are defined as organizations, councils, and offices operating under the jurisdiction of the Federal Government of the United States of America; each federal agency retains specific administrative jurisdiction over specific facets latent within the operations of the United States Government. The Surface Transportation Board functions as a government agency under the Executive Branch of the United States government, which is comprised of 3 total branches; in addition to the Executive branch – which is responsible for the regulation and enforcement of operational legislation existing within the United States of America – there also exists the Legislative and Judicial Branches.
