Editing Surface Transportation Board (section)

==Offices==

===Office of Public Assistance, Governmental Affairs, and Compliance===

The Office of Public Assistance, Governmental Affairs, and Compliance is the agency's principal point of contact with Congress, state and local governments, the media, industry stakeholders, and the general public.  This office includes the Rail Customer and Public Assistance Program, where Board staff solves problems ranging from a simple answer to a telephone inquiry to lengthy informal dispute resolution efforts between railroads and shippers.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.stb.dot.gov/stb/rail/consumer_asst.html | title=Rail Customer and Public Assistance program | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160315183729/http://stb.dot.gov/stb/rail/consumer_asst.html | archive-date=March 15, 2016}}</ref>

===Office of Economics===

The Office of Economics analyzes [[rate case]]s, conducts economic and financial analyses of the railroad industry, and audits [[Class I railroad]]s.

===Office of Environmental Analysis===

The Office of Environmental Analysis is responsible for undertaking environmental reviews of proposed STB actions in accordance with the [[National Environmental Policy Act]] and other environmental laws and making environmental recommendations to the STB.

===Office of the Managing Director===

The Office of the Managing Director handles administrative matters such as personnel, budget, and information technology.

===Office of Proceedings===

The Office of Proceedings (OP) is primarily responsible for developing the public record in formal cases (or proceedings) filed with the STB, making recommendations regarding the resolution of issues presented in those cases, and preparing the decisions issued by the Board.

The Office of Proceedings is a legal office consisting almost entirely of attorneys and paralegal specialists responsible for the majority of the cases at the STB. The office applies the [[Interstate Commerce Act]], as amended by the [[ICC Termination Act of 1995]], as well as the Board's regulations.<ref>STB regulations are found in Title 49, parts 1000 to 1332 of the [[Code of Federal Regulations]]. ({{cite web |url=http://www.gpoaccess.gov/cfr/index.html |title=Code of Federal Regulations: Main Page |access-date=2004-05-07 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040420200113/http://www.gpoaccess.gov/CFR/index.html |archive-date=2004-04-20 }}).</ref> In carrying out its responsibilities, the Office of Proceedings obtains and applies any necessary input from economic, financial, operational, environmental, and other legal staff experts throughout the agency.

The Office of Proceedings includes a clearance unit responsible for tabulating votes on STB cases and recording the official outcome of those votes and a recordations unit that enters data about a filing's primary and secondary documents into the STB Recordations database, which is accessible to the public on the STB web site.

===Office of General Counsel===

The Office of the General Counsel (OGC) responds to questions on various legal issues. However, its primary mission is to defend the STB's decisions in court and assess the defensibility of agency decisions that might be challenged in court. Unlike most Federal agencies, the STB has independent litigating authority ({{USC|49|703(d)}}). Under the [[Hobbs Act]], when an STB order or decision is challenged in the [[U.S. Court of Appeals]], both the STB (represented by the agency's attorneys) and the United States (represented by [[U.S. Department of Justice]] (DOJ) attorneys) must be named as "respondents" (defendants), and both have authority to appear in court in such cases.<ref>See {{UnitedStatesCode|28|2323}}.In most cases, </ref> STB and DOJ attorneys jointly defend the agency's decisions, with the STB's attorneys preparing written briefs (in consultation with DOJ attorneys) and presenting oral arguments on behalf of the Federal Government.

In performing defensibility assessments, OGC attorneys meet with other STB staff to discuss cases before draft decisions are prepared. Defensibility assessments are crucial to issuing sound choices that are less likely to be challenged and, if challenged, are more likely to be upheld.

===Office of Passenger Rail (OPR)===
The Office of Passenger Rail supports the Board in its efforts to meet its responsibilities under the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008.  The Office provides the Board with expertise related to passenger rail that includes legal and policy guidance, engineering, data analysis, and rail operations.<ref>https://www.stb.gov/about-stb/offices/</ref>