Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 90 Part 1.djvu/103

 PUBLIC LAW 94-210—FEB. 5, 1976 initiation of a proceeding for the issuance, amendment, or repeal of an order, rule, or regulation under this Act. "(e) As used in this paragraph, the term 'Commission' includes any division, individual Commissioner, administrative law judge, employee board, or any other person authorized to act on behalf of the Commission in any part of the proceeding for the issuance, amendment, or repeal of any order, rule, or regulation under this Act relating to common carriers by railroad.".

90 STAT. 53

'Commission.'

REFORM o r RULES OF PRACTICE BEFORE THE COMMISSION

SEC. 305. (a) Within 360 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Commission shall study, develop, and submit to the Congress an initial proposal setting forth rules of practice under which the Commission proposes to conduct all adjudicatory and rulemaking proceedings with respect to any matter involving a common carrier by railroad subject to this part. Such rules of practice before the Commission shall be consistent with existing law, shall take into consideration the varying nature of proceedings before the Commission, and shall include— (1) specific time limits upon the filing and disposition of all complaints, applications, petitions, pleadings, motions, appeals, and rulemaking proceedings before an administrative law judge, individual Commissioner, review board, division, or panel of the Commission, or the full Commission; (2) specific methods of taking testimony, receiving evidence, hearing cross-examination, and the modification of such procedures so as to facilitate the timely execution of the functions of the Commission; (3) utilization of additional administrative law judges or the assignment of employees of the Office, in complex adjudicatory or rulemaking proceedings, so as to facilitate proper focus and timely resolution of the issues within the required time limits; and (4) specific remedies in any case of failure to observe required time limits. (b) Within 420 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrative Conference of the United States shall submit to the Congress and to the Commission its comments on the rules of practice before the Commission proposed pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, together with such recommendations as it considers appropriate. (c) Within 30 days after the receipt of comments submitted pursuant to subsection (b) of this section, the Commission shall consider such comments and shall submit to the Congress a final proposal setting forth the rules of practice before the Commission with respect to matters involving common carriers by railroad. Such rules of practice shall take effect at the end of the first period of 60 calendar days of continuous session of the Congress after the date of submission of such final proposal, unless either the Senate or the House of Representatives adopts a resolution during such period stating that it does not approve such final proposal. If no resolution is adopted as provided in the preceding sentence, the Commission shall adopt such proposed rules of practice. For purposes of this subsection, continuity of session of the Congress is broken only by an adjournment sine die, and the days on which either House is not in session because of an adjournment of more than 3 days to a day certain are excluded from the computation of the 60-day period.

Submittal to congressional committees. 49 USC 17 note.

Final proposal, submittal to Congress.

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