October 2009


                                        In This Issue                                         

House Judiciary Committee Passes Baldwin Bill By Voice Vote
Soy Transportation Report Highlights “Potentially Excessive Rates”
CURE Now on Twitter, Facebook

STB Establishes Confidential Customer Service Website

Cosponsor Update
Noted and Quoted

On Wednesday, September 16^th, the House Judiciary Committee passed H.R. 233 – the Railroad Antitrust Enforcement Act of 2009 – by a voice vote.  This important bill, championed by Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), is a significant development in the effort to enact real rail reform.

In the press release issued by CURE, Chairman Glenn English said, “This kind of reform has been a long time coming. It will undoubtedly benefit American consumers, farmers and manufacturers. This loophole has been a detriment to our economy and job market for far too long and now’s the time to make things right.”  The full press release is available at on the CURE homepage.

The House Judiciary Committee is expected to file a report on the bill soon, clearing the way for full consideration by the U.S. House of Representatives.

Soy Transportation Report Highlights “Potentially Excessive Rates”

The Soy Transportation Coalition, a group of seven state soybean boards, issued a report last week showing that $120 million was being taken out of rural America due to “potentially excessive rail rates.”  The report also noted that “Class Is’ revenue from transporting soybeans and soy products has nearly tripled during the past decade from $549 million in 1998 to $1.5 billion in 2008.”

A recent forecast by the U.S. Department of Agriculture showed that farm profits were expected to drop by up to 38% in 2010 from 2009 levels, in part due to a combination of rising shipping costs and lower commodities prices – making rail reform all the more urgent.

The full report can be found on the Soy Transportation Coalition website.

 
CURE Now On Twitter, Facebook

CURE has established a presence on two leading social media sites, Twitter and Facebook, improving our ability to provide information and developments about rail reform to supporters, Members of Congress and their staff and the media.

The CURE Twitter account can be found at www.twitter.com/railcure.  Anyone with an existing Twitter account can sign up to follow CURE’s “tweets” – messages of 140 characters or less, which CURE will use to provide the latest rail reform news and developments .

CURE’s Facebook fan page can be found at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Consumers-United-for-Rail-Equity-CURE/141323503069 or by searching “rail cure” on the Facebook page.  Anyone with an existing Facebook page can sign up as a “fan” of CURE’s, which provides access to the information on CURE’s page.  The site will provide another opportunity to get information to rail reform supporters, legislators and the media.  The Facebook format allows for more detailed information than Twitter.

Together, the Twitter and Facebook sites will significantly improve CURE’s ability to raise awareness about the need for rail reform.  The CURE website is being updated to carry widgets that allow visitors to the site to sign on as a fan of CURE’s on Facebook and to follow CURE’s tweets.

STB Establishes Confidential Customer Service Website

The Surface Transportation Board has created a Rail Customer and Public Assistance Program page on the agency's website.  Customers are encouraged to visit the webpage and report if they are having problems with railroad service.