EP — Ex Parte
A reading aid, not legal advice, and not a substitute for the record. Every statement carries a grade — [B] the Board’s own words, [R] the rule or statute, [N] the National Archives’ description of the series, [C] measured from this record, [?] unconfirmed. Nothing here says what any party argued or which side it is on. Figures are counted from the record as it stands.
What it is
“Rulemaking or information gathering proceedings.”[B] Ex parte here means the Board opened the docket itself, not on a party’s complaint or application. The registry holds 449 EP dockets, 252 of them sub-numbers.[C]
What is being asked for
Usually nothing by a party: the Board proposes a rule, sets a policy, holds a hearing, or makes an annual determination, and the public comments. The record’s EP dockets include the yearly revenue adequacy determinations (EP 552 and its sub-numbers), the cost of capital (EP 558), fee schedules (EP 542), the review of commodity exemptions (EP 704), and procedural rules such as filing deadlines during a shutdown (EP 721).[C] Sub-numbers track the years or phases.
What the Board can and cannot do
Adopt rules within 49 U.S.C. subtitle IV, issue policy statements, set the reference numbers the rest of its work depends on. A rule can be challenged in a court of appeals — hence Notice of Court Action entries (37 in EP dockets; all on the court-action register).[C]
What happens next, typically
Notice of proposed rulemaking → comments and replies → final rule, effective on a stated date; or a hearing notice → the hearing → a decision or report. EP dockets carry the record’s ex parte meeting summaries (125) and most of its status reports (2,597), because the Board requires parties who meet it informally to file a summary. In the record: 1,117 decisions and 208 notices.[C]
Every EP proceeding on record, by number — including the ones this record holds nothing filed in. The count is on that page: quoting it here too is how two pages come to disagree.
Sources (all read 2026-08-26): the Board’s Tips for Searching STB Records (the one page on stb.gov that defines prefixes), About STB, Litigation Alternatives, Need Assistance?, Environmental Overview, Household Goods Tariff Guidance, Legal Resources, Major Railroad Mergers FAQs, press release PR-22-55; 49 CFR §1152.50, §1180.2, Parts 1150 and 1111; NARA records schedules N1-134-99-002 and DAA-0134-2013-0017; the search form’s own prefix and suffix lists. Permanent address docketyard.org/about/EP. Something wrong? Corrections.