In AJOT, Kristian Stout Argues Rail Regulation Must Align With the Law and Economic Reality
The American Journal of Transportation covered a recent issue brief by ICLE Director of Innovation Policy Kristian Stout.
The regulatory framework for freight rail must be updated to reflect both the current competitive landscape and the legal consequences of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2024 decision in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, according to a new report from the International Center for Law & Economics (ICLE).
The ICLE issue brief contends that the Surface Transportation Board (STB) risks running afoul of the statutory text of its enabling legislation if it continues to apply outdated legal interpretations and fails to acknowledge modern market forces that bring geographic and intermodal competition to the rail sector. ICLE Director of Innovation Policy Kristian Stout, the report’s author, added that:
Competition analysis in the rail sector is no longer about static ownership of track. It is about recognizing the full economic reality of intermodal and geographic substitution. The STB must align its rules with the statutory text and the modern marketplace by considering all evidence of competition. Anything less risks inefficient regulatory interventions that destabilize investment and ultimately undermine the reliable rail network Congress intended to create.
Read the full article here.