Surface Transportation Board Commissioner W. Douglas Buttrey, who was nominated to a five-year term by President George W. Bush on November 17, 2003 and remained on the board into 2009 for the agency to complete pending matters, will end his term on March 13.
The STB's governing statute permits a member to serve for up to one year after the end of that member's term unless a successor is appointed. Last summer, Buttrey announced he would hold over for a period into 2009. Since that time, the STB has held five public meetings and has acted on several pending matters, including approval of CN's acquisition of the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway, restoring rail service for a group of shippers in the Pacific Northwest, and approving the largest-ever award to shippers in a rate reasonableness case.