| Washington County Railroad Lawsuit | ||
 Lawsuit
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JUDGE RULES
IN WASHINGTON COUNTY RAILROAD SUIT Washington County supervisors received a state judge’s ruling this week on a four-year legal struggle with the IC&E railroad over the replacement of four railroad bridges. The ruling, which requires the railroad to replace one bridge and assist the county in replacing the others, was viewed as a success by county officials. The lawsuit was filed in January 2002 after negotiations failed between Washington County and I&M Rail Link. Washington County had requested the railroad company financially assist in the replacement of the four railroad bridges in the county. The railroad refused, citing limited finances and no benefit to rail operations. The bridges at issue are located on Highway G-38 west of Washington, on Ginkgo Ave by Grace Hill, on Fir Ave, and on Dogwood Ave near McKains River Access. All of the bridges are owned by the railroad. Two of them are more than 100 years old. In March of 2002 the bridge on Fir Ave was destroyed by fire, speculated to be arson. At the time, railroad officials refused to replace the bridge or allow the county to construct a temporary crossing. This weeks ruling will require the railroad to replace the bridge. County Engineer David Patterson hopes the railroad won’t delay in repairing the crossing on Fir Ave Wellston. “It has been very difficult,” he said, “to tell landowners that I couldn’t help them with the bridge on Fir because of the lawsuit.” Area farmers must travel nearly 8 miles to go around the defunct crossing. The ruling on the case orders the railroad to do two things. They are required to replace the burned bridge on Fir Ave. They must also provide 10% to 20% of the funding on the remaining bridges if Washington County proceeds with replacing them. The director of the Iowa DOT reviewed the ALJ’s decision in the Washington County case. Washington County has now received the director's decision. As expected, the DOT didn’t really go into the merits of the case and approved the ALJ decision. The case has also taken its toll on county tax payers. Washington County has spent over $250,000 in legal and consulting fees since the commencement of this case. Because of the high cost, Washington County approached the other counties in Iowa to ask for their financial assistance. To date Washington County has received over $85,000 from other counties in support of this case. |
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On February 28, 2006, ISAC received a letter from the Washington County Board of Supervisors requesting ISAC's assistance with a railroad-related lawsuit.
Under Iowa Code section 327F.2, every railroad has a duty to keep all overpasses and underpasses “in good repair.” Since 1997 Washington County has attempted to get the IC&E to comply with the law and replace four deteriorating and unsafe bridge/roadway crossings. But the IC&E has refused. The total replacement cost is estimated at more than $6 million. Left with no other choice, the county filed an application under Iowa Code section 327G.17, which allows an administrative law judge from the Department of Inspections and Appeals to determine what part of the replacement costs should be paid by the railroad.
The IC&E fought this action, and sued in federal court, saying only Congress had jurisdiction over interstate commerce, including railroads. Washington County won in federal district court , and won again when the matter was appealed to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.
Now the matter is back before an administrative law judge, who has heard testimony and will be ruling shortly.
What Washington County has done so far establishes a precedent that will benefit all counties in the future. They have established that under Iowa Code section 327G.17 railroads can be forced to pay a percentage of the repair costs at roadway crossings.
But that is not all. If the administrative law judge rules in Washington County’s favor, it will make other railroads more likely to negotiate with counties over these costs, rather than fighting the matter in court.
With more than $6 million at stake, Washington County incurred considerable expenses for attorneys and consultants in fighting the railroad. Their costs so far exceed $200,000. Washington County has retained Des Moines attorney Douglas Fulton as it's legal counsel.
We are asking each county to do their part for this worthwhile cause and contribute $2,000.
There are 90 other counties in Iowa with similar deteriorating railroad crossings and structures. There are 2,561 railroad crossings on the county road system in Iowa. That is why the Executive Board of the Iowa County Engineers Association has adopted a resolution supporting the effort to share these litigation costs with other counties.
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