BNSF Railway Company v. Alameda County
Opinion
Trial Court Opinion
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 6 BNSF RAILWAY COMPANY, Case No. 19-cv-07230-HSG
Plaintiff, ORDER GRANTING PLAINTIFF'S
MOTION FOR PRELIMINARY
v. INJUNCTION
ALAMEDA COUNTY, et al., Re: Dkt. No. 35 Defendants.
12 Pending before the Court is Plaintiff BNSF Railway Company’s (“BNSF”) motion for a preliminary injunction (Dkt. No. 35 (“Mot.”)), for which briefing is complete. Dkt. Nos. 43 (“SD Opp.”), 44 (“Counties’ Opp.”), 53 (“Reply”). BNSF requests a preliminary injunction against fifteen counties (“Defendants,” or “Defendant Counties”) under 49 U.S.C. § 11501(b)(3), which prohibits applying higher tax rates to railroad property. On March 12, 2020, the Court held a hearing on the motion. Dkt. No. 58. The Court GRANTS the motion for preliminary injunction. I. BACKGROUND A. The 4-R Act The 4-R Act (now codified at 49 U.S.C. § 11501 (“Section 11501”)) was passed in 1976 to “restore the financial stability of the railway…