{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-277.400","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 277.400","heading":"Entities eligible to file declaration of state railbanking -- Use of property","body":"subject to declaration -- Claims of aggrieved persons.\n(1) Any organization recognized as exempt from federal income taxation under Section\n501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue  Code, agency of state government, or political\nsubdivision or city of this state holding or acquiring a railroad corridor may\npreserve the corridor for future railroad use while utilizing the right -of-way in the\ninterim for nonmotorized public recreationa l use by filing with the Secretary of\nState a \"Declaration of State Railbanking,\" concurrently serving a copy of the\ndeclaration on the Transportation Cabinet. The declaration shall contain the name\nand address of the filing entity, a textual description a nd map of the railroad\ncorridor being railbanked, a statement that the entity accepts full responsibility for\nmanaging the corridor, for any legal liability arising out of the use of the corridor or,\nif the entity is immune from suit, that the entity agree s to indemnify the railroad for\nany liability arising out of the use of the corridor, and for the payment of all taxes\nwhich may validly be assessed against the corridor, and a declaration that the\nproperty is being railbanked in accordance with the provis ions of Kentucky law in\nthat the corridor is held open for future restoration of rail service and that this\nsection only grants authority for the corridor to be utilized for nonmotorized public\nrecreational use during the interim.\n(2) Any property that is the subject of a declaration of state railbanking, including\nproperty held by easement, shall, during the period a declaration of state railbanking\nremains in force, be deemed to be held for a railroad use and shall not revert to any\nother form of ownershi p. Until rail service is restored over the corridor, the\ndeclaration of state railbanking shall only authorize the use of the corridor for\npublic, nonmotorized recreational use, with associated infrastructure. However, a\ndeclaration of state railbanking sh all not preclude any public utility usage of the\ncorridor if that usage is otherwise permitted under other applicable law. For the\nspecific purpose of allowing railbanking under this section, an easement for railroad\nuse shall not be deemed abandoned until  the person holding the easement conveys\nthe easement to another person for a nonrailroad use, title to the easement and the\nunderlying estate comes into the hands of the same owner by conveyance, the\neasement owner files a disclaimer in the office of the county clerk of the county\nwhere the property is situated disclaiming all interest in the corridor, or the\neasement is declared abandoned by judicial decree.\n(3) After property is railbanked under this section, the property shall be held available\nfor purchase by any bona fide purchaser for the restoration of rail service over the\nproperty. The following requirements shall apply to any transfer of property in\ncontemplation of the restoration of railroad service:\n(a) The entity that acquired the right to use  the railroad corridor for a railtrail\nunder this section or to whom that right had been subsequently transferred\nshall be compensated for the fair market value of the corridor together with\nany improvements erected thereon. Funds received by the entity un der this\nparagraph shall be held in trust for the benefit of the public;\n(b) All required federal and state permits and authority to reactivate and operate a\nrailroad over the corridor shall be obtained prior to the transfer of the property\nfor the contemplated railroad service restoration;\n(c) Adequate bond with good surety shall be posted ensuring that the railroad will\nbe constructed, with the bond being used to cover the cost of restoring the\ncorridor to its physical condition prior to transfer of the railbanked corridor for\nthe contemplated railroad service restoration; and\n(d) The physical infrastructure necessary to operate the railroad, including tracks,\nties, frogs, signaling equipment, grade crossings, and the like, shall be in place\none (1) year f rom the date of the transfer. Train service shall be in place and\noperating two (2) years from the date of the transfer. If these timelines are not\nmet, the corridor and all associate physical improvements thereon shall\nautomatically forfeit to the ownership of the entity responsible for railbanking\nthe corridor under this section.\n(4) Any person aggrieved by the act of railbanking a railroad corridor under the\nprovisions of this section shall bring their claims within one (1) year after the\ndeclaration of state railbanking has been filed with the Kentucky Secretary of State.\nAny entity against whom a claim is asserted may utilize as an offset or setoff to the\namount of any recovery those amounts in state or local taxes, together with interest\nand penalties, that have not been paid on the value of the property through which\nthe claimant asserts title.\n(5) Any entity which caused a declaration of state railbanking to be filed shall cause the\ndeclaration to be vacated on the files of the Secretary of State upon  the cessation of\nuse of the corridor as a nonmotorized public use trail or the reactivation of railroad\nservice over the corridor.","path":["KRS Chapter 277"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=14030","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:53:29Z","sha256":"44a6f77ddb6614afab5d84c28c0930838aea473e936c74a8aa8d98e277b4c4af","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-277.360","next":"us-ky/krs-277.402"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}