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Staggers Rail and Motor Carrier Acts of 1980

MACROS IN SPREADSHEETS STAGGERS RAIL AND
A macro is a series of commands that automate a spread- MOTOR CARRIER ACTS
sheet task, streamline complex procedures, or create appli-
cations. A user can enter a macro into a worksheet file or OF 1980
into a macro library, a worksheet file that stores macros. In enacting the Staggers Rail Act of 1980, the U.S. Con-
To create a macro, the user enters the steps needed to carry gress “recognized that railroads faced intense competition
out a task, gives the macro a name, and saves it in a file. from trucks and other modes for most freight traffic” and
To use the macro, the user selects it by name from a menu that “prevailing regulation prevented railroads from earn-
and runs the macro in the spreadsheet. The steps are car- ing adequate revenues and competing effectively” (Associ-
ried out automatically. For complex tasks that are used ation of American Railroads, 2003). Survival of the
often, a macro makes it easier for a user to avoid mistakes railroad industry required a new regulatory scheme “that
in the task, since the steps are stored as a file and recalled allowed railroads to establish their own routes, tailor their
as needed. rates to market conditions, and differentiate rates on the
basis of demand” (Association of American Railroads,
2003). In the early twenty-first century, Congress was
SPREADSHEETS IN INTEGRATED
debating the effectiveness and impact the act.
PACKAGES
Prior to the Staggers Rail Act and the Motor Carrier
Integrated software packages, which contain several kinds Act of 1980, the railroad industry was suffering. Many
of software within one, include a spreadsheet. Informa- railroads had financial problems, and the conditions of
tion can be copied from a spreadsheet into other software
rail facilities had deteriorated. Public demand for a better
packages, such as a word-processing package. Spreadsheets
rail system caused Congress to take action and pass the
can be linked to files in other software in the package so Staggers Rail Act, which has resulted in rail profits and
that changes made in the spreadsheet are automatically
improved service. The act marked the most significant
reflected in the linked document. A table from a spread-
change in rail policy since the Interstate Commerce Act of
sheet can be linked to a word-processing document so that
1887.
any changes in cell entries in the spreadsheet change the “The basic principle of the Staggers Rail Act was sim-
contents of the table in the word-processing document.
ple: Railroads should be permitted to act much as other
Embedded objects, such as a chart from a spreadsheet, businesses in managing their assets and pricing their serv-
can be embedded into a word-processing document. ices” (Association of American Railroads, 2003). It elimi-
Unlike linking, changes in the embedded chart in the doc- nated most common-carrier obligations, granted railroads
ument are not reflected in the source file (spreadsheet file). greatly increased commercial freedom, and generally
These features make the spreadsheet a very powerful tool reversed previous policy. The act deregulated the nation’s
for analysis and reporting of data in various formats. railroads. In deregulating the nation’s railroads, Congress
intended (1) to return the nation’s railroads to financial
SUMMARY health, (2) to replace government regulation wherever
Spreadsheets are used by almost every business firm that possible with the powers of competition, and (3) to con-
records data. Spreadsheets have also become a useful tool tinue to provide captive shippers with protection from
for personal record keeping. The data organization and “unreasonable” rates.
graphics capabilities of spreadsheets make them a useful The system of economic regulation of railroads in the
tool for all types of calculations, displays, and analysis. United States that was put in place by the Staggers Rail
Act has provided a balance between allowing railroads the
SEE ALSO Information Processing; Software
freedom to compete effectively in the marketplace and
protecting shippers from abuse of railroad market power.
BIBLIOGRAPHY In 2005 W. C. Vantuono reported that twenty-five years
IBM Corporation. Lotus. Retrieved December 10, 2005, from after it was passed, the Staggers Rail Act was doing exactly
http://www-306.ibm.com/software/lotus what it was supposed to do: help move the railroads
Shelly, Gary, Cashman, Thomas J., and Vermaat, Misty (2003). toward revenue adequacy.
Microsoft Office 2003: Introductory Concepts and Techniques Railroads have been able to increase their profitabil-
(2nd ed.). Boston: Course Technology.
ity since passage of Staggers in the face of strong competi-
Webopedia. (n.d.). Spreadsheet. Retrieved December 7, 2005, tion from trucks and declining rates only through
from http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/s/spreadsheet.html
increased productivity. The flexibility Staggers provided
“has enabled railroads to upgrade their systems, reinvest in
Betty J. Brown productive rail infrastructure, generate higher levels of

ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BUSINESS AND FINANCE, SECOND EDITION 687