(a)
(1) The Arkansas Department of Transportation shall ascertain as early as practicable the amount of money expended in the construction and equipment per mile of every railroad in Arkansas, the amount of money expended to procure the right-of-way, and the amount of money it would require to reconstruct the roadbed, track, and depots and to replace all the physical properties belonging to the railroad.
(2) The department shall also ascertain the amounts paid for salaries to the officers of the railroad, the wages paid to employees, and the operating expenses of each and every railroad in this state, including repairs and interest on indebtedness.
(b) When the information required by this section is obtained, it shall be communicated to the Attorney General by report. A duplicate of the report shall be filed with the Auditor of State for public use, and the information shall be printed, from time to time, in the annual report of the department.