(a) All railroad operating properties within the State offered for sale by a railroad, other than to another railroad for continued operation, shall also be offered to the State of Vermont. The offer shall be made in writing and shall be sent by certified mail to the Agency. The offer shall include a map and a description of the property, the price, if available, a description of the present and past railroad use of the property, and any terms, reservations, or conditions the railroad proposes to include as part of the sale. Within 365 days, less any period of time that has elapsed because of the pendency of abandonment proceedings before the Surface Transportation Board or the imposition of public use conditions under 49 U.S.C. § 10905, the Agency shall accept or reject the offer. If the Agency either rejects or fails to accept the offer in a timely manner, the State's preferential right under this section shall terminate, but in no event shall the railroad offer to sell the property, or any portion of it, to any other person on terms more favorable than the final terms offered to the Agency.

(b) For purposes of this section, "railroad operating properties" shall mean any land, structures, buildings, rails, ties, ballast, signals, and materials that have been or are being used for rail transportation purposes and that are located within the limits of the railroad's roadway; provided, however, that if a railroad offers to sell any property in connection with its abandonment of a line, "railroad operating properties" shall also include any real or personal property of whatever description abutting the railroad's roadway that has been or is being used for rail transportation purposes and that is reasonably necessary to continued railroad operation or other public use. (Added 1987, No. 211 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. May 26, 1988; amended 2011, No. 153 (Adj. Sess.), § 36.)