On January 21, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation held a hearing to consider the nomination of Peter Buttigieg as the Secretary for the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). If confirmed, Buttigieg would oversee a budget of almost $90 billion—the majority of which pays for building roads, bridges, and other highway infrastructure—and manage several related agencies, including the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA).
During the hearing, Buttigieg noted that, if confirmed, he would assist President Biden’s climate action policies at DOT by supporting vehicle electrification, which he sees as a “central feature of any infrastructure package.” With respect to PHMSA, he committed to ensuring that the agency has adequate resources needed to recruit and maintain personnel. Buttigieg did not commit to a position on the rail transportation of liquefied natural gas (LNG), but did note that it was an area that he wanted to “take a hard look at it.”
Buttigieg was previously the Mayor of South Bend, Ind., and was most recently a Democratic candidate for President. The next step in the process is for the committee to take a vote on the nomination, which has yet to be scheduled but is anticipated to be within the next week.
A recording of the hearing, as well as the written testimony from Mayor Buttigieg, is available
here. APGA staff will continue to keep members aware of any updates on this and other pending agency nominations.
For questions on this article, please contact Renée Lani of APGA staff by phone at 202-464-0836 or by email at
rlani@apga.org.