AGC Urges Speedy Confirmation

The Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee held a hearing this week to question Nicole Nason, President Trump’s nominee to be the next Federal Highway Administrator. EPW Chairman John Barasso (R-WY) opened the hearing by reading from AGC’s letter of endorsement, which called Nason a great choice to lead initiatives in improving mobility on our nation's highways and urged the Senate to quickly confirm her.

Following an introduction by former Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta, the majority of the questioning centered on her and the administration’s priorities for the next transportation reauthorization legislation. The FAST Act expires in 2020 and is expected to be debated this Congress. The committee’s ranking Democrat, Sen. Tom Carper (DE), pointed out the need for identifying a revenue source to fix the Highway Trust Fund, while Chairman Barasso stressed the importance of supporting the formula-based approach to distributing funds to state DOTs. Nason responded that every available tool that would result in long-term funding for infrastructure projects should be considered.

Committee members all pointed out Ms. Nason’s strong transportation background and voiced support for her nomination. While a committee vote on the nomination could be soon, full Senate confirmation is expected to take some time due to a backlog of other nominations awaiting final approval. AGC has already developed a working relationship with Nason in her current position as an Assistant Secretary at the State Department, which is in charge of its embassy construction program.

For more information, contact Brian Deery at [email protected] or (703) 837-5319.