The U.S. Senate confirmed Sean McMaster (above) as administrator of the Federal Highway Administration by an “en bloc” vote on September 18 of 51 to 47.
[Above photo by the FHWA]
The en bloc vote also confirmed Jonathan Morrison as administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and Paul Roberti as administrator of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.
The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee originally approved McMaster’s nomination, along with two other federal agency leadership nominees – John Busterud to be assistant administrator for the Office of Solid Waste of the Environmental Protection Agency and Adam Telle to be assistant secretary of the U.S. Army for Civil Works – and forwarded them for a full Senate vote back in June.
McMaster – a former executive with the Boeing aerospace company and also a former vice president with infrastructure consulting firm HNTB – stressed in his confirmation hearing in May that safety would be his top priority at FHWA as he seeks to guide the agency in its mission to build and restore roads, bridges, and tunnels across the nation.
“As the transportation industry is painfully aware, delays in project delivery can delay safety enhancements and drive up project costs,” he said. “Data from FHWA’s National Highway Construction Cost Index shows that transportation construction costs have increased from 1.91 in March 2021 to 3.19 in March 2024; a 67 percent increase.”
McMaster – who previously worked as deputy chief of staff at the U.S. Department of Transportation and has been currently serving as senior advisor to USDOT Secretary Sean Duffy, focusing on the administration’s surface transportation funding reauthorization efforts – noted that he witnessed “first-hand the impacts to cost, schedule, and delivery of essential infrastructure projects during my time at HNTB working directly with state and local leaders as they were challenged to identify and attain federal funding in time to support their critical transportation infrastructure needs.”
That is why he believes “it is essential that we build projects more quickly and efficiently.”
In addition to that work, McMaster said FHWA must also look forward as the current surface transportation funding authorization, contained within the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act or IIJA of 2021, is set to expire at the end of September 2026.
“Surface reauthorization is vital for maintaining and enhancing the safety of our nation’s roads, bridges, and tunnels,” he stressed during his confirmation hearing. “It provides U.S. transportation infrastructure with policy direction and consistent multi-year funding. While I served as deputy chief of staff at USDOT, I was fortunate to lead the development of its surface reauthorization proposal that included FHWA. Through this work I met with key stakeholders of FHWA to understand the needs and impacts of the reauthorization on our states and local communities.”
Jim Tymon, executive director of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, welcomed McMaster’s confirmation as FHWA administrator, noting that he “carries the experience and the resolve” to finalize reauthorization of federal surface transportation funding.
“Sean’s previous roles have equipped him with extensive experience as well as a solid understanding of FHWA’s crucial partnership with state departments of transportation,” Tymon noted in a statement. “This long-standing federal-state partnership – supported by stable, formula-based funding to state DOTs – remains key to achieving the safety, mobility, and innovation goals of the U.S. Department of Transportation. With Sean’s leadership at FHWA, AASHTO and its members look forward to building upon that partnership and working together to strengthen communities across the country and our economy for decades to come.”
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