DOT Secretary nominee Elaine Chao to testify before Senate, cites infrastructure as key DOT concern

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Updated Jan 9, 2017
Elaine Chao, nominee to head the U.S. DOT by President-elect Donald Trump, will appear before the Senate’s Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee next week.Elaine Chao, nominee to head the U.S. DOT by President-elect Donald Trump, will appear before the Senate’s Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee next week.

Elaine Chao, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to run the U.S. Department of Transportation, will appear before a Senate committee next week as part of the nomination and confirmation process for Trump’s incoming administration.

The Senate’s Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation will hold a nomination hearing Jan. 11 to question Chao prior to voting on her confirmation.

Trump named Chao as his pick for Secretary of Transportation in late November. She was Secretary of Labor during the entirety of President George W. Bush’s presidency, 2001-2009.

In a questionnaire given to Chao by the Senate ahead of her hearing, Chao says the top priorities for her DOT will be infrastructure repairs and expansions, bridging the disparities between urban and rural transportation and “good stewardship on behalf of the American people.”

“This means effective enforcement of safety measures; getting the most benefit from the Department’s expenditures, including strengthening its planning and acquisition practices; and preparing for the future by considering new technologies in our infrastructure,” Chao wrote.

The hearing will be held at 10:15 a.m. Eastern time in Room 253 of the Senate’s Russell Building.