WASHINGTON — A top action item on transportation secretary nominee Sean Duffy’s to-do list – if confirmed – is to visit storm-ravaged I-40 in Tennessee and North Carolina and prioritize rebuilding it.
“We need to know that this is going to be front and center with you so that we can get that interstate rebuilt and reopened,” U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., told Duffy at his confirmation hearing Wednesday.
“If I’m confirmed, the first trip I would like to make is … to see the devastation and destruction and the need to rebuild your states,” Duffy told Blackburn.
Duffy, a former U.S. congressman and Fox News host, was nominated to head the U.S. Department of Transportation by President-elect Donald Trump in November.
Sen. Ted Budd, R-N.C., told Duffy that 25 counties in western North Carolina suffered road damage from Hurricane Helene.
“The big problem right now seems to be delays,” Budd said, asking Duffy how he plans to speed the rebuilding process.
“I think it’s going to take time to streamline the process, but this is an emergency,” Duffy responded. “I’ll commit to you that I’ll do everything in the power of the department to move the process forward as quickly as possible.”
DOT last week released $320 million in emergency funds to repair I-40 and I-26 in North Carolina and Tennessee, which are vital truck routes for the region.
Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind., received assurances from Duffy that the department would reinvigorate an apprenticeship program allowing truck drivers under 21 to haul freight across state lines.
The program was included in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law signed by President Joe Biden in 2021 but included restrictions on participation that were ultimately lifted in an appropriations bill passed earlier this year, due to poor participation in the program.
“Will you review how the Biden administration screwed up the implementation, and potentially try to fix this bipartisan effort, and if it can’t be fixed administratively, might you work with me to improve the language?” Young asked.
“I will commit to report on where the department is on this, and make sure what Congress has passed is fairly and rightfully implemented,” Duffy said.
Duffy also committed to rolling out long-awaited autonomous vehicle regulations that would provide more clarity and consistency for technology developers.
“Right now we have a patchwork of laws from state to state. I believe there has to be a federal law by which all of these innovators can abide by – no matter if they’re in Texas or California or somewhere else,” Duffy said at the hearing.
“After safety, which is key, we want to provide a wide runway for these companies and innovators to create products that are going to bring us this new technology that will revolutionize the way we get items or how we travel.”
At the same time, Duffy gave assurances that the Biden administration’s policy on electric vehicles would be getting close scrutiny under his DOT.
“We shouldn’t be forced to buy cars that Washington wants, we should buy cars that we want,” he said, suggesting that the Biden administration’s aggressive zero-emissions timelines are a de facto mandate on electric vehicles.
“I think there’s room in this space for both EVs and gas-powered vehicles. … I want to see a robust marketplace.”
Jones Act, Boeing oversight, rail safety recognized
Unlike some of President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet nominees, Duffy is not considered to be controversial and is expected to move easily through the nomination process.
During the hearing, he also voiced support for the Jones Act, which requires the use of U.S.-built, -crewed and -owned vessels to move cargo between two U.S. points, as well as rail regulations requiring two-man crews in locomotives, and keeping pressure on the Federal Aviation Administration’s oversight of Boeing (NYSE: BA).
Asked by Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, about long-delayed offshore energy permits under the Biden administration, Duffy committed to directing the U.S. Maritime Administration to issue licenses for deepwater oil export facilities along the Gulf Coast.
“I understand from you and the president how important American energy independence is and how important these permits are to making sure that happens.”
