The Senate confirmed Raymond Martinez as Administrator of the FMCSA late Tuesday, reports confirm.
Martinez was nominated in September by President Donald Trump, and testified before a panel of Senators in October. During his testimony, Martinez said he intends to uphold the agency’s electronic logging device mandate and institute data-driven reforms to the agency’s regulatory process and, specifically, the oft-criticized Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) program.
“We need to be using sound science,” he said then. “The key thing is whether the data we use to compile these assessments are accurate, reliable and fair. If the data is unreliable, we lose credibility with stakeholders and the entities we regulate. And we do a disservice to the public.”
Martinez succeeds Scott Darling, who ran the agency in the final two years of President Obama’s term. Darling’s term ended when Trump assumed office, and FMCSA Deputy Administrator Daphne Jefferson has headed the agency on an interim basis since last January.