01.31.17

Hoeven Statement on Senate Confirmation of Elaine Chao as U.S. Secretary of Transportation

WASHINGTON – Senator John Hoeven today issued the following statement in response to Senate confirmation of Elaine Chao as Secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation:

“Our state is large and our transportation infrastructure is critical to our economic success and public safety. In past years, we have worked closely with the U.S. Secretary of Transportation to advance North Dakota priorities. These include securing strong funding for North Dakota in the highway bill, building new airports in Minot and Williston and working with the Federal Aviation Administration to pass my legislation creating six test sites designed to integrate unmanned aerial systems into the National Airspace. Grand Forks Air Force Base was selected as one the six in 2013.

“I look forward to working with Secretary Chao on all of these ongoing issues as well as new ones, like helping to pass our Move America Act, bipartisan legislation I’ve introduced with Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon that would expand tax-exempt private activity bonds and create a new infrastructure tax credit. These will save taxpayer dollars and give states the flexibility to pursue badly-needed infrastructure projects across the country. Secretary Chao has the right experience and the right approach to help us rebuild our nation’s infrastructure using innovative and cost-effective new ideas like the Move America Act.”

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