Washington– Today, Congressman Bill Shuster was selected by the House Republican Conference to be the next Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Shuster made the following statement after the announcement of his selection:

“It is a great honor to be selected by my colleagues to serve as Chairman of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and I thank them for the confidence they have placed in me.”

“Transportation issues are among the most critical that we face in Congress and as a nation. Our transportation infrastructure is the backbone that supports economic growth and global competiveness. Working together in the 113^th Congress, the Committee will focus on strengthening America’s transportation networks to make us more efficient, more competitive, and more prosperous.”

“I look forward to continuing to work to reform programs, focus our resources where they are needed most, restore regulatory balance, and better manage our federal assets.”

Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-OH) said, “Bill Shuster is an experienced and well respected member of our Conference and as the incoming Chairman of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee his leadership will be critical to our important work next Congress.”

Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) added, "In Bill Shuster, House Republicans have selected a strong conservative leader with a record of reform and a proven commitment to strengthening our nation's infrastructure."

Shuster has served on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee since coming to Congress in 2001.  He has previously served as Chairman of the Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials and as Chairman of the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management. Shuster will be “Chairman-elect” until the start of the 113^th Congress in January.

About the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee

One of the largest committees in Congress, the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee currently has jurisdiction over all modes of transportation: aviation, maritime and waterborne transportation, roads, mass transit, and railroads. The Committee also has jurisdiction over other aspects of our national infrastructure, including clean water and waste water management, the transport of resources by pipeline, flood damage reduction, the economic development of depressed rural and urban areas, disaster preparedness and response, activities of the Army Corps of Engineers, and the various missions of the Coast Guard. 

Ever since the first Congress authorized a lighthouse on Cape Henry, Virginia as an aid to ships sailing through Hampton Roads, the Congress of the United States has been involved in providing for the nation’s transportation infrastructure.  In the more than two hundred years since the Cape Henry Lighthouse first shown out across the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, the Committees of the House of Representatives responsible for public works and infrastructure have changed names and grown in scope.  However, the mission remains essentially the same: providing a strong backbone upon which the nation’s people and commerce can flourish.

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