Dive Brief:
- Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administrator Robin Hutcheson, the trucking industry’s chief regulator, will resign from her role, the agency said in a statement Friday.
- No reason was provided for Hutcheson’s departure, which is effective Jan. 26. As administrator, she prioritized safety, equity and technology, she said at an American Trucking Associations conference in 2022.
- FMCSA Executive Director and Chief Safety Officer Sue Lawless will serve as acting deputy administrator and lead the agency, according to the statement. Lawless was promoted in September to succeed Jack Van Steenburg.
Dive Insight:
Hutcheson was the seventh permanent administrator to lead the agency since its creation in 2000. Her departure is another in a series of exits from the FMCSA’s top ranks.
Van Steenburg, former chief safety officer, retired last year. Former Deputy Administrator Earl Adams Jr. left in December for a job in the private sector. Director of External Affairs Kala Wright is leaving with Hutcheson, moving to the office of the Secretary of Transportation later this month.
“As FMCSA Administrator, Hutcheson focused on the safety of commercial motor vehicle drivers to improve safety outcomes and strengthen the supply chain,” the agency said in its statement.
Hutcheson’s Senate confirmation in September 2022 ended a yearslong void in which the FMCSA had three acting administrators but no permanent executive.
The turnover comes as the trucking industry awaits rulings from the agency on speed limiters, side underride guards, automatic emergency braking and other issues.
David Taube contributed to this story.
