Ask the Senate to Confirm the Amtrak Board Nominees

On December 12, the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation advanced the nominations of David Capozzi, Ronald Batory, Elaine Clegg, and Lanhee Chen to be a directors on Amtrak Board of Directors on a bipartisan basis. The four nominees still need to be approved by the full Senate before the expiration of the current Congress or their nominations will expire. With the blessing of the Commerce Committee, the vote itself is a formality. However, it’s unclear how the looming shutdown will affect limited floor time.

These nominees would bring a wealth of rail and transit industry experience, while also representing parts of the country that currently lack a voice on the Amtrak Board. The failure to advance four qualified nominees because of an unrelated political fracas— particularly one which is ultimately unlikely produce little tangible difference—would be a bitter pill to swallow for the passenger rail advocates who have been working hard to introduce new blood and new perspectives onto the Board.

Use the form below to get your Senator's number to call and simply say “please vote to confirm the four Amtrak Board nominees before the end of the year.”