Biden Administration Names Lessley as MARAD Deputy Administrator

Lucinda Lessley has been named Deputy Administrator of the U.S. Maritime Administration (MARAD), the Biden Administration announced Thursday among a number of key appointments to its Department of Transportation (DOT) leadership team.

Lessley will lead MARAD until an Administrator is nominated by the Biden Administration and confirmed by the Senate. 

She takes over from Doug Burnett, MARAD's Chief Counsel, who had been serving as Acting Administrator following Mark Buzby's resignation in the wake of the Capitol intrusion earlier this month. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao also stepped down in response to the violent events. 

Lessley was most recently a senior investigator for the House Committee on Homeland Security and was previously a policy director for the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform as well as a legislative director for the office of Rep. Elijah E. Cummings. From 2007 to 2010, she served as a professional staff member on the Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation on the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.

The Biden Administration also announced that Lana Hurdle, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Budget & Programs, will serve as Acting Secretary of Transportation until Secretary-Designate Buttigieg is confirmed.

"This group will help U.S. DOT civil servants already hard at work on behalf of the American people advance President Biden’s agenda to build our country back better," the Biden Administrtation said in a statement announcing more than 40 initial appointees. "With the safety of the traveling public and America’s workers at the center of its mission, the team will work toward economic recovery, racial equity, and combating climate change."

"This experienced team looks forward to getting right to work on behalf of the American people to deliver on policies and projects that will create jobs, equitably serve all Americans, and meet the climate crisis," said Carlos Monje Jr., Senior Advisor to the Secretary and acting Chief of Staff. "President Biden has been clear: stronger infrastructure is a key to building our country back better than it was before."