Gautreaux begins tenure as FMCSA's deputy administrator

Cathy Gautreaux is now deputy administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. She comes to the agency after 32 years at the Louisiana Motor Tr

Neil Abt

Nov. 27, 2017

2 min read

dot-building — The Federal Highway Administration has 2,900 employees and an annual budget of $44 billion. *(Photo: DOT)*

Cathy Gautreaux has officially started her tenure as deputy administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA).

Gautreaux spent 32 years at the Louisiana Motor Transport Association (LMTA), including 29 years as executive director. Her official leadership biography was added to the FMCSA web site on Nov. 22.

She replaces Daphne Jefferson, who retired on Nov. 3. Gautreaux, who was asked to join FMCSA by President Trump and Department of Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, is currently the agency’s highest-ranking official.

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Trump has nominated Raymond Martinez to head the agency, but he has not yet been confirmed by the full U.S. Senate.

According to FMCSA, Gautreaux “is principally responsible for overseeing FMCSA’s day-to-day operational programs and activities, which are performed by more than 1,100 employees located in its Washington, D.C., headquarters, four regional service centers, 52 divisional offices and 31 field units.”

Gautreaux graduated from Louisiana State University with a degree in criminal justice, and “is committed to keeping our nation’s transportation-dependent economy vibrant and strong while ensuring that our highways and roads remain the safest anywhere in the world,” FMCSA said.

She has already chimed in on the electronic logging device mandate, saying in a recent statement that FMCSA “will continue to take steps to ease the transition to the full implementation of the ELD rule.”