Republican News

U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, today introduced the Aircraft Safety Improvement Act of 2020, which would improve aviation safety by codifying recommendations from a number of reviews and investigations related to the 737 MAX crashes. The legislation would mandate adoption of Safety Management Systems (SMS) for manufacturers, require the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to review its assumptions regarding pilot reaction time, and ensure a representative sample of pilots from around the world participate in flight testing. The bill would also reform the FAA’s certification processes to eliminate instances of undue

U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, today released the following statement after the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and SpaceX launched two astronauts from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on a flight to the International Space Station (ISS). NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley flew on SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft powered by a Falcon 9 rocket and will spend several weeks on the ISS before returning to Earth and landing in the Atlantic Ocean. The mission represents the return of human spaceflight to the United States.

U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, will convene a hearing titled, “The State of Transportation and Critical Infrastructure: Examining the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic,” at 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, June 3, 2020. The hearing will examine the impact of COVID-19 on surface transportation and the supply chain. Witnesses will discuss how the surface transportation stakeholders have responded to the pandemic and how they have continued to provide critical services during the COVID-19 outbreak.

U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, today introduced the Rural Infrastructure Advancement Act. The legislation would establish a Rural Assistance Pilot Program to help rural communities and localities better utilize and leverage existing U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) funding and financing opportunities.

U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, today released the following statement after the committee approved S. 2894, the Federal Maritime Commission National Shipper Advisory Committee Act of 2019. The legislation would establish a committee to advise the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) on policies related to the competitiveness, reliability, integrity, and fairness of the international ocean freight delivery system.

U.S. Sens. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., ranking member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, Deb Fischer, R-Neb., chairman of the Subcommittee on Transportation and Safety, John Thune, R-S.D., and Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., today released the following statements after the committee approved S. 3729, the Motor Carrier Safety Grant Relief Act of 2020. The legislation would provide states flexibility in spending Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) grant funds in light of COVID-19 impacts.

U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, today released the following statement after the committee approved eight bills, seven nominations, and Coast Guard promotions, which are now all subject to approval by the full Senate

U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, last week sent an open letter to the U.S. Coast Guard Academy congratulating the graduating Class of 2020. Today marks the commissioning of the largest and most diverse graduating class in the Academy’s history, representing cities in nearly every state in the country.

U.S. Sens. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., ranking member of the committee, introduced S. 3704, the Advanced Technological Manufacturing Act, to reauthorize and modernize the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Advanced Technological Education (ATE) program.

U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, will convene an executive session on Wednesday, May 20, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. in Dirksen Senate Office Building G50 to consider the following legislative measures, nominations, and Coast Guard promotions