When the 113th Congress commenced last month, Rep. Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) was officially confirmed as chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I) Committee. One of the largest committees in Congress, T&I currently has jurisdiction over all modes of transportation: aviation, maritime and waterborne transportation, roads, mass transit and railroads.

The committee also oversees clean water and waste water management, transport of resources by pipeline, flood damage reduction, economic development of depressed rural and urban areas, disaster preparedness and response, activities of the Army Corps of Engineers and the various missions of the Coast Guard.

Shuster has served on the full committee since coming to Congress in 2001. He previously served as chairman of the subcommittee on railroads, pipelines and hazardous materials and as chairman of the subcommittee on economic development, public buildings and emergency management.

House majority leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) said of Shuster’s chairmanship, “In Bill Shuster, House Republicans have selected a strong conservative leader with a record of reform and a proven commitment to strengthening our nation’s infrastructure.”

The House Republican Conference selected Shuster as the new T&I chairman on November 28, and he lost little time in getting the committee organized. Last month he named Rep. Frank LoBiondo (R-N.J.) chairman of the panel’s aviation subcommittee.

LoBiondo has been a member of the aviation subcommittee since 1997, and his district includes the FAA Tech Center, the Transportation Security Administration Security Lab, the Federal Air Marshal training facility and Atlantic City International Airport.

Some of the issues and agencies under the aviation subcommittee include civil aviation policy; aviation labor; aviation commerce, safety and security; unmanned aircraft systems; and the majority of FAA programs.