Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Gets Acting Administrator

Adrienne Camire has been appointed to lead the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration as acting administrator.

Deborah Lockridge・Editor and Associate Publisher

March 7, 2025

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Gets Acting Administrator — Adrienne Camire worked with the Federal Highway Administration during President Trump's first term.
Image: HDT Graphic

3 min to read

Adrienne Camire has been appointed to lead the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration as acting administrator.

Camire, who will be deputy administrator, previously served as chief counsel for the Federal Highway Administration during President Trump’s first term, where she oversaw legal services related to FHWA’s management of the federal-aid highway program.

Shortly after President Trump’s inauguration in January, she was named senior adviser to the administrator for FMCSA.

According to an announcement from the U.S. Department of Transportation, Camire has over 20 years of legal, regulatory and compliance experience within the private and academic sectors.

FMCSA’s Revolving Door of Leadership

The administrator position at FMCSA has been something of a revolving door for the past decade.

Jack Van Steenburg, who retired from a longtime career at the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, told attendees of Heavy Duty Trucking Exchange last fall that in his last two terms at the agency there were nine different administrators.

He explained that it takes about a year for an administrator to come in and get up to speed.

“When they’re out the door almost as soon as they get to a point where they understand what’s going on, it’s very difficult to get things done.”

Van Steenburg retired in 2023 after serving 15 years in the agency. He was the executive director and chief safety officer at the time of his retirement.

Last June, the Biden administration named Vinn White deputy administrator and acting administrator.

He replaced former Administrator Robin Hutcheson, who left FMCSA in January 2024 after two years. The agency was without a deputy administrator at the time, with the departure of Deputy Administrator Earl Adams Jr.

Hutcheson replaced deputy administrator Meera Joshi, who was acting administrator and had been nominated to head the agency, in late 2021 after Joshi announced she was leaving the administration to accept a position as a deputy mayor of New York City.

Joshi was the third acting chief of FMCSA since Ray Martinez stepped down in 2019, and one of several to have left the agency unexpectedly since it was formed more than 20 years ago.

More on FMCSA's New Leader

The DOT news release said that Camire would “lead FMCSA’s efforts to advance commercial motor vehicle safety, improve the efficiency of the nation’s freight and passenger transportation systems, and restore common sense principles to regulatory oversight.”

“I am honored to lead FMCSA in its mission to prevent commercial motor vehicle crashes, fatalities, and injuries on our nation’s roads,” Camire said in a statement. “I look forward to working closely with all stakeholders to advance our shared safety goals.”

Camire earned a B.A. in Economics and Political Science from Brandeis University and a J.D. from Suffolk University Law School.

Previous FMCSA Chiefs

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration was created by the Motor Carrier Safety Improvement Act of 1999. That law created the FMCSA within the Department of Transportation, giving truck and bus safety equal status in DOT with the other transportation modes. It wasn't until 2001 that the first administrator was confirmed.

2001: Joseph Clappconfirmed as first FMCSA administrator

2003: Annette Sandberg became the second administrator; she stepped down in 2006.

2006: John Hill was confirmed as FMCSA administrator.

2009: Anne Ferro was confirmed as the fourth administrator. She remained chief for five years, stepping down in 2014.

2016: T.F. Scott Darling III, who took over as acting administrator after Ferro in 2014, was finally confirmed as administrator.

2018: Ray Martinezbecame the sixth administrator, confirmed more than a year after Trump took office. He stepped down in October 2019 and the agency has only had acting chiefs since then.

2019: Jim Mullen stepped in as acting administrator after Martinez departure but left the next year.

2020: Wiley Deck assumed the role of deputy administrator and acted as the agency chief.

2021: Meera Joshi was named deputy administrator (the third since Martinez’ departure) and was nominated for administrator.

2022: Robin Hutchesonwas confirmed as administrator in September 2022 after serving as deputy and acting administrator of the FMCSA since January, when she replaced the departing deputy/acting administrator, Meera Joshi. Hutcheson was the seventh person to officially hold the position of FMCSA administrator.

2024: Vinn Whitewas named deputy administrator and acting administrator.

Topics:FMCSA Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Safety & Compliance