Mary Phillips, the former chief of legislative affairs for American Trucking Associations, has been named to a top post on a key transportation subcommittee in the House.

Phillips will serve as the senior professional staff member of the Subcommittee on Highways and Transit, said Rep. Bill Shuster, R-Pa., chairman of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

Phillips worked twice for ATA on Capitol Hill. In her second stint she served three years as senior vice president for legislative affairs, stepping down in January 2013. She was in charge of the ATA lobbying office during passage of the 2012 highway bill, MAP-21, and was involved in the rulemaking that produced the electronic logging mandate now pendingat the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

“Mary is an experienced, knowledgeable addition to the Committee staff,” Shuster said in a statement.  “She is well-versed in the many issues that we will be working to address in the next surface transportation reauthorization bill, and I am excited to have her join our team.” 

Phillips has worked in Congress before – she was a senior staffer on the Senate Commerce Committee – and served in a top policy position at the Federal Highway Administration. She has a master’s degree in business administration from Cornell University.