Raymond Martinez’s appointment as Administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration was confirmed by a Senate voice vote late on Feb. 13.

His nomination had been reported favorably on Nov. 11 by the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation for consideration by the full Senate.

During his Oct. 31 confirmation hearing, Martinez drew no opposition from senators on the committee during their questioning. At that time, he voiced his support for upholding the electronic logging device rule, which kicked in on Dec. 18. He said that as FMCSA chief, he would “first and foremost abide by the [ELD] law, but also have an open door policy and work with all the impacted stakeholders.” 

Most recently, Martinez served as Chief Administrator of the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission. He has also previously served as the New York State Commissioner of Motor Vehicles and Chairman of the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee as well as Deputy Chief of Staff and Special Counsel to the New York State Attorney General.

He has twice served on the board of directors of the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators. He has also served as Deputy United States Chief of Protocol at the Department of State, Deputy Director of Scheduling and Advance for the First Lady, and as a Special Assistant at the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Martinez holds a J.D. from St. John’s University School of Law in New York and a B.A. from Long Island University’s C.W. Post College, where he later served on the adjunct faculty in Public Administration.

Related: FMCSA Nominee Martinez Committed to ELD Rule