The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee late last week endorsed Annette Sandberg as head of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

Sandberg, former head of the Washington State Patrol, has been the FMCSA’s acting administrator since December.
Sandberg was deputy administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Before that, she served as chief of the Washington State Patrol for six years, leading an agency with a biennial budget of $321 million and more than 2,200 employees. When appointed to the position in 1995, she was the first woman in the country to lead a state police agency.
She has more than 17 years experience in a variety of law enforcement, supervisory and administrative posts with the Washington State Patrol. In November of 2002, President Bush appointed Sandberg as deputy administrator of FMCSA.
The agency is charged with improving truck and bus safety on the nation's highways. FMCSA has offices in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, and its goal is to reduce truck-related fatalities by 50% by the year 2010.
The Senate committee approved her nomination for the $140,000-a-year post on a voice vote.
The full Senate still must approve Sandberg’s nomination.