August 5, 2003

Annette M. Sandberg today was sworn in as the new Administrator of the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). President Bush nominated Sandberg in March and the Senate confirmed her on July 31.

Annette brings a wealth of experience in transportation management to the top position in FMCSA, said Secretary Mineta. "She has shown leadership in dealing with key issues within the department and is an especially able champion of our goal to improve truck and bus safety.

Secretary Mineta appointed Sandberg as Deputy Administrator of the FMCSA in November 2002. She had been serving as Acting Administrator of the FMCSA since December 2002. With her swearing in, Sandberg is now the nation's top motor carrier and bus safety official. She is the second Administrator of the FMCSA. The FMCSA was established on Jan. 1, 2000, to improve truck and bus safety.

It's an honor and a pleasure to be the FMCSA's Administrator, said Sandberg. As Administrator, I will work to ensure that FMCSA continues to meet its goal of reducing commercial vehicle-related fatalities and injuries.

Before joining the FMCSA, Sandberg was the Deputy Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Earlier, she was an attorney with the Maple Valley Law Group, representing employers in labor and employment issues. Before her law career, she held law enforcement, supervisory, and administrative posts with the Washington State Patrol, where she became the first woman in the country to lead a state police agency. She served as Chief of the Washington State Patrol for six years.

Recognized by different groups for her work, Sandberg received the National Public Service Award from the American Society for Public Administration and the National Academy of Public Administration in 1999. Women in Communications, Inc., named Sandberg "Woman of Achievement" in 1996.

Sandberg was the vice president and executive board officer of the Washington State Patrol Troopers Association and has served on national panels concerning ethnicity and race-relations issues in law enforcement.

Sandberg has a bachelor's degree from Central Washington University. She received her law degree from the University of Puget Sound School of Law in 1993 and graduated magna cum laude from the City University, Bellevue, WA, with a master of business administration degree in 1996. Additionally, she attended Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government and the FBI's National Executive Institute.

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