U.S. Senator John Thune (R-South Dakota), ranking member of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, today issued the following statement on the nomination of Dr. Mark R. Rosekind to serve as the administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA):

“After months of calling on the president to nominate an administrator to oversee motor vehicle safety laws, I'm pleased to hear that he has finally nominated someone. The administration has fallen short on its responsibility to the American people by leaving NHTSA without a Senate-confirmed leader for nearly a year. There is much to be done at NHTSA, and I look forward to sitting down with Dr. Rosekind to hear more about his plans to address the rising number of motor vehicle safety recalls.”

Thune has sent two letters to the Obama administration calling on the president to nominate a NHTSA director, the first on March 31, 2014 and the second on October 29, 2014.