Biden Nominates 5 to Amtrak Board

The Biden administration has nominated five people to serve on Amtrak’s board of directors.

The nominations are subject to approval by the U.S. Senate. All of the current terms on the passenger carrier’s board have expired.

Among the nominees is current board chairman Anthony Coscia and former board nominee Christopher Koos.

Koos is the mayor of Normal, Illinois, which is served by Amtrak’s Texas Eagle and Lincoln Service trains. He was nominated in 2020 but the appointment was never acted upon by the Senate.

Coscia has served on the board since 2010 and became chairman in 2013.

Other nominees include David Capozzi, former executive director of the U.S. Access Board and former national advocacy director for the Paralyzed Veterans of America; Samuel Lathem, retired Delaware State AFL-CIO president and a former autoworker active in a number of civic organizations; and Robin Wiessmann, executive director and chief executive of the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency.

By law Amtrak’s governing board is allocated 10 positions. Also serving on the board are U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg and Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner. Senate Republicans can select the other three nominees.

The board is required to include at least two members each from Northeast Corridor, and areas with state-supported routes, and long-distance routes.

Of the five Biden nominees, only Koos resides outside the Northeast. The remainder live in the Mid-Atlantic region.

Tags: Amtrak, Amtrak board of directors, Biden administration