Jacob Ogles
It looks like U.S. Sen. Rick Scott will have a greater say on a number of science, security and 21st-century commerce issues in the Senate.
U.S. Sens. Roger Wicker and Maria Cantwell, the chair and ranking member for the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, announced subcommittee assignments on Friday.
The Florida Republican, the Senate’s most junior member, will sit on four subcommittees: Communications, Technology, Innovation and the Internet; Science, Oceans, Fisheries and Weather; Security; and Transportation and Safety.
“Sen. Rick Scott is proud to serve on the following subcommittees of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation,” reads a release from Scott’s office, “where he will fight for priorities most important to Florida families, including transportation and infrastructure, safety and security and preserving Florida’s natural resources.”
The communications subcommittee will focus on telecommunications law, covering telephones, cellphones, internet, television, cable, satellite broadcast, broadband, radio, consumer electronic equipment and public safety communications.
The science subcommittee handles oversight of science, technology, engineering and math research, development and policy standards and measurement and matters that impact oceans and coasts.
The security subcommittee deals with U.S. Coast Guard, Maritime Administration and merchant marine issues, as well as the Transportation Security Administration, cybersecurity, drone security and digital network security.
The transportation subcommittee holds jurisdiction over interstate transportation policy issues, including broad oversight over the Department of Transportation, Motor Carrier Safety Administration, Railroad Administration, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, National Transportation Safety Board, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Surface Transportation Board.
Scott, a former two-term governor of Florida, narrowly defeated Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson in the 2018 midterms.
As in his two runs for governor, the multimillionaire Scott stressed his private sector success and a record of job creation. His “Let’s Get To Work” motto underpinned his political identity as one focused on commerce.
He also comes into office after heavy criticism of his environmental record and a year with record red tide blooms and blue-green algae problems in South Florida.
