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Senate Transportation confirms three agency leaders, moves a slate of transportation sign board appointees
Summary
The Senate Transportation committee approved confirmations for the DMV commissioner, the public safety commissioner and the Agency of Transportation secretary and voted to appoint multiple members to the state's transportation sign/visibility board; roll calls recorded unanimous votes where called.
The Senate Transportation committee confirmed three state appointments and approved multiple members for the transportation sign board during a meeting with no date specified in the transcript.
The confirmed nominees were Andrew Culler as commissioner of the Department of Motor Vehicles, Jennifer Morrison as commissioner of Public Safety, and Joe Flynn as secretary of the Agency of Transportation. Committee roll calls recorded unanimous recorded tallies for the confirmations where the counts were stated as 5–0 (yes–no). The committee also approved a group of appointees to the transportation sign board, including Marilyn Miller, Tim Hudbar, Mandy Shatney, Elizabeth Bennett, David Atherton, Richard Cleveland and Francis Hill of Rutland, by a single roll call vote reported as 5–0.
The confirmations place top leadership in agencies that oversee vehicle registration, public safety, and statewide transportation operations. The committee used standard roll-call procedures for each nomination; a motion and a second were recorded for the Joe Flynn nomination and for the group appointment, and senators named on the record voted "yes" during the roll calls that were called aloud.
Committee discussion about the sign board centered on the board's ongoing role in regulating and advising on signage along state roadways. A prospective appointee, Elizabeth Bennett, described the board as one that "maintains the aesthetic integrity of Vermont's roadways," and officials noted the board enforces the state's billboard law. Bennett and other potential witnesses offered to brief the committee on vehicle-mounted or moving billboards if the committee wanted to pursue the issue further.
A committee member also suggested adding Amtrak service notations to highway exit signage, saying similar signs appear in Massachusetts and could help travelers find rail service; committee members indicated that the sign council or sign board procedures would be the path for such changes.
Votes at a glance: - Confirmation: Andrew Culler, commissioner, Department of Motor Vehicles (term described in the transcript as "from 03/01/2025 to February 20 eighth of 27"). Outcome: approved. Recorded tally: 5 yes, 0 no, 0 abstain. - Confirmation: Jennifer Morrison, commissioner of Public Safety. Outcome: approved. Recorded tally: 5 yes, 0 no, 0 abstain. - Confirmation: Joe Flynn, secretary, Agency of Transportation. Outcome: approved. Recorded tally: 5 yes, 0 no, 0 abstain. - Appointments: Marilyn Miller; Tim Hudbar; Mandy Shatney; Elizabeth Bennett; David Atherton; Richard Cleveland; Francis Hill (Rutland) to the transportation sign board. Outcome: approved as a group. Recorded tally: 5 yes, 0 no, 0 abstain.
Committee process and next steps recorded in the meeting included standard clerk-office procedures for documenting appointments; senators also discussed arranging briefings or testimony from sign board members on billboard issues and vehicle-mounted signage. The transcript shows senators calling roll and announcing votes for each item; no formal opposition or recorded no votes appeared in the provided transcript excerpts.
