U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio (D-17) has been appointed to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee for the remainder of the current session of Congress.
Deluzio thanked House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) for electing him to the committee where there was a vacancy following the death of New Jersey State Senator Donald Payne in April.
“I didn’t expect to spend so much of my first term in Congress fighting for our safety against the big railroads as they did in the 19th century, but I am determined to continue that fight and make freight rail safer for us.” Deluzio said in a speech on Tuesday. “Membership on this committee provides me with more opportunities to fight not only for rail safety, but also for Western PA’s top priorities, such as better passenger rail, stronger and more resilient infrastructure such as water and flood management systems, airports, highways, bridges, public transportation, locks and dams and more.”
The issue of transportation and infrastructure became a major topic of discussion in Pennsylvania’s Western Deluzio Congressional District in February 2023 when a Norfolk Southern train carrying hazardous chemicals derailed just outside his district’s border in East Palestine, Ohio. Residents of Beaver County in the Deluzio District were affected by the derailment and aftermath, and Deluzio joined other elected officials in the region in their goal of holding Norfolk Southern accountable.
After the train derailment, Deluzio and U.S. Rep. Nick LaLota (R-NY) introduced regulations in March 2023 aimed at making America’s railroads safer, tightening regulations and increasing penalties for railroads, known as the Railroad Safety Act. American sense. Bob Casey (Pennsylvania) and John Fetterman (Pennsylvania) signed the Senate version of this proposal.
At the end of May Norfolk Southern agreed to a $310 million settlement with the federal government regarding costs related to the train derailment.
Deluzio joins U.S. Rep. Scott Perry (R-10th District) as the only members of the state’s congressional delegation to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee committee.
Deluzio, first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2022, is scheduled to face state Rep. Rob Mercuri (R-Allegheny) in November. Cook Political Reporta national ratings site, rates the race as “leaning toward Democrats.”
