Jennifer L. Esposito Homendy (born November 26, 1971) is an American government official, currently serving as the 15th chair of the

National Transportation Safety Board The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and inci ...

(NTSB) since August 2021, having been a member of the NTSB since August 2018. Homendy worked in legislative advocacy for the

AFL–CIO The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) is a national trade union center that is the largest federation of unions in the United States. It is made up of 61 national and international unions, together r ...

and the

International Brotherhood of Teamsters The International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) is a labor union in the United States and Canada. Formed in 1903 by the merger of the Team Drivers International Union and the Teamsters National Union, the union now represents a diverse members ...

before joining the NTSB.

Early life and education

Homendy is a native of

Plainville, Connecticut Plainville is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of the Capitol Planning Region, Connecticut, Capitol Planning Region. The population was 17,525 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. History Plainv ...

. Homendy graduated from the Capital College of

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...

in a bachelor's degree in humanities in 1994. She received a Master of Transportation Safety Administration degree from

Clemson University Clemson University () is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university near Clemson, South Carolina, United States. - The blue-shaded pattern denotes university property. This shows Clemson University is ''out ...

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

Career

In 1996 and 1997, Homendy worked as a government relations manager at the

American Iron and Steel Institute The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) is a trade association of North American steel producers. Including its predecessor organizations, it is one of the oldest trade associations in the United States, dating back to 1855. It assumed its ...

. From 1997 to 1999, she was a legislative representative for the

Transportation Trades Department. From 1999 to 2004, she was a legislative representative for the

. From 2004 to 2018, she was a Democratic staff member for the United States House Transportation Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials. In 2018, she was appointed as a member of the

National Transportation Safety Board

Homendy has been a member of the

(NTSB) since 2018 and has been the chair of the NTSB since 2021. The United States Senate unanimously confirmed Homendy for another five-year term on May 14, 2024.

Trump administration

On April 11, 2018, President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

nominated Homendy to be a member of the NTSB and finish out a term expiring in 2019. The Senate Commerce Committee held hearings on Homendy's nomination on May 16, 2018. The committee favorably reported her nomination to the Senate floor on May 22, 2018. Homendy was confirmed by the entire Senate on July 24, 2018, via

voice vote In parliamentary procedure, a voice vote (from the Latin ''viva voce'', meaning "by live voice") or acclamation is a voting method in deliberative assemblies (such as legislatures) in which a group vote is taken on a topic or motion by respondin ...

. Homendy was renominated to the board to serve a full five-year term by President Trump on December 14, 2018. The Commerce Committee held hearings on her nomination on July 24, 2019. The entire Senate confirmed her to a full term by voice vote on August 9, 2019.

Biden administration

On May 19, 2021, President

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

nominated Homendy to serve as the chair of the NTSB. On June 24, 2021, the Senate Commerce Committee held hearings on the nomination. The committee favorably reported Homendy's nomination on August 4, 2021. The entire Senate confirmed her by voice vote on August 9, 2021.

Tesla criticism

Homendy has been critical of

Tesla, Inc. Tesla, Inc. ( or ) is an American multinational automotive and clean energy company. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, it designs, manufactures and sells battery electric vehicles (BEVs), stationary battery energy storage devices from h ...

's so-called Full Self-Driving feature. She called the term ''full self-driving'' "misleading and irresponsible", and urged Tesla to address safety issues identified by the NTSB before expanding Full Self-Driving features that operate on city streets. In August 2021, Homendy praised the

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA ) is an agency of the U.S. federal government, part of the Department of Transportation, focused on automobile safety regulations. NHTSA is charged with writing and enforcing Feder ...

's probe of Tesla collisions with emergency services vehicles. In response to a question regarding Homendy's comments, Tesla CEO

Elon Musk Elon Reeve Musk ( ; born June 28, 1971) is a businessman. He is known for his leadership of Tesla, SpaceX, X (formerly Twitter), and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Musk has been considered the wealthiest person in th ...

tweeted a link to Homendy's Wikipedia article, leading to a "number of attacks" on the content.

References

External links

Jennifer Homendy NTSB biography
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Homendy, Jennifer American women civil servants Biden administration personnel Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board First Trump administration personnel International Brotherhood of Teamsters people Living people Pennsylvania State University alumni People from Plainville, Connecticut Year of birth missing (living people)