Julie Lorenz is an American transportation executive who was the secretary of the

Kansas Department of Transportation The Kansas Department of Transportation (KSDOT) is a state government organization in charge of maintaining public roadways of the U.S. state of Kansas. Funding issues Since 2012, over $2 billion has been diverted from its coffers to the Kans ...

from 2019 to 2022.

Career

Lorenz worked at the engineering firm Burns & McDonnell in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City, Missouri, abbreviated KC or KCMO, is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri by List of cities in Missouri, population and area. The city lies within Jackson County, Missouri, Jackson, Clay County, Missouri, Clay, and Pl ...

. She was the director of public affairs and a special assistant to Lorenz was director of public affairs and special assistant to

(KDOT) secretary Deb miller. During this period, she was involved in the development of the $8 billion T-Works highway program, which began in 2010. Several projects under this program were later suspended due to funding issues. In 2018, she facilitated the

Kansas Legislature The Kansas Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kansas. It is a bicameral assembly, composed of the lower Kansas House of Representatives, with 125 state representatives, and the upper Kansas Senate, with 40 state sen ...

's transportation task force in 2018. In January 2019, Lorenz became interim secretary of KDOT. In March 2019, a

Kansas Senate The Kansas Senate is the upper house of the Kansas Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. State of Kansas. It is composed of 40 senators elected from single-member districts, each with a population of about 73,000 inhabitants. Members o ...

committee unanimously confirmed her appointment as secretary of transportation under governor

Laura Kelly Laura Jeanne Kelly (born January 24, 1950)"Laura Kelly,"
''Kansapedia,'' Kansas H ...

. As secretary, Lorenz worked on rebuilding the agency following budget reductions that affected the state's transportation programs. She advocated for stable funding and modernization efforts. Lorenz led KDOT through the launch of the Eisenhower Legacy Transportation Program (IKE), a 10-year infrastructure initiative that allocated at least $8 million to each of Kansas' 105 counties. She also oversaw KDOT's role in managing federal infrastructure funding, including allocations from the 2021

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL),H.R. 3684 is a United States federal statute enacted by the 117th United States Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden on Nov ...

. Lorenz resigned effective December 23, 2022, and returned to the private sector. She was succeeded by Calvin Reed. In 2024, Lorenz was appointed as a senior transportation advisor for KC2026, the local organizing committee responsible for planning Kansas City's role as a host city for the

2026 FIFA World Cup The 2026 FIFA World Cup, marketed as FIFA World Cup 26, will be the 23rd FIFA World Cup, the Anniversary#Latin-derived numerical names, quadrennial international men's Association football, soccer championship contested by the List of men's n ...

. In this role, she is involved in developing the transportation strategy required to support the event. She also serves as a principal consultant with Burns & McDonnell's 1898 & Co.

Personal life

Lorenz is from

Lenexa, Kansas Lenexa is a city in Johnson County, Kansas, United States, and part of the Kansas City metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 57,434. making it the ninth-most populated city in Kansas. It is bordered by the ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lorenz, Julie 21st-century American businesswomen 21st-century American women politicians 21st-century Kansas politicians American transportation businesspeople Businesspeople from Kansas Living people People from Lenexa, Kansas Place of birth missing (living people) State cabinet secretaries of Kansas Women in Kansas politics Year of birth missing (living people)