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With Democrats taking control of the House of Representatives and the former chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee headed to retirement, all eyes are on Oregon Rep. Peter DeFazio as he heads toward his presumed appointment to the panel’s chairmanship.

The country’s struggle to identify an ideal funding strategy for transportation projects has brought to the fore two men who, until now, had little in common. A look at the week ahead for trucking on Capitol Hill.

To help Oregon fix freight corridors and surface infrastructure damaged by natural disasters, the U.S. Department of Transportation awarded the state $2.6 million, Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) said this week.

Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) introduced a transportation infrastructure bill on March 22 that he said will increase the gasoline and diesel tax by about a penny to provide about $500 billion in funding to rebuild U.S. roads, bridges and transit systems.

Rep. Peter DeFazio of Oregon, elected Nov. 19 as the House Democrats’ top transportation leader in the next Congress, told Transport Topics this week he is hopeful about Congress’ chances of advancing a long-term highway bill before the current law expires in May.

Oregon Democrat Peter DeFazio will look to take over as the ranking member on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee in the next Congress, a senior House aide told Transport Topics.