The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee on Dec. 13 approved and sent to the Senate floor seven nominees for positions at the Department of Education and Department of Labor.
For the Labor Department, Kate O’Scannlain is nominated to serve as solicitor, Preston Rutledge is nominated to serve as assistant secretary for the Employee Benefits Security Administration, Scott Mugno is nominated to serve as assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health and Dr. William Beach is nominated to serve as commissioner of labor statistics.
The vote on Mugno by the HELP committee members was split along party lines, with all Republican senators voting to approve the nomination and all Democratic senators voting against his nomination.
For the Education Department, Brigadier General Mitchell Zais is nominated to serve as deputy secretary, James Blew is nominated to serve as assistant secretary for planning, evaluation and policy development, and Johnny Collett is nominated to serve as assistant secretary for special education and rehabilitative services.
HELP Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R, Tenn.) made these comments about the four nominees for the Department of Labor:
About Mugno: “Workplace safety is important to me. My father was a safety director at a plant in Alcoa, Tenn., and I could see his pride when the plant would go a long number of days without an accident. I trust that Mr. Mugno, as assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health, will work to keep our nation’s workers safe.”
About O’Scannlain: “At her confirmation hearing, Ms. O’Scannlain confirmed that one of her priorities would be ‘consistency in application of our laws.’ I welcome her confirmation and will work with her to make sure that guidance is guidance and laws are laws.”
About Rutledge: “In his role at the Department of Labor, Mr. Rutledge will be tasked with protecting the interests of Americans who participate in employee pensions and welfare benefit plans. I look forward to working with him in his efforts to protect American workers.”
About Beach: “Dr. Beach has a deep history and understanding of how data can show how our economy is performing. I look forward to voting to confirm him in the full senate to serve as commissioner of labor statistics.”
The full Senate is expected to vote on the nominations in the new year.
