New Transportation Commissioner for Minnesota

Congrats to Tom Sorel, Former FHWA Administrator, MN Division

By MIKE KASZUBA, Star Tribune (photo by Jeff Wheeler, Star Tribune)
April 21, 2008

Gov. Tim Pawlenty has named Tom Sorel, administrator of the Minnesota Division of the Federal Highway Administation, to be commissioner of the state Transportation Department. Sorel replaces Bob McFarlin, who had been acting commissioner since Lt. Gov. Carol Molnau was ousted from the position by the state Senate in February. She continues in her elected office.

The office Sorel has headed is responsible for the delivery of the Federal-aid Highway Program to state and local transportation agencies in Minnesota. The state Transportation Department (MnDOT) is the primary recipient of nearly all Federal-aid highway funds in Minnesota, but much of the funding is passed through to local agencies or other organizations throughout the state.

Sorel has led the Federal Highway Administration's Minnesota office since 2005 and has worked for the federal department for almost three decades. He served as the U.S. Transportation Department's liaison during the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City.

MnDOT came under heightened scrutiny after the Interstate 35W bridge collapse last summer. In March, a month after being named interim chief, having been a top aide to Molnau, McFarlin closed the aging DeSoto Bridge on Hwy. 23 in St. Cloud when bent connector plates were found during inspections. Earlier this month, the department announced that the bridge will be replaced, along with the troubled Hwy. 61 bridge in Hastings, with construction to start in 2010.

The safety of both bridges had been an issue of mounting concern after the Aug. 1 collapse of the I-35W bridge in Minneapolis. The decisions to replace the bridges have been seen in some quarters as a sign of increased urgency at the agency. The new commissioner is subject to Senate confirmation, but there's no requirement that a vote take place this year.

Sorel, who has been in Minnesota for three years, has built a low-key résumé. Though Sen. Steve Murphy, chairman of the state Senate Transportation Committee, said he had met Sorel only recently, Sorel received the Presidential Honor for leading the federal transportation response to the Interstate 35W bridge collapse.
Murphy, DFL-Red Wing, made no secret that he preferred McFarlin. But he said that he believed Sorel would be confirmed by the Senate, and that Sorel "had a very long and productive track record."

In announcing his decision, Pawlenty said he hoped McFarlin would remain with MnDOT and said he had spoken to Molnau about his choice. The governor acknowledged he did not know Sorel well before he became one of three finalists. "It was a very close call," Pawlenty said of his choice.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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