United States Department of Transportation - wikipedia United States Department of Transportation `` USDOT '' redirects here. For U.S. Treasury Department, see United States Department of the Treasury. Seal of the United States Department of Transportation Flag of the United States Department of Transportation Headquarters of the U.S. Department of Transportation Department overview Formed April 1, 1967 ; 50 years ago ( 1967 - 04 - 01 ) Jurisdiction United States of America Headquarters 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, D.C. 38 ° 52 ′ 32.92 '' N 77 ° 0 ′ 10.26 '' W ﻿ / ﻿ 38.8758111 ° N 77.0028500 ° W ﻿ / 38.8758111 ; - 77.0028500 Coordinates : 38 ° 52 ′ 32.92 '' N 77 ° 0 ′ 10.26 '' W ﻿ / ﻿ 38.8758111 ° N 77.0028500 ° W ﻿ / 38.8758111 ; - 77.0028500 Employees 58,622 Annual budget $77.2 billion USD ( FY2014 ) Department executives Elaine Chao, Secretary Jeffrey A. Rosen, Deputy Secretary Joan DeBoer, Chief of Staff Kathryn B. Thomson, General Counsel Nitin Pradhan, CIO Chris Bertram, CFO Blair Anderson, Under Secretary for Policy Child agencies Federal Aviation Administration Federal Highway Administration Federal Railroad Administration Federal Transit Administration Maritime Administration Additional agencies Website www.transportation.gov The seal of the U.S. Department of Transportation prior to 1980. The flag of the U.S. Department of Transportation prior to 1980. The United States Department of Transportation ( USDOT or DOT ) is a federal Cabinet department of the U.S. government concerned with transportation. It was established by an act of Congress on October 15, 1966, and began operation on April 1, 1967. It is governed by the United States Secretary of Transportation. Its mission is to `` Serve the United States by ensuring a fast, safe, efficient, accessible, and convenient transportation system that meets our vital national interests and enhances the quality of life of the American people, today and into the future. '' Contents 1 History 2 Administrations 3 Former Administrations 4 Budget 5 Related legislation 6 Freedom of Information Act processing performance 7 See also 8 Notes and references 9 External links History Prior to the Department of Transportation, the Under Secretary of Commerce for Transportation administered the functions now associated with the DOT. In 1965, Najeeb Halaby, administrator of the Federal Aviation Agency -- the future Federal Aviation Administration ( FAA ) -- suggested to U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson that transportation be elevated to a cabinet - level post, and that the FAA be folded into the DOT. Administrations Federal Aviation Administration ( FAA ) Federal Highway Administration ( FHWA ) Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration ( FMCSA ) Federal Railroad Administration ( FRA ) Federal Transit Administration ( FTA ) Maritime Administration ( MARAD ) National Highway Traffic Safety Administration ( NHTSA ) Office of Inspector General ( OIG ) Office of the Secretary of Transportation ( OST ) Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration ( PHMSA ) Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation ( SLSDC ) Former Administrations Transportation Security Administration -- transferred to Department of Homeland Security in 2003 United States Coast Guard -- transferred to Department of Homeland Security in 2003 Surface Transportation Board ( STB ) -- spun off as an independent federal agency in 2015 Budget In 2012, the DOT awarded $742.5 million in funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to 11 transit projects. The awardees include light rail projects. Other projects include both a commuter rail extension and a subway project in New York City, and a bus rapid transit system in Springfield, Oregon. The funds subsidize a heavy rail project in northern Virginia, completing the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority 's Metro Silver Line to connect Washington, D.C., and the Washington Dulles International Airport. ( DOT had previously agreed to subsidize the Silver Line construction to Reston, Virginia. ) President Barack Obama 's budget request for fiscal year 2010 also included $1.83 billion in funding for major transit projects, of which more than $600 million went towards 10 new or expanding transit projects. The budget provided additional funding for all of the projects currently receiving Recovery Act funding, except for the bus rapid transit project. It also continued funding for another 18 transit projects that are either currently under construction or soon will be. Following the same the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2014 delegates $600 million for Infrastructure Investments, referred to as Discretionary Grants. The Department of Transportation was authorized a budget for Fiscal Year 2016 of $75.1 billion. The budget authorization is broken down as follows : Administration Funding ( in millions ) Employees ( in FTE 's ) Federal Aviation Administration $16,280.7 45,988 Federal Highway Administration $43,049.7 2,782 Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration $580.4 1,175 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration $869.0 639 Federal Transit Administration $11,782.6 585 Federal Railroad Administration $1,699.2 934 Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration $249.6 575 Maritime Administration $399.3 835 Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation $28.4 144 Office of the Secretary $935.4 1,284 Office of the Inspector General $87.5 413 TOTAL $75,536.1 55,739 Related legislation 1806 -- Cumberland Road 1862 -- Pacific Railway Act 1887 -- Interstate Commerce Act 1916 -- Adamson Railway Labor Act 1935 -- Motor Carrier Act 1946 -- Federal Airport Act PL 79 - 377 1950 -- Federal Aid to Highway PL 81 - 769 1954 -- Saint Lawrence Seaway Act 1956 -- Federal - Aid to Highway / Interstate Highway Act PL 84 - 627 1957 -- Airways Modernization Act PL 85 - 133 1958 -- Transportation Act of 1958 PL 85 - 625 1958 -- Federal Aviation Act PL 85 - 726 1959 -- Airport Construction Act PL 86 - 72 1964 -- Urban Mass Transportation Act PL 88 - 365 1965 -- Highway Beautification Act PL 89 - 285 1966 -- Department of Transportation established PL 89 - 670 1970 -- Urban Mass Transportation Act PL 91 - 453 1970 -- Rail Passenger Service Act PL 91 - 518 1970 -- Airport and Airway Development Act PL 91 - 258 1973 -- Federal Aid Highway Act PL 93 - 87 1973 -- Amtrak Improvement Act PL 93 - 146 1973 -- Federal Aid Highway Act PL 93 - 87 1974 -- National Mass Transportation Assistance Act PL 93 - 503 1976 -- Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act PL 94 - 210 1976 -- Hart - Scott - Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act PL 94 - 435 1978 -- Airline Deregulation Act PL 95 - 504 1980 -- Motor Carrier Act PL 96 - 296 1980 -- Staggers Rail Act PL 96 - 448 1982 -- Transportation Assistance Act PL 97 - 424 1982 -- Bus Regulatory Reform Act PL 97 - 261 1987 -- Surface Transportation Act PL 100 - 17 1991 -- Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act PL 102 - 240 1998 -- Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century PL 105 - 178 2000 -- Wendell H. Ford Aviation Investment and Reform Act for the 21st Century PL 106 - 181 2002 -- Homeland Security Act ( PL 107 - 296 ) 2005 -- Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act : A Legacy for Users ( PL 109 - 59 ) 2012 -- Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act ( MAP - 21 ) PL 112 - 141 2015 -- Fixing America 's Surface Transportation Act ( FAST Act ) PL 114 - 94 Freedom of Information Act processing performance In the latest Center for Effective Government analysis of 15 federal agencies which receive the most Freedom of Information Act FOIA requests, published in 2015 ( using 2012 and 2013 data, the most recent years available ), the Department of Transportation earned a D by scoring 65 out of a possible 100 points, i.e. did not earn a satisfactory overall grade. See also Government of the United States portal Transportation portal Title 23 of the Code of Federal Regulations American Highway Users Alliance National Highway System ( United States ) National Transportation Safety Board Passenger vehicles in the United States Transportation in the United States United States Federal Maritime Commission Turner - Fairbank Highway Research Center Notes and references Jump up ^ 2014 Department of Transportation Budget Request, pg 54, United States Department of Transportation, Accessed 2014 - 07 - 15 Jump up ^ https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2017/01/31/senate-confirms-chao-dot/97285812/ Jump up ^ `` US Department of Transportation, History ''. National Transportation Library. March 1, 2009. ^ Jump up to : `` DOT Awards $742.5 Million in Recovery Act Funds to 11 Transit Projects ''. EERE Network News. May 13, 2009. Retrieved 2010 - 08 - 09. Jump up ^ `` Annual Report on Funding Recommendations -- Fiscal Year 2010 '' ( PDF ). U.S. Department of Transportation. 29 April 2009. pp. A -- 75 ( 101 ) & seq. Retrieved 2010 - 08 - 09. Jump up ^ https://www.transportation.gov/sites/dot.gov/files/docs/DOT_BH2017_508%5B2%5D.pdf Jump up ^ `` Profile Showing the Grades upon the Different Routes Surveyed for the Union Pacific Rail Road Between the Missouri River and the Valley of the Platte River ''. World Digital Library. 1865. Retrieved 2013 - 07 - 16. Jump up ^ Making the Grade : Access to Information Scorecard 2015 March 2015, 80 pages, Center for Effective Government, retrieved 21 March 2016 External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to United States Department of Transportation. Official website United States Department of Transportation in the Federal Register Agencies under the United States Department of Transportation Headquarters : 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE ( Transportation Department Building ) Elaine Chao, Secretary of Transportation Jeffrey A. Rosen, Deputy Secretary of Transportation Deputy Secretary of Transportation Federal Aviation Administration Federal Highway Administration Federal Railroad Administration Federal Transit Administration Inspector General U.S. Maritime Administration Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Research and Innovative Technology Administration Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation Surface Transportation Board Office of Drug and Alcohol Policy and Compliance Under Secretary of Transportation for Policy Office of Aviation and International Affairs Office of Transportation Policy Federal executive departments of the United States of America Executive Departments Agriculture Commerce Defense Education Energy Health and Human Services Homeland Security Housing and Urban Development Interior Justice Labor State Transportation Treasury Veterans Affairs Former Air Force Army Commerce and Labor Health, Education, and Welfare Navy Post Office War Government of the United States portal VIAF : 135454651 LCCN : n79058419 ISNI : 0000 0001 2162 7951 GND : 9688 - X Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=United_States_Department_of_Transportation&oldid=801061895 '' Categories : United States Department of Transportation Transportation in the United States Government agencies established in 1966 United States federal executive departments 1966 establishments in Washington, D.C. Hidden categories : Coordinates on Wikidata Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers Wikipedia articles with LCCN identifiers Wikipedia articles with ISNI identifiers Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers Talk Contents About Wikipedia Български Deutsch Eesti Español Euskara فارسی Français 한국어 Bahasa Indonesia Italiano עברית Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Português Русский Simple English Suomi Svenska ไทย Türkçe Українська Tiếng Việt 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 17 September 2017, at 12 : 24. About Wikipedia

Question: who does the department of transportation report to
Answer: United States Secretary of Transportation