Retired Gen. Stephen R. Lyons will serve as the new Port and Supply Chain Envoy to the Biden-Harris Administration Supply Chain Disruptions Task Force.
Lyons, former head of the U.S. Transportation Command, will replace John D. Porcari, according to a joint White House and DOT May 27 news release. Lyons will work with the DOT and the White House National Economic Council as well as ports, rail, trucking and other private companies to address bottlenecks, help lower costs and speed up the movement of goods.
"During a time of historic global supply chain challenges as a result of the pandemic, the Supply Chains Task Force and Port Envoy John Porcari helped ensure Americans could get what they need while supporting the fastest labor market recovery in history," National Economic Council Director Brian Deese said in the news release. "There is nobody better to pick up this important work than retired Gen. Lyons as we continue to address these challenges and move toward sustained economic growth."
The Task Force was established in June 2021 following supply and demand issues born out of the pandemic, the release reported. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg leads the task force, with its focus on ports and trucking issues, along with Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo. The port envoy's job on the task force is to work closely with the secretaries to address the congestion at U.S. ports.
Since its inception, the task force has been working to figure what is causing the nation's supply chain disruptions and bottlenecks, particularly in the nation's port, and how to resolve those problems. Among other things, the task force has recommended ports implement a container dwell fee to encourage the movement of containers more quickly through ports, according to the release.
"Envoy John Porcari has done a tremendous job addressing challenges at every stage of the supply chain, and goods have moved more quickly and affordably because of his actions," Buttigieg said in the news release. "Global supply chains will remain fragile as long as the pandemic continues to disrupt ports and factories around the world, and a lot of work remains to reduce shipping delays and costs for American families. We are grateful that Gen. Lyons, formerly commander of the U.S. Transportation Command, will now take on the role of Ports and Supply Chain Envoy, working across every level of government, labor and industry to strengthen America's supply chains."
