PHMSA this week announced the appointment of Massoud Tahamtani as the Deputy Associate Administrator for Policy and Programs with PHMSA’s Office of Pipeline Safety. Massoud is a career public servant, with over 38 years of service. He brings with him extensive leadership experience through his tenure as Director of the Division of Utility and Railroad Safety with the Virginia State Corporation Commission, administering programs overseeing the safe operation of thousands of miles of underground utility lines, railroad track and equipment throughout Virginia. He has actively promoted underground utility damage prevention, pipeline safety and railroad safety on the national stage by testifying before Congress and the National Transportation Safety Board, fostering strategic partnerships with industry and government groups, and serving on numerous national task forces and committees including the American Petroleum Institute’s Committee on Pipeline Safety Management Systems. Massoud has served on the Common Ground Alliance (CGA) Board of Directors, and in 2011, received CGA’s Jim Barron Award for his dedication and commitment to reduce excavation damage to underground facilities. He was appointed by the Secretary of Transportation to serve on PHMSA’s Liquid Pipeline Advisory Committee for multiple terms. He is also the past Chairman of the National Association of Pipeline Safety Representatives and received the NAPSR Lifetime Leadership Award in both 2013 and 2017. Before retiring from the Virginia State Corporation Commission, he was appointed Senior Policy Advisor to the Commissioners for Infrastructure Safety and Security.