WASHINGTON – Former Jacksonville Mayor Alvin Brown is suing the Trump administration for what the suit calls his unlawful removal as the vice chair and member of the National Transportation Safety Board, as reported by our news partners at Jax Today.
The federal lawsuit seeks to restore Brown, a Democrat, to the position and prevent further political interference with the Board’s “independent, expert-led safety mission,” according to Democracy Forward and Justice Legal Strategies, who represent him.
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Brown was removed from his vice chairmanship in early May, less than five months after he was appointed by then-President Joe Biden. An official with knowledge of the situation confirmed that Brown no longer holds that position in May. But no explanation was given for the removal – Trump and the White House’s latest leadership dismissal from independent U.S. government agencies.
“Congress made the National Transportation Safety Board independent for a reason: to ensure that investigations into transportation disasters are driven by expertise and evidence,” said Victoria Nugent, Democracy Forward’s legal director. “The termination of Mr. Brown and the undermining of the independence of this Board does nothing to keep people safer. At a time when transportation safety is top of mind, we should be strengthening, not weakening, the systems meant to protect all Americans.”
Brown was confirmed as the 47th board member of the independent agency last March, after Biden’s nomination was confirmed by the U.S. Senate. He was to remain in that post through 2026, according to an NTSB news release on his appointment.
After Brown’s term as mayor from 2011 to 2015, he served as a senior advisor for community infrastructure opportunities for the U.S. Department of Transportation.
After Brown’s term as mayor from 2011 to 2015, he served as a senior advisor for community infrastructure opportunities for the U.S. Department of Transportation.
The lawsuit states that Brown’s dismissal has “undermined the NTSB’s historic independence and interfered with its statutorily mandated duties to investigate and report” on aircraft, highway, railroad and other accidents.
It also states that Brown’s removal was without cause and is in direct violation of federal law, undermining the statutory protections that ensure the NTSB operates independently from partisan interference.
“Congress ensured the Board’s independence by limiting the President’s authority to remove Board members,” the suit says in part. “The President may remove a Board member only for inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office. By mandating that no more than three of the five members be of the same political party and by staggering the members’ five-year terms, Congress intended for the Board’s work to be informed by a diversity of viewpoints.”
The lawsuit asks the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to declare Brown’s removal unlawful, and block the NTSB from continuing to bar him from performing his duties. The suit, also filed against the current NTSB chairperson, seeks to restore Brown’s access to the office and its resources as well as injunctive relief to prevent further interference with his role.
The 11-page lawsuit was officially filed on June 4.