President Donald Trump faces another lawsuit from former Jacksonville Mayor Alvin Brown after his dismissal as vice chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).
NTSB plays a critical role in investigating transportation accidents like the deadly January 29 collision in the Potomac River that killed 67 individuals.
Appointed by then-President Joe Biden in December 2024, as reported by USA Today, Brown, who is Black, was to serve a term to last until Dec. 31, 2026. Trump fired Brown on May 6.
Brown’s lawsuit names Trump, NTSB Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy and the agency as defendants, and claims that his removal violated federal law. According to the lawsuit, Congress did not give Trump the power to remove officials from the NTSB unless in cases of “inefficiency, neglect of duty or malfeasance in office.” No grounds exist to have removed Brown and he pointed to the lack of explanation as not demonstrating deficiencies which would be the cause for his removal.
Brown was Jacksonville’s first Black mayor from 2011 to 2015. He previously served as senior adviser for community infrastructure opportunities at the U.S. Department of Transportation. His career began as a senior member of the White House‘s leadership team under former President Bill Clinton and Vice President Al Gore. Brown advised on domestic issues. Brown was Gore’s senior advisor of urban policy, executive director of the White House Community Empowerment Board and a senior adviser to former Commerce Secretary Ron Brown.
Brown’s lawsuit asks the United States District Court for D.C. to rule that his removal was unlawful and to assert he is still a member of the NTSB. He asks that the court affirm the president cannot remove him from his role.
U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner of Virginia was joined by Sens. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, Ruben Gallego of Arizona, Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Jeff Merkley of Oregon wrote to Trump on Friday questioning his administration’s decision to remove Brown. The senators highlighted the independent nature of NTSB and stressed the need to have qualified individuals serve on the board.
“Congress designed the Board to represent a range of viewpoints by mandating that no more than three of the five members be of the same political party. Additionally, Congress removed the Board from the Department of Transportation and reestablished it as an independent establishment of the U.S. government to ensure the NTSB retains its independence and that NTSB staff are able to fulfill their mission of performing investigations into certain transportation accidents, including every civil aviation accident in the United States, by determining the probable cause of the accident and issuing safety recommendations,” the senators wrote.
According to the letter, the NTSB provides support for victims, survivors and families after a transportation accident, including facilitating the recovery and identification of fatally injured passengers.
“The NTSB has earned the trust of the transportation industry and millions of Americans through many grueling investigations; because of the NTSB, improved transportation safety has come out of calamity and tragedy,” the senators wrote the administration.
They also questioned the rationale behind Trump’s decision to remove Brown without naming a replacement and leaving a vacancy in a crucial role that manages nearly 1,250 investigations in the United States and supports more than 150 foreign investigations each year.
“Mr. Brown’s removal is consistent with your administration’s dismissals of federal government leaders on the basis of bald partisanship and animus, however it is inconsistent with the law. The recklessness of vacating a leadership role on the NTSB in this critical moment in aviation safety runs counter to your obligations to the American people,” they wrote.
Brown’s removal is only the latest in the Trump Administration’s reckless purge of qualified federal workers for political reasons. Early last week, Warner lead a group of colleagues objecting to Director of National Security Tulsi Gabbard’s decision to unilaterally terminate the Acting Counsel of the Office of the Intelligence Community Inspector General, and he has repeatedly warned of the lasting damage of the Trump Administration’s continued politicization of nonpartisan government positions and removal of employees.
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Rebecca Barnabi
