Dave Bauer has been selected as the next president and chief executive officer American Road & Transportation Builders Association, succeeding Pete Ruane, who retires on Oct. 31. Bauer will officially begin his tenure as ARTBA’s chief executive Jan. 1 next year.

William Toohey, Jr., ARTBA’s executive vice president & chief operating officer, is currently serving as interim president and CEO of the organization and will assist in the transition process. Toohey expects to retire from ARTBA in April 2019.

Bauer, who joined ARTBA in 1997, currently serves as executive vice president of advocacy. Prior to joining ARTBA, Bauer spent seven years on the personal staff of Sen. Mark Hatfield, R-Ore. An Oregon native, Bauer graduated from Willamette University in 1990 with a B.S. in economics and earned a Master’s in business administration from The George Washington University in Washington, D.C.

“Dave Bauer’s encyclopedic knowledge of transportation policy issues, his non-partisan approach, and his strong relationships with the staff, the association’s membership and its industry coalition partners make him the right person to lead ARTBA,” said David Zachry, chief executive officer of international construction firm Zachry Corporation, in a statement. Zachry also led the search committee charged with finding ARTBA’s new top executive.

“I am humbled and energized by this new opportunity,” Bauer noted in a statement. “While this is a personnel change for the association, it is not a mission change. ARTBA will continue its aggressive advocacy work to grow and protect the nation’s transportation infrastructure market to meet the demand for safe and efficient mobility.”