U.S. Senator David Vitter has been named deputy Senate whip and will take over as the top ranking Republican on the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.
The committee has jurisdiction over levees, the Army Corps of Engineers, the Environment Protection Agency, and two major bills coming up this year: the highway bill and the Water Resources Development Act.
Vitter also remains on the Small Business, the Armed Services, the Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs committees.