James Hall heads the Washington, D.C. office of Hall & Associates LLC and he continues to be involved in national and international transportation issues. A strategic counselor, heleads the transportation safety, crisis management, and governmental relations practice for the firm. He previously served on the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) Committee on Combating Terrorism, as well as on George Washington University's Aviation Institute Advisory Board. He served as Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) from June of 1994 until January of 2001. During his Chairmanship, he worked tirelessly to improve the safety of all modes of transportation as the NTSB experienced a period of unprecedented activity. He served as Chairman of the Board of Inquiry for public hearings on many major transportation accidents, including TWA 800 and EgyptAir 990. Also, Mr. Hall represented the NTSB in safety issues internationally, traveling to more than thirty countries during his tenure with the Board. As Chairman, Mr. Hall directed the Board's participation in numerous international aviation investigations, including those in Indonesia, Japan, People's Republic of China, and Brazil. During his Chairmanship, the Board issued landmark safety studies on commuter airlines, the air tour industry as well as the performance and use of child-restraint systems, the dangers to children of passenger-side automobile air bags, personal watercraft safety, transit bus safety oversight, and passive grade crossings. Prior to his appointment to the Board, James Hall served as counsel to the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Inter-governmental Relations and on the staff of U.S. Senator Al Gore. As a member of Tennessee Governor Ned McWherter's cabinet, he served as director of the Tennessee State Planning Office for five years. While in the governor's cabinet, he developed Tennessee's first comprehensive anti-drug effort.