About the CFO

Overview

The CFO's office is led by a strong team of experienced managers who work to provide sound budget development, disciplined performance review, rigorous financial management, and responsible credit administration for the Department. The office is headed by the Chief Financial Officer and Assistant Secretary for Budget and Programs who serves as principal fiscal advisor to the Secretary. 

Below are the professional bios for the CFO, Deputy Assistant Secretaries and the Deputy CFO. To read professional bios for the other members of the office's senior management team, visit the CFO Senior Management webpage.

• Victoria B. Wassmer - Assistant Secretary for Budget and Programs and Chief Financial Officer
• Joseph H. Jarrin - Deputy Assistant Secretary for Finance and Budget
• Saesha Carlile - Deputy Assistant Secretary for Budget and Programs
• Jennifer S. Funk - Deputy Chief Financial Officer

Victoria Wassmer, Assistant Secretary for Budget and Programs & CFO, was interviewed on Monday, September 26, 2022, on Investing in Safe, Reliable, and Equitable Transportation Infrastructure. The Business of Government Hour, hosted by Michael J. Keegan, features a conversation with government executives and thought leaders who are changing the way government does business. Link to the audio interview is available here.

Assistant Secretary for Budget and Programs and Chief Financial Officer
Victoria B. Wassmer

Victoria has established and led high-profile organizations and programs in both the public sector and private industry for over 25 years. She joined the Department of Transportation (DOT) in January 2021, and is responsible for the Department’s $144.9 billion budget, including budget development and execution, agency-wide performance, program evaluation, enterprise risk management, financial management, internal controls, and financial reporting. She serves as the principal fiscal advisor to the Secretary.

Victoria’s joined DOT from Ernst & Young, where she served as a Managing Director in the government and public sector practice. Previously, she worked as the director of agency operations for DC Government. Victoria is no stranger to DOT, having served for many years as a Senior Executive for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). As the FAA’s first Assistant Administrator for Finance and Management, Victoria directed the agency’s $16.4 billion budget, led a workforce of over 3,000 employees, and oversaw the agency’s financial management, information technology, acquisitions, property, the operations of nine regional offices and the Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center. Other senior positions at the FAA include serving as the Acting Deputy Administrator and Chief NextGen Officer as well as the Chief Financial Officer.

Victoria also served as Vice President of Administration and Finance at the Millennium Challenge Corporation in 2010-2011. Other professional highlights include six years at the Office of Management and Budget and work as a research assistant at the Development Bank of South Africa after the first democratic elections in 1994. She holds a master’s degree in Public Policy from Harvard University and a bachelor’s degree in political science from Bryn Mawr College.

Victoria Wassmer - Assistant Secretary of Budget and Programs, and Chief Financial Officer - U.S. Department of Transportation | LinkedIn

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Finance and Budget
Joseph H. Jarrin

Joe serves as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Finance and Budget. Joe joined the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) in December 2021 after 25 years in New York City (NYC) government.  Between 2016 and 2021, he served as the Executive Deputy Commissioner for the NYC Department of Transportation (NYCDOT), where he was responsible for the agency’s $1 billion annual operating budget and $17 billion ten-year capital program, and oversaw the agency’s administrative functions, including contracting, human resources, facilities management, information technology, and performance management.  Before that he served as the chief financial officer for NYCDOT between 2007 and 2016.  Prior to that he served in the NYC Office of Management and Budget for over ten years, overseeing budget allocations and spending for transportation services, as well as sanitation, parks/recreation, and emergency response.  

During his career in NYC, among the major programs Joe was involved in, he directed the multifaceted budgets for major bridge reconstruction projects, including the East River Bridges and the Brooklyn Queens Expressway Triple Cantilever, Vision Zero street safety improvements, Staten Island Ferry replacement, Superstorm Sandy repairs, and the COVID-19 Pandemic shutdown and subsequent recovery.

He holds a Master’s in Public Administration from New York University and a Bachelor’s in Economics from the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Saesha Carlile, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Budget and Programs

Saesha Carlile serves as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Budget and Programs, where she has responsibility for the Department’s budget formulation and execution, agency-wide performance, evaluation, and risk management, including the development of the Department’s annual budget request and performance and evaluation plans. 

Prior to joining the Department, Saesha was the Chief Administrative Officer at the District Department of Transportation. During her time there, she positioned the Department to successfully execute on significant growth in its infrastructure portfolio. She also served as interim Chief of Staff to the Director. Prior to that, Saesha served as the Deputy Budget Director within the Executive Office of the Mayor of DC, where she led the capital and operating budget teams, spearheading the development of the Mayor’s $15.5 billion annual budget process across 100+ District agencies.  Saesha also spent nearly 9 years at the Treasury Department, serving as the Director of the Office of Financial Management under the Assistant Secretary for Management. Saesha was also selected as the first Director of Shared Services for the Treasury Department, where she was responsible for the corporate oversight of the Treasury Franchise Fund and Treasury Working Capital Fund. Prior to that, she spent several years in senior analyst roles, most notably as the Department’s analyst for the Internal Revenue Service.

Additionally, Saesha has served in State and Regional agencies prior to her federal experience. Saesha has a bachelor’s degree in Liberal Studies, graduating summa cum laude from the University of Illinois and a Master’s Degree in Public Policy from Rutgers University. She currently lives in the District of Columbia.

Deputy Chief Financial Officer 
Jennifer S. Funk

Jennifer Funk (Jen) is the Deputy Chief Financial Officer, where she is the principal advisor to the Assistant Secretary for Budget and Programs/Chief Financial Officer (CFO), as well as to DOT senior leaders, on issues involving the amended CFO Act of 1990 and related financial management reforms. As the Deputy Chief Financial Officer, she oversees the Annual Financial Statement Audit and DOT’s Internal Control Program, and provides strategic direction to DOT’s shared service organization, the Enterprise Services Center, which provides services to over 35 federal agencies.  She is a responsible steward of the financial resources entrusted to DOT by conducting rigorous and continual oversight of the Department's financial management activities and providing policy and procedural direction to DOT Operating Administrations on financial management matters.  Jen is the first woman to hold the Deputy Chief Financial Officer position at DOT.

Since joining DOT in 2005, Jen has led the launch of many high-priority, complex programs and initiatives including Federal Spending Transparency, the Department-wide Internal Control Program, the Digital Accountability and Transparency (DATA) Act, and grant management and reporting activities related to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law implementation. She provides executive leadership on numerous government-wide boards and councils, including the Chief Financial Officers Council and its’ Financial Management Workforce Executive Steering Committee, the Grants Quality Shared Management Office, and most recently, the Shared Services Governance Board. 

Jen began her federal government career at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and has held progressively responsible roles within the CFO’s office. In these positions, she provided advice, leadership and policy direction in various financial accounting, audit, accountability and reporting matters including the depreciation and capitalization valuation of assets and software.  Having grown up as an Air Force dependent, Jen travelled the country cultivating a distinctive blend of adaptability and resilience that she infuses into her professional journey. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Saint Leo University with a concentration in Accounting and currently resides in Ellicott City, Maryland with her family.