Pictured left to right: Tom Cosgrove – Director of Government Affairs, Newport News Shipbuilding – and Jack Norris – Director of Government Affairs, Ingalls Shipbuilding,

As of June 1, HII’s political action committee (HIIPAC) can now give to state and local candidates in Virginia and Mississippi. That means Tom Cosgrove and Jack Norris have expanded roles as voting members of the HIIPAC Operating Committee and must create a state and local budget for HIIPAC.

Day to day, Tom and Jack’s primary role is to advance HII’s interests at the state and local level in Virginia (and now South Carolina) and Mississippi.  That means working with company leaders and subject matter experts to identify opportunities where HII needs to engage proactively to advance a specific interest.  It could also include amending or defeating policy matters that could be averse to HII.  Either way, the job is the same – maintain strong relationships with government leaders, clearly articulate HII’s interests, and intervene at the right time to advance HII’s interests.

HIIPAC’s new political contributions to state and local elected officials are a tool that grant us access to build relationships with elected officials and their staffs and educate them about HII.

Prior to joining the shipyard in 2014, Tom spent more than ten years in Virginia government and politics serving on both regional and statewide staffs and eventually serving as the chief legislative and political advisor to the Virginia Senate Majority Leader.

Prior to joining Ingalls in 2021, Jack had nearly 20 years of public policy and political experience working at the federal, state and regional level. His previous roles include president of the Gulf Coast Business Council, executive director of Governor Haley Barbour’s Office of Hurricane Katrina Recovery and Renewal, and projects director and legislative assistant for U.S. Senator Trent Lott.