Barack Obama nominated Vice Adm. Peter Neffenger, the U.S. Coast Guard's second-in-command, to run the Transportation Security Administration.

Neffenger, who has served as the Coast Guard's vice commandant since 2014, has served in the Coast Guard since 1981 and once oversaw port security in Los Angeles and elsewhere in California. 

If confirmed by the Senate, he'll replace former TSA chief John Pistole, who announced his retirement last year after 4 ½ years leading the TSA.

Obama described Neffenger as a "recognized leader" who had taken on the nation's critical challenges in the past. "The talent and expertise Vice Adm. Neffenger brings to his new role after more than three decades at the U.S. Coast Guard will be valuable to this administration's efforts to strengthen transportation security," he said in a statement.