Senators Said to Oppose Her : ICC Chief Reportedly Pressured to Quit

The chairwoman of the Interstate Commerce Commission resigned in tears today, saying “the White House and I have concluded it was not in our interest to fight the Senate Commerce Committee.”

Heather J. Gradison, a member of the commission since 1982 and its chairwoman since December, 1985, offered no further explanation at a meeting attended by about 100 commission employees. They applauded when she finished her brief statement.

Her five-year term was up last December, but she had remained on the job. An Interstate Commerce Commission source who declined to be identified said Democratic Sens. Ernest F. Hollings of South Carolina and J. James Exon of Nebraska have expressed strenuous opposition to her renomination.

“I think it’s time to move on,” said Gradison, wife of Rep. Bill Gradison (R-Ohio).

Insiders said the dispute with the Senate Commerce Committee goes back to last year when a bill to re-regulate the railroad industry was defeated 11 to 10 in the committee.

Gradison is a strong advocate of deregulation.

“We have a different agency today than we had seven years ago,” she said. “We have far fewer employees. . . . We have a healthy rail industry. We have a competitive motor carrier industry.”

The commission source said that when Sen. John D. (Jay) Rockefeller IV (D-W.Va.) introduced a bill last year to re-regulate the railroad industry, Exon voted against it and that “it was understood that the deal cut by Exon was that the bill would not come up again if new people came on to the commission.”

The source said because of the opposition to Gradison, the feeling was that if her name were sent over for renomination by President Bush, there would be a difficult fight.