On April 14, 2021, Coes was nominated to serve in that position.

After earning his master's degree, Coes worked as Transportation for America and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

[2] He was also a government affairs and campaign consultant for M+R Strategic Services.

At Smart Growth America, Coes was vice president for real estate policy and external affairs and vice president for land use and development.

Since 2020, Coes has also been a professor at the George Washington University School of Business and a nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.