Agencies' directors changing

Insurance, Guard to get new chiefs

Gov.-elect Asa Hutchinson selected state Rep. Allen Kerr, R-Little Rock, as the state's next insurance commissioner and Brig. Gen. Mark Berry as the next adjutant general of the Arkansas National Guard on Wednesday.

Hutchinson also retained state Department of Community Correction Director Sheila Sharp.

Kerr will replace departing state Insurance Commissioner Jay Bradford, a former Democratic state senator from White Hall, and Berry will replace William Wofford as Arkansas adjutant general.

Hutchinson said in a written statement that Kerr will "bring with him a fresh look at the department" along with his experience in the Legislature and his breadth of knowledge in the insurance industry.

Kerr has served in the state House of Representatives since 2009 and has 34 years of insurance experience with a background in financial services.

Kerr declined Wednesday to provide details about what he wants to do as the state's insurance commissioner.

"I need to get over there and see what the landscape is" before detailing an agenda at the Department of Insurance, he said, adding that he wants to do a good job.

Bradford, who has been the state's insurance commissioner since January 2009, didn't seek reappointment, said Alice Jones, a spokesman for the state Department of Insurance. Bradford was paid $130,821 a year as insurance commissioner.

Bradford told the department's employees in an email Wednesday that "we will work to ensure a smooth transition."

He said he's proud of the support given to the private option that uses federal Medicaid funds to purchase private health insurance for low-income Arkansans and for the establishment of the state's insurance exchange in partnership with the federal government.

"We now have more than 240,000 insured through the Marketplace, and most of them are young, working families. It is in the best interest of Arkansas to continue this protection," Bradford wrote.

Hutchinson has said he'll decide by the end of January whether to ask the Republican-controlled Legislature to reauthorize funding for the state's private option in fiscal 2016.

In sessions in 2013 and earlier this year, the Legislature narrowly has approved funding for the program with the required three-fourths vote in the 100-member House of Representatives and 35-member Senate.

The election last month of several Republicans who campaigned against the private option to replace Democrats who had voted for the program has cast doubt on its future.

Hutchinson also said Wednesday that he's appointed Berry to be the 52nd adjutant general of Arkansas.

"Brig. Gen. Berry is a principled leader who, over the course of his 40-year career, has served our state and country at home and overseas with honor and integrity," Hutchinson said in a written statement. "Those traits, accompanied with his experience and extensive knowledge of Arkansas and our military make him the obvious choice for this new role."

Berry enlisted in the Air Force in 1974, attended officer training school in 1985 and has been stationed in Nevada, Oklahoma, South Korea and Arkansas. After completing his active-duty service, Berry joined the 188th Fighter Wing in Fort Smith in 1992, where he served until his appointment as chief of staff of the Arkansas Air National Guard in 2012.

Wofford has been the Arkansas adjutant general since Democratic Gov. Mike Beebe appointed him in January 2007. Wofford's salary was $117,505 a year.

Hutchinson said he's retaining Sharp, who has served as the Department of Community Correction director since August 2013, because she has done an outstanding job in the post. Sharp has worked in state government for nearly 40 years, including more than 15 years with the state's prison system.

"As a former prosecutor, I recognize how critical this role is to our law enforcement community, and I have no doubt she will continue to serve the department and the people of Arkansas well," he said.

Sharp's salary is $116,018 a year.

After Hutchinson, a Republican from Rogers, defeated Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mike Ross of Little Rock in the Nov. 4 election, he said there would be "significant change" among state agency leaders.

Among the three highest-profile department heads, Hutchinson has said he's retaining state Department of Human Services Director Jon Selig for now and eventually replacing state Education Commissioner Tony Wood. He has not announced who will replace retiring state Department of Finance and Administration Director Richard Weiss.

Metro on 12/18/2014

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