Gov. Asa Hutchinson has appointed Karen Whatley -- who has been his office's director of legislative and agency affairs since August 2018 --as chief legal counsel and Jordan Burgess -- who has been senior health policy adviser since May 2019 -- as Whatley's replacement.
"Karen and Jordan have played significant roles in my administration," Hutchinson said in a news release. "Karen helped guide legislation to transform state government. Jordan and Karen have been on the front lines in our response to COVID-19. Each has hard-won experience that will benefit Arkansas as they assume their new roles."
Whatley replaces Mary Robin Casteel, whose last day was Oct. 8 and "went to the private sector," said Hutchinson spokeswoman Shealyn Sowers.
Casteel said Tuesday she has a "new opportunity" that she was not ready to disclose.
Whatley's salary is $133,050 a year as chief legal counsel, a position in which she started Monday, Sowers said. Her salary was $123,049 a year as the director of legislative and agency affairs, according to the Arkansas Transparency website. The website shows that Casteel's salary as chief legal counsel was $115,364 a year.
Whatley was an assistant U.S. attorney for nearly 14 years and then worked at the Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates and Woodyard firm before she became executive director at the Arkansas Medical Board, where she served for two years before joining the governor's office, according to the governor's office.
Burgess' salary is $115,000 a year as director of legislative and agency affairs, which she assumed Monday, Sowers said. Burgess' salary as senior health policy adviser was $104,499 a year, according to the Arkansas Transparency website. Prior to joining the governor's office, she was associate general counsel at Delta Dental of Arkansas, according to the governor's office.
Both Whatley and Burgess earned their law degrees at what is now the William H. Bowen School of Law at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, with Whatley getting her law degree in 1994 and Burgess receiving her law degree in 2012.