Tolbert: Beebe Administration Officials Exiting Stage Left

In the weeks leading up to the election, it has been interesting to watch the exit of several top members of the Beebe administration over the last few months.  Gov. Beebe is term-limited so it is 100% certain that there will be a new governor in January and, in my opinion, it is likely there will be a party switch as well with Asa leading Ross in basically every public poll in recent history.

Consider the list:

• Commissioner of Education Tom Kimbrell left in June to take a job as the superintendent of Bryant Public Schools.  He told Steve Brawner at the time that the upcoming change in governor was at least part of his decision.
• Department of Corrections Director Ray Hobbs announced he will retire effective November 1.  Hobbs became director in 2010.
• Arkansas Agriculture Secretary Butch Calhoun announced he will retire effective December 31. “I have enjoyed this job very much but feel it is time for me to spend time focusing on some other things in my life,” Calhoun told Talk Business.
• Office of Health Information Technology Ray Scott announced he will retire effective November 30.  Beebe chose Scott to serve as Director after creating OHIT by executive order in 2010.
• Department of Human Services Division of Youth Services leader Tracy Steele is leaving October 31.  He said he will announce the details of his new job at a later date.
• Department of Information Systems Director and Director and Chief Technology Officer Claire Bailey retired on October 27.  She cited health reasons in her decision to step down.

I also noticed an inside baseball move from a key member of the governor’s staff. Mica Strother has served as Beebe’s Director of Appointments for Boards and Commissions, the position highly responsible for coordination of the appointments.  She cut back to part time last year dividing her time between her state duties and fundraising for both Pryor for Senate and Ross for Governor.  Because of this position, I took note when her name was on the appointments list on Monday for a position as Commissioner on the Arkansas State Claims Commission.

“Mica’s last day on staff in the Governor’s Office was October 17th. She has volunteered to help wrap up the majority of appointments in the next few weeks,” said Governor Beebe’s deputy spokesperson Stacey Hall. “Governor Beebe had been thinking about appointing Mica for quite some time, but just recently made the appointment.”

Hall said she saw no conflict with the appointment and nature of Strother’s work. Her new appointment will also be a part-time gig making just under $28,000 plus state benefits such as health care and retirement.  She replaces Donald Moran whose term expired in January of this year, but held the position until the replacement Monday.

Certainly all these departures – and I am sure I am missing some – have their own individual circumstances but overall the picture seems to be an administration that is preparing for change.