Does your state lean blue or lean red? Check out our new report, highlighting partisan control of state government from 1992-2013.
Arkansas Commissioner of Insurance
| Arkansas Commissioner of Insurance | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Office Type: | Non-partisan |
| Office website: | Official Link |
| Term limits: | None |
| Structure | |
| Length of term: | Serves at pleasure of the governor |
| Authority: | Arkansas Code, Title 6, Chapter 11, Section 102 |
| Selection Method: | Appointed by governor |
| Current Officeholder | |
 | |
| Name: | Jay Bradford |
| Assumed office: | January 15, 2009 |
| Compensation: | $120,258 |
| Other Arkansas Executive Offices | |
| Governor • Lieutenant Governor • Secretary of State • Attorney General • Treasurer • Auditor • Commissioner of Education • Agriculture Secretary • Insurance Commissioner • Natural Resources Exec. Director • Labor Director • Public Service Commission | |
Contents |
Current officeholder
The current commissioner is Jay Bradford, appointed by Governor Mike Beebe on January 15, 2009. As the commissioner serves at the pleasure of the governor, Bradford is not subject to periodic reappointment.
Before becoming commissioner, Bradford served for two years as Director of the Behavioral Health Services division in the Arkansas Department of Human Services. He also served for 24 years in both state legislative houses; from 1983 to 1999 he was a member of the Arkansas House of Representatives and from 2000 to 2007 held a seat in the Arkansas Senate he served variously as speaker pro tempore of the House and president pro tempore of the Senate. Bradford is also co-chair of the Arkansas Child Abuse, Rape, and Domestic Violence Commission. He and his wife, Anne, have one child.[1]
Authority
The office of commissioner of insurance is established by state statute.[2]
Arkansas Code, Title 6, Chapter 11, Section 102
| The head of the State Insurance Department shall be an Insurance Commissioner appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate. |
Qualifications
Arkansas law requires the commissioner to be a citizen of the state and at least 30 years old. He must also satisfy the usual constitutional requirements for all state officeholders; he must be a valid elector in the state. To qualify as an elector, one must be a resident of the state, must not have been convicted of a felony and must not have been ruled mentally incompetent by a court, among several other restrictions.[2][3]
Arkansas Code, Title 23, Chapter 61, Section 102
| No person shall be eligible for appointment as commissioner unless a citizen of this state and at least thirty (30) years of age. |
Appointments
Commissioners of insurance are appointed by the governor with the consent of the state Senate.[2]
Arkansas Code, Title 23, Chapter 61, Section 102
| The head of the State Insurance Department shall be an Insurance Commissioner appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate.. |
Term limits
There are no term limits associated with the office of insurance commissioner.
Vacancies
State law prescribes no special procedure for dealing with vacancies in the office of insurance commissioner.
Duties
State law directs the insurance commissioner to license insurance companies and regulate premium rates and insurer solvency. The commissioner conducts investigations of consumer complaints and possible insurance fraud; his office also collects fees and premium taxes from the industry, which finance the operations of the department. Additionally, the commissioner's office manages insolvent insurance companies and administers the Arkansas Life and Health/Property and Casualty Guaranty Funds.
Beyond its direct regulation of the insurance industry, the insurance commissioner's office provides educational resources for consumers like insurance cost comparisons among different companies, brochures, alerts regarding potential fraudulent activity, and others. The insurance commissioner's office also manages the state government's workers' compensation program.[4]
Divisions
- Administration
- Accounting
- Criminal Investigation
- Finance
- Human Resources
- Information Systems
- Legal
- License
- Life and Health/Property and Guaranty
- Liquidation
- Public Employee Claims
- Risk Management
- Senior Health Insurance Information Program (SHIIP)[4]
Compensation
In 2010, the commissioner received compensation in the amount of $117,899.[5] As the commissioner is not a part of the state's executive department, his or her salary is determined by the state's Office of Personnel and Management. The OPM has classified the commissioner under class code "U047" for the purposes of determining compensation.
Contact info
Physical address:
1200 West Third Street
Little Rock, AR 72201
Phone: (501) 371-2600
Fax: (501) 371-2618
See also
External links
References
- ↑ Project VoteSmart, "Bio of Jay Bradford," accessed June 22, 2011.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Arkansas Code, "Title 23, Chapter 61, Section 102," accessed June 22, 2011.
- ↑ Arkansas Constitution, "Article 19, Section 3; Article 51, Section 6; Article 5, Section 9," accessed June 16, 2011.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Arkansas Insurance Department, Various pages, accessed July 7, 2011.
- ↑ The Council of State Governments, "Book of the States 2010, Table 4.11," accessed May 20, 2011.
| ||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
