Arkansas Secretary of Agriculture
| Arkansas Secretary of Agriculture | |
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| General information | |
| Office Type: | Nonpartisan |
| Office website: | Official Link |
| Compensation: | $145,000 |
| 2024 FY Budget: | $204,072,252 |
| Term limits: | None |
| Structure | |
| Length of term: | Serves at the pleasure of the governor |
| Authority: | Arkansas Code, Title 25, Chapter 38, Section 202 |
| Selection Method: | Appointed by Arkansas Agriculture Board |
| Current Officeholder | |
| Wes Ward | |
| Other Arkansas Executive Offices | |
| Governor • Lieutenant Governor • Secretary of State • Attorney General • Treasurer • Auditor • Commissioner of Education • Agriculture Secretary • Insurance Commissioner • Commissioner of State Lands • Natural Resources Exec. Director • Labor Director • Public Service Commission | |
The Arkansas Secretary of Agriculture is a state executive position in the Arkansas state government. The secretary is head of the Arkansas Agriculture Department, which implements policies "to keep [Arkansas] Farmers and Ranchers competitive ... while ensur[ing] safe food, fiber, and forest products." Besides marketing the state's agricultural products, the department regulates various agricultural products, including pesticides, seeds, livestock, and poultry.[1]
Current officeholder
The third and current secretary of agriculture is Wes Ward.[2] Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson (R) recommended Ward for the position on March 13, 2015, submitting Ward's name to the Arkansas Agriculture Board for consideration. The board confirmed the nomination on March 21.[3]
Ward's appointment filled the vacancy left by former Secretary Butch Calhoun, who resigned in December 2014.[4]
Authority
The office of secretary is authorized by Arkansas statute.[5]
Arkansas Code, Title 25, Chapter 38, Section 202
| (a) There is created the Arkansas Agriculture Department.
(b)(1) The executive head of the department shall be the Secretary of the Arkansas Agriculture Department. |
Qualifications
The Arkansas Constitution requires all elected or appointed officeholders to be an elector. That is, they must fulfill the state's voter registration requirements—being a U.S. citizen, a resident of Arkansas, and at least 18 years old. Felons and citizens judged to be mentally incompetent by a court are also ineligible to vote and, by extension, to hold office.
Other requirements to complete a voter registration form—essentially, qualifications to be an elector—are given by Amendment 59, Section 6 of the constitution.
Incumbents may not hold any other state, federal, or civil office and may not have ever been convicted of "embezzlement of public money, bribery, forgery, or other infamous crime."
Constitution of Arkansas, Article 19, Section 3
|
No persons shall be elected to, or appointed to fill a vacancy in, any office who does not possess the qualifications of an elector. |
Constitution of Arkansas, Article 5, Section 9
|
No person hereafter convicted of embezzlement of public money, bribery, forgery or other infamous crime, shall be eligible to the General Assembly or capable of holding any office of trust or profit in this State. |
Constitution of Arkansas, Amendment 51, Section 6
|
(6) The mail voter registration application form shall include the following questions along with
boxes for the applicant to check "yes" or "no" in response: |
Appointments
Secretaries of agriculture are appointed by the Arkansas Agriculture Board, which is composed of gubernatorial appointees, people nominated by agencies within the Agriculture Department in addition to several ex officio members such as the University of Arkansas' vice president of agriculture. Appointees to the office of secretary of agriculture must have the consent, and serve at the pleasure, of the governor.[5]
Arkansas Code, Title 25, Chapter 38, Section 202
| The secretary shall be selected by the Arkansas Agriculture Board, and the name shall be submitted to the Governor for confirmation. The secretary shall serve at the pleasure of the Governor. |
Term limits
There are no term limits associated with the office of secretary of agriculture.
Vacancies
State law does not provide for any particular procedure to deal with vacancies.
Duties
The Arkansas Agriculture Department, under the supervision of the secretary, is directed by law to coordinate programs that will "enhance the marketing of the state's agricultural products" and "establish a clearinghouse for ... information and data concerning needs of and resources for agriculture, aquaculture, horticulture, forestry, and kindred industries."[6] It is also charged with encouraging agricultural clubs and associations with the state and coordinating with programs run by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the departments of other states.
The Agriculture Department also establishes regulations covering a variety of agriculture products and their cultivation. It has the authority to establish burn bans in forests at risk of fire, regulates seed dealers in the state, monitors the use of pesticides, and licenses a variety of agricultural services providers, among other things. It also develops programs to verify the quality of various agricultural services firms, such as cow/calf producers, and to prevent invasive diseases in the state's plants and animals.
Additionally, the department provides educational resources for citizens—such as guides to invasive plant species, timber management, livestock disease—and runs the state's land surveying program.[7]
Divisions
The as of January 5, 2021, the Arkansas Department of Agriculture includes the following divisions:[8]
- Forestry
- Livestock & Poultry
- Natural Resources
- Plant Industries
State budget
- See also: Arkansas state budget and finances
The budget for the Arkansas Department of Agriculture in Fiscal Year 2024 was $204,072,252.[9]
Compensation
As the secretary 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 secretary under class code "U072U" for the purposes of determining compensation.
2022
In 2022, the officer's salary was $145,000, according to the Council of State Governments.[10]
2021
In 2021, the commissioner received a salary of $134,640, according to the Council of State Governments.[11]
2020
In 2019, the commissioner received a salary of $132,000, according to the Council of State Governments.[12]
2019
In 2019, the commissioner received a salary of $122,953, according to the Council of State Governments.[13]
2018
In 2018, the commissioner received a salary of $101,969, according to the Council of State Governments.[14]
2017
In 2017, the commissioner received a salary of $101,969, according to the Council of State Governments.[15]
2016
In 2016, the commissioner received a salary of $101,969, according to the Council of State Governments.[16]
2014
In 2014, the secretary received a salary of $99,960, according to the Council of State Governments.[17]
2013
In 2013, the secretary received a salary of $98,000, according to the Council of State Governments.[18]
2010
In 2010, the secretary received a salary of $102,784, according to the Council of State Governments.[19]
Historical officeholders
Note: Ballotpedia's state executive officials project researches state official websites for chronological lists of historical officeholders; information for the Arkansas Secretary of Agriculture has not yet been added because the information was unavailable on the relevant state official websites, or we are currently in the process of formatting the list for this office. If you have any additional information about this office for inclusion on this section and/or page, please email us.
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Arkansas Secretary Agriculture. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
Contact info
Physical address:
1 Natural Resources Drive
Little Rock, AR 72205
Phone: (501) 683-4851
Fax: (501) 683-4852
See also
| Arkansas | State Executive Elections | News and Analysis |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Arkansas Agriculture Department, "Our Mission," accessed January 5, 2021
- ↑ Arkansas Agriculture Department, "Homepage," accessed January 5, 2021
- ↑ ArkansasOnline, "Ward OK'd as state ag officer," March 21, 2015
- ↑ THV11, "Arkansas Secretary of Agriculture announces retirement," October 16, 2014
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Arkansas Code, "Title 25, Chapter 38, Section 202," accessed January 5, 2021
- ↑ Arkansas Code, "Title 25, Chapter 38, Section 203," accessed June 21, 2011
- ↑ Arkansas Agriculture Department, "Agencies and Divisions," accessed June 21, 2011
- ↑ Arkansas Agriculture Department, "Mission," accessed January 5, 2021
- ↑ Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, "Funded Budget - Fiscal Year 2024," accessed December 6, 2023
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "Book of the States 2022 Table 4.11: Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries," provided to Ballotpedia by CSG personnel
- ↑ Issuu, "The Book of the States 2021," accessed September 22, 2022
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries, 2020," accessed January 12, 2021
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries, 2019," accessed January 5, 2021
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries, 2018," accessed January 5, 2021
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries, 2017," accessed January 5, 2021
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries, 2016," accessed August 27, 2016
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries," accessed November 14, 2014
- ↑ The Council of State Governments, "Book of the States 2013, Table 4.11," accessed February 2, 2014
- ↑ The Council of State Governments, "Book of the States 2010, Table 4.11," accessed May 20, 2011
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