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Arkansas Executive Director of Natural Resources Commission
| Arkansas Executive Director of Natural Resources Commission | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Office Type: | Nonpartisan |
| Office website: | Official Link |
| Compensation: | $127,575 |
| 2025 FY Budget: | $133,006,909 |
| Term limits: | None |
| Structure | |
| Length of term: | Serves at pleasure of the governor |
| Authority: | Arkansas Code, Title 15, Chapter 20, Section 205 |
| Selection Method: | Appointed by governor |
| Current Officeholder(s) | |
Arkansas Executive Director of Natural Resources Commission
Chris Colclasure | |
| 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 Executive Director of Natural Resources is a state executive position in the Arkansas state government. The executive director is administrative head of the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission, which oversees the state's environmental conservation and water management programs.[1]
Current officeholder
The current Arkansas Executive Director of Natural Resources Commission is Chris Colclasure (nonpartisan). Colclasure assumed office in 2021.
Authority
The office of executive director is authorized by Arkansas statute.[2]
Arkansas Code, Title 15, Chapter 20, Section 205
| (a) The Executive Director of the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission shall be appointed by and serve at the pleasure of the Governor.
(b) The executive director shall be charged with the duty of administering the provisions of this subchapter and the rules, regulations, and orders established thereunder. |
Qualifications
The Arkansas Constitution requires all elected or appointed officeholders to be an elector. 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—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
Executive directors of the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission are appointed by the governor and serve at his or her pleasure.[2]
Constitution of Arkansas, Article 51, Section 6
|
(a) The Executive Director of the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission shall be appointed by and serve at the pleasure of the Governor. |
Term limits
There are no term limits associated with the office of executive director.
Vacancies
State law does not establish any particular procedure for dealing with vacancies.
Duties
The executive director is the administrative head of the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission, which is charged with managing the state's water resources and a variety of water conservation programs. The commission's conservation division distributes a number of grants and tax incentives to reduce use of ground water, licenses nutrient managers that supervise the composition of poultry feed and commercial fertilizer, and controls the state's beaver population.
The executive director also oversees a variety of initiatives to make use of the state's groundwater more efficient, including improving sewers and waste management systems, financing upgrades to public drinking water and several other loan and grant programs.
Divisions
As of January 8, 2021, divisions within the Natural Resources Commission included:[3]
- Water Development
- Floodplain Management
- Dam Safety
- Ground Water Protection & Management
- Nonpoint Source Pollution & Management
- Conservation
- Water Management
- Nutrient Management Planning
- Rule and Regulations
- Non-Riparian Water Use
- Wetlands & Riparian Zone Tax Credit
- Arkansas Water Plan
- Arkansas Unpaved Roads Program
State budget
- See also: Arkansas state budget and finances
The budget for the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission in Fiscal Year 2025 was $133,006,909.[4]
Compensation
- See also: Compensation of state executive officers
As the director 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 director under class code "U101U" for the purposes of determining compensation.
2023
In 2023, the officer's salary was $127,575, according to the Council of State Governments.[5]
2022
In 2022, the officer's salary was $117,000, according to the Council of State Governments.[6]
2021
In 2021, the director received a salary of $120,853, according to the Council of State Governments.[7]
2020
In 2020, the director received a salary of $118,484 according to the Council of State Governments.[8]
2019
In 2019, the director received a salary of $116,160 according to the Council of State Governments.[9]
2018
In 2018, the director received a salary of $112,756 according to the Council of State Governments.[10]
2017
In 2017, the director received a salary of $112,756 according to the Council of State Governments.[11]
2016
In 2016, the director received a salary of $112,756, according to the Council of State Governments.[12]
2015
In 2015, the director received a salary of $111,639, according to the Council of State Governments.[13]
2014
In 2014, the director received a salary of $110,533, according to the Council of State Governments.[14]
2013
In 2013, the director received a salary of $103,611. This figure comes from the Council of State Governments.[15]
2010
In 2010, the director received a salary of $101,579.[16]
Historical officeholders
Note: Ballotpedia's state executive officials project researches state official websites for chronological lists of historical officeholders; information for the Arkansas Executive Director of Natural Resources Commission 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 Director Natural Resources Commission. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
Contact info
Physical address:
1 Natural Resources Dr.
Little Rock, RA 72205
Phone: (501) 225-1598
See also
| Arkansas | State Executive Elections | News and Analysis |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Arkansas Natural Resources Commission, "Our History & Purpose," accessed January 8, 2021
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Arkansas Code, "Title 15, Chapter 20, Section 208," accessed January 8, 2021
- ↑ Arkansas Natural Resources Commission, "Home," accessed January 8, 2021
- ↑ Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, "Funded Budget - Fiscal Year 2025," accessed January 15, 2025
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "Book of the States 2023 Table 4.11: Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries," accessed January 15, 2025
- ↑ 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, "The Book of the States 2020," accessed January 5, 2021
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "The Book of the States 2019," accessed January 5, 2021
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "The Book of the States 2018," accessed January 5, 2021
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "The Book of the States 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, 2015," 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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