Here are Arizona’s top agency heads ... and their salaries
Greg McKay’s recent decision to step down as state Department of Child Safety director marks the latest in a string of state leadership changes during Gov. Doug Ducey’s five-year tenure.
Since his initial round of appointments, made when the Republican leader took office in 2015, Ducey has tapped more than 10 new agency directors to lead state agencies.
The appointments have followed retirements, scandals and restructuring, as well as department heads leaving to pursue other opportunities.
Salaries for directors of 25 of the state’s more high-profile agencies — a group that is overwhelmingly white and male — range from nearly $100,000 to more than $215,000, according to the most recent data available. That puts their earnings above Ducey’s annual $95,000 salary, which is also among the lowest for U.S. governors.
The state has several other boards, commissions and offices that handle everything from accounting issues to services for Arizonans who are deaf and hard of hearing. Many directors in that group make between $60,000 and $99,000 a year, although several salaries top six figures.
A few agency heads are holdovers from previous administrations, such as Corrections Director Charles Ryan, but Ducey was involved in selecting most of them.
The governor hosts in-person meetings with his cabinet quarterly, and Ducey staffers regularly communicate with department representatives.
Here’s a closer look at leaders of key departments, from how long they’ve been around and how much they make to how often they’ve made headlines.
Administration
Purpose: Supports state-government operations by handling employeehealth benefits; workers-compensation claims; facility maintenance; supply purchases; and IT needs, among others. Number of employees: 462 Director: Andy Tobin
Appointed: 2019
Replaced: Craig Brown
Salary: $195,000
Noteworthy: Tobin, a well-known figure in Arizona politics, was a Republican state legislator for years, serving as Speaker of the House from 2011 to 2014.
He most recently served on the Arizona Corporation Commission. The Arizona Attorney General’s Office found that he broke the law in using that office to advocate against Proposition 127, a clean-energy ballot initiative strongly opposed by Arizona Public Service Co. He was fined $225.
Agriculture
Purpose: Promotes Arizona farming, ranching and agribusiness; protects people, plants, animals and the environment; safeguards commerce and encourages consumer awareness. Number of employees: 263 Director: Mark Killian
Appointed: 2015
Replaced: Donald Butler
Salary: $132,000
Noteworthy: Five months after Ducey tapped him to lead the Agriculture Department, Killian resigned from the Arizona Board of Regents, which oversees the three state universities and hires university presidents.
Killian said he stepped down because he couldn’t do both jobs justice. At the time of Killian’s appointment, some had questioned whether he could maintain impartiality on the board while working in Ducey’s administration.
Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS)
Purpose: Provides health coverage for low-income Arizonans.
Number of employees: 1,089 Director: Jami Snyder
Appointed: 2019
Replaced: Tom Betlach
Salary: $198,000
Child Safety
Purpose: Responds to child neglect and abuse cases; licenses foster-care agencies; oversees adoptions. Number of employees: 2,745 Director: Gregory McKay Appointed: 2015
Replaced: Charles Flanagan Salary: $215,250
Noteworthy: Departing Director McKay, a former Phoenix police officer who investigated the fatal child abuse case of Ame Deal, was one of Ducey’s earliest appointees.
In his farewell letter to the agency staff, he credited DCS employees with transforming it from an agency “with seemingly insurmountable problems” into one that won praise for the fastest reduction in foster-care ranks while keeping kids safe. Casey Family Programs recognized that accomplishment last year with a national award.
But he also had critics, as well as legal challenges that will linger beyond his tenure. The state is still enmeshed in a long-running class-action lawsuit that seeks changes in what critics call a dismal foster-care system that leaves children without needed medical and behavioral services.
Corrections
Purpose: Operates state prisons; contracts with private-prison operators.
Number of employees: 8,877 Director: Charles Ryan Appointed: 2009
Replaced: Dora Schriro
Salary: $185,000 Noteworthy:Democratic lawmakers demanded Ryan’s removal in April, the same day The Arizona Republic reported on understaffed prisons and underpaid corrections officers and a few days after ABC 15 confirmed Ryan was aware of broken locks on cell doors at Lewis Prison.
The lock problems resulted in attacks on both inmates and officers and at least one death.
Economic Security
Purpose: Provides temporary assistance for Arizonans in need through programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program; coordinates care for vulnerable residents, such as those with developmental disabilities. Number of employees: 7,587 Director: Michael Trailor Appointed: 2017
Replaced: Tim Jeffries
Salary: $215,250
Noteworthy: Ducey appointed Trailor after the former director, Tim Jeffries, was forced to resign. The governor’s decision followed Republic reports that detailed questionable mass firings, as well as a DES party in Nogales where Jeffries paid for alcohol for employees.
Trailor had spent nearly a decade overseeing the state Housing Department, including programs designed to help homeowners recover from the Great Recession.
Emergency and Military Affairs
Purpose: Consists of the Arizona National Guard, the Division of Emergency Management and the Division of Administrative Services. Assists with emergency preparedness and recovery efforts.
Number of employees: 453 Director: Michael McGuire Appointed: 2013
Replaced: Hugo Salazar
Salary: $146,000
Noteworthy: McGuire began leading the department after National Guard Bureau investigators verified Arizona Republic reports of pervasive misconduct and mismanagement under Salazar.
Three years later, the Arizona National Guard suspended nine top finance officials amid an investigation of “accounting irregularities” and “potential wrongdoing” related to multimilliondollar funds. At the time, McGuire said “personnel actions” were necessary in any organization and that efforts involving public funds demanded extra scrutiny.
Environmental Quality
Purpose: Administers state environmental laws and federal programs to prevent air, water and land pollution and ensure appropriate cleanup. Number of employees: 425 Director: Misael Cabrera Appointed: 2015
Replaced: Henry Darwin
Salary: $175,000
Forestry and Fire Management
Purpose: Prevents and suppresses fires; promotes forest health and encourages forest-restoration efforts. Number of employees: 131 Director: David Tenney Appointed: 2019
Replaced: Jeffery Whitney
Salary: $140,000
Game and Fish
Purpose: Establishes policies for wildlife preservation and harvest; ensures safe recreational opportunities; makes rules and regulations for watercraft and off-highway vehicle operations.
Number of employees: 593 Director: Ty Gray
Appointed: 2017
Replaced: Larry Voyles
Salary: $160,000
Gaming
Purpose: Regulates tribal gaming, racing and wagering, and boxing and mixed martial arts; runs the Division of Problem Gambling, which offers treatment for gambling issues.
Number of employees: 99 Director: Ted Vogt
Appointed: 2019
Replaced: Daniel Bergin
Salary: $135,000
Noteworthy: Vogt has held several prominent state-government roles, such as the director of the Arizona Department of Veterans Affairs.
He resigned as executive director of the Arizona Corporation Commission last year after concerns about a conflict of interest with APS.
Health Services
Purpose: Administers mental health, disease control, environmental health and family health services.
Number of employees: 1,403 Director: Cara Christ
Appointed: 2015
Replaced: Will Humble
Salary: $205,005
Noteworthy: Christ’s department intervened after an incapacitated patient was raped and gave birth at a private Hacienda Healthcare facility late last year. The agency took over regulation of the site to prevent it from closing.
Homeland Security
Purpose: Protects the state by preventing terrorist attacks in Arizona, enhancing border security and heightening cybersecurity efforts, among other strategies.
Number of employees: 12 Director: Gilbert Orrantia Appointed: 2009
Replaced: Leesa Berens Morrison Salary: $136,500
Housing
Purpose: Manages funding for housing programs through for-profit and non-profit developers, faith-based organizations, service organizations, and state, county and city entities who apply for funding and meet criteria developed by state and federal law. Number of employees: 69 Director: Carol Ditmore Appointed: 2017
Replaced: Michael Trailor
Salary: $141,750
Insurance and Financial Institutions
Purpose: Promotes a competitive but safe insurance marketplace; licenses and oversees state-chartered financial institutions; investigates consumer complaints.
Number of employees: 125 Director: Keith Schraad Appointed: 2018
Salary: $132,000 none becau Noteworthy: Schraad previously oversaw the state Insurance Department. Ducey this year signed legislation consolidating that agency with the Department of Financial Institutions and the Automobile Theft Authority.
Juvenile Corrections
Purpose: Supervises, rehabilitates, treats and educates “delinquent” youth. Number of employees: 389 Director: Jeffrey Hood Appointed: 2018
Replaced: Dona Marie Markley Salary: $155,000
Noteworthy: Ducey appointed Hood, a longtime corrections officer, after forcing the resignation of former Juvenile Corrections Director Dona Marie Markley. Arizona Republic reports revealed Markley had improperly fired employees and created a hostile work environment at Adobe Mountain, the school and juvenile-detention facility in north Phoenix.
Hood faced backlash last year after refusing to release a report he had requested on mental-health conditions at Adobe Mountain, but his tenure has generally drawn significantly less criticism.
Land
What it does: Manages state-trust land.
Number of employees: 94 Director: Lisa Atkins
Appointed: 2015
Replaced: Vanessa Hickman Salary: $175,000
Noteworthy: Atkins also serves an elected member and board president of the Central Arizona Water Conservation District.
Liquor Licenses And Control
Purpose: Issues, transfers, renews and audits liquor licenses; investigates and processes complaints; cooperates with law enforcement agencies; researches and responds to inquiries from manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers.
Number of employees: 34 Director: John Cocca
Appointed: 2015
Replaced: Alan Everett
Salary: $110,000
Noteworthy: Two years ago, Cocca was entangled in a controversy involving the first winemaker appointed to the state liquor board, John McLoughlin. The Governor’s Office was taking a closer look at McLoughlin after learning of an investigation accusing him of illegally importing California wine to his Arizona tasting room.
Emails obtained by The Republic showed Cocca defending McLoughlin to staffers in the Governor’s Office as he passed along the summary of the winemaker’s 12-year-old violations. “Not huge stuff, but he had previous violations. Our position is what better board member than one who had administrative violations and took responsibility for his mistakes. I think this makes him even better to understand the process,” he wrote.
McLoughlin resigned after two meetings.
Lottery Commission
Purpose: Develops and markets games that produce the maximum amount of net revenue for the state through “responsible play.”
Number of employees: 90 Director: Gregory Edgar Appointed: 2016
Replaced: Tony Bouie
Salary: $130,000
Noteworthy: Edgar had spent decades running a Phoenix public relations firm before being appointed to replace Tony Bouie, who stepped down after the Phoenix New Times revealed he’d assigned himself a state vehicle and used the car when he wasn’t working.
Parks
Purpose: Maintains state parks and trails; manages camping reservations. Number of employees: 179 Director: Robert Broscheid Appointed: 2019
Replaced: Sue Black
Salary: $170,000 Noteworthy: Ducey hired former the Colorado parks chief after firing former Parks Director Sue Black and deputy director James Keegan.
Former archaeologists for the department had alleged the agency developed state land without regard for laws protecting Native American and other archaeological sites, prompting a criminal investigation from the Arizona Attorney General’s Office. Black also was repeatedly accused of mistreating employees, including firing a woman who had cancer.
Public Safety
Purpose: Primarily patrols and enforces state laws on Arizona highways. Number of employees: 1,974 Director: Frank Milstead Appointed: 2015
Replaced: Robert Halliday
Salary: $197,000
Noteworthy: Milstead was a key player in the arrest of Leslie Allen Merritt Jr., the man accused in a high-profile series of shootings on Phoenix freeways in 2015. At the time, Milstead said lab results tied Merritt’s gun to four of 11 shootings.
But after a ballistics expert challenged the evidence that led to Merritt’s arrest, DPS investigators were accused of rushing to judgment and using slapdash police work amid intense public pressure. Merritt was released from custody, later filing and settling a lawsuit against the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office.
Milstead also is one of the faces of Ducey’s multiagency Border Strike Force initiative, which the governor has portrayed as a successful tool for curbing the flow of drugs into Arizona coming via Mexican cartels. Public records indicate the Strike Force does most of its work outside of the border region, and most cases do not involve organized drug-smuggling efforts.
School Facilities Board
Purpose: Manages state funding appropriated for K-12 school district facilities, including for construction and repairs.
Number of employees: 12 Director: Paul Bakalis
Appointed: 2016
Replaced: Dean Gray
Salary: $140,000
Noteworthy: Auditors earlier this year found that 100-plus facility repairs at Arizona schools had taken longer than a year to complete, potentially posing health and safety risks to students. Bakalis has said the agency is not “sufficiently staffed for a robust and growing workload.”
Transportation
Purpose: Plans, builds and operates highway systems; builds and maintains bridges; provides title, registration and driver-license services through its Motor Vehicle Division.
Number of employees: 3,560 Director: John Halikowski Appointed: 2009
Replaced: Victor Mendez
Salary: $150,000
Noteworthy: Halikowski was appointed by former Gov. Jan Brewer after spending more than a decade as the Arizona House of Representatives’ research director. When Ducey took office, the new governor opted to retain him.
Halikowski took hits from both the Legislature and the public late last year when he announced that a new public safety fee — passed by the Legislature — would cost motorists $32 a year versus the previous estimate of $18. A state senator ultimately brokered a deal to phase out the fee by July 2021.
Veterans Services
Purpose: Helps veterans access federal benefits, runs veterans home facilities in Phoenix and Tucson, operates veterans cemeteries.
Number of employees: 363 Director: Wanda Wright Appointed: 2015
Replaced: Ted Vogt
Salary: $133,000
Noteworthy: Wright, a retired colonel, is the first woman to head the department.
Water Resources
Purpose: Ensures long-term, reliable water supply for the state.
Number of employees: 139 Director: Thomas Buschatzke Appointed: 2015
Replaced: Michael Lacey
Salary: $140,000
Noteworthy: Buschatzke was a key voice in negotiations for the Colorado River drought plan earlier this year.