The Arkansas Legislative Council on Friday cleared the way for the state Department of Health to shift Dr. James Bledsoe -- the husband of Senate Public Health, Welfare and Labor Committee Chairman Cecile Bledsoe, R-Rogers -- from working half time to full time and to boost his annual salary from $85,849 to $171,698 a year.
In a voice vote with no audible dissenters, the Republican-controlled council signed off on the department's request to employ Jame Bledsoe on a full-time basis. Democratic Sens. Joyce Elliott and Linda Chesterfield, both of Little Rock, and Rep. Nate Bell, an independent from Mena, abstained.
"I think we've got an individual that [has] qualifications [that] are unquestioned, his integrity is unquestioned," Sen. Terry Rice, R-Waldron, said after lawmakers asked about the request for nearly 20 minutes.
James Bledsoe started as a part-time consultant for the Health Department on May 26, 2015, after Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson and the Legislative Council signed off on the hire. State law requires the governor and the Legislative Council or Joint Budget Committee to approve the hiring because James Bledsoe is married to a lawmaker.
Hutchinson said in a letter dated Sept. 19 that he approved department Director Nathaniel Smith's request to move James Bledsoe to full-time status and to add the duties of medical director for the department's trauma system program to the doctor's responsibilities. He has been the medical director for the department's emergency medical services program.
The department also has a $173,199 contract with Arkansas Heart Hospital for the services of Arkansas Surgeon General Greg Bledsoe -- son of James and Cecile Bledsoe -- in the fiscal year that started July 1, said department spokesman Meg Mirivel. Hutchinson named Greg Bledsoe as the state's surgeon general in December 2014.
Cecile Bledsoe is paid $39,400 a year as a state senator, plus per diem and mileage expenses for attending legislative meetings.
In a letter dated Oct. 27 to the Legislative Council, Smith said the request to employ James Bledsoe full time "has been delayed over the last several months, and it is now imperative" that the department boost his status to provide day-to-day oversight and leadership to the trauma program.
Smith told lawmakers Friday that the department had a half-time contract for a medical director for the trauma program with the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences for $236,545 a year until this summer, "so replacing that contract with half of Dr. Bledsoe's time would save us approximately $122,000.
"This is a critical time for our trauma system," he told lawmakers.
"We've had some issues with the trauma education, in particular, and it is very important that we have a medical director who can guide us in terms of what trauma education is needed and the highest value for the state [and] who is not also involved in providing that trauma education and being compensated through that process," Smith said in response to a question from Rep. Kim Hammer, R-Benton.
"Having a medical director who is not also compensated for trauma education or other services and is strictly compensated by the Department of Health will allow us to avoid potential ethical issues or conflicts of interest," Smith said.
Hammer said he "doesn't have anything but utmost respect for the Bledsoe family.
"But we've got three key people in the same family in high-level positions. What are the safeguards as far as a potential conflict of interest given the overlapping relationship?" Hammer asked.
As far as safeguards against influencing the department's decisions, Smith said James Bledsoe's role will be focused on emergency medical services and the trauma program, both located within a branch of the department.
"Dr. Bledsoe's decision-making will be very impactful in that area, but not particularly influential for the overall course of the department," Smith said. "As with all of my [employees], I consult them freely when I need their particular expertise in a particular area. But ultimately as agency director I have to make my own decisions based on what I see are the best interests of the state."
Hammer asked if James Bledsoe's position would be eliminated "if the trauma system went away as we know it now."
Smith responded that "if we no longer have a statewide trauma system, then there is no need for a trauma medical director."
House Speaker Jeremy Gillam, R-Judsonia, said some legislators have discussed making changes to the trauma system.
"If for some reason the role of the trauma system is diminished or reduced in any way or eliminated in any way, what would then be the path forward with this position," asked Gillam. "Would you eliminate it? ... Would you keep Dr. Bledsoe and then reallocate him over to a different role or release him?"
Smith replied, "I don't have any specific knowledge of changes that are planned or anticipated in terms of the trauma program, so I don't have a specific plan.
"In general terms, if we have a program that changes, then we adjust our staffing accordingly. In some cases, we eliminate a position. In some cases, we assign duties. We would have to look at the needs of the department at that time at that moment," he said.
After the Legislative Council's meeting, Chesterfield said she abstained from the vote in part because "I am still concerned about one family having that many positions in state government."
Elliott said, "I do think it's important that we are thoughtful about the images that we project from here, and this is one that makes me very uncomfortable, so I'm not just prone to be a part of something that I think projects the wrong image, and I think it deserved to be more well-thought than this.
"But it has been out here for a long time. I guess it's time to dispense with it, and I don't think this is a good idea," she said.
Bell, the independent senator from Mena, said he abstained from voting on the matter because his wife, Phyllis Bell, works in the governor's office and he wanted to avoid any perceived "personal conflict."
In August, the Legislative Council approved Hutchinson's request to promote aide Phyllis Bell to senior adviser on child welfare and boost her annual salary from $53,000 to $80,000. She took on additional responsibilities as the governor's senior adviser for child welfare, and her promotion had nothing to do with her husband being a state lawmaker, Hutchinson spokesman J.R. Davis has said.
Hutchinson said Friday in a written statement that James Bledsoe's "move to full time is based upon the recommendation of the Department of Health.
"On matters of medical expertise, I rely upon the director's judgment. Because there is a family connection to a legislator there is a required conflicts approval from the legislature. This procedure was followed," the governor said in a written statement.
Asked whether any state lawmaker had previously had two relatives both making more than $100,000 a year in state agencies reporting to the governor, Davis said "I couldn't tell you if this was unprecedented or not.
"I would confidently assume it has happened before, but I have no way of knowing," Davis said in a written statement.
Metro on 11/19/2016