The state Department of Transportation's treasurer has resigned, leaving DOT commissioner Vance Smith's top management team even thinner and without permanent replacements in sight.
The department's board called a special meeting next Friday to discuss personnel issues in closed session.
The board can hire and fire the commissioner but no longer has control of his deputies, after a 2009 state law reorganized transportation governance.
Of the three top DOT positions that report to Smith and run the agency's major functions -- the treasurer, deputy commissioner and chief engineer -- only the chief engineer position is permanently filled.
In 2009 Smith named the chief engineer, Gerald Ross, to also fill the role of deputy commissioner. The board has asked Smith to hire a separate deputy commissioner but he has not, said DOT board chairman Rudy Bowen.
"We’ve had several meetings," Bowen said. "The board’s had some concern about it."
The treasurer, Kate Pfirman, announced she will move to the Department of Community Health effective June 1. The assistant treasurer, Angela Whitworth, will fill in as acting treasurer, according to a memo Smith sent to staff.
In addition, the DOT lawyer who oversees a high-stakes program to develop billion-dollar toll roads with private investment, Sandra Burgess, is expected to retire soon, and it is unclear whether a replacement is lined up.
Bowen, who chaired the board's finance committee for two years, described Pfirman as highly competent and said her departure was voluntary. The treasurer's position has been significant and sensitive as the DOT worked to solve problems raised in state audits and restore its image.
Bowen said next week's special meeting was not called to replace Smith, though he said the board has questions for him. Asked if the board intends to replace Smith, Bowen said "As far as I’m concerned that’s a board decision."
The board could have waited to meet until its regular monthly meeting the following week, but many members will be unable to attend then, Bowen said.
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