DOT chief to stay on during transition

Governor-elect Terry Branstad has asked Iowa Department of Transportation director Nancy Richardson to delay her retirement and stay on at the DOT through June.  Richardson is married to Charlie Krogmeier, the director of the Iowa Department of Human Services who has not been asked by Branstad to stay on in that role.  (Charles Palmer, the man who headed up the DHS for Branstad for about a decade, is getting the job back.) Krogmeier, who held a variety of positions in Chet Culver’s Adminstration, was a Drake Law School classmate of Branstad’s and a former Democratic candidate for congress. Read the Branstad transition team’s news release below.

Branstad announces Nancy Richardson will be retained as head of Iowa Department of Transportation

(URBANDALE) – Gov.-elect Terry Branstad announced today that Nancy Richardson will be retained as head of Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) in the Branstad/Reynolds administration.

“I am excited today to announce that Nancy Richardson has been asked and accepted the opportunity to remain the head of the Iowa Department of Transportation through the 2011 legislative session,” said Branstad.  “Nancy has my full faith and confidence, and will be a full partner in my administration. She is a strong leader and we appreciate her willingness to serve in the administration as we continue our nationwide search for a new director.”

The Iowa Department of Transportation oversees matters relating to Iowa’s transportation systems including highways, bridges, waterways, railways, airports, trails and public transit services. Earlier this year, Richardson announced her plans to retire at the end of 2010.  Today’s announcement delays that retirement into the spring of 2011.

Nancy Richardson was appointed as the Director of the Iowa DOT in 2005 and served as the Iowa DOT’s Operations and Finance Division from 1993 through 2005.  Prior to that, Richardson served as director of the Administrative Division, director and deputy director of the Air and Transit Division and transit district representative in the Transit Division.

“I am very grateful that Governor Branstad has asked me to continue as head of the Iowa Department of Transportation,” said Richardson. “I am proud of my service and look forward to continuing my work to improve Iowa’s infrastructure while promoting safe and efficient travel.”

Richardson is active in the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) and serves as the chair of the Standing Committee on Finance and Administration. Richardson is the immediate past president of the Mississippi Valley Conference of State Highway and Transportation Officials, which is one of AASHTO’s four regional groups. Richardson is a graduate of The University of Iowa and has a Bachelor’s degree in Social Work.