Larry Hayes, who has served as secretary of economic development on an interim basis since September, has been chosen by the state's Economic Development Partnership Board as the permanent head of the cabinet.
Hayes served in his interim role and as Gov. Steve Beshear's Executive Cabinet secretary, a role he took when Beshear was inaugurated.
"Larry has been a trusted aide and advisor as my secretary of the Cabinet since I took office nearly two years ago. However, there is nothing more important right now than our efforts to maintain and grow jobs during this trying economy," Beshear said in a statement from his office. "If you look at his background and his record of creating jobs and strategies for successful economic development, there is simply no one better to lead our efforts than Larry Hayes. His broad range of both public and private sector experience has benefited many areas of the state and I look forward to his continued work in the recruitment and retention of jobs on behalf of Kentucky."
Unlike every other cabinet in state government, the secretary for economic development is chosen by an independent board rather than directly by the governor, though the governor is always a member of the Economic Development Partnership Board.
According to the governor's office release, Hayes has recently been involved in negotiations to keep Ford assembly jobs in Louisville and to relocate what was left of parcel delivery giant DHL's North American operations from Wilmington, Ohio, to Northern Kentucky.
Hayes won the job over two other finalists interviewed by the board: Chad Newell, a developer with Newton Oldacre McDonald, a retail development firm in Nashville, Tenn.; and Rhonda Rice, executive administrator with Innovation Valley, Inc., a regional economic development partnership in east Tennessee, and executive vice president of the Knoxville Area Chamber Partnership.
To replace Hayes as Executive Cabinet secretary, Beshear has tapped Mary Lassiter, a longtime state employee who has worked primarily as a non-political member of the state budget office. Lassiter currently serves as state budget director, a role she also held at the end of Republican Gov. Ernie Fletcher's administration after his budget chair, Brad Cowgill, was named as the interim head president for the Council on Postsecondary Education.