ARKANSAS, USA — Governor-elect Sarah Huckabee Sanders announced on Friday her intention to nominate Washington County Judge Joseph Wood as the Secretary of the Department of Transformation and Shared Services (TSS).
TSS is comprised of the Arkansas Geographic Information Systems Office, the Division of Building Authority, the Division of Information Systems, the Employee Benefits Division, the Office of Personnel Management, and the Office of State Procurement.
The department oversees the state procurement process for commodities, technical and professional services for all state agencies, boards, commissions, colleges, and universities.
Wood is completing his second term as a Washington County Judge—the third largest county in the state.
“Judge Wood shares my enthusiasm for shrinking the size and scope of government by identifying efficiencies and bold reforms to reduce budgets, saving money, and providing better services to the hardworking men and women of Arkansas,” Sanders said.
5NEWS recently spoke with Judge Wood about the reopening of the Washington County Crisis Stabilization Unit, an alternative to jails and emergency rooms for people in crisis who encounter law enforcement in the county.
Wood said he was one of the original county judges petitioning to have a unit located in Northwest Arkansas.
"it has been largely about giving tools for law enforcement officers so they can make a decision, as opposed to prior having these crisis stabilization units, bringing people to the jail," Judge Wood said.
Sanders said Wood's leadership makes him a "natural choice" for the role.
Wood is currently completing his second term as a Washington County Judge—the third largest county in the state.
“I am not shy about my desire to serve the state of Arkansas and to help make it a place where businesses grow, families move to, and the government stays out of the way,” Wood said.
“That’s exactly what we have done in Washington County during my tenure as County Judge, and I am humbled by the confidence Governor-elect Sanders has in me to ask that I take on this critical work. Citizens expect their government to work for them and that’s exactly what we are going to make happen.”
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