Arkansas Tornado Response

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Our Mission

The mission of the Department of Commerce is to champion economic opportunities through strategic initiatives and an equitable regulatory environment that attracts and grows businesses, safeguards consumers, enhances workforce quality, and energizes our infrastructure, creating a better quality of life for all Arkansans.

Divisions

Arkansas Development Finance Authority
Arkansas Division of Aeronautics
Arkansas Division of Workforce Services
Arkansas Economic Development Commission
Arkansas Insurance Department
Arkansas Securities Department
Arkansas State Bank Department
Arkansas Waterways Commission
Arkansas Wine Producers Council
Office of Skills Development
Office of Skills Development

Executive Team

Allison Hatfield

Chief of Staff

David Bell
David Bell

Chief Financial Officer

Clark Cogbill

Director of Marketing & Communications

Melissa Adams
Melissa Adams

Executive Assistant

About The Governor

Sarah Sanders

Sarah Sanders

Governor of Arkansas

Sarah Huckabee Sanders is the 47th Governor of Arkansas.

Inaugurated on January 10, 2023, she is the first woman to serve as governor of the state and currently is the youngest governor in the country.

Prior to her historic victory, Sarah served as White House Press Secretary for President Donald J. Trump from 2017 to 2019. A trusted confidant of the President, she advised him on everything from press and communications strategy to personnel and policy. For two and a half years, Sarah worked closely with the president, battling with the media, working with lawmakers and CEOs, and accompanying the president on every foreign trip, including dozens of meetings with foreign leaders. Sarah was only the third woman – and the very first mom – to ever hold the job of White House Press Secretary.

Upon her departure from the administration, President Trump described Sarah as “irreplaceable,” a “warrior,” and “very special person with extraordinary talents, who has done an incredible job.”

Sarah joined the Trump campaign as a senior advisor in February 2016 during the Republican primary and continued in that role through the President’s historic victory that November.

Sarah has previously worked in leadership roles for U.S. Senators, Governors, and presidential campaigns. In Arkansas, Sarah was a senior advisor to U.S. Senator Tom Cotton’s 2014 victorious campaign and was campaign manager for U.S. Senator John Boozman’s winning campaign in 2010. In 2007 and 2008, Sarah helped lead her father, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, to victory in the Iowa Caucuses and seven other states as his national political director. Sarah served in the Department of Education during President George W. Bush’s administration, and was campaign manager of the ONE campaign, a global non-profit founded by U2’s Bono to take action to end extreme poverty and preventable disease, particularly in Africa.

Sarah has been recognized in Fortune and TIME Magazine “40 under 40.” She is the author of the New York Times bestseller “Speaking for Myself,” a former Fox News Channel contributor, and served on the Fulbright board.

Sarah grew up in Pine Bluff and Texarkana and is a proud graduate of Little Rock Central High and Ouachita Baptist University.

She lives in Little Rock with her husband, Bryan, their children Scarlett, Huck, and George, and their golden retriever, Traveler.

Recent News

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Gov. Sanders appoints Susannah Marshall as Commissioner of the Arkansas Securities Department
Posted: 08/11/2023

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (August 11, 2023) – Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders has appointed Susannah Marshall...

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Arkansas State Broadband Office launches survey, community engagement effort to build Digital Skills and Opportunity Plan
Posted: 07/18/2023

The final report, due in November 2023, will lay out an action plan to get...

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Governor Sanders reappoints Susannah Marshall as Commissioner of Arkansas State Bank Department
Posted: 07/10/2023

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (July 10, 2023) – Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders has reappointed Susannah Marshall...

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Arkansas to receive over $1B to expand broadband in state
Posted: 06/28/2023

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (June 26, 2023) – Today, the Arkansas Department of Commerce, along with...

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#2 Most Affordable State to Live

in the U.S.

Arkansas Economic Development Commission

$10.7 Billion

invested in Arkansas by 529 companies since 2015

Arkansas Economic Development Commission

#3 most inland waterway miles

in the U.S.

MKARNS = 507,099,026 tons (May 2021)

Arkansas Waterways Commission

293

foreign-owned operations in the state

Arkansas Department of Commerce

85

banks headquartered in Arkansas

Arkansas State Bank Department

4.4% Unemployment

May 2021 (no increase)

Department of Workforce Services

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