Governor Bill Haslam on Tuesday announced Larry Martin will become the interim commissioner of the state Department of Finance and Administration when Commissioner Mark Emkes retires at the end of the month.
Mr. Martin becomes interim commissioner at F&A June 1 after Mr. Emkes retires effective May 31.
A year ago, he joined the governor’s staff as a special assistant to the governor, working alongside Human Resources Commissioner Rebecca Hunter to oversee the implementation of Haslam’s civil service reform, the Tennessee Excellence, Accountability and Management (TEAM) Act; and reviewing state employee compensation.
“I am grateful that Larry has agreed to step into this position and serve Tennessee taxpayers in this capacity,” Governor Haslam said. “He has been critically important in helping us establish the systems and organizational structure to begin recruiting, attracting and retaining the best and brightest to serve in state government, and I look forward to continuing to work with him as interim commissioner of F&A.”
From September 2006 to December 2011, Mr. Martin, 65, served as deputy to the mayor in Knoxville for both Haslam and Mayor Daniel Brown. He was responsible for finance, public works, community development, information systems, purchasing and risk management for the city of Knoxville.
Prior to joining city government, Mr. Martin was an executive of First Horizon/First Tennessee Bank, joining the company in 1969 and serving in various capacities before retiring as the chief operating officer for First Tennessee Financial Services with responsibility for all Tennessee Regional Bank Markets; merchant services processing; Hickory Venture Capital; and the commercial, corporate, and middle market divisions of the bank.
A native of Jackson, Tn., Mr. Martin received his bachelor of science from the University of Tennessee’s College of Business.
“Under Governor Haslam, Tennessee has taken incredible steps toward making state government more responsive to its customers, the taxpayers, and I want to thank him for this new opportunity to serve the state,” Mr. Martin said.
The search for a permanent replacement is ongoing.