Illinois Director Clark Calls It Quits
Wednesday, February 11th, 2004 Legislation & Regulation Life & HealthIllinois Insurance Director J. Anthony Clark has announced he will step down from his post effective Feb. 13, according to the Associated Press. The constraints forced upon the insurance department by the state‘s budget and the bother of commuting between Chicago and Springfield—a three-hour drive—were factors in the decision, Clark said. Clark was appointed to the job less than a year ago by Democratic Gov. Rod Blagojevich, and was handcuffed by Illinois‘ budget woes. He told the AP, for example, that he wanted to expand the state‘s Children‘s Health Insurance Program but could not due to the scarcity of funds. Insurance industry lobbyists have complained steadily that Clark, a former life insurance counsel for Montgomery Ward, though hardly antagonistic or clueless about the insurance business was nonetheless quiescent with regard to the combination of department budget cuts and industry fees and taxes enacted last year.
