Allen Kerr
Allen Kerr (b. November 19, 1956 in Little Rock, Arkansas) is a former Arkansas Commissioner of Insurance. He was appointed to the office by Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R) on December 17, 2014, and assumed office on January 13, 2015.[1] He resigned on March 27, 2020, in order to return to the private sector.[2]
Kerr is a former Republican member of the Arkansas House of Representatives, representing District 32 from 2009 to 2015. Kerr did not seek re-election in 2014.[3][4][5]
Biography
Kerr started Allen Kerr Insurance Company in 1981 and served as owner from 1981 until 2013. The company was purchased by Simmons Bank and turned into Simmons First Insurance, where Kerr served as president prior to his appointment. Kerr's public service includes stints as Pulaski County Justice of the Peace and budget chair for the Pulaski County Quorum Court.[1][6]
Political career
Arkansas Commissioner of Insurance (2015-2020)
Kerr has served in the commissioner's office since January 13, 2015. He was first appointed by Gov. Hutchinson to replace Jay Bradford, who served from 2009 to 2015.[1] He resigned on March 27, 2020, in order to return to the private sector.[2]
Arkansas House of Representatives (2009-2015)
Kerr represented District 32 in the Arkansas House of Representatives from 2009 to 2015.
Committee assignments
2013-2014
At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Kerr served on the following committees:
| Arkansas committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Public Retirement and Social Security Programs |
| • Revenue and Taxation |
| • State Agencies and Governmental Affairs |
| • Legislative Joint Auditing |
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Kerr served on these committees:
| Arkansas committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Insurance and Commerce, Vice Chair |
| • Legislative Joint Auditing |
| • Public Retirement and Social Security Programs |
| • Revenue and Taxation |
Issues
Sponsored legislation
Kerr's sponsored legislation includes:
- HB 1119 - "TO IMPROVE THE SAFETY OF THE ROADS AND HIGHWAYS BY LIMITING WIRELESS TELEPHONE USE BY YOUNG DRIVERS."
- HB 1895 - "TO PROHIBIT THE IMPOSITION OF AN ACCIDENT RESPONSE SERVICE FEE."
- HB 2207 - "TO CREATE THE TRUTH IN MUSIC ADVERTISING ACT."
For a full listing of sponsored bills, see the House site.
2009-2010
In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Kerr served on these committees:
- Aging, Children and Youth, Legislative and Military Affairs Committee, Arkansas House
- Economic and Tax Policy Committee, Arkansas Assembly
- Public Transportation Committee, Arkansas House
- Subcommittee on Legislative, Military and Veterans Affairs
- Subcommittee on Waterways and Aeronautics
Elections
2012
Kerr ran for re-election in the 2012 election for Arkansas House of Representatives, District 32. Kerr ran unopposed in the May 22 Republican primary and defeated Barbara Graves (D) in the general election on November 6, 2012.[3][7][8]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |  Allen Kerr Incumbent |
54.7% | 8,042 | |
| Democratic | Barbara Graves | 45.3% | 6,652 | |
| Total Votes | 14,694 | |||
2010
Kerr won re-election to the 32nd District seat in 2010. He faced no opposition in the May 18 primary.[9] He then defeated Democrat Carolyn Y. Staley in the November 2 general election.[4]
| Arkansas House of Representatives, District 32 General Election (2010) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Allen Kerr (R)
|
7,009 | |||
| Carolyn Y. Staley (D) | 4,839 | |||
2008
On November 4, 2008, Kerr won election to the 32nd District Seat in the Arkansas House of Representatives, running unopposed in the general election.[5]
Kerr raised $33,053 for his campaign.[10]
Appointments
2014
Kerr was first appointed to the insurance commissioner's office on December 17, 2014.[1][11]
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Arkansas scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2014
In 2014, the Arkansas General Assembly was in session from February 10 to March 20.
Ballotpedia staff did not find any state legislative scorecards published for this state in 2014. If you are aware of one, please contact editor@ballotpedia.org to let us know.
2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the 89th Arkansas State Legislature was in session from January 14 through May 17.
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2012
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2012, click [show]. |
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In 2012, the Arkansas General Assembly was in session from February 13 to March 13. Ballotpedia staff did not find any state legislative scorecards published for this state in 2012. If you are aware of one, please contact editor@ballotpedia.org to let us know. |
2011
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2011, click [show]. |
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In 2011, the 88th Arkansas State Legislature was in session from January 10 to April 27.
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Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Allen Kerr Arkansas Commissioner Insurance. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
| Arkansas | State Executive Elections | News and Analysis |
|---|---|---|
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- Arkansas Commissioner of Insurance
- Arkansas House of Representatives
- House Committees
- Arkansas State Legislature
- Arkansas state legislative districts
External links
- Allen Kerr's personal website
- Profile from Open States
- Legislative Profile from Project Vote Smart
- Biography from Project Vote Smart
- Campaign Contributions: 2012, 2010, 2008
- Facebook page
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Arkansas Insurance Department, "Allen W. Kerr," accessed March 10, 2015
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Insurance Journal, "Arkansas Insurance Commissioner Kerr to Return to Private Sector," March 5, 2020
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Arkansas Secretary of State, "Election Results 2012," accessed November 7, 2012
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Arkansas Secretary of State, "Official election results," accessed December 13, 2013
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 VoteNaturally.org, "2008 general election results, Arkansas," November 4, 2008
- ↑ Project Vote Smart, "Rep. Kerr Biography," accessed May 12, 2014
- ↑ Arkansas Secretary of State, "2012 Election candidates," March 8, 2012
- ↑ Arkansas Secretary of State, "Official 2012 Primary Results," accessed December 20, 2013
- ↑ VoteNaturally.org, "Primary results," accessed May 12, 2014
- ↑ Follow the Money, "Arkansas House spending, 2008," November 4, 2008
- ↑ Arkansas News, "Hutchinson names adjutant general, insurance commissioner," December 17, 2014
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Ballotpedia, "Arkansas's Freedom Scorecard," accessed July 10, 2017
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Jay Bradford |
Arkansas Commissioner of Insurance 2015-2020 |
Succeeded by Alan McClain |
| Preceded by - |
Arkansas House District 32 2009–2015 |
Succeeded by Jim Sorvillo (R) |
| ||||||||||||||
