Alabama Department of Veterans Affairs Commissioner Kent Davis will step down at the end of this year, Gov. Kay Ivey announced Monday.
Ivey had called for Davis to resign last week because of what she described as mishandling of applications for federal funds from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).
Davis called the governor’s claims inaccurate and declined to resign. Ivey scheduled a meeting for Tuesday of the State Board of Veterans Affairs, which she chairs, to ask the board to fire Davis.
During a meeting Monday with Ivey and her senior staff, Davis agreed to resign effective Dec. 31, 2024, the governor’s office said in a press release.
“Caring for our country’s veterans is something I have been passionate about throughout my life, and especially throughout my tenure as lieutenant governor and now as governor,” Ivey said in a statement. “Alabama veterans are a priority for the Ivey Administration, and we cannot let anything stand in the way of their care.
“Our meeting with Commissioner Davis today was respectful, frank, and informative, with both sides gaining new perspective and insight about the challenges each of us face in fulfilling our respective roles. I appreciate Commissioner Davis’s record of service as Commissioner, and I appreciate him doing the right thing for our state and the future of the Alabama Department of Veterans Affairs.
“As I have said before, we have important work to continue doing, and I want to see nothing get in the way of us remaining focused on the thing that truly matters here – improving veterans’ care.”
The ADVA issued a statement on behalf of Davis, who is a retired U.S. Navy rear admiral and has led the ADVA since 2019:
“Today, Commissioner Kent Davis had a very cordial and informative meeting with Governor Ivey and her senior staff. This matter has been resolved to the mutual benefit of all parties and we are looking forward to the dedication of the Command Sgt. Maj. Bennie G. Adkins State Veterans Home in Enterprise on Friday.”
The governor cancelled Tuesday’s special meeting of the State Board of Veterans Affairs. Ivey will work with members of the board to prepare to hire a new commissioner when Davis’ resignation takes effect at the end of the year, according to the press release from her office.
Some of the top leaders in the Alabama Legislature spoke out in support of Ivey’s call for Davis to be removed from the job.
The governor, in a letter to Davis calling for him to step down, cited what she said were unjustified delays and a general inability to manage $7 million in grant funds from ARPA for veterans services. She said the problems jeopardized the state’s ARPA obligations and nearly prevented veterans service providers from receiving needed funds.
The governor also wrote that Davis did not cooperate and collaborate with other state agencies, which she said was a crucial part of his job. The governor released a letter from Alabama Department of Mental Health Commissioner Kim Boswell to Davis cancelling an interagency agreement between the ADVA and the Mental Health on managing the ARPA grant funds because of problems Boswell described that she said put her agency at risk of negative audit findings.
Davis issued a statement on Friday disputing what he called “inaccurate claims” and said none of the actions by the ADVA jeopardized Alabama’s use of the ARPA funds.
“We have continuously been transparent in our department’s mission and day-to-day operations in our service to Alabama’s 400,000 veterans,” Davis said in the statement Friday. “This includes earlier this year when ADVA attempted to work with members of the Governor’s staff, cabinet and the Department of Finance regarding American Rescue Plan Act funds.”
In August, Davis filed an ethics complaint against Boswell, according to Lagniappe. The Ethics Commission dismissed the complaint, according to Alabama Daily News. Ethics Commission Executive Director Tom Albritton said the allegations in the complaint, even if true, would not violate the ethics law.
Ethics complaints are not public records under Alabama law. Ivey called the complaint “entirely frivolous.”
Last week Ivey also announced she had removed Col. John Kilpatrick from his position as a member of the State Board of Veterans Affairs.
Kilpatrick, in a statement through the Military Officers Association of America, said the following: “My appointment to the Board was a result of my position as President of the Alabama Council of Chapters of the Military Officers Association of America. Members of the Alabama State Board of Veterans Affairs serve at the pleasure of the Governor. It was my honor to serve our Veteran community as a member of the Board, and I’m proud of the work I did on behalf of Alabama Veterans. I will continue to work every single day to improve access to high quality health care for Alabama Veterans and their families.”
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