Thompson studying up for Treasurer’s job

Thompson studying up for Treasurer’s job

County Treasurer-elect ready to take over in January By Mark Randall

news @ theeveningtimes .com

Matt Thompson will be glad when he doesn’t have to take notes any more when he is sworn in as the new County Treasurer in January.

In the meantime, Thompson, who defeated Devin Griggs in the November General election 7,616 to 4,255, has been attending every meeting he can at the county courthouse and spending time with acting Treasurer Jane Coltharp to learn the ropes to get ready for the transition.

“I’ll be excited to get my hands in it,” Thompson said. “Right now, I’m up there on a limited basis until I actually get sworn in. I don’t want to overstep any boundaries. I’m trying to prepare and do as much as I can with the information I have been given.”

Thompson has been setting up his office and going to personnel, budget hearings, and Quorum Court meetings to see how things operate and what is being discussed.

“There have probably been six or eight of them, to kind of get some experience on how those meetings are run,” Thompson said. “I don’t know that I have been surprised by anything since I have been going to the meetings. It’s been good to hear the discussions back and forth.”

While Thompson has a degree in business finance from Arkansas State University and previously worked as a loan officer and vice president at Fidelity National Bank, county government has its own rules and procedures that need to be followed that are different from the private sector.

The biggest thing he has learned so far, is watching where and how the actual money flows. The county budget has hundreds of line items and each one has to follow state rules and certain auditing procedures.

Thompson said Coltharp has been a wealth of knowledge and information and has been a big help during the transition.

“She has been extremely forthcoming with information,” Thompson said. “

She definitely knows this office frontwards and backwards. Everybody comes to her with questions that have to do with the treasurer’s office and I’ve learned a lot already.”

Thompson said so far he doesn’t plan on making any changes to the office. That may come later on.

“Jane and I have talked about this and without me knowing all of the ins and outs of the office right now, I’m not going to make any changes until I learn my way around. The only changes I will make will be with the sole intention of making her job easier.”

He knows he will have to be sharp though at his first Quorum Court meeting because there will bound to be questions from Justice Vickie Robertson, who is the Quorum Court’s budget hawk.

He doesn’t have any folksy Larry Miller-isms yet like the former longtime treasurer had and doubts he will be able to get away with saying ‘everything is good” like Coltharp has.

“There will be questions for me right off the bat, I’m sure,” Thompson said.

“And that’s fine. I actually like that we have somebody on the Court who looks at every line item.

There is probably nobody who goes through a meeting agenda like she does. It is appreciated for sure.”

to get my hands in it… I’m trying to prepare and do as much as I can with the information I have been given.” — County Treasurer-elect Matt Thompson