Adam Crum, former head of Alaska’s Department of Health, will be taking over the Department of Revenue. Gov. Mike Dunleavy announced the move in a statement on Monday.
Along with Chief Medical Officer Dr. Anne Zink, Crum was one of the main faces delivering health and safety updates to Alaskans during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dunleavy described him as a “skilled and dedicated public servant,” in a statement. Previous Revenue commissioner Lucinda Mahoney retired on Sep. 9. Deven Mitchell headed the department after Mahoney’s departure, before being named executive director of the Permanent Fund earlier this month. Brian Fechter became acting commissioner on Nov. 8.
Crum served as commissioner of the state’s Department of Health and Social Services from 2018 until February of last year, when the department was split and Crum was named head of the Health Department.
Heidi Hedberg was named acting Health commissioner Monday, following Crum’s new position. Hedberg has worked for the department since 2009, recently serving as director for the Division of Public Health.
Hedberg and Crum are set to start their new jobs on Wednesday.
Crum’s position is subject to approval from the Legislature. While Alaska’s election hasn’t been certified yet, Dunleavy is in a comfortable position in his bid for reelection with 52 percent of first-place votes – just over the threshold to avoid a ranked choice runoff election.
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Wesley Early covers Anchorage life and city politics for Alaska Public Media. Reach him at wearly@alaskapublic.org and follow him on X at @wesley_early. Read more about Wesley here.
