Traditionally, state Senate confirmations of governor appointees are as routine as sunrises and full moons.
But don't tell that to Kerry Steadman, interim director of the Department of Human Services. The Senate Wednesday delayed Steadman's confirmation as the department's permanent director after Sen. Delpha Baird, R-Salt Lake, led a behind-the-scenes campaign to reject the appointment."We need some changes in the Department of Human Services, and I feel that Mr. Steadman is not a strong enough person to make the kind of changes that are needed," Baird said.
It irks Baird that Steadman, who was brought on board by former director Mike Stewart, was chosen by Leavitt to head the agency, even though there were about 30 other candidates for the job, some of them extremely well-qualified.
"He (Steadman) is just not experienced in the private sector, and Human Service needs to be run like a big business," she said. "It is top heavy, and we need to get funds down to the service level."
Baird wants to see a radical overhaul of management structure in the department and an infusion of "new blood" who are not steeped in "business as usual" attitudes that have pervaded the department over the past two decades. Steadman's choice to direct the department is "just throwing more money at a huge problem," she said.
Gov. Mike Leavitt was shocked to learn of Baird's opposition. The governor conferred with her and a number of other legislators in the process of choosing Kerry Steadman, and she had plenty of opportunities to raise concerns," said governor's spokesman Vicki Varela. "The governor is very pleased that he is off to a great start in the position and he stands by him as his director of Human Services."
The Department of Human Services has received harsh criticism from several fronts recently. The attorney general's office and department officials are negotiating with the National Center for Youth Law, based in San Francisco, to settle a lawsuit.