JASPER, Ala. – Senate Pro Tem Greg Reed (R-Jasper) today released the following statement after Governor Kay Ivey appointed Rep. Bill Poole (R-Tuscaloosa) to serve as Director of the Alabama Department of Finance:

“The Governor has made an excellent choice in selecting my good friend, Bill Poole, to serve our state as Finance Director. I have enjoyed working with Chairman Poole in the legislature as members of the Tuscaloosa delegation, as well as on the Alabama Innovation Commission, in which we serve together as chairmen,” Reed said. “He is a highly-respected member of the House, and as Chairman of the House Education Trust Fund Committee, he passed this year the biggest budget in the history of our state. I have no doubt that his skill and leadership that proved so effective in the House will be a tremendous asset to the state Finance Department and people of Alabama.”