New Commerce director raises his profile

In his almost six months as director of the Idaho Department of Commerce, Tom Kealey has been surprised by one thing.

“What I have learned is I’m assigned to a lot more commissions and task forces than I ever imagined,” Kealey said. “It’s interesting, because it gets me smarter about overall state activities.”

Kealey said he’s kept a low profile since being sworn in on Jan. 7, the same day as Gov. Brad Little, “so I could get smarter about the scope of the department and the priorities for the governor.”

That’s changing. Kealey was appointed to head the broadband task force, intended to learn just what Idaho’s broadband internet status is and how to improve it, and will be coming out with the department’s annual strategic plan in June.

It’s going to be laid out a little differently than in past years, in terms of description, key objectives and measurement of performance, Kealey said. He explained that the emphasis is the economic outlook and priorities the governor has established.

Kealey – who ran for state treasurer in 2018, losing in the primary to Julie Ellsworth – worked for General Electrical Capital in acquisitions until 1994, when he was recruited to Morrison Knudsen Corp. for a project. Soon after, he was appointed chief financial officer to help the organization work through bankruptcy.

By that time, Kealey and his wife had fallen in love with Idaho.

“When that was over, we didn’t want to leave, so we stayed around,” he said.

There weren’t many large companies he could work for, so instead he purchased the Chicago Connection chain of pizza restaurants. In addition, he was appointed by then-Gov. Dirk Kempthorne in 2002 to the endowment fund investment board, where he met then-Sen. Little.

That led to Kealey to apply for the Commerce position.

“People said I should look into working for Gov. Little,” he said. “So near his election time, I did research on what position could I make the most contribution and have the most fun, and Commerce was the best fit.”

Little’s overarching priority is to keep children and grandchildren in Idaho and, for those who have left, create an atmosphere and opportunity to come back to the state, Kealey said. Other goals include supporting existing businesses and attracting businesses that make sense, diversify the economy, increase wages and preserve the rural Idaho quality of life, he added.

In comparison with previous directors, who had to deal with the recession and its aftermath, Kealey has to tackle problems such as lack of a skilled workforce.

“The economy, technology, and just in general the dynamics of the state are very different from four or five years ago when we were in a recession or coming out,” he said. “That may drive some different priorities.”

While some economists have been predicting a recession, Kealey said none of the forecasts he sees have one on the horizon.

“Everywhere I go, people are preparing for continued growth, though perhaps at slower paces because of constraints like workforce or housing,” he said, noting Idaho still shows a lot of inbound immigration, as well as high rankings on lists such as innovation and dollars spent on travel.

As part of Commerce, Kealey is also involved with organizations such as the Economic Advisory Council, the Idaho Travel Council, the Idaho Rural Partnership, the Workforce Development Task Force, and a number of other education and workforce initiatives, as well as promoting international trade.

In addition, the department is involved with developing “responsible incentives” and using the ones that have already been developed, such as the Tax Reimbursement Incentive.

“There’s nothing on the horizon to change on that front,” he said.

Tourism is now the third-largest industry in the state, and Kealey said it is “growing at a healthy pace.”

“We’ve been discovered,” he added.