Kevin Davis, originally of Slidell, was appointed by Governor Jindal in December, 2011 as the Director of the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, he is responsible for all aspects of preparedness, response, and, recovery in the State.

Kevin was the first Parish President to serve under St. Tammany’s Home Rule Charter, he lead St. Tammany to a modern, stream-lined parish government.

 Under his leadership, St. Tammany Parish produced its first comprehensive annual financial report and received its first unqualified, or clean, audit. The comprehensive report was recognized three times with the highest recognition given in public accounting from the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada. 

 Kevin has been nicknamed the “Road Warrior” for his aggressive lobbying of state government to improve state roads in St. Tammany. From 2000 to 2010, a total of $143,853,660 was invested in road work in St. Tammany, both District Roads and Parish Roads. Also, a total of $6,477,911 was spent on drainage projects in the parish.

 Major improvements were made in drainage.

 The Office of Emergency Preparedness was modernized to insure better response during hurricanes and other emergencies. A new Emergency Operations Center was created in the old courthouse in downtown Covington where all first-response agencies, from utilities to fire services, convene to coordinate emergency operations.

 Hurricanes Katrina and Rita put the Emergency Operations Center to its strongest test. Over 13,000 task orders were issued during these emergencies from the EOC, directing St. Tammany’s immediate response and recovery.

 These same leadership skills were put to the test in 2010, as the British Petroleum oil spill polluted the Gulf of Mexico. Discovering that there was no plan to protect Lake Pontchartrain from oil intrusion, Davis created a plan and coordinated its implementation with all the parishes surrounding the lake as well as with the United States Coast Guard.

 In a 2005 Times Picayune editorial, Ron Thibodeaux wrote: “Our elected leaders have kept their cool, remained focused, and launched effective short-term recovery efforts throughout the parish, while stepping up to engage the FEMA bureaucracy when necessary. In the midst of this crisis many of our officials – particularly Parish President Kevin Davis – have risen to the challenge of effective leadership free of hysterics, public meltdowns or petty bickering.”

 Under Kevin’s leadership, the Parish reduced the number of boards and commissions, created a litter abatement program, and created an office to coordinate the efforts of the numerous social service agencies in St. Tammany. The Parish’s Mobile Community Information Center received an achievement award from the National Association of Counties as a model program.

 Kevin expanded the services that make St. Tammany a great community including the creation of the St. Tammany Commission on Cultural Affairs, the creation of a business development office, the expansion of the Tammany Trace, which Kevin originally envisioned, expanded Animal Services, and the New Directions 2025 Comprehensive Growth Management Plan for the parish.

 Kevin has been honored by dozens of organizations, from the American Planning Association Louisiana Chapter to the St. Tammany Parish Economic Development Foundation.