N.J. Acting Gov. Asks Commissioner Bakke To Stay

Republican Bakke, a career public servant with her department, was appointed by Democratic Gov. Jim McGreevey in 2002. Mr. Codey, the New Jersey Senate president, took over last month when Mr. McGreevey, who is married, quit after revealing a homosexual affair.

Since Ms. Bakke's appointment, even as she helped guide the state's eminently successful auto insurance reforms, there have been persistent rumors that the commissioner would leave her post.

Asked what caused such chatter, Ms. Bakke did not mention her party affiliation, attributing the talk of her departure to the fact that people in the post have a history of leaving quickly and that "no insurance commissioner has lasted as long as I have in recent history."

In addition, Ms. Bakke has been open about the fact that the job, which involves an hour-and-a-half commute to Trenton from Lebanon, N.J., has taken a toll on her family.

"I'll stay here as long as I want to," she said, adding that she does not know how long that will be. Ms. Bakke mentioned that she focuses on doing the next task at hand, which at this point involves healthcare insurance.

"Our market is very challenged. We need reforms there," she said, noting that the department has had two healthcare conferences–one of which dealt with the uninsured–and now has "a lot of information and suggestions" to work with.

Gov. Codey, who has had an insurance agency for 20 years, put the business in a blind trust when he took over the governorship. "He showed a great deal of foresight and integrity," said Ms. Bakke.

The commissioner has had previous experience working with Gov. Codey on legislation while he served as Senate president, a post he still retains. Because of his background in the marketplace, there is a "short learning curve" on any insurance issues.

Gov. Codey, she said, had been a leader in getting auto insurance reform passed that has made New Jersey a place where carriers are now competing and advertising for business, where before they were leaving the state.

Because of his knowledge, she said, he would appreciate the importance of transparency as an issue for broker contingent commissions.

The state has asked for data from 30 brokers about their contingency commissions, "and now we're reviewing it," she said, adding later that regulators are at the beginning of "a long road" look at general insurance business practices.

Before Ms. Bakke took her current post, she spent 11 years as executive director of the state's guaranty fund, and before that was a deputy commissioner for insurance litigation practices.