Budesky, New Kent County administrator, is moving on

New Kent County Administrator John A. Budesky is leaving to take over as executive director of the state Workers Compensation Commission.

"It was an opportunity I couldn't pass up," he said.

Budesky, 36, will make the move on or before Oct 1, depending on whether New Kent's Board of Supervisors releases him from the 90-day notice requirement in his contract.

The board will decide on an interim replacement and on a plan to search for his successor next week.

He said the move, in addition to being a significant step up the career ladder, will allow him to spend more time with his family.

"I loved the calls at all hours, but our child was an infant," he said. Now, his daughter is 5 and his son is 15 months old, and midnight calls and late hours can cut into time with them, he said.

"The people of this county have been wonderful to all of us," he said.

Budesky's salary in New Kent was $113,691. He will earn $147,000 in the state job.

Last month, Budesky won the prestigious Wallerstein Scholarship administered by the Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service and the Virginia Municipal League. To meet the terms of the scholarship, he is writing a manual of lessons learned and best practices in local-government management.

Budesky has served as county administrator since April 2005. He came to New Kent from Hagerstown, Md., where he served as assistant manager.

The Workers Compensation Commission is the state agency that administers Virginia laws promising that people who are hurt or made ill at work will have medical bills paid and be reimbursed for at least some of their lost wages. The commission also runs the state's Criminal Injuries Compensation Fund and the Birth-Related Neurological Injury Program.

This year, New Kent's long-serving superintendent, J. Roy Geiger II, retired. His successor, Robert F. Richardson Jr., took over as superintendent July 1.

Richardson had been serving as an associate superintendent for New Kent school system.

Contact David Ress at (804) 649-6051 or .