BISMARCK, N.D. – Insurance Commissioner Jon Godfread announced today that he has appointed John Arnold as Deputy Insurance Commissioner and Johnny Palsgraaf as General Counsel.
“I am excited for John to join our agency because he brings with him a wealth of state government knowledge and has a strong background in process improvement and implementation,” Godfread said. “John will be a great fit for us as we continue to improve how we interact with our consumers and the insurance industry.”
Arnold is a North Dakota native, originally from Grand Forks, who earned bachelor’s degrees in East Asian studies and political science from Minnesota State University Moorhead in 2006. He earned a master’s degree in public administration from the University of North Dakota in 2009. Prior to his appointment with the Department, Arnold served as the State Elections Director for the Secretary of State’s office where he worked on the successful transition to a new, state-developed election administration system and the deployment of a new, statewide voting system.
Originally from Salt Lake City, Utah, Palsgraaf earned his law degree from the University of North Dakota in 2009. He served the Department as an attorney for nearly a decade prior to being appointed to the role of General Counsel. During his tenure, Palsgraaf has conducted company examinations, drafted legislation and administrative rules, provided legal counsel for the Department, brought justice to those committing insurance fraud, and served as Department procurement officer.
“Johnny has been with the Department for almost ten years and is well suited for the role of General Counsel,” Godfread said. “Johnny has a deep knowledge of the insurance industry, the laws that govern our state and a strong understanding of the technological changes we are facing in insurance. With Johnny’s tenure, his move to General Counsel should be seamless and a good opportunity to examine our insurance laws and determine whether changes need to be made to update them for a rapidly changing industry.”