AUSTIN – Courtney Arbour has been named executive director of the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, effective June 1, 2024. Arbour replaces Brian E. Francis, who has served as the interim executive director since January 2024.
Arbour was appointed through a unanimous vote by the Texas Commission of Licensing and Regulation during their meeting on Tuesday, May 21.
“Courtney Arbour has years of experience in state government and her leadership has been proven time and time again,” said Commission Chair Rick Figueroa. “I’m excited for what she brings to the agency. Her vision and the team she’s inheriting provide an amazing opportunity for what TDLR can accomplish in the future.”
Arbour was the Workforce Development Director at the Texas Workforce Commission from 2016 to the present. She has a long career of implementing and overseeing statewide and regional workforce, education and regulatory programs with a goal of developing, protecting and connecting employers and workers.
“I’m so honored to be the executive director of TDLR. I’ve heard so many great things about this agency through the years and have seen the positive reputation that TDLR has with the public and the Legislature. I’m so excited to get started to work with these great employees,” Arbour said. “I come from another really strong agency, the Texas Workforce Commission, and I look forward to working with another great team for the betterment of all Texans.”
In 2024, Arbour was appointed by Governor Greg Abbott to serve on the Task Force for Consolidation of Workforce and Social Services. She is vice chair of the National Association of State Workforce Agencies Employment & Training Committee and is a Workforce Fellow with Results for America, building evidence-based practices into the delivery of grants. She has represented TWC on the Texas Human Trafficking Prevention Coordinating Council, an endeavor she is passionate about both personally and professionally.
Arbour is an alumna of Howard Payne University in Brownwood, Texas and completed the Governor’s Executive Development Program at the University of Texas LBJ School of Public Affairs.