Fellows Spotlight
The Honorable Chip Davis
County Treasurer
Yavapai County
(Prescott, 2012)
“When I went into Flinn-Brown, I had been a county supervisor for 16 years and I had no idea how much education I would receive from Flinn-Brown in regard to healthcare, education and immigration. So many experts were brought in to give us an in-depth look at these different fields and it was really eye-opening. We all have our built-in biases, but when you get to hear the whole story, suddenly you look at things a little differently.” — The Hon. Chip Davis
Chip Davis is a fourth generation Arizonan who has a passion for the state and its unique politics. Davis grew up in a cattle ranching family and the art has instilled in him a deep appreciation for Arizona and its people. Davis says his moral principles are strong and he makes sure to carry them with him as he navigates local politics.
Davis has served as Yavapai County Treasurer since 2020 and is seeking re-election this fall. He served five terms as a Yavapai County Supervisor between 1997 and 2016 and was initially hired by Yavapai County in 1986.
“I am a Republican. But more than that, I’m a father, I’m a grandfather, I’m a husband and I’m a Christian,” says Davis. “I’ve been trying to spread the message that we as human beings are a lot of things and you get way down the list before you finally come to whether you’re a Republican, an Independent or a Democrat.”
Davis continues working in the government not because he feels like he has to, but because he knows there is value in passing down his expertise to his successors.
“It’s like in sports when they bring in these old players to be the broadcasters because they know the game well,” Davis says. “I’ve learned a lot about how to make Arizona a better place, and I have to share that with the people around me. As human beings I think we have the responsibility to try and make others better at whatever they do.”
Davis believes that political polarization is a massive downfall for nationwide politics and yearns for a time when government officials can have open conversations on how to run counties, cities and towns based on what’s best for the community.
That kind of change takes time, but Davis believes that there are amazing steps being taken that one day could help strengthen Arizona’s civic life.
In Davis’s eyes, a big needle mover for Arizona could be the passing of open primaries. Davis says that having a ballot which represents a group of centrist, reasonable people would better allow Arizonans to “choose a person based on their morals, ethics and goals, not just based on party affiliation.”
Another strong point for Arizona was opening up PAC funding for election campaigns. “Letting us know who’s financing these elections so we can figure out what’s behind them is important,” he said.
Davis’s current role as Yavapai County Treasurer is no easy feat, but he finds the work fascinating and loves to collaborate with his colleagues to tackle complex issues. Doing the job is one thing, but doing the job right is what truly excites Davis. “I believe it’s the Peter Principle in management, where you rise to your point of incompetency. I will never master it. When people think of the county treasurer, it’s not the county treasurer… We’re the treasurer for 84 different public entities and the job is huge,” Davis says. “The activity that runs through my little 12-man department is unbelievable. We do $2 billion worth of activity every year, and I have the most amazing staff members that step up. Every time we get a challenge, we figure out how to fix it and make it better. I’m still on a steep learning curve and I’m still loving every minute of it.”
Book Recommendation:
In this month’s Fellow Spotlight, The Honorable Chip Davis references the book, “The Peter Principle,” developed by Dr. Laurence J. Peter and written by Raymond Hull.
by Dr. Laurence J. Peter
Three years after the publication of The Peter Principle, Dr. Peter published “The Peter Prescription,” a manual on how to overcome the Peter Principle. While reading about the theory itself may be interesting, learning how to overcome it is far more beneficial.
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