Steven Baker has resigned as executive director of Bill & Hillary Clinton National Airport after clashing with the chair of the Little Rock Municipal Airport Commission over grant deadlines and an employment provision.
The commission on Tuesday voted to accept Baker’s resignation. He had been suspended with pay since Sept. 5.
David Tipton, the airport’s CFO, was named interim executive director. He has worked for the airport since 2012.
Baker had led Clinton National Airport since August 2024, assuming the role after Bryan Malinowski was killed in a shootout with federal agents at his home in Little Rock.
Baker previously worked for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority. In that role, he oversaw airline affairs, procurement, risk management, administrative services, real estate development and revenue innovation for Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and Washington Dulles International Airport.
The commission voted Sept. 5 to place Baker on paid administrative leave following delays in executing paperwork for $16.7 million in federal grants, according to internal emails obtained by Arkansas Business. Baker cited personal medical appointments and the need for his attorney to review a proposed indemnification clause as reasons for the delay.
The emails show commission Chairman Patrick Schueck’s frustration with Baker. Schueck described Baker as “non-responsive” and warned that further delays were unacceptable. He also called the indemnification language “simple” and said it should have been executed quickly.
After Baker failed to sign the grants paperwork by a 9 a.m. deadline, Schueck directed the commission’s attorneys to execute the grants without him.
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