For other people named Richard Carlson, see Richard Carlson (disambiguation).
Richard Carlson (born June 17, 1944) is a former Kansas Secretary of Transportation, a position in which he served from 2016 to 2019. Previously, between 2005 and 2015, he was a Republican member of the Kansas House of Representatives, representing the 61st district. He was given a 100% evaluation by the American Conservative Union.
Carlson is a native of St. Marys, Kansas. He studied business and economics at Kansas State University and later served in the Kansas Army National Guard. Before Carlson was elected to the legislature, he served as the Pottawatomie County Commissioner between 1993 and 2005. He also served on the board of the Flint Hills Regional Leadership Program.
After leaving the legislature, Carlson worked as a legislative liaison and tax policy advisor for the Kansas Department of Revenue.
After Mike King resigned to pursue a career in the private sector, Governor Sam Brownback appointed Carlson to serve as interim Kansas Secretary of Transportation on July 18, 2016. On October 24, 2016, Brownback announced that he would nominate Carlson for the official cabinet role. He was confirmed for the position by the Kansas State Senate in July 2017.