John F. King is an American military officer who became the state of Georgia's Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner when he was appointed by Governor Brian Kemp on July 1, 2019, replacing the suspended Jim Beck who was elected in 2018. This appointment makes King first Hispanic statewide official in Georgia's history. A native of Mexico, King is also fluent in Spanish. King has also served as the chief of police for Doraville, Georgia, after becoming an Atlanta police officer in 1985. King received a bachelor's degree in criminal justice and public administration from Brenau University and a master's degree in Strategic Studies from the United States Army War College. He is also a graduate of the FBI National Academy in Quantico, Virginia, and a graduate of the Georgia International Law Enforcement Exchange program to Israel which was started in preparation for the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta as a way to enhance cooperation between Georgia's law enforcement agencies and the police force of the Israel especially in the areas of counter-terrorism and drug interdiction. King also serves as a major general in the United States National Guard. He was the commander of the 48th Infantry Brigade Combat Team. King has been deployed to Bosnia-Herzegovina, Iraq, and Afghanistan where he served as a military advisor to the Deputy Minister of Interior for Security for Afghanistan who oversaw an agency of almost 100,000 police officers. In 2020, during the coronavirus pandemic, King as part of the U.S. Army National Guard which was called back into duty at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas. He helped build field hospitals in New Orleans and in New Jersey at Edison and Newark. King was asked by Governor Kemp to serve on Georgia's Coronavirus Task Force and lead the Emergency Preparedness Committee which makes sure that there is proper supply equipment. As Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner, he has asked health insurers not to cancel health policies for non-payment until further notice and for insurers to waive all co-payments for COVID-19 testing.
