COLUMBIA -- A deputy director for the state Department of Transportation who resigned his post late last year returned this month as a "special assistant" making $51.90 an hour, records show.

Keith Bishop, who formerly served as deputy director of finance and administration for the agency, is being paid at a rate that would amount to $107,000 annually, according to the figure the agency gave The Greenville News in response to a state Freedom of Information Act request.

Bishop could not be reached for comment. Pete Poore, an agency spokesman, said agency officials had not responded to questions submitted by The News about Bishop.

Bishop started his job Jan. 2 and is based at headquarters with "many duties performed off site," according to the FOI response. The agency describes his job title as a special assistant.

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He is listed as a temporary employee, meaning his job is not guaranteed for any length of time and does not include benefits.

William "Bud" Turner, a highway commissioner representing the Greenville area, said it is his understanding that Bishop's job is a "temporary situation" and the result of a request by DOT Executive Director Elizabeth Mabry.

"My understanding was he was working on a project, and Mrs. Mabry asked him to finish that," he said.

Mabry could not be reached for comment.

DOT Chairman Tee Hooper said he was not aware of Bishop's return.

"I did not know anything about it," he said.

Bishop was promoted to deputy director in 2004 at a salary of $101,859, records show.

As deputy director in charge of finance and administration, Bishop oversaw the agency's $1.2 billion budget, one of the biggest in state government, and management of the department's more than 5,000 employees.

Bishop's successor is Mo Denny. Denny, described by the agency as interim director of finance and administrative services, earns $92,391 a year, according to the agency.