Linda Luebbering is in the sixth year of her second time serving as Missouri's budget director.
It will be her last, Gov. Jay Nixon told reporters during a Wednesday afternoon news conference in his Capitol office where he also signed four bills into law Wednesday.
Luebbering will retire on Aug. 6.
"Missouri has benefited from the skills and expertise of one of the smartest, most capable public officials you will find anywhere," Nixon said.
"A public servant who matches her unwavering integrity with intellect, patience and professionalism, Linda Luebbering has been an invaluable asset to this administration and to all the people of Missouri."
Luebbering, 53, said she doesn't know what she'll do next - but will "explore my options when I'm gone from here" in a little more than six weeks.
She graduated summa cum laude (highest honors) from the University of Missouri with a degree in economics, then earned a masters degree in public administration from the school.
She's worked in various state government departments, including budget and statistical analysis positions, and was Gov. Bob Holden's budget director from 2001-October 2004.
When she announced in September 2004 she was taking a job in Pennsylvania, the Associated Press said she had managed Missouri's finances "during the worst financial crunch in decades."
Asked Wednesday to compare the two periods she was budget director, Luebbering said: "In difficulty, clearly the economic downturn of the early 2000s didn't anywhere come close to what happened at the beginning of this administration.
"So, clearly, just from a fiscal standpoint, this one (was more difficult) - international, national, much deeper, lasted much longer (and was) much more challenging to get through."
Luebbering said the good news today, though, is: "We are turning around. Revenues are looking better (and) the economy, clearly, has been looking better for quite some time."
Dan Haug will succeed Luebbering as the interim budget director, and she said he will "have the assistance of a really talented group of people at Budget and Planning - smart, hard-working and dedicated."
Haug, currently the Mental Health department's Administrative Services Division director, worked almost a decade in the state Senate's Appropriations Committee staff, including as its director.
He said Luebbering guided the state through some difficult budget times, doing a "remarkable job with the budget."
Nixon said: "What truly sets Linda apart is her deep understanding of the policy behind those numbers, and the very human impact budgets and policies have on the people and the communities we serve."
"In her nearly three decades of service to the state of Missouri, Linda Luebbering has left a legacy of responsible budget stewardship that will endure for many years to come," the governor added.
Nixon told Luebbering: "I could not have made it without your wise counsel and steady hand."
Among the four bills Nixon signed into law Wednesday was one that "doubles the current cap on the amount of lost wages that victims of violent crime can receive" through the state's Crime Victims Compensation Program, from $200 to $400 a week.
"Established in 1981, Missouri's Crime Victims Compensation program provided more than $3.8 million in awards to more than 700 Missouri crime victims families in the 2013-14 fiscal year, alone," Nixon reported, noting the bill also gives the program the new ability to negotiate medical costs with providers "on behalf of the victim. We have a moral responsibility to help victims of violent crime, and their families."
He also signed two bills that add "fixed" fire extinguishers to the list of those that can be used legally on boats.
The Senate version of that bill also allows distributors to claim refunds for fuel they deliver to marinas in Missouri if the fuel is only for watercraft, and requires the Highway Patrol's Water Division to create a brochure regarding laws, regulations and penalties for non-motorized flotation devices.
And Nixon signed a bill changing several provisions of state law about the sale of motor vehicles, including a provision ensuring that cars branded as "junk" cannot be titled by the state for operation on roads or highways.