Natalie Wyeth Earnest, former press secretary for the Louisiana Recovery Authority after Hurricane Katrina, has been appointed to the top public affairs post at the Treasury Dept.

President Barack Obama tapped Earnest for the assistant secretary of PA slot, which she held in an acting role since February, when Jenni LeCompte stepped down.

The Treasury PA post is one of nearly 170 slots that no longer require Senate confirmation under a deal last year.

Earnest is the principal communications aide to Treasury Secretary Jack Lew and directs PA and external comms. for the department. Her husband, Josh Earnest, is special assistant to the president and principal deputy press secretary in the White House.

She joined Treasury in 2009 and was named deputy in 2011. She held the Louisiana post under Gov. Kathleen Blanco as the state coordinated funding and redevelopment after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. She was later press secretary for the Democratic National Convention in 2008 and worked for Obama's campaign in Colorado before joining the inaugural committee as a spokeswoman.