Governor John
Hoeven
John
Hoeven was born in Bismarck, North Dakota. He earned a bachelor's degree
from Dartmouth College in 1979 and a master's degree in business
administration from Northwestern University in 1981. Hoeven served as
executive vice president of First Western Bank in Minot from 1986 to 1993.
From 1993 to 2000, he served as president and CEO of the Bank of North
Dakota, during which time the bank's assets grew from $900 million to $1.6
billion.
In
December of 2000, Hoeven was elected governor and began working to build
North Dakota's future by focusing on six pillars of growth: education,
economic development, agriculture, energy, technology and quality of life.
Under his leadership, North Dakota has expanded and diversified its
economy, adding many new jobs and businesses. In 2003, North Dakota led
the nation in personal income and wage growth, and in 2005, its rate of
growth in per capita personal income was second. When much of the nation
struggled through a recession and reported budget deficits, North Dakota
continued to grow and diversify its economy.
Because of Hoeven's stewardship, the state ended the last
fiscal biennium with a substantial surplus going forward, and no new
taxes. His current budget continues to provide more state funding for K-12
education, additional revenue sharing with cities and counties, tax
credits for farms and businesses, and a property tax break for seniors and
people with disabilities.
In
his second term as governor, Hoeven remains committed to enhancing the
state's business climate, holding the line on taxes and promoting North
Dakota's targeted industries, which are agriculture, energy, technology,
advanced manufacturing and tourism. He proposed new initiatives for
research and additional investments in education. These include continued
increases for teacher compensation and expanded funding for Centers of
Excellence, an initiative that combines education and economic development
to create higher-paying jobs and new business opportunities for North
Dakota citizens.
Hoeven directed the development of a multi-resource energy
program for the state, with incentives in each energy sector, as well as a
conservation component. North Dakota is the sixth largest energy producing
and exporting state in the nation and Hoeven has worked to advance the
state's traditional energy resources, like lignite coal, oil and gas,
while promoting renewable energy opportunities, such as wind, ethanol and
biodiesel.
Protecting North Dakota's citizens and communities has been
an important focus of many of Hoeven's policies and initiatives, including
the introduction of new laws to strengthen the state's violent and sexual
offender statutes, and the expansion of North Dakota's efforts to combat
substance abuse, while helping young users through rehabilitative programs
such as North Dakota's Drug Courts.
Hoeven serves as chair of the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact
Commission. He previously served as chair of the Midwestern Governors
Association and the National Governors Association's Health and Human
Services Committee and Natural Resources Committee, as well as chair of
the Governors' Ethanol Coalition.
Hoeven and his wife Mical (Mikey) have two children, Marcela
and Jack. |