FORMER GOVERNOR
PRESIDENT OF D.L. EVANS BANK
DETAILED BIOGRAPHICAL DATA
April 2005

John V. Evans, born in Malad, Idaho on January 18, 1925, is a descendent of an Idaho pioneer family. Following in the footsteps of his grandfather, who served as Idaho House Speaker at the turn of the century, Evans has spent thirty three years in public service.

Evans attended Idaho State University and graduated from Stanford University with a degree in business and economics. He spent 18 months overseas as an Army infantryman in World War II, is a member of the VFW, American Legion, and served as vice chairman of the National Distinguished Guests Committee of the American Legion. Evans, also is a member of the Masonic Lodge, Fraternal Order of Eagles, and the Rotary Club.

Evans’ government service was almost continuous from 1953 to 1987 when he finished his term as the 27th Governor of the State of Idaho. He served three terms in the Idaho Senate from 1953 to 1958. He was Mayor of Malad from 1960 to 1966. He returned to the Senate in 1967 and served four more terms, until his election as Lieutenant Governor in 1974. He served as Majority Leader of the Senate in 1957-1958 and as Minority Leader from 1969-1974. He was a member of the National Legislative Committee on Natural Resources and was appointed by Governor Cecil Andrus to the Idaho Energy Council. In 1974, Evans was presented the Distinguished Service Award by the Association of Idaho Cities for meritorious service during his legislative career.

As Lieutenant Governor, Evans served as chairman of the Law Enforcement Planning Commission, the Juvenile Justice Advisory Council, and the Land Board Subcommittee on Lease Rates and Policies. He also was a member of the Legislative Land Grants Committee. In August 1975, he was elected to the Executive Board of the National Conference of Lieutenant Governors and also served on its Food Policy Committee. Evans also headed an Idaho delegation to Japan on a trade mission while Lieutenant Governor.

Evans became Idaho’s twenty-seventh Governor on January 24, 1977. The following September, he was elected vice chairman of the Western Governors’ Conference, and in June 1978 he was elected
chairman of that body. He was elected to a four-year term as Governor on November 7, 1978 and re-elected to a second term in November of 1982. Governor Evans was very active in the National Governors’ Association. He was a member of the National Governors’ Association Committee on Agriculture, as well as the Committee on International Trade and Foreign Relations and the Education Task Force. He was vice chairman of the Nuclear Power Cost Over-run Task Force, co-chairman of the Rangeland Management Subcommittee, and a member of the Executive Committee. Evans was active in the “Ag Focus” project of the association, which highlighted the leadership role of the nation’s governors in bringing to focus the
economic, social, and environmental questions surrounding agriculture.

Idaho’s capital city of Boise was the site of the 1985 National Governors’ Association Annual Meeting. As the host Governor, Governor Evans also welcomed seven of Canada’s ten Province
Premiers, who participated for the first time in a National Governors’ Association annual meeting. During this 1985 meeting, a Governors and Premiers Task Force on Trade was established, and Governor Evans and Premier William Bennett of British Columbia were named co-chairmen. Governor Evans led several international trade missions (including Egypt, Taiwan, Philippines, People’s Republic of China, and South America) working to develop new markets for Idaho products. He also led delegations of Idaho business and industry representatives to California to recruit electronics and high technology industry to Idaho to help diversify and stabilize Idaho’s economic base. While Governor he was particularly dedicated to providing the children of Idaho the finest educational opportunities possible under rather extreme budgetary limitations. Facing severe financial deficits during the early eighties he supported both severe budget restrictions as well as increased taxes to provide for a growing state economy and balance the state’s budget. With the closing of Idaho’s oldest and largest silver mine “Bunker
Hill” in Shoshone County in 1982 and the loss of 2,200 miner’s jobs, Governor Evans had to marshal all the state and federal resources available to stabilize the North Idaho mining economy, locate jobs for the unemployed miners and support their families. he consistently gave most of the credit for successfully overcoming this most serious economic disaster to the efforts made
by and in coordination of local, state and federal public officials. This was one of the most troubling economic times in our state’s history.

Being a farmer and understanding the importance of Idaho’s water prepared Governor Evans to able to guide Idaho in the resolution of one of the most troubling water issues of the century. In the Swan Falls Waters Rights case before the Idaho Supreme Court in 1982, the Court ruled that Idaho Power’s historic water rights to generate electrical power held precedence over later water rights, giving Idaho Power overpowering water rights on the Snake River and threatened all the irrigated water rights upstream from Swan Falls Dam. In order to avoid further lawsuits, Governor Evans, along with Attorney General Jim Jones, negotiated a settlement with Idaho Power on the Swan Falls Decision which established minimum flow for power generation and required a basin wide adjudication of the Snake River Water Rights. In the first year of holding office, his administration worked diligently with the residents of Madison County to settle the
damages resulting from the Teton Dam Collapse in 1976 and in the following year 1977, managed the most serious drought year the state had experienced since 1933. He formed a drought relief
council consisting of local, state and federal agencies to address the water shortage and a committee to this day meets early each year to address potential water problems. In 1980, Governor Evans initiated a “Capital for a Day” program that took the administration of state government to each county seat for a day activity. Popular Town Hall meetings with the Governor answering community questions was one of the benefits of the program.

As a result of Governor Evans dedicated support to Idaho’s working families and his strong opposition to passage of the Right to Work Act, he mustered strong support from the Idaho labor unions across the state and became their champion of those years. Governor Evans first ran for the Idaho Senate in 1952 on a platform to reopen North Idaho College of Education at Lewiston
and South Idaho College of Education at Albion after they were closed by Governor Len Jordan and the Legislature in 1951. He worked closely with northern Idaho Legislators to reopen N.I.C.E., but could not get enough support to reopen S.I.C.E. N.I.C.E. eventually became Lewis and Clark State College. As a result of Governor Evans concern for Idaho’s wilderness
areas, he drafted an Idaho wilderness Bill to bring those pristine Idaho wild lands under protection from logging and development, but could not secure the support of the Idaho Congressional delegation to introduce the legislation, even though there was strong support for the plan by Idaho’s sportsman and conservationists. To this day appropriate legislation still has not been adopted to protect those wilderness areas. Evans is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Evans and his wife, Lola, have five children and fourteen
grandchildren. Before becoming Governor, Evans was a Malad farmer, rancher, and businessman. He is a former Vice President and Director of the Ireland Bank and former President of the Malad
Chamber of Commerce. Evans also has served as Vice President, Bear River Water Users; President, Deep Creek Irrigation Co.; Director, Oneida County Grain Growers Association; and President,
Bear River RC&D. He has also served on the Board of Idaho Nature Conservancy; Honorary Co-Chairman of Idaho’s Centennial Commission; Secretary Idaho Law Foundation; Treasurer of the Idaho Bankers Association and member of the IBA Executive Committee. His family still operates the oldest continuing family owned business in the state, the Evans’ Co-op Mercantile in Malad. Evans lost his race for the United States Senate in 1986. He completed his second term as Governor on January 5, 1987, and was recognized as having held the office for ten years, which is the third longest term of any Governor in Idaho’s history.

He and his wife, Lola, now reside in Burley, Idaho, where he is President of the D.L. Evans Bank, a bank founded by his grandfather in 1904. He continues to maintain an active role in
community affairs and business organizations. John’s most recent past activities in community affairs are as a member of the Mini-Cassia Development Committee, a Board member of the Mt. Harrison Heritage Foundation; Co-chairman of the C.S.I. Herrit Museum committee; Chairman of the Govenor’s Oregon Trail Executive Committee; served as President of the College of Southern Idaho Foundation; President, Idaho Community Reinvestment Corporation; National Secretary and member of the Executive Committee of the Independent Community Banker’s Association and
also chairman of ICBA’s Tax Policy Committee; Vice Chairman, Mini- Cassia Transportation Committee; President, Region IV Economic Development Committee; and member of the City of Rocks Backcountry Byways Committee. He continues to serve on the Mini- Cassia Transportation Committee; Region IV Economic Development Committee; City of Rocks Back Country Byway Committee; Idaho
Bankers Association Public Policy Committee; and as Secretary of the Southern Idaho Learning Center. He is also a Rotarian and a Mason.

The Evans’ reside in their home overlooking the beautiful Snake River and are enjoying many outdoor activities.