Gov. Herbert appoints state planning coordinator
SALT LAKE CITY (August 17, 2015) - Gov. Gary R. Herbert has appointed Evan Curtis to serve as state planning coordinator in the Governor’s Office of Management and Budget (GOMB). Curtis will replace Alan Matheson who was recently appointed as director of the Department of Environmental Quality and serves as senior environmental advisor to the governor.
“Evan’s unique planning and budget experience will be valuable to the state of Utah as we prepare for unprecedented growth in the upcoming decades,” said Gov. Herbert. “I am confident that in this new role, his leadership will effectively advance Utah’s long-term planning.”
As state planning coordinator, Curtis will coordinate with state and local planning entities to ensure a continued focus on bottom-up, rather than top-down planning guided by the best available information. As part of GOMB, Curtis will work to ensure budget decisions are consistent with the long-term goals of the state and planning efforts are informed by budgetary realities.
Curtis has been with the GOMB since 2007. During this time, he has worked to provide outreach, research and resources to local governments. He has been involved in several state planning efforts and served on numerous boards and commissions including the Utah Seismic Safety Commission and the executive committee of the Utah Chapter of the American Planning Association. Most recently, Curtis has worked with several state agencies as an analyst to identify budget and policy solutions to natural resource issues.
Curtis received a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, a Master of Science in Bioregional Planning and a graduate certificate in the National Environmental Policy Act from Utah State University.