Idaho and Montana Members Will Lead Council in 2018

Idaho and Montana members will lead the Northwest Power and Conservation Council in 2018.

The Portland-based energy and fish and wildlife planning agency, which elects officers for the year in January, this week elected Idaho member Jim Yost chair and Montana member Jennifer Anders vice chair.

Mr. Yost, originally from Rupert, Idaho, was elected to the Idaho State Senate at age 24, the youngest Idaho Senator/Legislator ever elected, and served two terms. He owned and operated a dairy distributorship for a number of years in Wendell, Idaho and worked for the Union Pacific Railroad for 10 years. In 1988 he was named Assistant Public Affairs Director for the Idaho Farm Bureau and in 1991 was promoted to Public Affairs Director. In 1995 he worked for a time for the Northwest Power and Planning Council before being appointed by Governor Phil Batt as his Natural Resources Senior Policy Advisor. He was retained in that position by Governors Kempthorne and Risch, and then appointed to the Power and Conservation Council by Governor Otter in 2007. He graduated from the College of Southern Idaho in 1968 with an Associate of Arts Degree and then from Boise State University in 1971 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in education. 

Ms. Anders was appointed to the Council in January 2013 by Governor Steve Bullock. Ms. Anders worked closely with Governor Bullock during his 2009-2012 tenure as Montana’s Attorney General, tackling a number of high profile issues including energy development, water quality, climate change, public land management, and interstate water compact allocations. She has spent her entire professional career in public service, working for four separate Attorneys General in both the civil and criminal arenas. Ms. Anders has a law degree from the University of Montana and an undergraduate degree from the University of California, Santa Barbara.

The Council has eight members, two from Idaho, Oregon, Montana, and Washington, appointed by Governors.