Office of the Secretary

For Immediate Release: Nov. 6, 2001

Contact: Mark Pfeifle 202-208-6416

Secretary Norton Praises President's Bush Intention to Nominate
Rebecca Watson as Assistant Secretary for Lands and Minerals

WASHINGTON - Interior Secretary Gale Norton today praised President Bush's intention to nominate Rebecca W. Watson, to serve as assistant secretary of the Interior for land and minerals management. The position is subject to confirmation by the U.S. Senate once the official nomination is made by the president.

"Rebecca is an outstanding attorney and public administration professional," Secretary Norton said. "She will bring vast experience in protecting natural resources and listening to all voices to find common ground in public land issues."

Watson serves as a managing partner of Gough, Shanahan, Johnson & Waterman law firm located in Helena, Mont. Her responsibilities include working on a wide variety of natural resources and environmental issues. From 1993-1995, she worked as an attorney for Crowell & Moring, a Washington, D.C.-based law firm, where she worked on issues involving public lands, endangered species, and natural resources.

Watson served in the administration of George H.W. Bush, where she was appointed Assistant general counsel for energy policy at the U.S. Department of Energy.

A native of Chicago, Watson is a graduate of the University of Denver, College of Arts and Sciences, where she received her B.A. degree, magna cum laude in 1974. She earned an M.A. degree in 1975 from the University of Denver, School of Librarianship, and her law degree from the University of Denver, School of Law in 1978.

Watson is listed in Who's Who in American Law, and Who's Who in American Women. She helped to establish Wyoming's first statewide historic preservation organization and served as its president for five years. She is a member of the Nature Conservancy, National Trust for Historic Preservation, Audubon Society, and a past member of the Alliance Francaise de Denver.

She is married to Greg Watson, a Wyoming native and fisheries ecologist. They live on the Little Blackfoot River outside of Avon, Mont.

The Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Land and Minerals Management has administrative and managerial responsibility for the Bureau of Land Management, the Minerals Management Service and the Office of Surface Mining.

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