WASHINGTON, D.C. - Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton today praised President Bush's intention to nominate P. Lynn Scarlett to serve as Deputy Secretary of the Interior. The announcement is subject to confirmation by the U.S. Senate, once the official nomination is made by the President. Scarlett currently serves as Assistant Secretary of Policy, Management, and Budget at the Department.

"Lynn Scarlett is a dedicated public servant whose depth of knowledge and commitment will be invaluable as Deputy Secretary," Secretary Norton said. "On a daily basis, Lynn Scarlett works to advance the important mission of the Department of the Interior while carrying out the President's management agenda. I am pleased that she will continue as a key member of Interior's senior leadership team."

In her role as Assistant Secretary for Policy, Management and Budget and Chief Financial Officer at Interior, Scarlett discharges the authority of the Secretary for all phases of management, budget and other administrative activities and serves as the principal policy advisor to the Secretary. She took her post with Interior in July of 2001. She serves as both the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Human Capital Officer of the Department. She also helps coordinate Department-wide environmental policy initiatives to implement Secretary Gale Norton's "4 C's" vision of conservation through communication, consultation and cooperation.

"It has been a great privilege to serve this President and this Secretary over these past years," Assistant Secretary Scarlett said. "Together, we have advanced the President's Healthy Forests Initiative, the principles of cooperative conservation and enhanced management excellence at the Department of the Interior. I am honored to have the opportunity to continue to serve President Bush and Secretary Norton and look forward to working on these and many other goals in the months and years ahead."

From June 2003-2004, Assistant Secretary Scarlett chaired the Wildland Fire Leadership Council, an interagency and intergovernmental forum for implementing the National Fire Plan and 10-Year Implementation Plan. She co-chairs the Recreation Fee Leadership Council, an interagency group to coordinate recreation fee policy and practices. She serves on the Board of Trustees of the Udall Foundation as the Department of the Interior representative.

Prior to joining the Bush Administration in July 2001, she was President of the Los Angeles-based Reason Foundation, a nonprofit current affairs research and communications organization. In addition to her management role, her policy research focused on environmental, land use, and natural resources issues.

Scarlett is author of numerous publications on incentive-based environmental policies. She co-authored a report, Race to the Top: State Environmental Innovations, which examines state environmental programs that utilize incentives, private partnerships, and local leadership in addressing environmental problems.

She served on President George W. Bush's environmental policy task force during his presidential campaign. She was appointed by former Governor Pete Wilson to chair California's Inspection and Maintenance Review Committee, a position she held for 6 years. Assistant Secretary Scarlett served as an Expert Panelist on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's full-cost accounting and "pay-as-you-throw" projects. She served at the request of former EPA Administrator William Ruckelshaus on the Enterprise for the Environment Task Force, which examined new directions for U.S. environmental policy.

Scarlett received her B.A. and M.A. in political science from the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she also completed her Ph.D. coursework and exams in political science and political economy.