View source for Robert L. Geddes

{{short description|American politician from Idaho}}
{{About|Robert L. Geddes the Idaho politician|Robert L. Geddes the architect|Robert Geddes (architect)}}
{{Infobox officeholder
|image=
|name=Robert L. Geddes
|image name=
|office = 39th [[List of Presidents pro tempore of the Idaho Senate|President pro tempore of the Idaho Senate]]
|term_start=2000 
|term_end=2010
|preceded=[[Jerry Twiggs]]
|succeeded=[[Brent Hill (politician)|Brent Hill]]
| office1 = Member of the [[Idaho Senate]]
| constituency1 = [[Idaho Legislative District 32|32nd district]] (1995–2002)<br />[[Idaho Legislative District 31|31st district]] (2002–2011)
| term_start1 = 1995
| term_end1 = January 18, 2011
| predecessor1 = Dennis Hansen
| successor1 = [[John Tippets]]
|birth_date= {{Birth date and age|1955|11|14}}
|birth_place=[[Preston, Idaho]], U.S.
|death_date=
|death_place=
|spouse=Tammy
|party=[[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]
|education = [[Ricks College]] ([[Associate degree|AS]])<br />[[Utah State University]] ([[Bachelor of Science|BS]])
}}

'''Robert L. Geddes''' (born November 14, 1955) is an American engineer and politician who served as a member of the [[Idaho Senate]] from 1995 to 2011 . He was a resident of [[Soda Springs, Idaho|Soda Springs]]. In 2011, Geddes resigned from the Idaho Senate to accept an appointment to the Idaho Tax Commission, where he served for one year.<ref name="idahostatesman.com">{{Cite web |url=http://voices.idahostatesman.com/2011/01/18/krichert/idaho_politics_geddes_take_waitandsee_approach_tax_commission_re |title=Idaho politics: Geddes to take wait-and-see approach to Tax Commission reform &#124; Voices.IdahoStatesman.com |access-date=2011-02-07 |archive-date=2012-07-15 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120715131306/http://voices.idahostatesman.com/2011/01/18/krichert/idaho_politics_geddes_take_waitandsee_approach_tax_commission_re |url-status=dead }}</ref> He later served as the director of the Idaho Department of Administration under Governor [[Butch Otter]], retiring in 2018.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.idahostatesman.com/news/politics-government/state-politics/article40859919.html|title=Former Sen. Bob Geddes named new state Administration director|last=Staff|first=Statesman|website=idahostatesman|language=en|access-date=2019-06-20}}</ref>

==Early life and education==
Geddes is an Idaho native born in [[Preston, Idaho|Preston]] and a graduate of [[Preston High School (Idaho)|Preston High School]] in 1974. Studying first at [[Ricks College]], where earned an associate degree, he paused his studies to serve a two-year mission for [[the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]] in [[Austria]]. He later earned a Bachelor of Science in geology from [[Utah State University]] in 1981.

== Career ==
Working first for Conda Partnership from 1981 to 1985, Geddes spent the bulk of his career with [[Monsanto]] in Soda Springs as an environmental engineer from 1985 until 2011, taking a year-long leave of absence to serve on the Idaho State Tax Commission.

On January 18, 2011, Governor [[Butch Otter]] appointed him to be chairman of the Idaho State Tax Commission and Geddes immediately resigned his Senate seat.<ref name="idahostatesman.com" /> The Senate confirmed his nomination on February 4, 2011, by voice vote.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.legislature.idaho.gov/sessioninfo/2011/Journals/sday26.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=2011-02-07 |archive-date=2012-03-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120314074742/http://www.legislature.idaho.gov/sessioninfo/2011/Journals/sday26.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> Geddes served in that position until February 21, 2012, when he resigned and returned to Monsanto.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Times-News|title=Gov. Otter appoints Senator Robert Geddes as chairman of troubled State Tax Commission|url=https://magicvalley.com/news/local/gov-otter-appoints-senator-robert-geddes-as-chairman-of-troubled-state-tax-commission/article_f6a06722-2339-11e0-9e47-001cc4c03286.html|access-date=2021-09-23|website=Twin Falls Times-News|language=en}}</ref>

===Idaho Senate===
Governor [[Phil Batt]] appointed Senator Dennis Hansen in 1995 to the Idaho Public Utilities Commission, creating a vacancy in the Senate for the 31st district, to which he later appointed Geddes. Geddes' father, Robert C. Geddes, was a state representative for 33 years, representing the same district. They served concurrently in the legislature for five years.

In 1998, Geddes was selected to be Majority Caucus Chair where he served until 2000. Senator [[Jerry Twiggs]] president ''pro tempore'' suddenly died while jogging and Geddes was selected to succeed Twiggs. Geddes served as president ''pro tempore'' until 2010, the longest any senator has ever held the position in state history.

===Line of succession===
On two separate occasions Geddes as president ''pro tempore'' was required to serve as acting lieutenant governor and first in line of succession to the governor under Article IV, Section 14 of the Idaho Constitution. First, in January 2001 after the resignation of Lieutenant Governor Butch Otter who was elected to the [[United States House of Representatives]] until Lieutenant Governor-elect [[Jim Risch]] was sworn into office. Later, Geddes was acting lieutenant governor again in May and June 2006 after Lieutenant Governor [[Jim Risch]] became governor upon the resignation of Governor [[Dirk Kempthorne]] to become [[United States Secretary of the Interior|secretary of the interior]] until [[Mark Ricks]], whom Governor Risch appointed to fill the vacancy in the office he left, was confirmed by the Senate.

== Personal life ==
He and his wife, Tammy, have five children.

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.legislature.idaho.gov/about/contactmembersform.cfm?ID=92 Idaho Legislature - Senator Robert L. Geddes] '''official government website'''
*[http://www.vote-smart.org/bio.php?can_id=2913 Project Vote Smart - Senator Robert L. Geddes (ID)] profile
*''Follow the Money'' - Robert L. Geddes
**[http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?si=200613&c=423383 2006] [http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?si=200413&c=411877 2004] [http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?si=200213&c=11423 2002] [http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?si=200013&c=354005 2000] [http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?si=199813&c=353763 1998] [http://www.followthemoney.org/database/StateGlance/candidate.phtml?si=199613&c=353518 1996] campaign contributions

{{Current U.S. State Senate Presidents}}
{{Current Idaho statewide political officials}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Geddes, Robert L.}}
[[Category:1955 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:People from Preston, Idaho]]
[[Category:Latter Day Saints from Idaho]]
[[Category:Republican Party Idaho state senators]]
[[Category:People from Soda Springs, Idaho]]
[[Category:20th-century members of the Idaho Legislature]]
[[Category:21st-century members of the Idaho Legislature]]