Don Evans is the 34th Secretary to lead the Department of Commerce, the voice of business in government. He oversees a diverse Cabinet agency of 40,000 workers and a $5 billion budget that not only promotes American business but gathers vast quantities of economic and demographic data, issues patents and trademarks, helps set industrial standards, forecasts the weather and researches the oceans. He is a key member of President Bush's economic policy team and special task force on energy.

A former businessman, Secretary Evans believes very strongly in the free-enterprise system. He sees it as one of the core values of America and his main mission as Commerce Secretary is creating an environment in which American businesses and workers can thrive in the global economy. He has an aggressive agenda to get the job done. At the top of the list is trade. In his first five months, he visited five countries to promote American exports and to open markets. In the months ahead he'll be working to strengthen U.S. trade and investment with Russia, and helping the President secure from the Congress trade promotion authority to negotiate new trade opening deals.

Secretary Evans thinks what U.S. businesses need most in the global market is a level playing field. He is making certain the Department has adequate resources to enforce market opening agreements with other nations. At the request of the President, he is seeking an investigation by the International Trade Commission into whether the U.S. steel industry is being harmed by unfair trade practices and he is helping launch global talks aimed at reducing excess steel production capacity around the world.

Also on his agenda are redefining the role of government in research in a way that generates the development of more cutting-edge technologies; promoting the expansion of e-commerce with as little government intervention as possible; and improving the Department's economic data collection and distribution capabilities.

Secretary Evans was sworn into office on August 9, 2002. Born in Houston, Texas in 1946, Secretary Evans attended the University of Texas at Austin, receiving a BS in Mechanical Engineering in 1969 and an MBA in 1973. While at UT, he was a member of Omicron Delta Kappa and the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity.

In 1975, Secretary Evans moved to Midland, Texas from Houston and began roughnecking on an oil rig for Tom Brown Inc., a large independent energy company now based in Denver. Ten years later he took the company over as CEO and continued running it until becoming Commerce Secretary.

Secretary Evans is a self-described optimist who believes the highest calling in life is serving others. As a result, he has been very active in community service over the years. In 1995 he was appointed by Governor Bush to the Board of Regents of the University of Texas, serving as Chairman of the Board for the last four years. He was a board member of the Scleroderma Research Foundation for 8 years and a driving force behind Native Vision, a program that provides services to some 10,000 Native American children. He has been involved with the United Way for many years, serving as President in 1989 and Campaign Chair in 1981. He has been named Jaycees Man of the Year.

Secretary Evans has made significant contributions in local and national politics in the past 25 years having worked for Governor Bush's successful gubernatorial campaigns in 1994 and 1998, and serving as Chairman of the Bush/Cheney 2000 campaign.