Kristin Bail
Acting Director, Bureau of Land Management
The BLM's national and state leaders bring a combination of innovation and experience to the organization and its more than 10,000-plus employees. Together, leaders and employees work side-by-side daily to manage and conserve the public lands for current and future generations. Meet the BLM's top leadership and learn more about their passion for the lands we love.
Acting Director, Bureau of Land Management
Jerome E. Perez
Acting National Deputy Director of Operations
Jerome E. Perez is the Acting Deputy Director of Operations for the Bureau of Land Management. In his most recent assignment, Perez served as State Director for California. He previously served as the State Director for BLM Oregon/Washington and as the Deputy Regional Forester of the U.S. Forest Service's Intermountain Region. Read the full biography
BLM Alaska State Director
Bud Cribley joined the BLM in 1975 as a Forestry Technician in the Arizona Strip District in northwest Arizona. Since then, he has held several positions as a Rangeland Management Specialist with the BLM in Montana, Utah, and Colorado. Before moving to Washington, D.C., he served as a Field Manager and the Assistant District Manager for Nonrenewable Resources for the Winnemucca District in Nevada. Read the full biography
BLM Arizona State Director
Ray Suazo is the BLM Arizona State Director, responsible for leading a staff of nearly 500 employees and the management of more than 12 million surface and 17 million subsurface acres of public lands in Arizona. Ray joined the BLM Arizona State Office in 2006. He served as Chief Information Officer, Deputy State Director for Business and Support Services, and Associate State Director before his appointment as the Arizona State Director in 2011. Read the full biography
BLM California Acting State Director
Joe Stout is the Acting Bureau of Land Management California State Director where he oversees the management of 15.2 million acres of public lands, nearly 15 percent of the state's land area, and 1.6 million acres in northwestern Nevada. Stout most recently served as the Associate State Director for the BLM in California. Since joining the agency in 2001, he has served in several roles including in the BLM’s Washington Office as the Acting Chief of Staff for the Director, as well as the Division Chief for the Decision Support, Planning and NEPA Program, and a Legislative Affairs Specialist. Prior to his time in Washington, Stout worked in Colorado as the Acting Associate State Director, State Office Planning and NEPA Coordinator and in the Kremmling Field Office as an RMP Project Manager. Read the full biography
BLM Colorado State Director
Ruth Welch began her Federal career with the Office of Surface Mining in 1989 and joined the BLM in 1993. Since then, she has served in a variety of positions throughout the Bureau. Read the full biography
BLM Eastern States State Director
Karen Mouritsen was an attorney practicing law for DOI, but she was motivated to change careers change after after serving on detail as a BLM Associate District Manager when she learned how challenging and rewarding it is to work together as a team with many talented BLM employees. Read the full biography
BLM Idaho State Director
Tim Murphy was named the Idaho State Director for the Bureau of Land Management in 2014. In this role, Murphy leads with a thorough knowledge of resource management issues and demonstrated ability to build effective partnerships with public land stakeholders. He is actively involved in the Great Basin Sage Grouse Implementation Effort as the lead State Director. Read the full biography
John Ruhs
BLM Nevada State Director
John Ruhs has an extensive background in Nevada, having served as Ely District Manager and Winnemucca District Fire Management Officer. In addition to his work in Nevada, John has also served as BLM’s Senior Special Assistant in Washington, D.C., and District Manager of the High Desert District in Wyoming. He has also worked for the BLM in Colorado, Idaho, and Oregon. Read the full biography
Amy Lueders
BLM New Mexico State Director
Amy graduated from Duke University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics. She began her BLM career in 1984 at the Washington Office as a mineral economist. She later held a number of budget development and program analysis positions. Amy then served as the Field Manager in Las Cruces, N.M. before moving to Nevada to serve as the BLM Nevada Associate State Director before advancing to the State Director position. Read the full biography
BLM Oregon-Washington State Director
In Oregon-Washington, Connell will oversee more than 16 million acres of public land in Oregon and Washington that comprise a mix of heavily forested lands west of the Cascades and the dry, sagebrush ecosystems of the Great Basin. These BLM-managed lands support diverse uses, resources, and values, including recreation, wilderness, wildlife, timber harvesting, livestock grazing, wild horses and burros, and mineral extraction. Read the full biography
BLM Utah State Director
As BLM Utah State Director, Ed Roberson leads a team that administers 23 million acres of public lands and 32 million acres of mineral and energy resources in Utah. Read the full biography
BLM Wyoming State Director
Mary Jo Rugwell was selected as the state director for the Bureau of Land Management in Wyoming. She had been acting state director for about a year and a half prior to being chosen. Mary Jo served as the Associate State Director in Wyoming for over two years. She is a native of Cheyenne, WY. Read the full biography