Mike King, Executive Director

Date appointed: 1/5/11

Senate Committee hearing date: 1/27/11

Senate Committee hearing vote: Passed Committee vote - Unanimously favorable recommendation

Senate vote date: February 3, 2011

Senate vote: Confirmed - 33-0

Salary: $146,040

"Colorado is known for our spectacular natural beauty, abundant wildlife and unparalleled recreational opportunities, Gov. John Hickenlooper said. Striking the right balance between resource development and conservation is what good stewardship of our natural resources is all about. Mike King has the collaborative skills needed to bring disparate interests together to responsibly manage these resources."

Mike King has led the Department of Natural Resources since 2010, navigating the agency through significant reorganization, regulatory accomplishments and landscape-scale protection under the direction of Governor John Hickenlooper.

As Executive Director of DNR, King guided the creation of Colorado Parks and Wildlife, a merger of two previously stand-alone divisions that serves as an important example of Governor Hickenlooper’s efforts to shape a more efficient state government. King also shepherded the move of the Colorado Geological Survey from DNR to its new home at the Colorado School of Mines, where it can more cost-effectively serve Coloradans as a critical source of research and information.

King has also executed three major regulatory initiatives designed to strike the evolving balance between development of our oil and gas resources and protection of the environment and human communities. He guided a lengthy collaborative process with the U.S. Forest Service and the public to develop a Colorado Roadless Rule that dramatically increases safeguards and preservation of our spectacular forests. He has also overseen a period of record revenues for the Colorado State Land Board, which raises money for K-12 education in the state. In addition King has played an important role in resolving water allocation challenges between Colorado’s Western Slope and Front Range. One of his priority missions is bringing more Colorado youth into the outdoors and into natural resource-focused careers.

King is a native West Slope Coloradan. He became the Assistant Director for Lands, Minerals and Energy Policy in January of 2006 and was appointed as Deputy Director of the Department of Natural Resources in September of 2006. Mike was appointed executive director of DNR in May 2010. He was reappointed to the position by Gov. John Hickenlooper in January of 2011.

Prior to his employment in the Executive Director’s Office, Mike worked in the Policy and Regulation Section at the Colorado Division of Wildlife in various capacities for six years and was an Assistant Attorney General from 1993-1999.

Mike received his Bachelors degree in journalism from CU-Boulder, law degree from the University of Denver and a Masters in Public Administration from CU-Denver’s Graduate School of Public Affairs.
Mike currently lives in Parker with his wife Amy and their three children. 

About the Department of Natural Resources:

The Department develops, preserves, and enhances the state’s natural resources for the benefit and enjoyment of current and future citizens and visitors. The Department pursues this objective through 10 divisions: Division of Wildlife, Colorado State Parks, Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, Division of Water Resources, Colorado Water Conservation Board, Colorado Geological Survey, Colorado State Land Board, Division of Reclamation Mining and Safety, Division of Forestry, and the Inter-basin Compact Committee.