Commissioners' Biography

Allen I. Olson, Commissioner

Allen I. Olson was appointed as Commissioner to the U.S. Section, International Joint Commission, by President George W. Bush and assumed office on December 3, 2002.

In joining the International Joint Commission, Mr. Olson comes from a distinguished career in public service and private practice. He served as the President and CEO of the Independent Community Bankers of Minnesota (1988-2003). He worked as a full-time consultant for the Physicians Health Plan of Minnesota and affiliated companies, and in private law practice in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Mr. Olson served as Governor of North Dakota (1980-1984) and as Attorney General of North Dakota (1972-1980). Previously, he was Senior Partner of a law firm in Bismarck, North Dakota, and Assistant Director of the North Dakota Legislative Council. He served in the U.S. Army as Appellate and Trial Counsel in the Judge Advocate General’s Corps (1963-1967) and as Chief of Military Justice in Munich, Germany (1967).

Mr. Olson earned a J.D. degree at the University of North Dakota College of Law, a B.S. and B.A. at the University of North Dakota College of Business and Public Administration, and attended the U.S. Army Judge Advocate Generals School at the University of Virginia.

Mr. Olson has served in many other capacities including as a member of the International Flood Mitigation Initiative for the Red River Basin, Chairman of the Board for the Red River Trade Council Inc., and Trustee for the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. He is a member of the Citizens League, an organization that provides forums to involve citizens in public policy formation, the Center of the American Experiment and the Christ Presbyterian Church in Edina, Minnesota. He and his wife, Barbara Benner, have three children and six grandchildren.