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FLORENCE – Arizona native and resident of Pinal County for more than 40 years, Steve Miller just took office in January 2013 as District 3 Supervisor representing the Casa Grande region. He was then nominated by his peers on the board to be the first chairman of the now five-member Pinal County Board of Supervisors.
“We each have a single vote, but the chairman conducts the meetings and, if there’s a tie I get to cast the tie-breaking vote,” Miller said. “I was honored to be selected by my colleagues to be chairman for the first year.”
Miller served more than ten years on the Casa Grande City Council, giving him valuable experience in public service, budget management and leading government out of more than one fiscal crisis.
Miller’s professional experience was in the lumber and truss manufacturing business and as a licensed home and commercial builder in Arizona and New Mexico.
“As a licensed builder, I’ve seen the local economy boom and bust more than once,” Miller said. “This has been a more sustained bust – stretching on for several years now. What I hope to achieve during my tenure on the board is a more diverse economic base that will allow us to remain healthy during future boom-bust cycles.”
Economic development is of keen interest to Miller, particularly building on some of Casa Grande’s success with Hexcel, Frito-Lay, Walmart’s distribution center and other industrial and commercial growth.
“We have solid opportunities for Pinal County to expand in the industrial, commercial and manufacturing sectors. Those types of businesses can take advantage of our freeway and rail assets, helping to attract good jobs and stabilize our economy,” Miller said.
Miller is also an advocate for protecting Pinal County’s rich agricultural heritage.
“I’m a numbers guy and people don’t realize that every square mile of cotton represents a half-million dollar investment,” Miller said. “That money goes into seeds, soil treatments, crop dusting, irrigation, pest management and these are mostly provided by local vendors. When the crop is harvested, the cotton is an important export commodity. The same is true for dairy, cattle ranching and other agriculture.”
Miller says he will be happy if the Board can strike a balance between the desires of developers, advocates for open space, recreation enthusiasts and the area’s agricultural assets.
Miller is past president of the Western Pinal Republican Club and has remained active in civic and political causes throughout his career.
He has volunteered with the Casa Grande Food Bank for more than 15 years. While his children were young, he was very involved with little league and youth baseball. Miller was a founding member of the Casa Grande Soccer Club, the community’s first traveling competitive league.
“I really enjoyed being involved with youth sports. When your children are grown, you find other things to keep you connected to the community,” Miller said. “In Casa Grande we had a very active Mayor’s Reading Club and I visited every elementary school in Casa Grande to read to the students. I hope to be able to continue doing that while I serve as Pinal County Supervisor.”
Miller and his wife Laurie raised three grown children who, as adults now, have chosen to stay in Pinal County. The Millers have four grandchildren.
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