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BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Last January, Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter called on Idaho Senate President Pro Tem Bob Geddes to take the reins at the State Tax Commission, after complaints its former chairman had inappropriately assisted friends and family.

Geddes agreed, saying that while his background was rocks, not tax tables — he's a geologist from Monsanto Co.'s eastern Idaho phosphate mines — he'd do his best to help revive the agency's reputation. In case it didn't work out, Geddes and Otter negotiated a deal: He'd take a year's leave of absence from Monsanto, an arrangement that would allow him to return to his employer of 26 years, if he chose.

One year later, Geddes' leave has expired. After missing out on a job to run the company's mining operations recently, the 56-year-old concedes he's open to other options. The fact is, he simply hasn't grown passionate about Idaho's tax system and would like to move on — either somewhere else in state government or at his former employer, if another job opens up.

Even being the longest-serving Idaho Senate leader — Geddes was pro tem for a decade — hasn't made that existential question of "What comes next?" any easier to answer.

"I'm a geologist," Geddes said, in a recent interview. "I thrived on challenges and aspects of being engaged with science, and that's where my life occupation took me. Never once did I ever dream or aspire to be in charge at the Tax Commission. Quite honestly, taxes, the nature of taxes, the management of taxes, still does not really light up my life."

Geddes' chairmanship expires April 1, 2013. In an interview, he left open whether he'll finish it, but said for the time being he doesn't have any other offers.

He said his toughest challenge hasn't been learning about taxes, as he'd originally expected, rather figuring out how to retain valuable employees at a time when their pay was frozen or cut amid a state budget crisis. Geddes also said his 12-month stint has opened his eyes, even more than 16 years in the Legislature did, to the hard work and dedication of state employees.

Tax Commission employees were shocked Friday to learn that he's considering greener pastures. They think he's done a great job, especially in restoring a convivial office atmosphere.

"He's done great," said David Langhorst, a former state senator from Boise and a Democratic tax commissioner. "The attitude and atmosphere is 180 degrees different than it was. We are working together so much better than before, and frankly, from a personal standpoint, Bob is managing the agency just like I would. I have no fault with Bob; even if he intended to come here short-term, we needed that kind of sea change."

When Geddes arrived at the Tax Commission on Jan. 18, 2011, it was in turmoil. Royce Chigbrow, Otter's previous appointee, had just resigned after falling out with his employees and other commissioners.

There were internal complaints that Chigbrow had involved himself in tax cases involving his son's accounting firm, inappropriately handled taxpayers' money and disclosed what should have been confidential information about an Idaho company's tax problems to an old friend who had been fired from that company. However, a county prosecutor investigation didn't produce any charges, in part because the statute of limitations had expired.

Otter looked to Geddes, saying he needed somebody with the Soda Springs Republican's reputation to help remove the Tax Commission from an uncomfortable media spotlight. He agreed to let Geddes try it out, based on the understanding that they'd discuss the situation in a year.

"What we were trying to do was straighten it out," Otter told The Associated Press last week. "We figured Bob was the best person to get the confidence of the Legislature back. Knowing it was the possibility of only being a year, I was willing to accept that, being the quick study that Bob is."

Geddes said he took the Monsanto leave without pay or benefits, rather than retire, because he wanted to keep his prospects alive if the Tax Commission gig didn't pan out.

"I tried to make myself a little safety net that, should I not fall in love with the Tax Commission, that I would have some recourse to go back to," Geddes said.

His leave of absence at Monsanto ended Wednesday.

The job he wanted there, to head the St. Louis-based agricultural company's mining business, would have been a big promotion, compared to his previous Monsanto position. "I didn't get it," Geddes says, the disappointment in his voice palpable.

Now, he hopes to meet with Otter again soon to discuss what's next.

Returning to eastern Idaho isn't out of the question, he said, describing with fondness the seemingly endless snows that blanket the region's mile-high landscape for months.

But such a move also represents logistical challenges: Geddes several years ago sold his home in Soda Springs, in the district he represented for nine terms, and bought a house west of Boise, so he and his wife, Tammy, could be nearer their children.

"The bottom line is, I need to be able to continue to keep my options open," Geddes said.