House Majority Leader Jeff Alexander, R-Provo, plans to step down from the office he's held for 16 years to take a position with the Governor's Office of Economic Development.

Alexander will be the office's headquarters advisor and will work on convincing corporations to locate their headquarters in the state, which is one of Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.'s economic development goals.

He said Tuesday that he'd discussed the possibility of an appointment of some kind with the governor, and "when they approached me with this advisory position for economic development, it really caught my eye."

"The idea of being involved in business -- I've been very interested in economic development," Alexander said. "And I've felt for some time now more and more pressure, while I spent extra time on legislative issues, to get back to my business and spend some time there."

He owns Alexander's Print Advantage in Lindon. Alexander's combination of business and legislative experience made him an attractive candidate, said GOED Executive Director Jason Perry.

"He's very well dialed in to the possibilities for the state of Utah," Perry said. "Not to mention that his legislative experience is substantial, so he'll help in that area as well."

Discussions about the new, unpaid, part-time position had been going on for about a month.

"It's part of our overall strategy," Perry said. "This is the next step for us, really -- to have a person designated to identify these companies for the state of Utah and devise a strategy to go after them."

Alexander said he hopes to stay in office until the end of the year, when his term expires. Since he'd already filed for re-election, his name will appear on the Nov. 7 ballot, where he is running unopposed.

Utah County Republican delegates will meet after the election to pick someone to fill his seat, said Marian Monnahan, chairwoman of the county party.

"I was very surprised when he called me (Monday) night," she said. "And sad. I'm particularly sad because he's my rep. He's served honorably for 16 years."

Alexander joined the Legislature in 1990. He's been the House Majority Leader for the past two years; before that, he was the Majority Whip for two years and co-chairman of the Executive Appropriations Committee for four years.

House Speaker Greg Curtis, R-Salt Lake City, noted that Alexander involved himself heavily in transportation funding. In fact, he was the driving force behind a local option quarter-cent sales tax that counties can levy for road and transit needs that's "affectionately known," Curtis said, "as the 'Alexander quarter.' "

"He'll be missed," he said. "Jeff was a very principled policy person. He articulated what he felt strongly about, and truly served with a conviction to what he felt was the right thing to do. He knew exactly where he was at, and he knew why, and he'd tell you."

Though he'd been yearning for more time with his company, Alexander also acknowledged that legislative service exerts a strong pull.

"I think there will always be that while you're there, because you see all the things you enjoy," he said. "But to do this you have to have such a strong drive every session to make it work well. This year ... I didn't have as strong a desire to get into the session and strategize and get that together."