Maxwell appointed USDA State Director by President Trump

• Dane Maxwell previously served as Mayor of Pascagoula and Southern District Public Service Commissioner.

Former Southern District Public Service Commissioner Dane Maxwell has been appointed by President Donald Trump as the new Mississippi State Director for Rural Development for the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins announced Maxwell as part of a slate of presidential appointments for the agency on Friday.

“When America’s farming communities prosper, the entire nation thrives. This new group of USDA appointees will ensure President Trump’s America First agenda is a reality in rural areas across the country. I am grateful for the leadership of these new state directors and look forward to their work reorienting the agency to put Farmers First again,” Rollins said.

Maxwell is a Marine Corps veteran, retired law enforcement officer, businessman, and former Mayor of Pascagoula. He served one term as Public Service Commissioner from 2020 to 2024, losing his bid for re-election in 2023.

Maxwell was also the Mississippi State Director for the Trump presidential campaigns in 2016 and 2020.

Maxwell told Magnolia Tribune that he is excited to get started as the State Director.

“There are so many good things we’ll bring to Mississippi helping our state, county and city leaders make their communities better and continuing the plan that President Trump has for improving the lives of all Americans,”Maxwell said. “I’m very grateful for President Trump in having the confidence in me to appoint me to such an important position. I’m excited to get started and working with our state leaders to make our state and America great again!”

USDA says State Directors help affirm the mission of the Trump Administration by focusing on finding ways to empower rural America and unleash economic prosperity.

In addition to Maxwell, Rollins announced that Chris McDonald was named the new State Executive Director for the Farm Service Agency in Mississippi. Most recently, McDonald served as the Director of Federal and Environmental Affairs at the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce.

USDA said FSA State Directors help implement President Trump’s America First agenda and execute the Department’s policies in planning, organizing, and administering FSA programs through state offices across the country.