Earl F. Hance

Earl F. "Buddy" Hance (born July 17, 1955), served as Secretary of the Maryland Department of Agriculture in the Cabinet of Governor Martin O'Malley from May, 2009 to January, 2015, after serving as Deputy Secretary of the Maryland Department of Agriculture since February, 2007. Hance was born in Prince Frederick, Maryland. Following graduation from Calvert High School in 1973, he joined the Prince Frederick Volunteer Fire Department. Prior to his appointment as Maryland Deputy Secretary of Agriculture in 2007, he had served as a member of several civic and agricultural organizations including the Board of Directors of the American Farm Bureau Federation from 2004 to 2007, and as President of the Maryland Farm Bureau from 2003 to 2007. A fourth-generation family farmer, he owns a 600-acre farm in Port Republic, Maryland, growing corn and soybean crops, and previously tobacco.