Bill Hawks
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
politician and civil servant, and a businessman active in agriculture.
He graduated from Mississippi State University
Mississippi State University
The Mississippi State University of Agriculture and Applied Science commonly known as Mississippi State University is a land-grant university located in Oktibbeha County, Mississippi, United States, partially in the town of Starkville and partially in an unincorporated area...
in 1968 with a bachelors of science degree in agricultural economics. He then went on to obtain his masters degree from Mississippi State in agricultural economics in 1970.
From 1968 to 1970, Hawks served in the Army Reserve
United States Army Reserve
The United States Army Reserve is the federal reserve force of the United States Army. Together, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard constitute the reserve components of the United States Army....
and from 1970 to 1972, he served in the Army National Guard
Army National Guard
Established under Title 10 and Title 32 of the U.S. Code, the Army National Guard is part of the National Guard and is divided up into subordinate units stationed in each of the 50 states, three territories and the District of Columbia operating under their respective governors...
. Following that, Mr. Hawks served in the Air National Guard
Air National Guard
The Air National Guard , often referred to as the Air Guard, is the air force militia organized by each of the fifty U.S. states, the commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the territories of Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the District of Columbia of the United States. Established under Title 10 and...
from 1972 until 1980.
Hawks started farming after finishing graduate school by owning and operating a dairy in DeSoto County. In the early 1970s, he began to lease land from neighbors to get started in a row crop operation, often doing custom work for others. Over the years, this has evolved into the multi-faceted operation in place today.
Hawks is currently the managing partner of Hawks Farming, which farms approximately 7,700 acres (31 km²) of land in three counties in northern Mississippi. This operation consists of 5,200 acres (21 km²) of soybeans, 3,000 acres (12 km²) of double-cropped winter wheat, and 2,500 acres (10 km²) of corn.
In the late 1980s, Hawks was a part owner in a professional farm management company, Sunbelt Land and Timber Company, Incorporated.
During the early 1990s, the Hawks owned and managed Northwest Mississippi Flying Service, Incorporated, an agricultural aerial application service, and also owned and operated a recreational airport. The Hawks family also owns DeSoto East, Incorporated, a residential development company.
In December 1994, Hawks was elected to the Mississippi State Senate
Mississippi State Senate
The Mississippi Senate is the upper house of the Mississippi Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Mississippi. The Senate is composed of 52 Senators representing an equal amount of constituent districts, with 54,704 people per district...
, representing his native DeSoto County
DeSoto County, Mississippi
-Demographics:As of the census of 2005 estimate, there were 137,004 people, 38,792 households, and 30,102 families residing in the county. The population density was 224 people per square mile . There were 40,795 housing units at an average density of 85 per square mile...
. During his five years as a state senator, he was a leader on the committees with jurisdiction over agriculture and the environment. He was the Republican candidate for Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi in 1999.
On May 24, 2001, Hawks was sworn in as the Undersecretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs by Secretary of Agriculture Ann M. Veneman. Hawks resigned from the USDA position in June 2005.
Throughout his career, he has been very active in many agricultural boards and committees such as American Farm Bureau Federation
American Farm Bureau Federation
The American Farm Bureau Federation , commonly referred to as the Farm Bureau, is a nonprofit organization and the largest general farm organization in the United States...
, American Soybean Association, and many active state and local organizations. He has two children.