Michael
Foster
State Executive Director
Michael
Foster
State Executive Director
Farm Service Agency
About
Mike Foster was appointed by the Trump Administration to serve as the state executive director of the USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) in Montana in May 2025.
Foster returns to FSA where he previously served as the state executive director for Montana during President Trump’s first term. From 2002 to 2018, Foster was the regional director of advocacy for St. Vincent Healthcare in Billings, Montana. He also served in the cabinet of two Montana governors, first as the head/director of the Montana Department of Labor and Industry and later as the head/director of the Montana Department of Agriculture.
Foster served in both the Montana House of Representatives from 1991 to 1994 and the Montana Senate from 1995 to 1998, representing the rural areas of five counties. During his legislative years, he chaired the House Fish and Game Committee and was vice chair of the Natural Resources and Taxation Committees. He also served as the Majority Whip of the Senate during the 1997 legislative session.
He has a strong educational background with two bachelor’s degrees and a master’s degree from Montana colleges and universities. In 2004, the governor appointed Foster to the Montana Board of Regents of Higher Education overseeing operations of all public colleges and universities in Montana.
Foster has been actively involved in his community, including participating as a Rotary member, serving on a small hospital board, coaching youth baseball, and is an active member of his church.
As a fourth generation Montanan, Foster grew up in Townsend surrounded by agriculture. As young adults, Foster and his brothers installed and repaired farm irrigation systems for their father’s business.
Foster and his wife, Mary, a retired elementary teacher, have been married for 46 years and have three grown children and three grandchildren. In his spare time, he enjoys fishing, golfing, spending time in the mountains, reading and writing, and spending time with his family.