Minnesota / Agriculture Department

Agency file

Agriculture Department

Source file: Minnesota — State Employee Payroll / ingested Jun 18, 2026

The Agriculture Department supports agriculture — farming, food safety, livestock, and rural development programs.

In 2025, this agency had 611 employees with median total compensation of $80,497; the highest distinct record was $178,228.

Year: 2025
Total payroll: $44.2M
Employees: 611
Median total: $80,497
Highest record: $178,228

What the records show

Compensation analytics

These summaries compare pay within the agency before listing individual records.

Salary distribution

$262$144,327+

Hover a bar for its range; click to filter the list below.

How 2025 total compensation is spread across the 611 employees. Each bar is a pay range; taller bars mean more people earn in that range. The amber line marks the median ($80,497) — half earn less, half more. The far-right bar collects the highest earners.

Average pay composition

Base — $70,980 (98%)
Overtime — $268 (0%)
Other — $1,155 (2%)
Benefits — $0 (0%)

What an average paycheck here is made of — base salary versus overtime, other pay (bonuses, allowances), and benefits. A large overtime or other-pay share means take-home often exceeds base salary.

Pay percentiles

10th

25th

Median

75th

90th

$7,399

$55,828

$80,497

$97,734

$110,939

The pay ladder for this department. Someone at the 90th percentile earns $110,939 — more than 90% of the department; the 10th percentile earns $7,399. The shaded band is the middle half of employees (25th–75th percentile).

Largest job titles

Agricultural Technician

55 · $4,693

State Program Administrative Principal

40 · $92,505

Agricultural Advisor

39 · $83,785

Agricultural Consultant

36 · $97,736

State Program Administrative Senior

26 · $84,522

The most common job titles in this department by headcount, with the median total compensation for each. Click a title to see everyone who holds it.

Trend

Year over year

How this department's total payroll, headcount, and median pay changed across the 2 published years.

Year	Total payroll	Employees	Median pay
2024	$40.5M —	561 —	$78,246 —
2025	$44.2M ▲ 9.1%	611 ▲ 8.9%	$80,497 ▲ 2.9%

Record list

Employees

Page 1

Michelle Ellis

Accounting Technician/Agriculture Department

2025 total comp

$36,274

Sub-department: Payroll Staff
Base pay: $36,274
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $0
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $36,274
Hire date: 2018-10-10
Employment type: Full-Time
Pay grade: 64
Union / bargaining unit: Technical
Pay basis: Hourly
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1
Work county: Ramsey

Source-specific fields

Active on June 30, 2025: Yes
Agency Number: B04
Bargaining Unit Number: 207
Branch: Executive
Branch Code: Executive
Classified Code: Classified
Classified Status: Classified
Compensation Frequency Code: Hourly

Michelle Ellis works as a Accounting Technician for Agriculture Department within Payroll Staff. They have served since 2018 (about 7 years) as a full-time employee. Michelle earned $36,274 in 2025. Union affiliation: Technical.

Andrew Helm

Seed Analyst Senior/Agriculture Department

2025 total comp

$35,600

Sub-department: Plant Analysis Unit Staff
Base pay: $35,600
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $0
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $35,600
Hire date: 2018-05-23
Employment type: Full-Time
Pay grade: 64
Union / bargaining unit: Technical
Pay basis: Hourly
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1
Work county: Ramsey

Source-specific fields

Active on June 30, 2025: No
Agency Number: B04
Bargaining Unit Number: 207
Branch: Executive
Branch Code: Executive
Classified Code: Classified
Classified Status: Classified
Compensation Frequency Code: Hourly

At Agriculture Department, Andrew Helm serves as a Seed Analyst Senior within Plant Analysis Unit Staff. Hired in 2018, they have about 7 years of service, working full-time. Their 2025 pay totaled $35,600. Union affiliation: Technical.

Ronald Meiners

State Program Administrative Intermediate/Agriculture Department

2025 total comp

$34,626

Sub-department: MAWQC Technical Staff
Base pay: $34,626
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $0
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $34,626
Hire date: 2024-06-20
Employment type: Intermittent
Pay grade: 7
Union / bargaining unit: MN Assoc of Professional Empl
Pay basis: Hourly
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 0.6
Work county: Ramsey

Source-specific fields

Active on June 30, 2025: Yes
Agency Number: B04
Bargaining Unit Number: 214
Branch: Executive
Branch Code: Executive
Classified Code: Classified
Classified Status: Classified
Compensation Frequency Code: Hourly

Ronald Meiners holds the role of State Program Administrative Intermediate at Agriculture Department within Mawqc Technical Staff. Their tenure dates to 2024, about a year as a intermittent, 0.6 FTE employee. In 2025, their total compensation was $34,626. Union affiliation: MN Assoc of Professional Empl.

Timothy Lux

Agricultural Specialist/Agriculture Department

2025 total comp

$34,496

Sub-department: Inspection Unit 1 Staff
Base pay: $34,496
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $0
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $34,496
Hire date: 2024-11-06
Employment type: Full-Time
Pay grade: 7
Union / bargaining unit: MN Assoc of Professional Empl
Pay basis: Hourly
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1
Work county: Ramsey

Source-specific fields

Active on June 30, 2025: Yes
Agency Number: B04
Bargaining Unit Number: 214
Branch: Executive
Branch Code: Executive
Classified Code: Classified
Classified Status: Classified
Compensation Frequency Code: Hourly

Timothy Lux is a Agricultural Specialist at Agriculture Department within Inspection Unit 1 Staff. They have served since 2024 (about a year), working full-time. 2025 total compensation came to $34,496. They are represented by MN Assoc of Professional Empl.

John Luinenburg

Livestock Weigher 2/Agriculture Department

2024 total comp

$33,697

Sub-department: D&M Livestock Staff
Base pay: $28,560
Overtime: $1,142
Other pay: $3,995
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $33,697
Hire date: 2000-05-03
Employment type: Full-Time
Pay grade: 62
Union / bargaining unit: Service
Pay basis: Hourly
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1
Work county: Ramsey

Source-specific fields

Active on June 30, 2024: No
Agency Number: B04
Bargaining Unit Number: 203
Branch: Executive
Branch Code: Executive
Classified Code: Classified
Classified Status: Classified
Compensation Frequency Code: Hourly

John Luinenburg is a Livestock Weigher 2 at Agriculture Department within D&M Livestock Staff. Hired in 2000, they have about 24 years of service, working full-time. 2024 total compensation came to $33,697. Union affiliation: Service.

Andrea Holland

Office & Administrative Specialist Int/Agriculture Department

2024 total comp

$33,341

Sub-department: Operations & Planning Staff
Base pay: $31,054
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $2,287
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $33,341
Hire date: 2018-03-21
Employment type: Full-Time
Pay grade: 61
Union / bargaining unit: Clerical
Pay basis: Hourly
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1
Work county: Ramsey

Source-specific fields

Active on June 30, 2024: No
Agency Number: B04
Bargaining Unit Number: 206
Branch: Executive
Branch Code: Executive
Classified Code: Classified
Classified Status: Classified
Compensation Frequency Code: Hourly

Andrea Holland works as a Office & Administrative Specialist Int for Agriculture Department within Operations & Planning Staff. Their tenure dates to 2018, about 6 years as a full-time employee. Andrea earned $33,341 in 2024. Their bargaining unit is Clerical.

Kameron Carlson

State Program Administrative Principal/Agriculture Department

2025 total comp

$33,054

Sub-department: Operations Unit Staff
Base pay: $13,618
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $19,436
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $33,054
Hire date: 2011-05-23
Employment type: Part-Time
Pay grade: 14
Union / bargaining unit: MN Assoc of Professional Empl
Pay basis: Hourly
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 0.4
Work county: Ramsey

Source-specific fields

Active on June 30, 2025: No
Agency Number: B04
Bargaining Unit Number: 214
Branch: Executive
Branch Code: Executive
Classified Code: Classified
Classified Status: Classified
Compensation Frequency Code: Hourly

At Agriculture Department, Kameron Carlson serves as a State Program Administrative Principal within Operations Unit Staff. Their tenure dates to 2011, about 14 years, working part-time, 0.4 FTE. Their 2025 pay totaled $33,054. They are represented by MN Assoc of Professional Empl.

Meghan Maurer

State Program Administrative/Agriculture Department

2024 total comp

$32,986

Sub-department: Administrative Support Staff
Base pay: $31,369
Overtime: $428
Other pay: $1,190
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $32,986
Hire date: 2018-04-04
Employment type: Full-Time
Pay grade: 5
Union / bargaining unit: MN Assoc of Professional Empl
Pay basis: Hourly
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1
Work county: Ramsey

Source-specific fields

Active on June 30, 2024: No
Agency Number: B04
Bargaining Unit Number: 214
Branch: Executive
Branch Code: Executive
Classified Code: Classified
Classified Status: Classified
Compensation Frequency Code: Hourly

At Agriculture Department, Meghan Maurer serves as a State Program Administrative within Administrative Support Staff. They have served since 2018 (about 6 years), working full-time. Their 2024 pay totaled $32,986. Their bargaining unit is MN Assoc of Professional Empl.

Nicholas Hartshorn

State Program Administrative Principal/Agriculture Department

2025 total comp

$31,178

Sub-department: Operations Unit Staff
Base pay: $31,178
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $0
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $31,178
Hire date: 2025-01-15
Employment type: Full-Time
Pay grade: 14
Union / bargaining unit: MN Assoc of Professional Empl
Pay basis: Hourly
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1
Work county: -

Source-specific fields

Active on June 30, 2025: Yes
Agency Number: B04
Bargaining Unit Number: 214
Branch: Executive
Branch Code: Executive
Classified Code: Classified
Classified Status: Classified
Compensation Frequency Code: Hourly

At Agriculture Department, Nicholas Hartshorn serves as a State Program Administrative Principal within Operations Unit Staff. They have served since 2025 (under a year), working full-time. Their 2025 pay totaled $31,178. Union affiliation: MN Assoc of Professional Empl.

Alison Fish

Office & Administrative Specialist Principal/Agriculture Department

2025 total comp

$30,902

Sub-department: Energy&Environment Staff
Base pay: $23,237
Overtime: $769
Other pay: $6,895
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $30,902
Hire date: 1990-04-10
Employment type: Part-Time
Pay grade: 67
Union / bargaining unit: Clerical
Pay basis: Hourly
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 0.75
Work county: Ramsey

Source-specific fields

Active on June 30, 2025: No
Agency Number: B04
Bargaining Unit Number: 206
Branch: Executive
Branch Code: Executive
Classified Code: Classified
Classified Status: Classified
Compensation Frequency Code: Hourly

Alison Fish is a Office & Administrative Specialist Principal at Agriculture Department within Energy&Environment Staff. They have served since 1990 (about 35 years), working part-time, 0.75 FTE. 2025 total compensation came to $30,902. Union affiliation: Clerical.

Ian Kushner

Grants Specialist Senior/Agriculture Department

2025 total comp

$30,685

Sub-department: AMDD AD Staff
Base pay: $30,685
Overtime: $0
Other pay: $0
Benefits: $0
Total compensation: $30,685
Hire date: 2014-06-04
Employment type: Full-Time
Pay grade: 12
Union / bargaining unit: MN Assoc of Professional Empl
Pay basis: Hourly
Full-time equivalent (FTE): 1
Work county: Ramsey

Source-specific fields

Active on June 30, 2025: No
Agency Number: B04
Bargaining Unit Number: 214
Branch: Executive
Branch Code: Executive
Classified Code: Classified
Classified Status: Classified
Compensation Frequency Code: Hourly

Ian Kushner holds the role of Grants Specialist Senior at Agriculture Department within Amdd Ad Staff. They have served since 2014 (about 11 years) as a full-time employee. In 2025, their total compensation was $30,685. Their bargaining unit is MN Assoc of Professional Empl.