By John O’Connor and Sarah Raza, Associated Press, The Associated Press
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — The U.S. Department of Agriculture will move thousands of employees out of the nation’s capital in a reorganization the agency says will put them closer to customers while saving money, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said Thursday.
Around 2,600 workers — more than half the Washington, D.C. workforce — will be moved to five hubs, including one in Fort Collins, Rollins said. The union representing federal workers immediately criticized the plan as a ploy to cut federal jobs, pointing out that some 95% of the department’s employees already work outside Washington.
The move is part of President Donald Trump’s effort to make the federal government slimmer and more efficient, which received a Supreme Court boost this month.
“American agriculture feeds, clothes, and fuels this nation and the world, and it is long past time the department better serve the great and patriotic farmers, ranchers, and producers we are mandated to support,” Rollins said in a statement.
The goal is to re-size the department so that costs don’t outstrip available finances, as well as eliminate layers of management and consolidate redundant functions, the statement said. The department expects the plan to take several months.
The five hubs are in Fort Collins; Raleigh, N.C.; Kansas City, Mo.; Indianapolis; and Salt Lake City.
The New York Times reported that part of the reorganization involves closing the U.S. Forest Service’s nine regional offices. One of those offices is in Lakewood. The Forest Service is part of the USDA, and the Times cited criticism of the move by environmental groups that expressed concern about its ability to fight wildfires.
The Times quoted Rollins as saying that “implementation activities will take into consideration the ongoing fire season.”
Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a Minnesota Democrat and ranking member of the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee, demanded that Agriculture Department officials appear before the Senate to explain their thinking behind the “half-baked proposal” to relocate workers out of Washington.
“I have serious doubts that the administration adequately considered the impact of this move on research and on services for farmers and rural Americans,” Klobuchar said in a statement.
Chad Hart, a professor of agricultural economics at Iowa State University, said the agricultural community is concerned about a “bumpy transition” reminiscent of similar action during Trump’s first term, when relocated Agriculture offices needed months to get up and running again.
Although it’s important to be closer to farmers and ranchers, Hart said taking those employees out of Washington risks losing an important connection to Congress.
“You want that balance” to ensure effective farm policy, Hart said.
Much of the government savings could come from employees who choose not to relocate, Hart said.
Everett Kelley, national president of the American Federation of Government Employees, the labor union representing federal workers, had a sharper critique. He said about 85% of all federal employees already work outside the capital, but insisted Washington “is the center of our nation’s government for a reason.”
Workers at headquarters help coordinate between senior leaders and field offices, Kelley said, and they ensure the agency has a “seat at the table” when lawmakers and the White House make decisions that affect farmers nationwide.
“I’m concerned this reorganization is just the latest attempt to eliminate USDA workers and minimize their critical work,” the union leader said.
The Agriculture Department reported that its headcount grew by 8% over the past four years, with salaries increasing by 14.5%. The statement from Rollins said the 4,600 employees in and around Washington are “underutilized and redundant” and housed in underused buildings with billions of dollars in deferred maintenance.
In the Washington region, the department will vacate three buildings and examine the best use of three others. One building set to be abandoned has $1.3 billion in needed but delayed maintenance and has room for 6,000 employees while only housing 1,900.
Wages will fall too, Rollins promised. The capital region is among the nation’s costliest to live, and department employees there are paid a surcharge of 34% to keep ahead of the cost of living. The surcharges range from 17.1% in Salt Lake City to 30.5% in Fort Collins.
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