A Trump administration plan to remove thousands of agriculture employees from Washington, D.C., is raising concerns among economists, who fear that such a move could erode expertise in a workforce reluctant to relocate.

The plan — a cost-saving strategy that would consolidate U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) operations and bring workers closer to their customers — would move 2,600 out of 4,600 D.C.-based employees to five regional hubs.

The administration’s preferred locations include Fort Collins, Colo.; Salt Lake City; Indianapolis; Kansas City, Mo.; and Raleigh, N.C. While all of these cities have existing USDA facilities, it remains unclear where each of the department’s many subgroups would be headed.

“Some of the issues these agencies are trying to address are national issues,” Chad Hart, a professor of agricultural economics at Iowa State University, told The Hill.

“Moving it from D.C. to Indianapolis doesn't necessarily make it easier for an Alabama cotton farmer to get a hold of — or someone who does aquaculture in Maine,” he said.

The USDA’s announcement, which came from Secretary Brooke Rollins at the end of July, justified the move by describing the department’s D.C. headquarters as “plagued by rampant overspending and decades of mismanagement.”

Following the reorganization, the USDA said that it expects no more than 2,000 employees to remain in the capital — enabling the department to vacate and return several of its buildings to the General Services Administration.

The move would also enable wage cuts, as the salary surcharge to account for the cost of living in Washington is 34 percent — greater than the 30.5 percent in Fort Collins, 22.2 percent in Raleigh, 19 percent in Kansas City, 18.1 percent in Indianapolis and 17 percent in Salt Lake City, the department noted.

While the USDA initially unveiled the plans for a 30-day public comment period ending on August 31, the department ultimately extended that deadline to September 30, amid flurries of skepticism on both sides of the aisle.

Much of that skepticism comes from fears that the dispersal of thousands of agricultural officials around the country could lead to widespread resignations and........

© The Hill