Agri-Pulse’s Steve Davies reported that “Vaden said the department would be saving about $4 billion from the deferred resignation program and building closures, including the Ag South Building in Washington – $1.9 billion from the DRPs and $2.2 billion in deferred maintenance on the buildings, which also include Braddock Place in suburban Alexandria, Virginia, and the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center in suburban Maryland.”
“The $4 billion is the ‘baseline’ of savings before considering the lower cost of living for employees and lower lease rates, he said,” according to Davies’ reporting.
Why Regional Hub Locations Were Chosen
Katz reported that “USDA’s new hubs will be located in Raleigh, North Carolina; Kansas City, Missouri; Indianapolis; Fort Collins, Colorado; and Salt Lake City, Utah. The locations generated some pushback from senators in both parties, who noted none of the top five agricultural states were chosen.”
Progressive Farmer’s Jerry Hagstrom reported that “the No. 1 reason that the Trump administration has chosen the five hub locations is the cost of living, Vaden said. He explained that decision through the ‘story’ of Ralph Linden, currently the USDA acting general counsel. He said Linden had moved to the Washington area in 1982 and bought a house in suburban Virginia. At that time, the other residents were government employees, but today, the houses cost ‘seven figures,’ and Linden’s neighbors are two-income households composed of doctors, lawyers and lobbyists.”
“In the hub communities, government employees will be able to afford homes and ‘grow and expand their families,’ Vaden said,” according to Hagstrom’s reporting.
Source : illinois.edu