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Here is an interesting proposal. Why not move federal departments out of Washington, D.C., to locations in the U.S. that are proximate to the people, businesses and institutions they most directly impact?

The idea has merit on several levels.

First it would allow these agencies to learn more about the impact on their decisions and their constituents and others. Secondly, it would save money. Finally, it would help diversify the thinking of agencies which tend to become inbred with the ideas of those who live inside the beltway. Further moving agencies away from Washington would help stimulate economic growth in regions other than those proximate to the Potomac.

It is the latter outcome that U.S. Sens. Marsha Blackburn, of Tennessee, and Josh Hawley, of Missouri, have seized upon in introducing their Helping Infrastructure Restore the Economy Act. The bill they introduced would relocate 10 of the 15 federal executive departments from Washington, D.C., “into the heart of economically distressed regions” of the country. They recommend for instance that the Department of Commerce could be relocated to Philadelphia, the site of the first U.S. Mint.

The idea makes good sense. Why should departments whose responsibilities mostly include supporting, overseeing and advocating for constituents who live thousands of miles from Washington have a vast majority of their employees based there?

Besides, Washington, D.C., is the fifth most expensive city in the U.S. in which to live. Agency personnel receive inflated wages in order to offset the price of housing, food and transportation in Washington. The cost of office space in Washington ranks third in the country. While many agencies are housed in buildings that are federally owned, “overflow” personnel are often placed in buildings that are rented by the government.

The practical savings from location decentralization of agencies is nowhere better illustrated than in the plan proposed by Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Purdue. His plan is to relocate the Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture and its Economics Research Services to Kansas City in the heart of America’s agricultural belt. The accounting firm of Ernst & Young calculated that it would save taxpayers $300 million over a 15-year period if the USDA was relocated.

As might be expected, the American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3403, opposes the move because it “makes it harder for the agencies to coordinate with other science and research agencies.”

The union maintains this even though secure internet data sharing services and electronic conferencing systems, are used daily to effectively communicate and coordinate information among diverse locations in the private sector. Also, much of the research in which these departments are involved is already conducted through a network of universities and research centers spread throughout the country.

Ironically, the Department of Agriculture has a mandate to help improve the economic conditions of the rural areas which they serve. The movement of all or portions of this large department to the heartland of America would certainly help achieve that goal. Much the same could be said about other departments such as Education, Health and Human Services, Interior, Labor, Transportation and others.

Once in Washington employees of these agencies often shun innovative ideas and a reliance on local American’s initiatives to address issues themselves. They instead adopt policies that favor emphasis on more regulations and central control.

Of course, the Blackburn and Hawley Bill has its enemies in Congress. Washington, D.C., Rep. Eleanor Norton is vehemently opposed to the Bill saying “Congress cannot do its job without the unvarnished facts and briefings that nonpartisan agencies give the House and Senate almost daily. I will continue to fight these relocations with every tool at my disposal.”

The Department of Agriculture is but one of dozens of Federal agencies whose prime responsibilities include supporting, regulating and advocating for their constituents most of whom live far from Washington, D.C. Moving those offices closer to those they serve would not only save billions of dollars, but it would indeed help clean up the Washington swamp.

It took Hercules only one day to clean the Augean Stables. Apparently, it will take much longer to do so in Washington.

Misericordia
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Michael A. MacDowell

Guest Columnist

Michael A. MacDowell is President Emeritus of Misericordia University and a Director of the Calvin K. Kazanjian Economics Foundation.