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Judge Blocks USDA Forest Service Relocation to Utah
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Court Blocks USDA Forest Service Relocation
A U.S. District Judge in California issued a temporary stay that bars the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) from moving the U.S. Forest Service headquarters from Washington, D.C. to Salt Lake City, from closing offices, or from reassigning employees. The order also prevents the USDA from shutting down any of its agencies while the stay remains in effect. The judge ruled that the agency’s use of appropriated funds to relocate staff and close offices was not authorized by Congress.
Plan and Rationale
In March, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced a “state-based organizational model” that would create 15 state directors, close nine regional offices, and shutter 23 research locations. The centerpiece of the proposal was moving the Forest Service headquarters to the Wallace F. Bennett Federal Building in downtown Salt Lake City, a move touted as a way to place agency leaders closer to the forests they manage and to cut costs. USDA officials later estimated that only about 2.1 % of the Forest Service workforce—roughly 250 of its 33,500 employees—would need to relocate, a figure the agency described as “probably less than 300 people.”
Legal Challenge and Opposition
A coalition of labor unions and nonprofit groups filed suit in the Northern District of California, arguing that the reorganization lacked congressional approval. The coalition includes the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the American Federation of Government Employees, the National Federation of Federal Employees, the National Treasury Employees Union, the American Geophysical Union, the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Western Watersheds Project, and several municipalities. Plaintiffs contend that the plan would also eliminate the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center in Maryland and affect benefits administered through SNAP and WIC.
Official Statements & Responses
Secretary Rollins and Utah Governor Spencer Cox praised the relocation as a “big win” for the West, emphasizing faster decision-making and closer proximity to public lands. Judge Vince Chhabria noted that the relevant appropriations statutes are set to expire in less than two months, leaving the agency with limited time to seek congressional changes if it wishes to proceed.
Verbatim Quotes
- “Congress told USDA in plain language that it could not close offices and uproot its workforce without permission. USDA did it anyway, so (American Federation of Government Employees) and our partners took them to court,” — Everett Kelley, president of the union
- “Congress did not contemplate USDA using its appropriated funds to shut down offices or relocate employees,” — Judge Vince Chhabria, district judge
- “The relevant appropriations statutes are set to expire in less than two months,” — Vince Chhabria, district judge