Salt Lake City is set to be one of five new hubs for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, as the agency announced it will move “much of” its headquarters out of Washington, D.C.
The department said Thursday in their announcement of the move that the decision to leave Washington was an effort to cut costs and bring USDA employees closer to customers. In addition to Salt Lake City, the other hubs will include: Raleigh, North Carolina; Kansas City, Missouri; Indianapolis, Indiana; and Fort Collins, Colorado.
“USDA’s footprint in the National Capital Region (NCR) is underutilized and redundant, plagued by rampant overspending and decades of mismanagement and costly deferred maintenance,” the agency said in its announcement. “President Trump has made it clear government needs to be scrutinized, and after this thorough review of USDA, the results show a bloated, expensive, and unsustainable organization.”
The department said they currently have approximately 4,600 employees in the region, and noted that the Washington area has one of the highest costs of living in the country. Some 2,000 USDA employees are expected to remain in the region, though the agency said no current positions will be eliminated. Some, however, will be expected to relocate.
“In selecting its hub locations, USDA considered where existing concentrations of USDA employees are located and factored in the cost of living,” the release read.
In a statement to The Salt Lake Tribune Friday morning, a USDA spokesperson said the previous day’s announcement was “a first step.”
“Some aspects of the reorganization will be implemented over the coming months, while other aspects will take more time to implement,” the spokesperson said. “As the reorganization progresses, employees and other relevant parties will be updated accordingly.”
According to the agency, Washington D.C. has a federal locality pay rate of 33.94%, meaning that in order to adjust salaries for the high cost of living in the area, federal employees in the area receive a nearly 34% increase from federal baseline pay. Salt Lake City, meanwhile, has a 17.05% federal locality rate, the lowest among the five hubs chosen — as Raleigh has a 22.24% rate, Kansas City has an 18.97% rate, Indianapolis has an 18.15% rate and Fort Collins has a 30.52% rate — and about half the rate of the nation’s capital.
Despite the lower federal locality rate, home prices in Utah are higher than almost anywhere else in the country, but goods, utilities and other services in the state are notably lower.
State political leaders, including Gov. Spencer Cox and Utah House Speaker Mike Schultz, as well as members of the state’s congressional delegation, celebrated the USDA announcement.
“This move brings the Department closer to the people it serves and strengthens its core mission to support farmers, ranchers, and rural families,” Cox wrote in a post on X. “Utah is proud to partner in advancing American agriculture and rural prosperity.”
Schultz called the move “smart government” and a “better use of taxpayer dollars.”
“Utah is proud to be one of just five new locations selected nationwide,” the speaker wrote. “This move will strengthen our economy, support Utah families and ag producers, and ensure USDA resources are placed where they’re needed most — on the ground, serving our farmers and ranchers.”
Rep. Burgess Owens said in a post on X that the decision was a “BIG win,” while Sen. John Curtis wrote that the move was “long overdue” and added, “Utahns are the best at advocating for and advancing American agriculture.”
Sen. Mike Lee cheered the decision as well, writing on his official social media account, “The people making decisions about how our forests are managed and our food is grown shouldn’t be distant bureaucrats.”
The Utah Department of Agriculture and Food also celebrated the announcement. A spokesperson told The Tribune they were “hopeful this move will bring more accessible, on-the-ground support to Utah’s farmers, ranchers, food businesses, and land stewards.”
The spokesperson added, “It’s also an opportunity to ensure federal programs and policies are better aligned with the unique needs of producers in Utah and throughout the West. This decision also has the potential to strengthen Utah’s rural economy by bringing federal expertise, resources, and jobs closer to the communities they’re meant to serve.”