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Ag Secretary says Iowa may be in next round of USDA job moves
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins says Iowa may be a destination for USDA jobs being moved out of Washington D.C.
“We are working to save billions of dollars to most of the headquarters of USDA out of Washington and closer to the people. The first round of announcements included North Carolina, Colorado, Utah, Missouri, and Indianapolis,” Rollins said during a news conference at the Iowa State Fair. “No Iowa, but there are more announcements coming.”
Rollins told reporters there are “a lot” of USDA employees in Iowa already. The USDA has “Service Centers” in Iowa’s 99 counties for the operations of the Farm Service Agency, Natural Resource Conservation Service and USDA Rural Development. Ames is home to the National Centers for Animal Health, a 523-acre campus with 93 buildings.
About 90% of USDA employees work in offices around the country. About 4600 are currently based in Washington. “Listen, I love the USDA buildings in Washington. They are beautiful. They are right on the National Mall. It’s inspiring to walk up every day, but do we really need three massive buildings for USDA on the National Mall?” Rollins asked. “One of the buildings has 6000 offices and only about 800 to 900 people actually come to work there on a good day.”
President Trump is nominating Glen Smith of Atlantic to serve as USDA Undersecretary of Rural Development and he attended the news conference, but did not speak. “Glen served as chairman of the Farm Credit Administration during President Trump’s first term,” Rollins said, “and will continue to be an incredible leader and a resolute voice for farmers here in Iowa and across the country in this new role.”
Rollins also announced the USDA is providing $152 million dollars worth of grants and loans for 19 rural development projects in Iowa. “This unprecedented, coordinated rural development project will help boost the rural economies, develop rural infrastructure and encourage private investments,” Rollins said.
The Guthrie County Hospital is getting a $37 million USDA loan to expand and renovate the facility. Four Rural Electric Coops are getting USDA loans for projects. USDA grants are going to 11 Iowa cities and two rural water systems to improve wastewater and drinking water utilities. And Halbur, a Carroll County town with about 230 residents, is getting half a million dollar loan from the USDA for street improvements.
Here’s the full list from the USDA news release:
- Guthrie County Hospital – Receiving a $37 million loan to expand and renovate its facility. Funding will support:
- A 16,000 square foot addition to include a behavioral health room in the ER, an MRI room, exam rooms, and lab space
- Updates to the nurse call technology, new digital master and area alarm panels, and new sleep ventilators
- A fire suppression system for the ambulance garage
- Renovations to the dining hall and kitchen
- City of Bondurant (Polk County) – Receiving $2.5 million grant to build a 1 million-gallon elevated water tower and main to prevent water pressure loss for 7,365 residents.
- City of Churdan (Greene County) – Receiving a $500,000 grant and a $2.5 million loan to upgrade its wastewater lagoon system, seal manholes, and bring the city into compliance with Greene County standards.
- City of Eldora (Hardin County) – Receiving a $1 million grant for improved wastewater system and data acquisition.
- City of Emmetsburg (Palo Alto County) – Receiving a $5 million grant and a $39 million loan to replace its outdated 1970s wastewater treatment facility.
- City of Ida Grove (Ida County) – Receiving a $1 million grant and a $9.5 million loan for wastewater system improvements and dry sludge store upgrades.
- City of Linn Grove (Buena Vista County) – Receiving a $319,000 grant and a $282,000 loan to connect the Iowa Lakes Regional Water supply and replace aged infrastructure.
- City of Mediapolis (Des Moines County) – Receiving a $2 million grant to install a new aeration system, biological reactor, and backup generator for wastewater treatment.
- City of Moulton (Appanoose County) – Receiving a $1.4 million loan to replace 35 lead service lines and upgrade aging water mains.
- Southern Sioux County Rural Water System (Plymouth and Sioux County) – Receiving a $27.7 million loan to build two wells, a treatment plant, and three miles of transmission lines.
- Southwest Regional Water District (Page County) – Receiving a $2 million loan to replace 6-inch pipes with 10-inch pipes, reducing water loss and increasing supply capacity.
- City of Sioux Rapids (Buena Vista County) – Receiving a $477,000 Emergency Community Water Assistance Grant to replace a well damaged by a flood.
- City of Shenandoah – Receiving a $1 million grant and $8.8 million loan to improve water supply and distribution, including two wells and a new transmission main.
- City of Ute (Monona County) – Receiving a $30,000 Special Evaluation Assistance for Rural Communities and Households Grant (SEARCH) to evaluate the city’s water system and complete a preliminary engineering report.
- City of Halbur (Carroll County) – Receiving a $500,000 loan to repave city streets, and ADA-compliant curb ramps and street crossings, and improve safety for motorists and pedestrians.
- Butler County Rural Electric Cooperative – Receiving a $1 million load to fund a pass-through loan to Shell Rock Soy Processing LLC for equipment to increase processing capacity and add two new jobs to promote economic development in rural Butler County community.
- Northwest Iowa Power Cooperative – Receiving a $350,000 loan to fund a pass-through loan to Trackside Storage LLC to renovate a vacant building for a veterinary clinic and create 10 new jobs in Harrison County.
- North West Rural Electric Cooperative – Receiving a $300,000 grant to replenish a revolving loan fund to finance renovations and equipment at Life Skills Training Center Inc., creating six jobs and promoting economic development in rural Plymouth County.
- Southern Iowa Electric Co-op – Receiving $8.5 million through the Electric Infrastructure Loan and Loan Guarantee Program to improve electric distribution systems, connect 180 new consumers, build 15 miles of new lines, and upgrade 84 miles of existing lines, serving 4,807 residential and commercial consumers on 1,676 miles of energized line in Appanoose, Davis, Van Buren, and Wapello Counties in southeast Iowa.
