BLM Will Relocate Headquarters Back To D.C.
BLM Moving Back 092121
The Bureau of Land Management is relocating – again. On Friday Interior secretary Deb Haaland announced the BLM will move back to Washington, DC, after having relocated to Grand Junction, Colo., during the Trump administration.
The BLM oversees nearly one-fifth of public lands in the U.S. and has more than 7,000 employees. The agency said it lost nearly 300 employees to retirement or resignation after relocating its headquarters to Colorado in 2019.
Haaland, a former New Mexico congresswoman and the first Native American Cabinet secretary, said that the Colorado office would be overhauled to become the agency's Western headquarters.
"The Bureau of Land Management is critical to the nation's efforts to address the climate crisis, expand public access to our public lands, and preserve our nation's shared outdoor heritage. It is imperative that the bureau have the appropriate structure and resources to serve the American public," she said. "There's no doubt that the BLM should have a leadership presence in Washington, DC – like all the other land management agencies – to ensure that it has access to the policy-, budget-, and decision-making levers to best carry out its mission."
The Colorado office will expand and strengthen Western perspectives in its overall mission, especially as it relates to clean energy, conservation, and scientific missions.
Critics of the previous administration's decision allege that the relocation was intended to push out longtime employees and stifle the agency.
"While I am disappointed that the national headquarters will be in Washington, I believe establishing and growing a permanent BLM Western Headquarters in Grand Junction should be a very positive development," Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado said.
However, GOP Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming criticized the decision.
"The Biden administration's answer for everything is to double the size of government," he said. "The Bureau of Land Management doesn't need two headquarters. The single headquarters of the Bureau of Land Management belongs in the West, closer to the resources it manages and the people it serves."
The National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA) and Public Lands Council (PLC) also condemned the decision to relocate the BLM amid what the groups called “multiple, historic environmental crises” in the western United States.
"More than 5.5 million acres of land have burned in catastrophic wildfires so far this year,” said NCBA Executive Director of Natural Resources and PLC Executive Director Kaitlynn Glover. “From Arizona to Minnesota, 14 states are experiencing extreme drought that has thrown thousands of rural communities into crisis. In a normal season, we would find this relocation decision disappointing — in the middle of immense and immediate threats to public lands ecosystems, wildlife, businesses and residents, it is dangerously irresponsible.
"Unfortunately, the BLM’s operations suffered as a result of their move to Grand Junction, Colo., and the subsequent uncertainty due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Implementing another move now, when the time and attention of the BLM staff is more needed than ever, is a step western communities cannot afford. The BLM should be prioritizing time-sensitive land management improvements, not playing political football with their mailing address."
