After much controversy stemmed from the Trump administration’s decision to relocate the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) headquarters to Grand Junction, CO, the bureau is officially moving back to Washington, D.C.
Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland told employees in a virtual meeting Sept. 17 about the move, saying, “My primary concern has always been for your well-being and to restore the effectiveness of the BLM’s operations.”
While the BLM director and other leadership positions will move back to D.C., additional senior leaders will continue to work from Grand Junction at the “Western headquarters,” which will be grown and expanded.
“This office will reinforce Western perspectives in decision-making and have an important role to play in the bureau’s clean energy, outdoor recreation, conservation, and scientific missions, among other important work as a leadership center in the West,” a Department of the Interior (DOI) statement said.
Haaland said “there is no doubt” BLM should have a leadership presence in Washington, D.C. “The past several years have been incredibly disruptive to the organization, to our public servants and to their families,” she said. “As we move forward, my priority is to revitalize and rebuild the BLM so that it can meet the pressing challenges of our time and to look out for our employees’ well-being.”
DOI said the move to Grand Junction “failed to deliver promised jobs across the West” and “drove hundreds of people out of the agency.” Out of the 328 positions that relocated out of D.C., only 41 of the affected people relocated, with three moving to Grand Junction, the department said.
DOI added the goal is to minimize further disruption to employees and their families, and DOI does not plan to require employees not in senior leadership positions to relocate.
The Trump administration announced its intent to move the national headquarters back in 2019 and signed an order just over a year later to formalize the move.
Relocation reactions
In response to the news, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) and Public Lands Council (PLC) expressed their disappointment.
“In a normal time, this decision would be tagged as potentially disruptive. During historic drought and the peak of wildfire season? This decision is dangerously irresponsible,” PLC said in a statement.
NCBA Executive Director of Natural Resources and PLC Executive Director Kaitlynn Glover added, “Unfortunately, the BLM’s operations suffered as a result of their move to Grand Junction, CO, 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.”
Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO) said while he was disappointed in the relocation, he believes establishing a permanent BLM Western headquarters in Grand Junction would be a very positive development.
“In the coming months, I will hold the administration accountable to ensure that the BLM Western headquarters is permanent, fully staffed and informed by the voices of the Rocky Mountain West—after the last administration failed to deliver on that promise,” he said. — Anna Miller,WLJ managing editor
