GAO study questions relocation of USDA research agencies to KC

A recent analysis suggests the USDA’s selection process was flawed when it relocated two of its research agencies to Kansas City in 2019.

The Government Accountability Office says the USDA’s decision to move the Economic Research Service and National Institute of Food and Agriculture wasn’t consistent with an evidence-based approach.

Courtney LaFountain, Assistant Director for GAO’s Center for Economics, tells Brownfield USDA didn’t factor in potential costs related to the attrition of staff or the disruption of the agencies’ activities.

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