Recently, the U.S.Department of Agriculture (USDA) proposed to move the Economic Research Service (ERS) out of the DC geographic area and place it organizationally under the Office of the Chief Economist. As one of the principal federal statistical agencies, ERS provides Congress, state and local governments,and the commodity community with critical research and data on agricultural and rural communities.Removing the agency from the Washington, DC, area poses risks to the quality and relevance of the information ERS produces.
October 9, 2018
The Honorable Robert AderholtChair, Appropriations Subcommittee on
Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies
United States House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515 The Honorable Sanford Bishop
Ranking Member, Appropriations
Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food
and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies
United States House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515 The Honorable John Hoeven
Chair, Appropriations Subcommittee on
Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510 The Honorable Jeff Merkley
Ranking Member, Appropriations
Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food
and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Chairs Hoeven and Aderholt and Ranking Members Bishop and Merkley,
Recently, the U.S.Department of Agriculture (USDA) proposed to move the Economic Research Service (ERS) out of the DC geographic area and place it organizationally under the Office of the Chief Economist.As one of the principal federal statistical agencies, ERS provides Congress, state and local governments,and the commodity community with critical research and data on agricultural and rural communities. Removing the agency from the Washington, DC, area poses risks to the quality and relevance of the information ERS produces.
As former senior administration officials and heads of statistical agencies invested in informing evidence-based policy decisions,our primary concerns are the following:
- Retaining staff expertise
While current professional staff members will be offered the opportunity to retain their positions, it is anticipated that many will not move. ERS has already lost a respected and effective administrator. Staff attrition will dilute valuable organizational knowledge and expertise and damage established networks,even if newly vacated positions are filled. - Continuing valuable collaborations
ERS is one of the principal federal statistical agencies,all of which are in the DC area. ERS has an integrated approach to its broad research portfolio, in part due to its ability to collaborate. Locating it far from its collaborators, both within and outside the USDA, will severely limit its contributions to important activities such as the Agricultural Resource Management Survey, which is carried out in cooperation with the National Agricultural Statistics Service. - Maintaining visibility with policymakers
ERS currently responds efficiently and effectively to requests from Congress and other agencies. ERS provides timely and relevant economic research and analysis to inform important policy decisions. Removing ERS from its proximity to key consumers means policy decisions may be made without the best analysis available, to the detriment of some of our nation’s most vulnerable communities. - Risks to independence and credibility
The federal statistical agencies provide relevant,accurate,and timely information. Removing ERS from its position in the Research Education and Economics Mission Area to place it under the USDA chief economist jeopardizes its independence as a research agency and increases the potential for interference in the direction, design, analysis, and release of studies and reports. It threatens the independence and credibility necessary for a federal statistical agency to function objectively
ERS is ranked as number three in the world of institutions in the field of agricultural economics, a reflection of our leadership in economic research. This proposal puts a world-renowned research agency at risk and could set back the federal statistical system at a time when the United States should be leading the world in innovation. In closing,we urge you to keep ERS in the Research Education and Economics Mission Area within the USDA and to keep the agency in the Capital region.
Sincerely,
Katharine G.Abraham, Commissioner,Bureau of Labor Statistics, Oct.1993-Oct. 2001
Vincent Barabba, Director,U.S.Census Bureau,July 1973-Nov.1976, July 1979-Jan.1980
William Barron, Deputy Commissioner,Bureau of Labor Statistics,1983 -1998; Deputy Director, U.S.Census Bureau, 1999- 2002
Donald Bay, Administrator,National Agriculture Statistics Service,USDA,1992-1999
William T.Boehm, Branch Chief,Food Economics, ERS, USDA;Senior Economist, Council of Economic Advisors, 1976-1981
Raymond R. Besecker, Administrator,National Agricultural Statistics Service, USDA,1999-2008
Gale Buchanan, Chief Scientist and Undersecretary for Research, Education, and Economics, USDA, 2006-2009
Jack Buckley, Commissioner, National Center for Education Statistics, 2011-2013
Carol S.Carson, Director, Bureau of Economic Analysis, Commerce Department, 1992-1995
Kevin W. Concannon, Undersecretary for Food, Nutrition,and Consumer Services, USDA, 2009-2017
Lynda T.Carlson, Director, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, 2000- 2012
Guy Caruso, Administrator,Energy Information Administration, 2002- 2008
Cynthia Z.F.Clark, Administrator, National Agricultural Statistics Service, USDA, 2008-2014
Neilson Conklin, Director, Market and Trade Economics Division, Economic Research Service, USDA, 1999- 2008
Stephen R. Crutchfield, Assistant Administrator and Staff Analysis Coordinator,Economic Research Service, USDA, 2007- 2016
Emerson J.Elliott, Commissioner, National Center for Education Statistics, 1984 -1995
Martha Farnsworth Riche, Director, .S.Census Bureau, 1996-1999
Philip N.Fulton, Associate Administrator, Economic Research Service, USDA, 2000- 2005
John R. Gawalt, Director, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, 2012- 2018
Erica Groshen, Commissioner, Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2011- 2013
Hermann Habermann, Chief Statistician of the United States, U.S. Office of Management and Budget, 1988-1992
Jay Hakes, Administrator, U.S.Energy Information Administration, 1993- 2000
George Hoffman, Associate Administrator, Economic Research Service, USDA, 1980-1984
Carol C. House, Deputy Administrator, National Agricultural Statistics Service, USDA, 2006-2010
John R. Kart, Associate Administrator and Acting Administrator, Economic Research Service, USDA, 2008 – 2011
John Lee, Administrator, Economic Research Service, USDA, 1982 -1993
James Lynch, Director, Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2010-2013
Tom Mesenbourg, Deputy Director, U.S. Census Bureau, 2012- 2013
Elsa Murano, Undersecretary for Food Safety, Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA, 2001-2004
Steve Murdock, Director, U.S.Census Bureau, 2008- 2009
Richard Newell, Administrator, Energy Information Administration, 2009- 2011
Susan Offutt, Administrator, Economic Research Service, USDA, 1996- 2006
Gregory L. Parham, Assistant Secretary,Departmental Administration and Administrator, USDA, 2013-2017
Thomas Petska, Director, Statistics of Income Division, Internal Revenue Service, 2001- 2009
Robin Picanso, Associate Administrator, National Agricultural Statistics Service, USDA, 2014-2017
Susan Powers, Director,Statistics of Income, Internal Revenue Service, 2010-2014
Kenneth Prewitt, Director, U.S. Census Bureau, 1998- 2001
Joe Reilly, Administrator, National Agricultural Statistics Service, USDA, 2014-2016
Richard E.Rominger, Deputy Secretary, USDA, 1993-2001
Philip L. Ranes, Deputy Commissioner, Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2003-2011
William J.Sabol, Director, Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2014-2016
Fritz Scheuren, Director,Statistics of Income, Internal Revenue Service, 1980-1994
John A.Schnittker, Undersecretary and Deputy Secretary, USDA, 1965-1969
Jeffrey L. Sedgwick, Director, Bureau of Justice Statistics, United States Department of Justice, 2006-2008
Katherine Smith Evans, Administrator, Economic Research Service, 2007- 2011
Edward J.Sondik, Director, National Center for Health Statistics, CDC/DHHS, 1996- 2013
Angie Tagtow, Executive Director, Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion, USDA, 2014-2017
Michael R.Taylor, Administrator, Food Safety and Inspection Service and Acting Undersecretary for Food Safety, USDA, 1994-1996
John Thompson, Director, U.S.Census Bureau, 2013-2017
Robert L. Thompson, Assistant Secretary for Economics, USDA, 1985-1987
Laurian Unnevehr, Director,Food Economics, Economic Research Service, USDA, 2008-2012
Katherine K. Wallman, Chief Statistician of the United States, U.S. Office of Management and Budget, 1992-2017
Shirley Robinson Watkins, Secretary of Agriculture for Food,Nutrition, and Consumer Services, USDA, 1997-2001
James C. Webster, Assistant Secretary for Governmental and Public Affairs, USDA, 1977-1981
Kathryn Wilson, Deputy Undersecretary, Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services, USDA, 2015-2017
Catherine E. Woteki, Chief Scientist and Undersecretary for Research,Education, and Economics, USDA, 2010- 2016
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