DOI launches major reorganization

WASHINGTON – U.S. Department of Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke launched a new effort Jan. 10 to undertake the largest reorganization in DOI’s 168-year history that purports to move and shift tens of thousands of workers to new locations, and change the way the U.S. government manages more than 500 million acres of land and water across the America. The plan would divide the U.S. into 13 regions and centralize authority for different parts of DOI within those boundaries. The regions would be defined by watersheds and geographic basins, rather than current boundaries that guide DOI's operations. The proposed plan would be accompanied by a dramatic shift in location of the HQs of major bureaus – like the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Bureau of Reclamation (USBR). Zinke brought 150 Senior Executive Service (SES) personnel to explain the proposal and seek input. He then split them into working groups to discuss ways to streamline BLM and USBR, Fish & Wildlife Service and other agencies. The SES groups identified alternative cities outside Washington, Denver and Albuquerque, N.M., where thousands of employees could live with suitable schools and homes they can afford. DOI has some 70,000 total employees. (Source: Washington Post 01/10/18)