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Committee questions Corps and Reclamation on staffing shortfalls, seasonal recreation closures and regional office leases
Summary
Members pressed agency leaders about workforce shortages, temporary recreation site closures and planned lease reductions; witnesses said hiring and coordination with GSA were underway and that recreation mission impacts were largely driven by voluntary departures and seasonal hiring challenges.
Lawmakers probed the Army Corps and Bureau of Reclamation about workforce shortfalls, temporary closures of recreation sites, and possible office lease terminations that could affect field operations and local services.
Representative Michael Guest and others raised closures of recreation sites in the Corps Mobile District, including one 3,800-acre lake facility in Mississippi, and asked whether the closures would last through peak summer months. The Corps told the committee seasonal recreation staffing has been hit hard by voluntary departures and a hiring freeze complicates seasonal workforce acquisition. The Corps said it was "working through a process to figure out how we can start to bring folks on during a hiring freeze" and aiming for at least partial openings.
Representative Mike Levin and others asked about Office of General Services Administration (GSA) lease terminations. Scott Cameron said Reclamation had engaged GSA where closing leases would be problematic and that some reclamation leases were under active review; he said he would look into specific Southern California area office lease questions and follow up with the committee.
Members also asked whether the Corps and other agencies had identified critical skill shortages. Lt. Gen. Butch Graham described priorities to protect essential skills: power plant operators, maintenance divers and crane operators were being treated as high priority for continued staffing to ensure reliable operation of hydropower and other federal facilities.
Committee members asked both agencies to follow up with the committee and local offices and to provide more detailed staffing and real estate plans. Witnesses agreed to further engagement and to provide requested materials for the record.
