Dismantling D.C.

Relocating federal agencies would spread jobs, increase security

Americans appear eager for real change in Washington and for their politicians to work across party lines. Here's a proposal that could accomplish both: Decentralize the executive branch of government.

No other element of our society is as concentrated as the leadership of our federal bureaucracy. Our agricultural, energy and industrial bases are widespread, as are our educational, religious and cultural institutions. Even the financial system, while centered in New York, has significant components in other cities.

The concentration of top-level civil servants in Washington poses an undue risk in this age of terrorism, of which we are acutely reminded this week.

In addition, the high cost of living in and near the District of Columbia chases away talent. And this problem will only get worse with the retirement of senior managers, most of whom started their careers under a generous retirement plan that made it worthwhile to stay on the job until at least their mid-50s. Younger managers, lacking such incentive, are more likely to be lured away by lucrative opportunities in the private sector.

The median salary for a federal employee in the Washington area is more than $90,000. Contractors, consulting firms and other organizations in the area that work for the government pay considerably more, and the huge increase in government spending since 2001 has produced remarkable wealth. Several Washington-area counties are now among the richest in the nation. It makes no sense to continue spending taxpayers' money in an already wealthy region while other areas struggle economically.

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THREE YEARS AGO, I SUGGESTED THE IDEA OF MOVING THE HEADQUARTERS OF THE INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE TO NEW ORLEANS, thinking that a federal campus there, providing some 7,000 stable, well-paying jobs, could anchor redevelopment after Hurricane Katrina. Such a move could still be a boon to recovery in New Orleans. And the same could be done for regions like the Midwest, where car makers and other industrial employers are contracting.

The best candidates for relocation would be departments like Homeland Security and Veterans Affairs, which are more involved in operating government than in making policy.

The least likely to leave Washington would be the four cabinet departments that constitute the core of government: State, Treasury, Justice and Defense. But headquarters for pieces of these departments -- the IRS within Treasury, for example, and the Drug Enforcement Administration within Justice -- could be moved to places like Michigan, Ohio and Missouri, states that already have a large educated work force.

Protectors of the status quo might argue that such decentralization would not allow proper congressional oversight. But consider the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It works just fine in Atlanta.

Running government operations outside the Beltway would more equitably distribute government jobs and at the same time help limit the undue influence of Washington. John McCain and Barack Obama both say they want to change Washington and partisan politics. If they mean it, they should give this proposal serious attention.