DENVER (AP) — The Trump administration has confirmed that the headquarters of the government's largest land management agency is moving from the nation's capital to western Colorado.
In a letter dated Tuesday, the Interior Department told Congress it plans to move the Bureau of Land Management headquarters to Grand Junction, Colorado.
The bureau is part of the Interior Department. The department scheduled a formal announcement for later Tuesday.
The letter was released by Colorado Republican Sen. Cory Gardner. Gardner praised the move, saying it would bring decision-makers closer to the land they manage.
The bureau oversees nearly 388,000 square miles of public land, and 99% is in 12 Western states. Only about 400 of the bureau's 9,000 employees are in Washington. The rest are in field offices nationwide.
Republican lawmakers announced the move Monday, but administration officials didn't confirm it until Tuesday.