Alva Review-Courier -

WASHINGTON (AP) — The USDA's internal watchdog will examine the agency's plan to restructure its top independent research office and move it out of the District of Columbia, actions some lawmakers and staff fear could leave research on contentious issues like climate change and the social safety net vulnerable to political pressures.

The agency's inspector general will review the proposed changes to the roughly 300-person Economic Research Service, said two Democratic House members, D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, and Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer, whose Maryland district is right outside the c...