10.15.18

Hoeven: Greater Fargo-Moorhead EDC, Local Consortium Submit Bid to Host New NIFA & ERS Locations

Senator Formed Working Group Following USDA Reorganization Announcement

FARGO, N.D. – Senator John Hoeven, chairman of the Senate Agriculture Appropriations Committee and a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, today announced that the Greater Fargo-Moorhead Economic Development Corporation (GFMEDC) has submitted its proposal to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for North Dakota to host the new locations for the Economic Research Service (ERS) and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA). The proposal comes as the result of a working group Hoeven organized, which consists of the GFMEDC, North Dakota Department of Commerce, Bank of North Dakota, North Dakota State University (NDSU), the City of Fargo, the Fargo Moorhead West Fargo Chamber of Commerce and the congressional delegation.

“Following our first meeting in August, the consortium has been hard at work to pull this bid together,” said Hoeven. “We appreciate all of our local partners, including the Greater Fargo-Moorhead EDC who led this effort, for their contributions to building this strong proposal. Fargo is a vibrant community with a world-class agriculture research and land-grant institution, thriving tech industry and a low cost of living. We will continue to move this effort forward with USDA’s officials and look forward to their review of the proposal.” 

Hoeven began forming the working group immediately following the USDA’s announced reorganzation. The goal is to enhance the USDA’s efficiency, effectiveness and customer service, ensuring the department works well for farmers and ranchers. Accordingly, proposals will be evaluated based on four criteria: logistics, workforce, community/quality of life and capital costs.

Fargo-Moorhead is well-positioned to help accomplish these goals. The proposal makes this case by highlighting the region’s high graduation rate and large student population, NDSU’s status as a globally-recognized land-grant institution, low business and living costs and access to robust transportation and telecommunications infrastructure, including high-speed fiber internet services, among other things.

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