Census Bureau to close Kansas City office

The U.S. Census Bureau announced yesterday it would be closing its Kanas City regional office along with five others nationwide as part of a transition to a new supervisory structure to be implemented during the next 18 months.

There are 12 regional offices in the country.

Other regional offices to close are in Boston, Charlotte, N.C., Dallas, Detroit and Seattle. The six offices that will remain open are in Atlanta, Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles, New York and Philadelphia, according to a news release from the bureau.

According to the Census Bureau, the office closings would reduce annual costs by an estimated $15-$18 million beginning in 2014.

The closings would result in a work force reduction of up to 130 positions, but many of those losses would occur through attrition, early retirements or transfers to vacant jobs at other offices.

The release noted the office closings are the first field office structure change since 1961. The changes are an effort to keep pace with modern survey collection methods worldwide.

"Director (Robert) Groves and his staff at the Census are making good on the president's charge to cut costs and change the way the government does business," U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke said in the release. "This reorganization supports the administration's ongoing effort to make government more efficient, effective and accountable to the American people."