January 9, 2019
By: Dwayne Page
The DeKalb County U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency office in Smithville is closed due to the partial federal government shutdown.
The director and the two employees of the office have been on furlough since the close of business on Friday, December 28.
A sign on the office door states that “This U.S. Department of Agriculture office is currently closed, due to the lapse in federal government funding. The office will reopen once funding is restored.”
Meanwhile the Natural Resources Conservation Service and the DeKalb Soil and Water Conservation District which share office space within the USDA Service Center with the Farm Service Agency are continuing to work through the government shutdown. The SWCD is funded through state and local dollars, while the NRCS had carryover funds from 2018 that allows it to remain open.