That FSIS is the food safety and Inspection System at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

And if the saying is true that it is lonely at the top, then lonely does not even begin to describe what is happening at FSIS.

The undersecretary for food safety’s chair at the USDA has been empty since Dr. Elisabeth Hagen left for the private world of consulting in December, 2013. That is three and one-half years that the top food safety position in the United States has gone unfilled.

Brian Ronholm, the former deputy undersecretary for food safety, a position that is a presidential appointment but does not require Senate confirmation, left not unexpectedly in January 2017.

Brian had served elected democratic officials the last ten years of his life. Not much job security for him after the presidential election.

Then Al Almanza, the acting deputy undersecretary for food safety and a ten-year veteran as the administrator of FSIS, announce he was hanging it up on July 31, 2017.

There has recently been an announcement of two appointments as “acting” deputy undersecretary and administrator, but those two persons know they are not there to make earth-shaking decisions or changes, they are there just to keep the ship afloat.

There are no political appointees currently sitting in any chair at FSIS.

The long-time employees at FSIS are either jumping for joy or lamenting the fact that there will be no political cover if something goes wrong.

No political appointee to suggest they need to change their long-ingrained ways of doing business, but also no political appointee to testify in front of an outraged congressional committee if something big goes wrong.

Just themselves.

The position of undersecretary for food safety was created by a congressional reorganization of USDA way back in 1993. Since then there have only been four undersecretaries of food safety, each serving roughly 1,200 days, or a total of 13 years.

Thirteen years of the chair being occupied, but eleven years with no political head of the FSIS.

And from personal experience, I am guessing no administrator for FSIS will be named until there is an undersecretary sitting in that chair on the second floor of the Jamie Whitten building located on the nation’s mall.

And that might be a very long time from now, as vetting of possible nominees must be done by the FBI and others, and then a Senate Hearing date set.

Al got to pick the date he left, the next undersecretary won’t be so lucky as to pick the date he or she begins.

Ditto on the deputy undersecretary position. I mean seriously, who would want to make a career move without knowing who you would be reporting to every day?

I know of at least two people who are seriously interested in the position of the undersecretary for food safety. Both are ready to make the move, but the next move is the President’s.

The FSIS has a whole lotta empty chairs

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