On November 12, 2003, Secretary of the Interior, Gale A. Norton, announced that real estate appraisal functions previously performed by various agencies within the Department of the Interior have been consolidated in the National Business Center (NBC).

The new Office of Appraisal Services was created through the consolidation of appraisers from the Bureau of Land Management, the Bureau of Reclamation, the National Park Service, and the Fish and Wildlife Service.

The goal of the Office of Appraisal Services is to meet the highest standards of professional appraisal practice while providing services to our client agencies in a cost effective, timely manner. The Office will coordinate appraisal services and functions and provide consistent appraisal guidance throughout the Department, as well as improved efficiency in contract management.

The most visible change to the appraisal function is that appraisers will now only report to other appraisers, thus ensuring they have the independence to produce unbiased valuations. While headquarters for the Office of Appraisal Services will be located in Washington, D.C., appraisers will remain in regional and field offices. The Office of Appraisal Services will have regional centers in Denver, Portland, Sacramento, Phoenix, Minneapolis, the DC Metro Area and Atlanta. Appraisers in field offices will report to supervisors in these regional offices.

The department's plan minimizes disruption to employees, and no job losses are anticipated. Appraisers will have opportunities for enhanced training and professional development under the new office, which will also have the capacity to improve contract management and monitoring. Additionally, the new office will work with agency managers to assure it meets the needs and priorities of land transaction programs.