Moran Urges Permanent USCIS Office in Southwest Kansas

Senator Jerry Moran asks DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin to restore mobile immigration services and establish a permanent field office in the region.

Updated on Nov. 5, 2026 in Immigration

Moran Urges Permanent USCIS Office in Southwest Kansas

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Sen. Jerry Moran has called on DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin to establish a permanent USCIS field office in southwest Kansas. He also urged the agency to restore consistent mobile services in Garden City, Dodge City and Liberal.

Why it matters

Southwest Kansas accounts for over a fifth of the nation's beef processing capacity, and agriculture depends on a reliable workforce there. Residents currently face two to three hours of travel to the nearest USCIS office in Wichita, and agricultural workers lose one or two days of work for each appointment.

The closest USCIS office is in Wichita, a two-to-three-hour drive away, and USCIS has provided no mobile services in Dodge City for about nine months. Whether DHS will restore service or open a permanent office has not been announced.

The players

Jerry Moran

Jerry Moran is a Republican United States senator from Kansas who has long advocated for federal services in rural parts of the state.

Markwayne Mullin

Markwayne Mullin is the Secretary of Homeland Security, overseeing agencies including USCIS, and is a former U.S. senator from Oklahoma.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is the federal agency within the Department of Homeland Security that processes immigration benefits and applications.

The details

Moran wrote to DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin asking for a consistent schedule of mobile USCIS services while the agency works toward a permanent office. The request follows a May 2025 USCIS plan that discontinued quarterly trips to Liberal, Dodge City and Garden City and designated Dodge City for monthly services; Moran last made this request to USCIS in 2021.

2014: USCIS first began providing mobile services in southwest Kansas.
2021: Moran last wrote to USCIS renewing the request for an office.
May 2025: USCIS modified its mobile services plan, discontinuing quarterly trips to Liberal, Dodge City and Garden City.
About nine months before the letter: USCIS stopped providing mobile services in Dodge City.

Political Context

The request reverses the May 2025 USCIS decision that ended quarterly mobile trips to Liberal, Dodge City and Garden City. It renews a demand Moran first made to USCIS in 2021 and continues service history dating back to 2014.

Farmworkers, meatpacking employees and employers in southwest Kansas could face fewer lost workdays if mobile services resume or a permanent office opens. Until then, applicants must still travel to Wichita for in-person USCIS appointments.

The takeaway

Residents who need USCIS in-person services should plan for long trips to Wichita until official mobile or permanent options are announced. Tracking announcements from USCIS directly is the most reliable way to learn of schedule changes.