After the federal government canceled a lease in Topeka, the owner of the empty office space says it was an example of the government waste that President Donald Trump's administration is trying to eliminate.

"It was just a tremendous government waste," said Jim Klausman, who owns the building that housed the Topeka regional office of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Risk Management Agency.

The Risk Management Agency manages the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation. None of its staff lost their jobs when the office closed, officials said.

"The Risk Management Agency's physical office space in Topeka, Kansas was closed on February 1, 2025," a USDA spokesperson said in a statement to The Capital-Journal. "The closing had been in process for several months. All staff are still employed with the agency and we expect no impact on Kansas agriculture. Crop insurance policies continue to be sold and serviced through Approved Insurance Providers."

News of the lease cancellation comes from the Department of Government Efficiency. Led by Trump adviser Elon Musk, DOGE has started posting online a list of cancelled contracts and leases . One of the listed real estate actions is for the Risk Management Agency office in Topeka.

The DOGE website lists that office as having 5,560 square feet with an annual lease cost of about $122,000. It claims a total savings of nearly $1 million. The DOGE website states that the agency has closed the office.

USDA had maintained a Topeka regional office of the Risk Management Agency at 2641 S.W. Wanamaker Road, Suite 201. That space is in the same building as The University of Kansas Health System urgent care, which records show is owned by Klausman, a local developer.

"They had about 5,500 square feet for the past 10 years or so," Klausman told The Capital-Journal. "And since the pandemic, they had nobody in the office for the last three years. Not one person. So, I think it's a clear example of the government waste that's going on."

"They wanted to renew the lease two years ago for an additional 10 years, and I told them, why?" he added. "Why are you wanting to renew this lease when there's nobody in your office? There was nobody in there. Not one person was in that office.

"So, I had to talk them into just doing a two-year lease because I thought it was a huge waste of money."