Congressional Republicans said they will push for federal agencies' remote work policies to be scaled back to what was allowed before the pandemic as American taxpayers foot the bill for government office space that remains largely vacant.
Republicans in Congress said legislation is needed to ensure federal teleworking rules are updated to ensure this happens, according to a new report.
Democrat lawmakers, on the other hand, defended the remote work policies, saying telework acts as a tool that can offer workers and agencies flexibility to fulfill their missions.
GOP lawmakers on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform published their findings on Wednesday ahead of a committee hearing.
Just weeks into the new session, and with control of both chambers of Congress, Republicans on Capitol Hill said they want an about-face on federal teleworking policies. And with President-elect Donald Trump set to occupy the Oval Office once again, how he and his administration work to direct back-to-work policies could have ripple effects on commercial real estate in Washington, D.C.
More than 2 million civilian employees work for federal agencies, according to the Office of Management and Budget. An August report from the group found that, as of May, 54% worked fully on-site, as their jobs require them to be physically present during all working hours. Another 10% of civilian personnel were in remote positions without the expectation they work in person on a regular or recurring basis, according to OMB.
In their report, Republican lawmakers expressed disagreement and displeasure with how the Biden-Harris administration handled remote work.
Wasting taxpayer money
“The lights may be on in federal buildings, but too many federal bureaucrats continue to work from home,” Rep. James Comer, a Republican from Kentucky and the committee’s chairman, said in a statement. “Taxpayer money is being wasted to lease and maintain all that expensive, empty office space. The resulting lack of foot traffic in the city is also economically devastating for the District,” he said during the hearing.
In the GOP report, lawmakers suggested introducing and enacting a new version of the SHOW UP Act, a bill that passed the House but failed to make it out of the Senate during the last Congress. If that last version had become law, it would have reinstated telework policies and practices of agencies that were in effect on Dec. 31, 2019.
Because the bill failed, Republicans would have to start the legislative process again during this session.
Meanwhile, others on Capitol Hill are also taking action to address federal teleworking.
This month, Republican Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa introduced a trio of bills, including one that would result in the relocation of federal agency headquarters outside of the nation’s capital. Another would require agencies to track and report computer usage for teleworking and in-office employees.
Ernst is a leader of the DOGE Caucus, the partnership between Trump's Department of Government Efficiency and Congress. The caucus released its platform to cut government spending earlier this week.
Democrats pushed back against the latest GOP report. They argued that telework has allowed federal agencies to consolidate office space and reduce rental or other building costs.
“In many cases telework helps agencies get the job done and save money,” Virginia Rep. Gerry Connolly, the committee’s top Democrat, said in a statement. “That is what we should care about—performance and the bottom line.”