Sen. Joni Ernst, Republican of Iowa, on Tuesday introduced a series of bills aimed at relocating more than a quarter of the federal bureaucracy out of the Washington, D.C., area and addressing remote work issues.
This set of bills includes the “An Act to Decentralize and Reorganize Government Infrastructure Nationwide to Take Advantage of Efficient Services, Workforce Management, and Administrative Practices (DRAIN THE SWAMP Act).'' , and a bill known as “Requiring Effective Management and Oversight of Telework Employees.'' Act (REMOTE Act) and a bill called the Strategic Exit of Agencies for Meaningful Placement (SWAMP) Act. Ernst told the Daily Caller News Foundation that the package would save billions of dollars while improving services to Americans and addressing overuse of telework. (Related: 'Drain the swamp': Senator proposes bill to evict vast federal bureaucracy from Washington, D.C.)
Ernst introduced versions of these bills during the 118th Congress, but the bills died when Congress adjourned on Friday.
My report exposed rampant telework abuses in Washington and across the country.@DOGE And I'm going to give bureaucrats a simple choice: go back to work or get fired. #Make M Squeal pic.twitter.com/DfwlT2w3HR
— Joni Ernst (@SenJoniErnst) January 2, 2025
“In the first week of Republican control of Congress, I am already committed to my top priorities of draining the quagmire, saving taxpayers' money, and reducing federal workers to American citizens,” Ernst told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “We are working hard to bring it back to service.” . “While DOGE prepares for a deep clean, I will be leading a fight in the Senate to disrupt business-as-usual bureaucrats who have spent the past four years out of office.Federal employees are clearly in Washington, D.C. They have shown that they don't want to work, and I will make their dreams come true.”
The DRAIN THE SWAMP Act requires most government agencies to “promote geographic diversity, including considerations for local markets” when relocating employees from the D.C. region, and “to promote in-person customer service.” “to ensure appropriate staffing throughout each administrative region.” The exceptions are fewer than 10 agencies, mostly involved in national security, such as the Department of Defense, Central Intelligence Agency, Department of Homeland Security, and Department of Energy.
The SWAMP Act would move the headquarters of several government agencies outside of Washington, D.C., with the exception of fewer than 10 agencies, the majority of which are involved in national security or foreign policy.
The Remote Act addresses the issue of telework for government employees, which Ernst previously flagged in a 60-page report published Dec. 5. In August 2023, Ernst sent a letter to 24 government agencies regarding remote work abuses, citing one of them. report One article revealed that a Department of Veterans Affairs employee attended a staff meeting while taking a bubble bath, and another found that government employees were “playing golf with tax dollars.” (Related: Joni Ernst releases scathing report on federal telework as Musk and Ramaswamy visit Capitol Hill)
My New Year's resolution for 2025 is to make Washington a permanent Congress.
It's time to cut $2 trillion in excess waste @DOGE.
— Joni Ernst (@SenJoniErnst) January 2, 2025
Mr. Ernst's previous research on telecommuting for federal employees has included local benefits and adjustments to base pay for federal civilian employees aimed at ensuring that federal employees are compensated on a par with their private sector counterparts. The detailed issues caused by remote work were investigated in detail. certain regions of the country.
In another case Ernst cited, a U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) employee received local benefits for the Washington, D.C., area despite living in Florida full-time. The employee resigned before the investigation was completed; According to Summary posted on the USAID Inspector General's site on April 30th.
President-elect Donald Trump recently said He said remote federal employees who don't want to return to the office will be “fired” by the next administration. Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, the newly appointed heads of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), also pledged to push for mandatory reinstatement policies across the federal government.
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