In the fall of 2023, the Biden Administration encouraged cabinet secretaries to ramp up the required in-office time for workers. This January, the goal was for more than 400,000 federal employees to be required to be in the office for two or three days per week. The move to more in-person time varies widely across government, with DoD and Intelligence agencies leading the way due to the sensitive nature of their work. When not required due to the nature of the work, the push for in-person staffing in civilian agencies is driven by the desire for tangible and intangible benefits. Policies across defense and civilian agencies are being helpfully tracked by Federal News Network.

Better Use of Office Space

The Government Accountability Office found that, on average, 17 federal agencies use 25% or less of their headquarters office space. This raised calls for setting benchmarks for federal office space utilization, though what that benchmark should be, is up for debate. One line was drawn in the sand with The Utilizing Space Efficiently and Improving Technologies (USE IT) Act, requiring all government office buildings to be at least 60 percent occupied. While it passed the House, additional debate will take place over appropriate occupancy and usage measurements. In the meantime, the White House has proposed devoting $425 million next year to create a real estate optimization program to reorient federal buildings around current space needs and expedite disposal of unneeded buildings. Reimagining how the government uses space impacts how the federal workforce will work. Continue reading →