U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) introduced a new measure on Thursday that would force the end of remote work in the federal government and demand accountability for agencies allegedly abusing telework provisions at taxpayer expense. The Senate DOGE Caucus Chair introduced the DRAIN THE SWAMP Act exactly a week after proposing the Returning SBA to Main Street Act – both of which aim to reduce inefficiency in Washington’s bureaucracies and improve government services for Americans.
The move follows a months-long probe into the whereabouts of the federal workforce in Washington D.C., the results of which were published in a bombshell report titled “Out of Office.”
“My investigations have exposed how bureaucrats have been doing just about everything besides their job during the workday,” Ernst said in a Thursday statement following the release of the bill. “Instead of keeping them bogged down in the swamp, I’m working to get bureaucrats beyond the D.C. beltway to remind public servants who they work for.”
Ernst’s DRAIN THE SWAMP Act proposes relocating at least 30 percent of Washington’s federal workforce and requires the rest to return to the office full-time. The bill also seeks to sell off unused office spaces, which Ernst argues are costing taxpayers unnecessary money.
In August 2023, Ernst called for inquiries into 24 federal departments and agencies to assess how telework was affecting services. Subsequent findings revealed widespread under- and unused federal office spaces.
Following Ernst’s scrutiny, the General Services Administration (GSA) proposed shuttering 3.5 million square feet of office space. The closures are projected to save taxpayers over $1 billion over 10 years.
“Federal employees have shown they don’t want to work in Washington, and in the Christmas spirit, I am making their wish come true. Instead of keeping them bogged down in the swamp, I’m working to get bureaucrats beyond the D.C. beltway to remind public servants who they work for,” Ernst said Thursday. “In addition to improving government service for all Americans, we can give taxpayers an extra Christmas gift by selling off unused and expensive office buildings.”
The initial investigation results were revealed by the Iowa senator in a “Naughty List” in early December 2023 that listed the departments’ “space utilization.”
Nearly four years after COVID-19 led to the closure of federal buildings, none of the government agencies examined is using even half of their allocated office space. Among the worst performers are the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Social Security Administration, which are using only 7 percent of their office space, the report said.
While the DRAIN THE SWAMP Act targets federal agencies in Washington, the Returning SBA to Main Street Act focuses on the Small Business Administration (SBA), and would mandate the relocation of more than a third of SBA employees out of the D.C. area.
Telework’s Toll on Taxpayers
In a 2023 floor speech, Ernst highlighted the negative impacts of telework, pointing to the backlog of veterans’ calls for mental health services, long wait times for passport services at the State Department, and delayed responses at the Social Security Administration.
In particular, Ernst called attention to the poor service provided to veterans by the VA, citing a case where a manager, responsible for overseeing veterans’ appointments, was caught participating in a meeting while lounging in a bubble bath and posting selfies online.
She said:
A manager of a VA medical center responsible for overseeing the scheduling of veterans’ care appointments actually, and get this, folks, this is no joke. An overseer for scheduling veterans’ care appointments called in to a meeting from a bubble bath—and even posted a selfie of it on social media with the caption, “my office for the next hour.”
Another VA staffer lamented, “It’s almost as if this employee is making a mockery of all veterans. I can sit here in my tub and relax, and you just have to wait.”
And that is exactly what is happening.
The VA is still providing misleading wait times to hide the problem, but the heartbreaking stories of veterans continuing to go without urgent, medically-necessary care—sometimes for months—tells the whole story.
“Taxpayers are also picking up the cost of maintaining mostly empty buildings in Washington,” Ernst noted, referring to reports that as much as 93 percent of federal office space for some agencies remain unoccupied.
“The vacant offices beg the question: Where are all of the federal employees?”
The DOGE Caucus Chair noted that over 281,000 federal workers had their work locations redacted in response to a Freedom of Information Act request, raising concerns that many employees may not be fulfilling their duties. In turn, Ernst called for a review of location-based salaries for federal employees who continue to work remotely or have relocated outside the District.
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Christina Botteri is the Executive Editor at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network.
Image “Sen Joni Ernst” by Sen. Joni Ernst.
